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The Foreign Ministry on June 29 hailed Google Translate’s recent addition of the Crimean Tatar language.
“Thank you to Google for this crucial initiative, which demonstrates that the rich linguistic & cultural heritage of Ukraine’s indigenous people is valuable to the global community,” the Foreign Ministry said on X.
The statement comes a few days after Google announced its “largest expansion” of its free online translation tool, Google Translate, which saw the addition of 110 new languages.
In addition to Crimean Tatar, Google has incorporated 12 languages of ethnic groups in Russia – which include Bashkir, Chechen, Udmurt, and Yakut. Tatar, a language used in the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia, was previously added in 2020.
Google says that the new language additions – which include Cantonese and Punjabi represent over 614 million speakers across the world.
The Ukrainian government has worked to preserve the Crimean Tatar language, endangered due to a declining number of speakers in Ukraine. Mass deportations and waves of repression of Crimean Tatars by both the Russian Empire and Soviet Union largely contributed to the decline.
Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 has worsened the trend. Crimean Tatars in their native peninsula continue to face brutal persecution and deportation by the Russian occupation regime.
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5:33 PM
EU imposes new sanctions against Belarus implementing anti-circumvention measures.
The EU Council also prohibited the direct or indirect imports, purchasing, or transferring of gold and diamonds from Belarus, as well as helium, coal, and mineral products, including crude oil.
4:40 PM
Law enforcement agency to investigate general accused of heavy losses, media reports.
The State Bureau of Investigation will assess Lieutenant General Yurii Sodol’s command of Ukrainian troops during the Russian offensive in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukrainska Pravda reported on June 29.
3:21 PM
‘Tension rises’ at border with Belarus, Minsk accuses Kyiv of deploying troops.
The Ukrainian Security and Defense Council’s Center for Countering Disinformation said in May that Russia may opt to conduct a new psychological operation aimed at “stirring up mass panic” in Ukraine. The plan was to force Kyiv to believe that Belarusian troops would join Russia’s war against Ukraine, according to the center.
1:33 PM
Foreign Ministry hails Google Translate’s addition of Crimean Tatar language.
“Thank you to Google for this crucial initiative, which demonstrates that the rich linguistic & cultural heritage of Ukraine’s indigenous people is valuable to the global community,” Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said on X.
10:44 AM
Governor: Russian attacks kill 4, wound 6 in Donetsk Oblast.
Russia’s recent attack on Niu-York comes as Moscow steps up its offensive on the nearby town of Toretsk. Russian troops have slowly advanced in the area and intensified their attacks against civilians remaining in what has long been a less intense sector of the front line.
10:31 AM
General Staff: Russia has lost 541,560 troops in Ukraine since Feb 24, 2022.
According to the report, Russia has also lost 8,073 tanks, 15,505 armored fighting vehicles, 19,568 vehicles and fuel tanks, 14,480 artillery systems, 1,109 multiple launch rocket systems, 871 air defense systems, 360 airplanes, 326 helicopters, 11,538 drones, 28 ships and boats, and one submarine.
7:27 AM
Air Force: Ukraine downs all 10 Russian drones launched overnight.
Mobile fire groups of the Ukrainian Air Force were involved in repelling the air attacks. The drones were shot down over Mykolaiv, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad, Cherkasy, and Vinnytsia oblasts, the Air Force said.
7:08 AM
Property owned by brothers of Medvedchuk, ex-MP Kozak transferred to Ukrainian state.
A building materials factory owned by the brothers of former pro-Russian Ukrainian lawmakers, Viktor Medvedchuk and Taras Kozak, was officially transferred to the Ukrainian state on June 28, the State Security Service (SBU) announced in a statement.
5:49 AM
Putin calls to resume production of intermediate-range missiles.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called for the country to resume production of short and intermediate-range nuclear-capable missiles on June 28, in response to what Putin says is the United States deploying mid-range missiles across the world.
4:46 AM
Czechia, Ukraine to sign bilateral security agreement on July 18.
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala announced on X that the country will sign a bilateral security agreement with Ukraine during the European Political Community summit in London on July 18.
4:37 AM (Updated: June 29, 2024 3:17 am)
Updated: US to announce $150 million military aid package to Ukraine, including air defense missiles, Reuters reports.
According to Reuters, sources familiar with the matter said that HAWK air defense interceptors will also be included in the aid package that is now expected to be unveiled on July 1.
2:44 AM
Ukraine working to secure ‘guaranteed’ military funding agreement from NATO allies, Deputy PM says.
Ahead of the upcoming NATO summit in Washington, Ukraine is focused on establishing a “guaranteed” military funding commitment from NATO allies, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna said on June 28.
12:46 AM
IMF approves $2.2 billion in funding for Ukraine through Extended Fund Facility
“Ukraine’s performance remains strong under the EFF despite challenging conditions,” a news release from the IMF read. “All quantitative performance criteria for end-March were met, and all structural benchmarks through end-June were implemented on time or with a short delay.”
12:10 AM
Ukraine hits Russian space communications center in occupied Crimea, military says.
A series of explosions was reported in several settlements in Crimea overnight on June 23, including the town of Yevpatoria and the village of Vityne. Neither Ukrainian nor Russian officials commented on the attack. The 40th Separate Command and Measurement Complex is reportedly located there.
10:16 PM
High-profile captives, kept in Russian prisons for years, freed in prisoner swap.
Ukraine has brought back 10 people from Russian captivity, including Crimean Tatar activist Nariman Dzhelial, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on June 28.
7:15 PM
Russia hits nine-story residential building in downtown Dnipro, killing at least 1, injuring 12.
People are trapped in their apartments, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said. He added that one man was rescued from a car covered with debris.
7:11 PM
Lithuanian customs discover scheme to violate sanctions, export cars to Russia.
The EU instituted a ban on the export of all new and used cars above a certain engine size (greater than 1.900 cm³) to Russia in the immediate aftermath of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Life in wartime Kyiv with blackouts
Russia has intensified its attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in recent months, leading to lengthy and almost daily interruptions in electricity supply all over Ukraine. In this video, the Kyiv Independent shows how Kyiv lives amid blackouts in the summertime.
5:24 PM
Vienna has become ‘Russia’s new espionage hub,’ intelligence officials tell WSJ.
“We are now becoming a liability for our neighbors because Russia is using us as an operational base,” an Austrian intelligence official told the Wall Street Journal.
4:18 PM
Spotify removes music by pro-war Russian singers.
The removals impacted the band Lyube and singers Grigory Leps, Oleg Gazmanov, and Shaman, who sang at a concert in Moscow in September 2022 in support of the illegal annexation of Ukrainian territory.
3:34 PM
Ukrainian partisans claim they located air defense system protecting Putin’s dacha in Sochi.
Ukrainian partisans claimed on June 27 that they had located an air defense system covering the skies above Russian President Vladimir Putin’s luxury dacha in Sochi.