May 17, 2023 20:31
The G7 will impose new sanctions on Russia
The G7 will target new sanctions in their final communiqué with Russia. This was stated by US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
May 17, 2023 6:32 p.m
Kiev: “Russians attacked Sumy with Iranian drones”
Russian forces have attacked the town of Okhtyrka in the Sumy region using Shahed drones. This was stated by Volodymyr Artyukh, head of the military administration of the north-eastern region of Ukraine, quoted by RBC Ukraine. “Just 30 minutes ago I was informed that the town of Okhtyrka was attacked by a shahed. The consequences are being studied,” Artyukh said.
May 17, 2023 5:50 p.m
Kyiv to Chinese envoy: “Respect territorial integrity”
Kiev considers China’s “participation” in the peace effort to be “important,” Ukraine’s foreign minister told Chinese envoy Li Hui, who arrived in the country today. Kuleba stressed to the Beijing envoy the need to respect Ukraine’s “territorial integrity” while praising China’s “important” role. In Kiev, the Ukrainian minister “explained in detail to the Chinese special envoy the principles of restoring a lasting and just peace based on respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” the ministry said in a statement.
May 17, 2023 5:08 p.m
Russian media: “Ukrainian drone attacked in Belgorod”
A drone from Kiev has attacked a checkpoint in Zhebekino in Russia’s Belgorod region, a few kilometers from the border with Ukraine. Some Russian media such as Baza and Shot report about it on their Telgram channels. The attack is said to have been perpetrated at midnight and caused no injuries, although the administration building would have caught fire and a blaze started which was “quickly put out”. According to Shot, the Ukrainian drone “dropped two munitions at a road checkpoint in Shebekino” using “probably mortar shells.”
May 17, 2023 5:07 p.m
Kiev spokesman: “Let’s advance to Bakhmut”
“We are successfully conducting a defensive operation, a counterattack, and today our units penetrated parts of the Bakhmut front by up to 500 meters.” This was said by the spokesman for the Ukrainian troops deployed in the east Serhiy Cherevatyi, explaining that the army of Kiev made new progress in the hard fighting in the eastern Ukrainian city. Cherevatyi added that Ukrainian forces have failed to notice the Russians’ alleged “munitions hunger” despite allegations made in recent days by Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin. “The enemy is trying to take the city, striking with all systems and calibres. There can be no talk of a “hunger for ammunition”. They are moving new units, mainly paratroopers, to achieve interim success,” the spokesman concluded.
May 17, 2023 5:07 p.m
US Secretary of Defense: “It’s up to the White House to decide whether to deploy the F-16”
Any decision to send F16s to Ukraine “lies with the White House”. British Defense Minister Ben Wallace said this after a meeting with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius in Berlin today. The statements come after London announced during a summit of European leaders in Reykjavik that it is working with the Netherlands to forge an international coalition to help Ukraine get the F16, which Kiev has long wanted from demands of his allies. Wallace explained that the UK can contribute with ‘training and support’, with some caveats as we don’t have F16 pilots. “What we can do is what we do,” he concluded, “which is to help any nation that comes to us and says, ‘We want to bring the tanks to Ukraine and we support that process.’
May 17, 2023 4:27 p.m
Erdogan confirms: “Wheat agreement extended by another two months”
The agreement, which allowed the export of grain from Ukrainian ports through a safe corridor in the Black Sea, was extended for another two months. This was announced by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as reported by Turkish state television Trt.
May 17, 2023 4:27 p.m
Ria Novosti: “Wheat agreement extended by another two months”
“The Russians killed a child in the Kherson region. It happened after the bombing in Selenivka. His father carried him to the hospital in his arms. The head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak writes on Telegram. “Two other people were also injured. They were all near a store. “Russian terrorists continue to cynically kill civilians,” he added in the message.
May 17, 2023 4:26 p.m
Kiev: “Child killed in Russian raid in Kherson”
“The Russians killed a child in the Kherson region. It happened after the bombing in Selenivka. His father carried him to the hospital in his arms. The head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak writes on Telegram. “Two other people were also injured. They were all near a store. “Russian terrorists continue to cynically kill civilians,” he added in the message.
May 17, 2023 4:26 p.m
Le Monde: “France is also considering deploying long-range missiles”
According to Le Monde, France is examining the possibility of supplying long-range Scalp missiles to Ukraine: “We are examining all options,” the Elysée told the newspaper, but indicated that it was “not foreseeable at this time”. These considerations were sparked after Britain announced on May 11 that it would supply Kyiv with Shadow Assault missiles, equivalent to France’s Scalps missiles. “As with all assistance to Ukraine, France shares the results of this assistance with its Ukrainian and British partners, particularly with regard to long-range missiles,” said President Macron’s entourage. Developed in the 1990s by France’s Matra and Britain’s British Aerospace, the Scalp (short for Long Range Autonomous Conventional Cruise System) is an air-to-surface guided missile designed for long-range attack on fixed targets. Its range, which is officially 250 kilometers but can reach 500 or even 700 kilometers depending on the version, allows it to hit strategic targets behind the front, such as command centers, ammunition depots or logistics hubs.