Victoria Azarenka was left bemused and shaking her head after being booed off court at Wimbledon following her three-hour match against Ukrainian rival Elina Svitolina. Svitolina had decided not to shake hands with players from Russia and Belarus, and the crowd booed Azarenka as she left the court without a handshake. Azarenka said the booing was "unfair" and that Svitolina "doesn't want to shake hands with Russian, Belarusian people."
Posts tagged as “Belarussian”
President Joe Biden has arrived in the United Kingdom for the first stop of his three-nation European tour. During his visit, he will meet with King Charles III and Prime Minister Boris Johnson to discuss the war in Ukraine and the U.S.'s moral obligation to provide Ukraine with the necessary resources to protect itself. Biden will then travel to Geneva, Switzerland to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to make it clear that the U.S. will not stand idly by in the face of Russian aggression.
President Joe Biden is in Europe this week for the NATO summit in Lithuania, and has already held a meeting with U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The U.S. and its NATO allies are looking to maintain a unified voice in support of Ukraine, and Biden will also meet with King Charles III to discuss the war and revise plans for dealing with Russian aggression. The trip will conclude in Helsinki, Finland, where Biden will celebrate the expanding alliance with Finland as the newest member of NATO.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Snake Island in the Black Sea to commemorate the 500th day of the war and honor the Ukrainian soldiers who fought for the island. He laid flowers at a memorial and released wreaths onto the water, and said that reclaiming control of the island is a sign that Ukraine will regain its territory. The video serves as a reminder of the 500 days of full-scale war that Ukraine has endured, and of the bravery of its soldiers in the face of the Russian invasion.
The White House has defended the decision, arguing that the munitions will only be used in a limited capacity and will not be used in populated areas, and that the U.S. is not alone in providing Ukraine with military aid. Human rights groups have criticized the decision, citing the weapons' potential for causing significant civilian casualties.
This Friday, the Biden administration is expected to announce a weapons package for Ukraine, which includes cluster bombs. These bombs, which disperse multiple small bombs over a wide area, have been criticized for their potential to cause civilian casualties, and the UN has called for a ban on their use. The package is intended to bolster Ukraine's military in its fight against Russian forces.
The U.S. military has accused Russia of engaging in unsafe and unprofessional behavior towards U.S. Air Force drones over Syria. On Thursday, July 25th, two Russian fighter jets flew dangerously close to Reaper drones carrying out an operation against Islamic State targets. This is the second instance of such behavior in two days and is likely to be a source of tension between the two countries. The U.S. has expressed concern and urged Russia to respect the safety of coalition forces operating in the region.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has claimed that Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner Group, is in Russia and his troops are in their field camps. Footage of Prigozhin's home has been released, showing opulence and a cache of weapons, and the Kremlin has refused to comment on his whereabouts. Ukraine's security service has also claimed that Russian generals supported the Wagner Group during the mutiny, raising questions about the end of the challenge to President Vladimir Putin's rule.