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Russian political activist, Yuri Alekseyev, moved to a remote region of Armenia in May 2022, shortly after Russia launched its so-called "special operation" in Ukraine.
"As soon as the war started, I hung a 'No to War' banner near my house. I was immediately arrested. They gave me 15 days in jail. I served my time,” he said.
Occasionally, the lawyer and programmer by profession leave his hut in the mountains to travel some 200 kilometres to the Armenian capital, Yerevan, where he protests against Vladimir Putin outside the Russian embassy.
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NATO member states need to urgently step up the delivery of ammunition and weapons to Ukraine, the US-led alliance’s secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, said on Thursday.
“The Ukrainians are not running out of courage, they are running out of ammunition. Together, we have the capacity to provide Ukraine what it needs, now we need to show the political will to do so,” he said.
Presenting the annual report at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Stoltenberg added that all the alliance’s allies needed “to dig deep and deliver quickly.”
“Every day of delay has real consequences on the battlefield in Ukraine. So this is a critical moment, and it would be a great historic mistake to allow Putin to prevail," he said.
More than two years after Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine’s military has been grappling recently with significantly reduced weapon supplies from the West.
In February, the Institute for the Study of War said delays in Western assistance were "likely helping" Russia's offensive, adding that "critical shortages" of ammo and equipment had allowed Moscow to launch offensive operations.
“We have the capacity, the economies, to be able to provide Ukraine what they need. This is a question of political will. To take the decisions and to prioritise support for Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said.
The United States earlier this week announced a new €276 million weapons package for Ukraine, but a further €55 billion in funding remains stalled by Republicans in Congress.
On Wednesday, European Union countries agreed to provide €5 billion for military aid to Ukraine as part of a revamp of an EU-run assistance fund.
Reacting to the upcoming elections in Russia, Stoltenberg said the vote would not bring any change in the Kremlin.
"Free and fair elections are core to any democracy, and elections in Russia will not be free and fair. Because we know already that opposition politicians are in jail, some are killed and many are in exile,” he said.
Stoltenberg added that any elections held in occupied regions of Ukraine were “completely illegal, violating international law.”
Russians go to the polls from Friday through to Sunday, but voting has already begun in the occupied Ukrainian regions.
The UEFA European Championship 2024 is just around the corner, and it's Germany's turn to host the international tournament.
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Germany is home to the Bundesliga, which is considered one of the top five leagues in the world. The teams in Bundesliga 1 and 2 play in world-class arenas that are ready to showcase the footballing extravaganza that is the EUROS.
Ten magnificent stadiums await fans ahead of the tournament, including the Allianz Arena, which is no stranger to the tournament and hosted vital matches in 2012 and 2020
Additionally, Olympiastadion Berlin will host the EURO 2024 final. The 71,000-seat stadium previously hosted the 2015 Champions League final between Barcelona and Juventus.
Germany has suffered a significant lack of form in international competitions over the last few years. Fans questioned the leadership and quality loss of their national team due to back-to-back World Cup Group Stage exits, and a Round of 16 loss against England in the last edition of the competition were some of the lowest points in German football's history. The hosts and fans alike will be hoping they can bounce back from international tournament heartbreak.
Raphael Honigstein, a German football writer for The Athletic, told FOOTBALL NOW, "There's still optimism, but there will be more optimism if the next couple of friendlies go well… the next two games in March are really key to shape the mood going into the Euros."
Julian Nagelsmann will lead Die Mannschaft out this summer. The international manager has a strong pedigree and previously managed Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig, most notably guiding them to a Champions League Semi-Final in 2020.
An exciting summer awaits football fans worldwide, with an endless list of top players ready to write their names in the history books of European football.