Russian plans to consolidate control over the occupied Kherson region are doomed to fail, according to the Ukrainian leadership. Security Council Secretary of Ukraine Oleksiy Danilov described a planned referendum in Kherson as “legally and internationally meaningless”. The referendum with which the Russian occupiers wanted to proclaim a “People’s Republic of Cherson” is a “classic” with which Russia wants to legalize its actions.
President Zelenskyy also accused Russia of orchestrating a referendum and urged Kherson citizens to protect their personal data from attempts to falsify votes. “This is the reality. Be careful,” he warned, addressing the residents directly. Peninsula.
The introduction of the Russian ruble as a means of payment in the occupied territories is also “classical Russian practice”, Danilov said, according to the Unian news agency. These efforts on the Russian side would not lead to success. “They will try to introduce a currency or pseudo-currency to these areas for some time,” Danilov said. But given the expected resistance from citizens, this will be “very short”.
Residents of Kherson in early March
Source: AP/Olexandr Chornyi
In the first weeks after the Russian invasion, thousands of people gathered daily in Kherson’s main square, draped in Ukrainian flags and holding signs that read: “This is Ukraine.” Demonstrations are now held weekly. Last Wednesday, Russian soldiers used tear gas and stun grenades against protesters.
When Russian forces withdrew from the occupied areas around the capital Kiev in early April, they left scenes of horror and traumatized communities in their wake. But in Kherson, a large city with a sizable shipbuilding industry at the mouth of the Dnieper and the Black Sea, the invaders took a different tack. Residents believe the Russians have not besieged the city or terrorized it in the most brutal way because they plan to hold a referendum on creating a “people’s republic”.
Source: WORLD Infographic
“Soldiers are patrolling and walking slowly. They don’t shoot people in the streets,” Olga, a local teacher, said in a telephone interview in March after the region was cordoned off by the Russians. Fearing retribution, she just wanted to use her first name.
Although the city has so far been spared atrocities such as those at Bucha and Mariupol, everyday life is anything but normal. All access to Kherson is blocked, and the city suffers from a lack of medicine, food and money in abundance. Ukrainian authorities warn that a catastrophe could be imminent. Ukrainian television can no longer be received and has been replaced by Russian state channels. Strict exit restrictions were also imposed.
General Staff reports break in Russian ground offensive
According to Ukrainian information, the Russian military temporarily suspended its ground attacks in eastern Ukraine on Friday night. “In the direction of Izyum (the enemy) did not take any active offensive action,” the Ukrainian General Staff said in its morning situation report.
Russian forces therefore limited their activities to reconnaissance and artillery fire. the area around Izyum in the area of Kharkov was the main focus of Russian troops in recent days. As they advanced south, Ukrainian forces in the Donbass region would be surrounded.
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According to the General Staff, the Ukrainian army was also mainly limited to defensive work. 15 flying objects were shot down during the night: in addition to a plane, five cruise missiles and nine drones.
Things also remained relatively calm on other sections of the front. The Ukrainian general staff also reported artillery fire in Donetsk, but there were no further assault attempts. Inside Mariupol units stuck at the Azov steelworks would be blocked further, it is said. According to Ukrajinska Pravda, the field hospital installed there was attacked and at least one soldier was killed.
Moscow confirms attack on Kiev
Russia, in turn, confirmed the Ukrainian capital Kiev shot during the visit of the UN Secretary General, António Guterres. “High-precision, long-range air weapons of the Russian Air Force forces destroyed the production buildings of the missile and space company Artiom in Kiev,” the Defense Ministry in Moscow said. According to Ukraine, one person was killed in the attack on Thursday. It was the first Russian attack on Kiev in nearly two weeks.
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A spokesman for Guterres said he was “shocked” by the attack. Guterres met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday. He then traveled to Ukraine, where on Thursday he also visited several Kiev suburbs where, according to Ukrainian sources, Russian soldiers had committed war crimes.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych called the rocket attacks in Kiev during Guterres’ visit “the dumbest thing ever”. “How should the UN chief or the UN react to this?” said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s adviser. “They (the Russians) just spit on his back, so juicy, with blood.”
“For a cruise missile, the distance between the point of impact and Guterres’ whereabouts is approximately the same as two millimeters for a pistol. So the shot missed his temple, ”said Arestovych, according to the Unian agency. Russia will certainly continue to be a member of the UN Security Council.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy with Antonio Guterres on their date in Kiev
Source: dpa/uncredited
The bombing came an hour after a press conference by Guterres and Zelenskyy. The UN Secretary-General said Ukraine had become an “epicenter of unbearable suffering and pain”. Guterres and his team are safe, the UN said.
“I was shocked to learn that two rockets exploded in the town where I am staying,” Guterres later told the British broadcaster BBC.
After an explosion in Kiev, rescue workers are on duty
Source: dpa/Emílio Morenatti
Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Thursday night that the Shevchenkivskyi district in the northwest of the capital had been hit. The attack was one of the most violent since the withdrawal of Russian troops in early April. Meanwhile, more and more residents are returning to Kiev. Cafes and shops reopened and people were enjoying the spring weather outdoors.
Russian military leadership this week threatened to attack the Ukrainian capital, even though foreign politicians were visiting there.
Kiev and Sofia agree on cooperation
Meanwhile, Ukraine and Bulgaria agreed to close military and economic cooperation. The announcement was made by Zelenskyy on Thursday night, after a meeting with Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov. Among other things, damaged Ukrainian military equipment must be repaired in Bulgaria.
“Another issue we agreed on is the supply of Ukrainian electricity to Bulgaria and the use of the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline along the Bulgarian side,” Zelenskyy said. The day before, Russia had stopped supplying natural gas to Bulgaria because of an alleged non-payment.
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In addition, Zelenskyy and Petkov agreed to use the Bulgarian port of Varna on the Black Sea for the export of agricultural products from Ukraine. With Russia controlling or blocking all Ukrainian ports, Kiev is forced to seek alternative routes.
A heated argument in Sofia preceded Petkov’s trip to Kiev. Head of State Rumen Radew, considered a friend of Moscow, opposed the visit, and the co-ruling Socialists also refused to join the delegation.
Thousands of refugees are returning to Ukraine – including from Germany
Despite the ongoing war in Ukraine, more and more refugees are returning to the country. About 20,000 Ukrainians are returning from Poland to their home country every day, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) told RTL and n-tv channels on Friday. Among them are refugees who had previously stayed in Germany. Currently, only around 2,000 new arrivals from Ukraine are registered in Germany every day. In March there were 15,000.
With a view to the return movement, Faeser said: “It scares you, given the terrible photos in Ukraine.”
Source: WELT/Anna Wagner infographic
According to the Federal Police, 389,389 refugees from Ukraine had been registered in Germany as of Friday. However, the actual number of arrivals is likely to be significantly higher, as not all are recorded.
Registrations are being delayed because they are also a prerequisite for receiving social benefits, Faeser said. “We’re putting a lot of pressure right now for photos and fingerprints to capture who’s here.”
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