Moscow authorities are said to have transferred 700,000 children from conflict zones in Ukraine to Russian territory “in the last few years”.. This was announced by the chairman of the international committee of the Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliament, Grigory Karasin. “In recent years, 700,000 children have found refuge with us fleeing shelling of conflict zones in Ukraine,” Karasin said on his Telegram channel, quoted by the Guardian.
On the ground in Ukraine, the situation is uncertain. “Last week was difficult at the front. But “We are making progress,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter Release of a video of the battles at the front. “We’re going step by step! Thank you to everyone who is defending Ukraine, to everyone who is fighting this war until Ukraine wins.” On the Zaporizhia front, the Ukrainians have “lost over 20,000 men” since the counteroffensive began, according to Russian-controlled Governor Yegveni Balitski.
And in the meantime it shows up a new audio by Yevgeny Prigozhin Posted on the Gray Zone channel alongside the Wagner group. The founder and chief of the private militia, presumably from Belarusian exile, promises “new victories at the front in the near future”. The voice actually sounds like his.
Fears about Zaporizhia. Medvedev: Nuclear apocalypse ‘probable’
Zelenskyy calls on the international community to “closely monitor” the situation at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which has been occupied by the Russians since March 2022. According to the mayor of the nearby occupied city of Enerhodar, Dmytro Orlova, About a hundred employees of the plant, who work with the Russians and specialists from the Russian agency Rosatom, left the city. Between 5,000 and 6,000 Russian army hostage-takers remained. Before the invasion, 12,000 people worked at the plant.
The Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council also speaks about the plant in Zaporizhia. the “hawk” Dmitry Medvedev. “A nuclear apocalypse is not only possible, it is very likely” writes on Telegram. “There are at least two reasons. First, the world is in a much worse confrontation than during the Caribbean crisis,” and “the second reason is rather trivial: nuclear weapons have already been used, which means there are no taboos.”
In an article published by the newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Medvedev addresses the issue of the wheat deal. As it is now, it must “be ended,” he argues. “Everyone has recognized our country’s dependence on agricultural and food products, which is the reason for the endless campaign for the grain deal. Although it is already clear to everyone that as it is, there is no need and it must be ended.” The Black Sea Wheat Agreement expires on July 17.
Russia-China, tomorrow the SCO summit. And cooperation between the navies
Tomorrow the Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend a video conference summit with other Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) leaders, including China and India, for an exchange of views “on the most important international and regional problems”. India will chair the meeting. The SCO includes Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu, at a meeting with Russian Navy Commander-in-Chief Nikolai Yevmenov in Beijing, said he believed that “through joint efforts, the ties between the two armies will be further deepened and strengthened, and we will continue to make new strides.” reach new level”. China, Li added, “stands ready to work with Russia to implement the important consensus” reached by their respective leaders Xi Jinping and Putin and “continuously enrich the connotation of the bilateral comprehensive strategic coordination partnership for a new era.” .
Aside from that, “The Chinese and Russian navies maintain close exchanges and frequent interactions, and it is hoped that both sides will strengthen communications at all levels.” and expand concrete cooperation” and “make a positive contribution to maintaining peace and stability in the region and on a global level”.