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Ukraine Dismisses Reports on Bolstering Troops Near Belarus

A serviceman of 24th Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces loads a shell inside a 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer during fire towards Russian troops on a front line, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the town of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 30, 2024. Oleg Petrasiuk/Press Service of the 24th King Danylo Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS
A serviceman of 24th Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces loads a shell inside a 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer during fire towards Russian troops on a front line, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the town of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 30, 2024. Oleg Petrasiuk/Press Service of the 24th King Danylo Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS
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Ukraine Dismisses Reports on Bolstering Troops Near Belarus

A serviceman of 24th Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces loads a shell inside a 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer during fire towards Russian troops on a front line, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the town of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 30, 2024. Oleg Petrasiuk/Press Service of the 24th King Danylo Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS
A serviceman of 24th Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces loads a shell inside a 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer during fire towards Russian troops on a front line, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the town of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 30, 2024. Oleg Petrasiuk/Press Service of the 24th King Danylo Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS

Ukraine's border guards dismissed claims from Belarus that it was reinforcing troops on their mutual border, describing the reports as an information operation from Minsk with Moscow's support.
Belarus, a close Russian ally that has provided support for Moscow's 28-month full-scale war in Ukraine, said last week that Kyiv was bolstering its forces along the frontier. According to Reuters, the Kremlin said on Monday the report was a cause of concern.
"It is not the first time Belarus offers information about Ukraine presenting a threat and strengthening itself," border guard spokesman Andriy Demchenko told Ukrainian TV. "This is another part of the information operation conducted by Belarus with support by Russia."
He said the border remained a concern, and Ukraine was strengthening it with engineering while maintaining the necessary number of troops to prevent any provocations.
He also said that Belarus had been conducting military exercises since June 21, and that blaming Ukraine for friction at the border could be aligned with those drills.
On Sunday, the Belarus Defense Ministry claimed it had information showing Ukraine had been moving troops, weapons, and military equipment to the border, in particular in Zhytomyr region.
Minsk also said its own forces had deployed additional air defenses to protect the border area from drones, after claiming to have shot down a Ukrainian quadcopter earlier last week.

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Keir Starmer Officially Takes Power as British PM after Landslide Victory

King Charles III officially appointed Keir Starmer as prime minister on Friday during an audience at Buckingham Palace - AFP
King Charles III officially appointed Keir Starmer as prime minister on Friday during an audience at Buckingham Palace - AFP
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Keir Starmer Officially Takes Power as British PM after Landslide Victory

King Charles III officially appointed Keir Starmer as prime minister on Friday during an audience at Buckingham Palace - AFP
King Charles III officially appointed Keir Starmer as prime minister on Friday during an audience at Buckingham Palace - AFP

Britain's head of state King Charles III officially appointed Keir Starmer as prime minister on Friday during an audience at Buckingham Palace, a few hours after his Labour party swept to power.

Labour leader Keir Starmer officially became British prime minister on Friday hours after his Labour Party swept to power in a landslide victory after more than a decade in opposition, AFP reported.

Starmer was elevated to the nation's leader after a private ceremony with King Charles III in Buckingham Palace.

In the merciless choreography of British politics, Starmer is taking charge in 10 Downing St. shortly after Conservative leader Rishi Sunak and his family left the official residence and King Charles III accepted his resignation at Buckingham Palace.

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“This is a difficult day, but I leave this job honored to have been prime minister of the best country in the world,” Sunak said in his farewell address.

Sunak had conceded defeat earlier in the morning, saying the voters had delivered a “sobering verdict.”

In a reflective farewell speech in the same place where he had called for the snap election six weeks earlier, Sunak wished Starmer all the best but also acknowledged his missteps.

“I have heard your anger, your disappointment, and I take responsibility for this loss,” Sunak said. "To all the Conservative candidates and campaigners who worked tirelessly but without success, I’m sorry that we could not deliver what your efforts deserved.”

With almost all the results in, Labour had won 410 seats in the 650-seat House of Commons and the Conservatives 118.”

Speaking as dawn broke in London, he said Labour would offer “the sunlight of hope, pale at first but getting stronger through the day.”

For Starmer, it's a massive triumph that will bring huge challenges, as he faces a weary electorate impatient for change against a gloomy backdrop of economic malaise, mounting distrust in institutions and a fraying social fabric.

“Nothing has gone well in the last 14 years,” said London voter James Erskine, who was optimistic for change in the hours before polls closed. “I just see this as the potential for a seismic shift, and that’s what I’m hoping for.”

And that's what Starmer promised, saying “change begins now."

Anand Menon, professor of European Politics and Foreign Affairs at King’s College London, said British voters were about to see a marked change in political atmosphere from the tumultuous “politics as pantomime” of the last few years.

“I think we’re going to have to get used again to relatively stable government, with ministers staying in power for quite a long time, and with government being able to think beyond the very short term to medium-term objectives,” he said.

Britain has experienced a run of turbulent years – some of it of the Conservatives’ own making and some of it not – that has left many voters pessimistic about their country’s future. The UK divorce from the European Union followed by the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine battered the economy, while lockdown-breaching parties held by then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his staff caused widespread anger.

Rising poverty, crumbling infrastructure and overstretched National Health Service have led to gripes about “Broken Britain.”