10:19
Europe “will do everything” to “help Ukraine win this war,” says Ursula von der Leyen
“Europe will do everything in its power to help Ukraine win this war,” said the President of the European Commission in a speech to the Ukrainian parliament this Friday, “and we will not rest until you win.” . She also welcomed the “bold” response of the Ukrainian population.
10:15
Russia “stands for unconditional respect for international law,” says Sergei Lavrov
At a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart on Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov assured that “we defend unconditional respect for international law.” A strange-sounding statement, given that Russia has been accused for several months of violating international law when it invaded Ukraine.
“We will maintain this position with our Belarusian allies and our many other like-minded partners who share these approaches,” he said.
9:48
The phone call between Macron and Putin four days before the start of the war in Ukraine
On February 20, 2022, four days before the start of the war in Ukraine, Emmanuel Macron spoke to Vladimir Putin on the phone. In particular, they spoke about the situation in Donbass, where pro-Russian separatists have been opposed to the Ukrainian government since 2014.
“The legal texts are being proposed by separatist groups and not by the democratically elected authorities,” Emmanuel Macron introduced to his Russian counterpart. “This is not a democratically elected government, it came to power through a bloody coup,” replied Vladimir Putin, lamenting the lack of dialogue on the part of Kiev.
The exchange ends with an agreement to meet US President Joe Biden before Vladimir Putin hangs up. “In order not to hide anything from you, I wanted to go play ice hockey, because here I am talking to you from the gym,” he says to Emmanuel Macron.
9:32
18 dead in Odessa after Russian attacks
The number of strikes in Odessa continued to rise on Friday morning. “At least 18 people died” in the Russian bombing of the Ukrainian city, says the Ukrainian Defense Ministry. The previous toll reported 17 dead.
9:09
“Total madness”: A Ukrainian soldier tells of his evacuation from the Azovstal factory under fire
Giorgi Kouparashvili is a soldier of the Azov regiment. Struck by two bullets in the stomach, he had to be evacuated from the Azovstal factory in Mariupol, where he was entrenched while the Russians took the area. “We were picked up around 4 a.m., the difficulty was getting to the landing zone because even at night Russian planes flew over Azovstal and bombed it,” he told BFMTV.
“It took us more than an hour to cover 2 km, we had to hide, take cover very quickly, it was very dangerous,” he recalls. At the departure area, there was an exchange of fire between the soldiers present and the Russians because “the helicopter had to be protected in order to be able to embark and evacuate the wounded soldiers”.
The start takes place under the bombardments and the exchange of fire in the area. “This evacuation was total madness. I have experienced many wars, many operations, but this is the first time I have experienced such madness,” explains the soldier.
8:57
The EU calls on Ukraine to speed up anti-corruption reforms
Several upgrades are necessary to integrate the European Union. Ukraine, as an official candidate, must speed up reforms against corruption in particular, said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Friday. She hailed the reforms already implemented and the institutions created to create “an impressive anti-corruption machine,” but “now these institutions need the means to act and the right people in positions of responsibility,” she said.
“The road for Ukraine is long, but Europe will be with you every step of the way,” she said, “through any reform while it lasts.”
8:48
Ukrainian refugees at the Hindu temple on the island of Northern Ireland
Set in the tranquil waters of Lake Erne in Northern Ireland, the island of Inish Rath is home to a Hare Krishna temple that has become a haven for Ukrainian believers fleeing the martyrdom city of Mariupol after the Russian invasion. They are members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in Ukraine.
“The attention of the believers, the people who live nearby, the atmosphere in the temple … provides spiritual protection,” said Ruskin Khabibullin, a member of that movement, a refugee with his wife and 14-year-old son on the ‘island.
This spiritual movement is a branch of Hinduism. Founded in the 1960s, it quickly spread to Eastern Europe after the fall of the Soviet Union and has one million members worldwide.
8:44
The death toll in Odessa rises to 17
According to Kyiv, at least 17 people have been killed in strikes on buildings in the Odessa region of southern Ukraine. A previous toll reported 14 dead. A missile launched from a “strategic aircraft” off the Black Sea left “14 dead and 30 injured, including three children,” according to the latest report from Ukrainian emergency services.
Another rocket fired from the same plane hit two other buildings nearby, killing “three people, including a child,” rescuers added. Rescue operations, complicated by a fire, continue.
5:48
Strike near Odessa: death toll rises to 14
At least fourteen people were killed in a missile attack on a building in southern Ukraine’s Odessa region, fired from a “strategic plane” bound for Kyiv from the Black Sea, just as the army had just retaken Ukraine from the Russians on a strategic island to control the sea routes.
At least 30 people were injured, including three children, according to Ukrainian authorities. An earlier toll reported ten dead. A missile launched from a “strategic aircraft” off the Black Sea left “14 dead and 30 injured, including three children,” according to the latest report from Ukrainian emergency services.
4:21
Kyiv has started exporting electricity to the European Union
Ukraine has started exporting “significant” amounts of electricity to the European Union via Romania, President Volodymyr Zekensky announced on Thursday evening.
“An important step has been taken in our rapprochement with the European Union,” said the President of Ukraine, whose candidacy for the EU was endorsed by the 27 last week, on Thursday.
Kyiv “has started to export electricity to EU territory, to Romania in significant quantities,” he said in a video address, and “this is just a first step.”
4:09
Ten dead in rocket attack on Odessa region
A senior Ukrainian official said Thursday night that ten people were killed in a rocket attack on the Odessa region in southern Ukraine.
“The death toll in an apartment building has increased to ten,” said Odessa regional administration spokesman Serguiy Bratchouk.
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4:09
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Welcome to this directive dedicated to the post-war in Ukraine.