by Lorenzo Cremonesi, Giusi Fasano, Andrea Nicastro, Marta Serafini
The news of Tuesday, April 12, about the war in Ukraine, live: Moscow warns Sweden and Finland about possible NATO membership, Mariupol tries to resist after its port also fell into Russian hands
• The 48th day war in Ukraine: and could be the decisive one in the fate of Mariupol, a martyr city that resisted the Russians for over 40 days. The proRussians would be willing to flush out Ukraine’s defenses with chemical weapons. The Azov Battalion, Ukraine’s farright militia leading the defense, says Russian drones have already dropped toxic substances.
• Moscow is accelerating its maneuvers to carry out the attack on Donbass: The Pentagon has confirmed that Russia is sending hundreds of military vehicles, including attack helicopters and artillery, to eastern Ukraine.
• Yesterday in Algiers Prime Minister Draghi and Foreign Minister Di Maio signed a gas deal with Algeria, adding 9 billion cubic meters of gas to the 21 that Algeria already supplies, offsetting the amount we currently depend on Moscow for 40% of our needs.
• Austrian Chancellor Nehammer and President of the Russian Federation Putin met: Talks had been very tough, said the first, after warning the Tsar that European sanctions would remain in place and be tightened.
7.00 a.m. How much do we pay for gas from Algeria?
(Gianluca Mercuri) While a significant part of the European establishment is still hesitant about the hypothesis of a Russian gas ban, Mario Draghi is continuing down the path of energy emancipation.
The Prime Minister was in Algiers yesterday to sign an important deal that will add 9 billion cubic meters of gas to the 21 that Algeria already supplies, offsetting the amount that currently makes us dependent on Moscow for 40% of our needs. Draghi defined a first, significant response in relation to the strategic goal of reducing this dependency (here you can find the editorial in which Daniele Manca places this step in the broader framework of the new energy policy serving Italy).
Meanwhile, in an interview with Federico Fubini, the President of Confindustria Carlo Bonomi strongly supports the government’s proposal for a price cap, a gas price cap imposed by the entire European Union for producers from third countries. Not only. Bonomi says: If Europe doesn’t want what it seems so far, we have to do it ourselves: a price cap for the wholesale price of gas in Italy, well below current levels.
But how much will Algerian gas cost Italy, Italy? Try replying to Fabio Savelli here.
06:37 Kyiv, Russia concentrates troops near the border
The enemy is trying to complete the redeployment and transfer of troops to the concentration areas of the Belgorod and Voronezh regions of the Russian Federation, as well as the transfer of air and space forces to airports in the immediate vicinity of the eastern border of Ukraine. This was written by the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the daily report. In the direction of Slobozhansky he continues enemy troops continue to partially block the city of Kharkiv. Fighting is reported in the area of the city of Izyum and in the direction of Donetsk and Tavriya. There are signs of strengthening of the air defense system the report concludes in the Melitopol and Ilovaysk regions. It is likely that in the future the enemy will try to take control of the city of Mariupol, capture Popasna and launch an offensive towards Kurakhove, trying to reach the administrative borders of the Donetsk region.
05.07 Kiev forces, Russians position themselves south
The Russians reposition themselves in the southern part of the Bug River and on the border with the Kherson region of southern Ukraine. This was announced by the Southern Operational Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Facebook as reported by Ukrinform and reported many cases of desertions in enemy units. In the Nikolaev area the Southern Command continues some Russians, disguised in three civilian cars, tried to pretend to be a group of evacuated locals in order to commit sabotage. They tried to attack us but when they were spotted they had to flee. After all, the situation near the Black Sea coast of Ukraine is tense, but unchanged, and the possibility of missile attacks by the enemy fleet is not excluded.
03.35 USA, Russia is strategically defeated
Russia is strategically defeated in Ukraine. US State Department spokesman Ned Price told CNN, stressing that in addition to problems on the ground, Moscow is in the midst of a deep economic crisis. Regarding the issue of responsibility for war crimes, Price recalled that the United States has sent dozens of prosecutors to Ukraine to cooperate with Kyiv in the investigation, and the State Department is also conducting its own investigation. If the evidence tells us that Putin, who is responsible for war crimes, will be prosecuted for it, Price said.
