Bridgestone is leaving Russia. Japanese tire maker Bridgestone, present in Russia since 1998, announced on Wednesday the sale of its assets in that country after a process lasting more than a year that was finally confirmed by Russian authorities. “We can indeed confirm that our assets in Russia have been sold to S8 Capital, a diversified holding company,” the Japanese equipment maker said in a press release sent to AFP after a lengthy process. The approximately 1,000 Bridgestone employees “are part of the transaction and will also be transferred” to the buyer's teams.
A Red Cross warehouse was hit. The Ukrainian Red Cross said on Wednesday that one of its warehouses was “destroyed” by a fire last night caused by a “direct artillery strike” by Russian forces. This has “destroyed” supplies of humanitarian aid to the Kherson region, she complained, sharing a series of photos on X (formerly Twitter) showing a building in ruins with gutted walls and roof.
Russia must not win in Ukraine. During the “C à vous” program on France 5 on Wednesday, Emmanuel Macron returned to the situation in Ukraine and took stock of two years of war. “Europe remained united, it immediately condemned Russian aggression in Ukraine, it sanctioned Russia and it supported Ukraine. And I am pleased that this position was represented, including during the last Council,” welcomed the French President.
“Our interest is a Europe at peace and a Europe at peace, that is, a Europe that knows how to maintain security in its neighborhood,” he argued, pointing to a “very difficult situation for Ukrainians.” “As long as there is an unbalanced power that does not respect international law, there will be no peace in Europe. We are not at war with Russia, but we cannot accept Russia winning in Ukraine,” he said.
A new drone attack. Ukraine said on Thursday that it had suffered a new night attack by Russia with 35 Iranian-made Shahed drones, 34 of which were shot down. The attacks came “in waves” during the night and came from Chuda (in occupied Crimea), Primorsko-Akhtarsk (on the eastern shore of the Sea of Azov) and Kursk, a city near Russia's northern border, the Ukrainian air force said, reporting no casualties or Damage reported.