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An icy amusement has been carved in Ukraine's Zaporozhye region, right in the middle of the famously wide and picturesque Dnieper River. A team of enthusiasts there have turned the ice covering the river into a functioning merry-go-round.

Called the 'icy carousel' by the local media, the object appeared in Zaporozhye in southeastern Ukraine this week.

Carved by a team of four people, it is located some 50 meters (164ft) into the Dnieper River, which is currently covered with ice 20cm (8in) thick.

The merry-go-round is a round block of ice some 12 meters (40ft) in diameter, with its creators calling it an "art object."

The attraction was inspired by similar winter amusements in Finland, one of the men behind the carousel told local media, as he took to the river, power-saw in hand.

A man in Finland took the internet by storm in January, when he turned a circular block of ice into a carousel, operated by an outboard motor. The amusement ride carved on a lake near his country house became so popular that the inventor decided to make a larger copy of it near Helsinki, using solar power to move the ice.

The daring team in Zaporozhye cut smaller blocks of ice around the main circle. They then put the carousel into action with the help of those bricks, by pushing it with paddles.

Saying that the icy block estimated to weigh around 2 tons (4,000lbs) simply cannot sink, they've invited everyone to take a ride.

Five meters (16ft) of freezing water beneath the carousel is nothing to be worried about either, they suggest.

Meanwhile, local emergency services have said the ride is "dangerous" and asked people not to take risks by giving it a try, Zaporozhye's 061.ua news reported.

According to emergency officials, the ice is not thick enough to hold many people. They've also warned that because the ice on the river had been carved, cracks might appear, making it "even more dangerous."

Having reminded the locals that they don't live in Scandinavian countries with colder climates, officials said temperatures above zero degrees Celsius are expected in the region, and warned people to stay away from the shaky amusement.

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Icy carousel: Merry-go-round carved on frozen river in Ukraine (VIDEO) - RT

According to the head of the trade section of the European Commission's delegation to Ukraine, the country risks damaging relations with the EU over Internet piracy. Nicholas Burge says that legal action against the operators of pirate sites must be supported by ISPs bearing responsibility for hosting them.

Despite its proximity to European countries with strong intellectual property laws, Ukraine tends to fall behind when it comes to online piracy.

As a result, the site has played host to a wide range of prominent sites over the years, not least The Pirate Bay and ExtraTorrent.

As a result of its lax approach, Ukraine has been criticized on many occasions by the United States, particularly by the USTR who regularly brands the country as a piracy haven. This week it was the European Commissions time to chime in.

In an interview with Ukrainian news outlet Unian, Nicholas Burge, head of the trade section of the European Commissions delegation to Ukraine, expressed his opinions on where the country needs to improve.

There should be a law that would provide a major responsibility for the contents of pirate sites. We will only believe in Ukraines serious intentions to fight pirate sites when there are penalties for those involved in supporting them, he said.

Given moves underway in both the US and EU that could affect safe harbors for Internet service providers and hosting platforms, its no surprise that Burge wants Ukraine to take a firmer line with those present in Ukraine, especially those playing host to pirate sites.

Internet service providers should also bear some legal responsibility for what they do. Otherwise, putting an end to online piracy will be impossible, he said.

The EU representative said that this would have been possible under recent draft legislation designed to protect the film industry, but the amendments were vetoed by the President and never put into place.

We urge Parliament to consider and adopt appropriate amendments to the law as soon as possible, Burge said.

While Ukraine isnt known for taking a hard line against pirate sites, it would be wrong to suggest it does nothing at all. Only recently, Ukrainian police acted on a complaint from the MPAA to close down FS.to, one of the countrys largest pirate sites. Sixty servers were seized and 19 people arrested. However, Burge believes more needs to be done.

One site was closed and another appeared. This is a battle that is constantly going on, he said.

According to comments made to Unian, Burge said that by neglecting intellectual property rights, Ukraine is not fulfilling its obligations under the Association Agreement with the EU and risks damaging relationships with the economic and political union.

In case of default, the Agreement provides for appropriate mechanisms to deal with such situations within our relationships, Burge said.

In addition to new criticism from the EU, Ukraine already faces annual complaints from the United States Trade Representative. In its latest Special 301 Report, the USTR kept Ukraine on its Priority List, meaning the country must make significant improvements if it is to meet US standards for IP protection.

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EU Representative: Ukraine Must Tighten Noose on Internet Pirates - TorrentFreak

There is no excuse for the recent barbaric attack on Donetsk, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said, adding that Kiev broke all moral norms in attacking civilians during the night with Grad missiles.

In the early hours of February 3, Donetsk was heavily bombarded by the Ukrainian military, Zakharova said.

The citys residential areas were shelled dozens of times with heavy guns, including Uragan and Grad multiple rocket launchers. As a result, several civilians were killed and many children among them suffered wounds, the Russian diplomat stated Friday during a press briefing, as quotedby Interfax.

This barbaric attack cannot be justified. By its actions, Kiev has violated not only the Geneva Convention for the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, dated August 12, 1949, but has also broken all moral norms, the Russian diplomat said.

Only barbarians can bombard a sleeping city and kill innocent people. We have no other name for those who carried out this attack, she added.

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Zakharova also pointed out the Ukrainian governments inappropriate response to the shelling, saying Kiev is not only unwilling to accept responsibility for what happened but is bragging about its militarys actions in Donbass.