02:33 Zelensky not supplying weapons responsible for fatalities
More military support will be needed soon. Lives of Ukrainians are lost, lives that cannot be returned. And those who still have in their arsenal the weapons that Ukraine needs are also responsible for this. Responsibility that will forever remain in history. That’s what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said as the Guardian reports in a video message. The Ukrainians are brave he explained but when it comes to arms we still need supplies, our allies. Unfortunately we don’t manage to end this war, destroy the enemy on our land, unlock Mariupol. If we had jets, heavy armored vehicles, artillery, we could.
01.50 Zelensky, the Russians left mines everywhere
Russian troops left mines everywhere. In the houses, on the streets, in the cars, in the doors. They went to great lengths to make returning to these areas as dangerous as possible. They went to great lengths to kill or maim as many of our people as possible when they were forced to withdraw from our country. This was stated by the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a video message as reported by the Guardian and spoke of hundreds of thousands of dangerous objects, mines and unexploded bullets found in the northern regions of the country.
01.18 Zelensky, possible use of chemical weapons in a new phase of terror
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed concerns that Russian forces could use chemical weapons against his country. It has not been confirmed if they have already been used. Today the occupiers released a new statement testifying to their preparation for a new phase of terror against Ukraine and its defenders, Zelenskyy said in his nightly video message. One of their spokesmen said they could use chemical weapons against Mariupol defenders. We take these words as seriously as possible he added . I would like to remind world leaders that the possible use of chemical weapons by the Russian military has already been discussed. And already at this moment it is necessary to react much harder and faster to Russian aggression, Zelenskyy said.
1:10 am Blinking, India urges Putin to end war
It is important that all countries, especially those that have influence over Russian President Vladimir Putin, urge him to end the war. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this at a press conference with Indian Foreign Minister Jaishankar in Washington after the longdistance meeting between US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It’s also important for democracies to speak with one voice to defend the values we share, he added. The United States Blinken explained will continue to increase its support for the Ukrainian government and people and invite other nations to do the same. Blinken said India’s relationship with Russia developed over decades, at a time when the United States could not be a partner with India, but times have changed since then.
00:12 prosecutor, over 5,800 war crimes
Prosecutor General of Ukraine Iryna Venediktova said that more than 5,800 war crimes cases are currently being committed by Russia in Ukraine. Venediktova spoke in particular about the massacre in Bucha near Kyiv, where he will conduct a new inspection tomorrow. Here we are still exhuming bodies from mass graves, he said in an interview with CNN, explaining that what he found at the site were not only war crimes but also crimes against humanity. As for the possible trials against the perpetrators of these atrocities, a topic that has also been under discussion in the United States and Europe for days, the prosecutor stated that Ukraine wants to prosecute these criminals in the country before Ukrainian courts. But of course there is also the way of the International Criminal Court, he added. There are currently over 500 suspects, including highranking military and senior Russian officials.
11:29 p.m. UN: Increase in sexual violence
Reported cases of sexual violence in Ukraine are piling up, Jordanian Sima Bahous, executive director of the United Nations Organization for Women (UN Women), told the UN Security Council. This war must end. We hear more and more about rape and sexual violence. These are allegations that must be independently investigated to ensure justice, said Bahou, who recently visited the region. We are seeing a number of warning signs from the combination of mass displacement of internally displaced persons and a large presence of conscripts and mercenaries, coupled with brutality against Ukrainian civilians. Kateryna Cherepakha, President of the human rights organization La StradaUkraine, reported on nine cases of rapes by Russian soldiers of 12 women and girls. only the tip of the iceberg told the council. We know and see that rape was used as a weapon of war by the Russians when they invaded Ukraine. Last week, the United Nations announced an investigation into allegations of rape by Russian soldiers, including gang rape and violence in front of children, but also into allegations of sexual violence by Ukrainian civil defense militias and the Ukrainian armed forces.
April 12, 2022 (Modification April 12, 2022 | 07:12)
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