While negotiations between Russia and Ukraine are stagnating and positions are becoming increasingly rigid, armed conflict continues, killing civilians and soldiers on both sides. Joe Biden is sounding the alarm among American soldiers in Poland: “What is at stake is not only the defense of Ukraine, but democracy in the world”. Meanwhile, Moscow has its son in its sights: he is behind Kiev’s chemical weapons.
Despite widespread reports of problems experienced by Vladimir Putin’s military on the ground in Ukraine, Russian soldiers are receiving tips from their superiors the war must end by May 9th. This is reported by Sky News. May 9th is the date on which Russia celebrates “Victory Day in memory of Nazi Germany’s surrender during World War II.
The first target for Russian forces in Ukraine is Control over the entire Donbass region, in the east of the country, said the Moscow Defense Ministry, quoted by TASS. Meanwhile, according to the Guardian, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry claims that Russian forces have created a partial land corridor towards Crimea from the territory of Donetsk region.
Ukrainian antiaircraft defense shot down three cruise missiles launched by Russian ships in the Black Sea and headed for the Odessa region. This was announced by the army’s operational command in Odessa, stating that the situation in the region was “under control”. “The enemy add the military continues to put pressure on the civilian population of Odessa by attacking the coastal strip”. The Ukrainian army did not say when the three rockets were launched. However, shortly after lunch, Ukrainian antiaircraft defenses were clearly felt in the parts of the city closest to the sea.
EUROPE AND SELENSKY The EU says it is “ready to close loopholes, counter potential evasive maneuvers and push through new coordinated measures to minimize Russia’s “ability to continue aggression” on Ukraine. Zelenskyy thanked the 27 with the exception of Hungary but blames the delay with which he believes Europe has moved: the sanctions came “a bit late, said the Ukrainian president. And in the meantime, they are The work of the European Council resumed in Brussels, with the second day dedicated in particular to energy.
Nuclear Threats and Incidents Strong response from Moscow which, through its ambassador in Rome Sergei Razov, denies the “nuclear threat hypothesis proposed by Biden and Zelenskyy and is launching an investigation into the possibility of Kyiv producing biological weapons. A “total hybrid war was launched against Russia, according to the foreign minister Seghey Lavrov quoted by the Tass agency. The Kremlin subsequently denied any violation of international laws on phosphorus bombs in Ukraine.
The United States has no plans to use chemical weapons under all circumstances, said a White House official. However, Joe Biden is stepping back from his campaign promises and embracing the “traditional American approach: one that is to use the threat of a nuclear response as a deterrent against conventional and nonnuclear threats, effectively leaving open the question of what to do with it she lists the possibility of using nuclear weapons under “extreme circumstances”. The change of course, reports the Wall Street Journal, came amid pressure from allies over the past few weeks, prompting Biden to reconsider his position. “What is at stake Biden told US troops in Poland is not only the defense of Ukraine, but democracy in the world,” recalling that “we are in the middle of a struggle between democracies and autocracies.” .
PUTIN QUOTES NS BOOK BURNINGS Putin has compared the boycott of Russian cultural events and representatives of Russian culture in Western countries to the book burnings the Nazis were responsible for. “The last time said the Kremlin chief at a meeting with representatives of the cultural world it was the Nazis in Germany, about 90 years ago, who carried out such a campaign of destruction against unwanted culture. We remember well the pictures of the books burned in the squares”.
INDIA AND CHINA NOW WANT “AN IMMEDIATE ARMOR India and China want an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine. Indian Foreign Minister Jaishankar said this after an interview with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. Meanwhile, China “strongly” rejects “allegations” and unfounded suspicions, “every attempt to use coercion and pressure,” and criticizes NATO as “a remnant of the Cold War.” Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said “sanctions will not help solve the problems” and that “dialogue” is the only tool.
ANSA agency
The Straight from the Cities (ANSA)
FROM THE CITIES About 300 people are feared dead in the Russian attack on the Mariupol Theater on March 16. The mayor of the city announced this, citing witnesses.
Meanwhile, Ukrinform, citing the Kharkiv region police, reports that The Russian army bombed a polyclinic in Kharkiv, Osnovyansky district: 4 people died.
According to British intelligence in its Daily Bulletin, the Ukrainian army managed to regain control of towns and defensive positions east of the capital, Kyiv.
The number of children killed in Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion rises to 135. second The Ukrainian Prosecutor’s Office in an update shared by the Kyiv Parliament on its Twitter profile: “To date, March 25, 135 children have died in Ukraine due to the aggression of the Russian army. 184 children were injured. The death toll was 128 yesterday.
The Russian Orthodox Church reports that a Russian military chaplain was killed in a Ukrainian missile attack in southwest Russia near the Ukrainian border. Oleg Artyomov was in the village of Zhuravlyovka in Russia’s Belgorod region when he “was bombed by a Ukrainian Smerch rocket launcher and died” on Thursday, reports the Moscow Patriarchate’s military department on social media. This is the first fatality on Russian territory caused by the Ukrainian fire that became known since the beginning of the Russian offensive in Ukraine.
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