The delivery of strikes by heavy artillery is this how Kiev shows off the unity of its country and the people? Kiev is not only expressing no concern over the escalation of the crisis, but without any compunction shows off its actions in Donbass, using the UN Security Council venue for this, Zakharova said.

She said that Moscow is also highly concerned about the shelling of journalists in the Donbass region by Ukrainian units. This is a gross violation of norms and standards of international law, Zakharova emphasized.

We are profoundly concerned about the safety of journalists in the region. On January 31, reporters of the NTV network, RT stringers and a cameraman of the Life! broadcaster came under artillery fire from the Ukrainian armed forces in Donetsks Kiev district.

We regard this incident as a gross violation of norms and standards of international humanitarian law, the diplomat said.

Russias top federal investigative agency launched a criminal case into the deaths of civilians in Donetsk as a result of shelling by Ukrainian government forces on February 1-3, Investigative Committee acting chief spokesman Svetlana Petrenko saidon Friday.

According to investigators, the Ukrainian military, acting on the orders of senior commanders and officials from the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, conducted heavy artillery attacks on several residential areas of the city of Donetsk and the suburban towns of Yasinovataya and Makeyevka on February 1, 2, and 3 this year.

Three civilians died and 15 were wounded as a result of the shelling. The attacks also damaged at least 60 residential buildings and civilian infrastructure facilities.

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Kiev's 'barbaric' attack on Donetsk in E. Ukraine violates Geneva convention Russia - RT

The new U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, on Thursday blamed Russia for renewed, deadly fighting in Ukraine and said U.S. sanctions against Moscow would remain in place.

Haley's comments at her first formal appearance atthe U.N. Security Council were striking because, as a candidate, President Trump had suggested he would be willing to ease sanctions on Russia.

During the campaign, Trump did not criticize President Vladimir Putin for Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014 or its support for armed insurgents in eastern Ukraine.

Trump suggested at one point he might be willing to recognize Crimea as part of Russia and hinted he would consider lifting sanctions that Washington and its European allies had imposed on Moscow in response.

Trump's position on Ukraine has alarmed Europe, which fears an increasingly aggressive Russia, and was disputed by some of his Cabinet picks during their Senate confirmation hearings.

Among them was Haley, a former governor of South Carolina who is considered a rising star in the GOP.

"We do want to better our relations with Russia," Haley said Thursday at the U.N. "However,the dire situation in eastern Ukraineis one that demands clear and strong condemnation of Russian actions."

She cited suffering by the people of Ukraine after "nearly three years of Russian occupation and intervention."

Sanctions will remain in place "until Russia and the separatists it supports respect Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity," she added.

Renewed fighting in eastern Ukraine has killed dozens of people, including civilians, and spawned a humanitarian crisis as electricity, water and food have become scarce in some areas inthe dead of winter.

The White House has not commented on the fighting in Ukraine.

A State Department statement earlier this week condemned a "dramatic" surge in violence in eastern Ukraine, citing violations of a cease-fire with heavy artillery. But it did not mention Russia.

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UN Ambassador Nikki Haley blames Russia for new fighting in Ukraine - Los Angeles Times

Jewish identity in Ukraine is under threat and in danger of disappearing completely, Eduard Dolinsky, executive director of the Ukrainian Jewish Committee, told an Israeli newspaper.

Dolinsky voiced his concerns to the Jerusalem Post while on a four-day trip to Israel sponsored by the Israeli-Jewish Congress, which promotes ties between Israelis and European Jews. He was accompanied by MP and leader of the Ukrainian Jewish Committee, Olexander Feldman.

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The Ukrainian Jewish community is in crisis, Dolinsky told the newspaper on Tuesday. Either we should decide that the last one turns off the light, or we need to continue our struggle.

Dolinsky cited both the economic crisis in Ukraine and the war in its eastern provinces as threats to Ukrainian Jewry, and warned about the far-right, ultra-nationalist and anti-Semitic groups which have become prevalent after the violent Euromaidan revolution in 2014.

Ukrainian nationalists marched through Kiev on New Years Day, chanting anti-Semitic slogans such as Juden raus! (Jews out! in German), Dolinsky said. It was guarded by hundreds of police... but after the march police told journalists they hadnt seen any anti-Semitic incidents.

During the torchlight procession, activists held up portraits of Stepan Bandera. Bandera was the leader of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), which collaborated with Nazi forces during World War II and carried out mass ethnic cleansing of Poles and Jews. The Polish government considers the crimes committed by OUN-UPA against Poles during WWII to be genocide, but Bandera is considered a hero among Ukrainian nationalists for fighting against Soviet rule.

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Relations between Ukraine and Israel are frosty at the moment, as Ukraine recently used its vote in the UN Security Council to help pass Resolution 2334, which calls for an end to Israeli settlements in occupied territory.

In a phone conversation on Wednesday, however, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to intensify cooperation on economic and national security measures. Dolinsky called on Israel to do more to help Ukrainian Jews.

There is a feeling of a lack of support from Israel, though we are very pro-Israel, he said, adding that most Ukrainian Jews have strong family ties to Israel.

During the early 1990s, hundreds of thousands of Jews immigrated to Israel from Russia, Ukraine, and other former Soviet republics under the Law of Return, and now form around a fifth of the Israeli population.

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'Lights going out on Jewish community in Ukraine' Ukrainian Jewish Committee head - RT