A large African delegation led by South African President Ciryl Ramaphosa arrived in Kiev on Friday and eventually fled underground amid the latest Russian attack on the Ukrainian capital. The peacekeeping mission landed in an invaded and bombed country with the intention of mediating so the parties could embark on the path of ending the war and taste the syrup of violence that Ukrainians have suffered since Vladimir Putin’s great invasion began in February last year.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, without deviating from the argument that has been going on for months, told the delegation that he does not refuse to negotiate with Russia, but that he will never do so before Russia has left Ukraine and invaded. “We need a real peace and with it a real withdrawal of Russian troops from all our independent areas,” said Zelenskyy at a joint press conference with the Africa mission, reports the Portal agency. For the president, this includes not only the areas where the war is currently being waged with the greatest intensity, but also the Crimean Peninsula, annexed by Moscow in 2014. “Now allow any negotiations with Russia while the occupier is on our land.” is to freeze the war, freeze everything: pain and suffering,” he added. Of course, Zelenskyy expressed his desire to hold a summit between Ukraine and Africa and to strengthen his country’s relations with this continent, where Russia is more influential.
This Friday’s attack was an atypical attack, taking place in broad daylight before noon. The Russian army usually does this at night or at dawn. In total, the anti-aircraft batteries managed to shoot down 12 missiles in Kiev, six of them Kinzal and six Caliber, as well as two unmanned aerial vehicles, according to the Armed Forces Air Command. There were no fatalities, but several injuries. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschsko said there were no damaged facilities or buildings in the city.
The African delegation scheduled to meet Putin in St. Petersburg on Saturday includes South African President Ciryl Ramaphosa; the one from Senegal, Macky Sall; the one from Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema; that of the Comoros, Azali Assoumani, also current President of the African Union; and the Prime Minister of Egypt, Mustafa Madbuli and a special envoy from Uganda. The group also had the opportunity to visit Bucha, a city in the Kyiv region that remained in Russian hands for a month last year and where the invaders committed all kinds of abuse and killings, many of them against civilians.
Ramaphosa said the mission had traveled to Kyiv and will continue to St. Petersburg to share “the African perspective” on the search for peace, Portal reported. “We are talking about the need for de-escalation on both sides for peace to emerge,” he added.
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Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski and South African Cyril Ramaphosa this Friday at a joint press conference in Kiev. VALENTYN OGIRENKO (Portal)
The Russian invasion of Ukraine hit Africa hard. Some of the countries hardest hit by the deepening food crisis due to the Black Sea port blockade are on this continent. With the support of the United Nations and Turkey, Kiev and Moscow are sticking to the so-called Grain Agreement to enable grain exports. However, this initiative is not enough to mitigate the damage caused by the war.
On the ground, Ukraine has been conducting a counter-offensive for the past two weeks, making it almost impossible to even consider the possibility of attackers and victims sitting down at short notice. The high command of the Ukrainian army confirmed on Friday that its troops are advancing in the eastern city of Bakhmut (Donetsk region), where fierce and bloody fighting has been raging for months, and are encountering “desperate resistance” from Russian forces.
According to Kiev, his men manage to inflict heavy casualties on the Russian army in the south of the country. Russia, in turn, has not officially recognized the achievements of local troops. Colonel Oleksandr Sirskii, in charge of Ukraine’s land forces, said that the situation in the east was tense as Russia had moved its best divisions there, particularly to Bakhmut, where they could also fall back on their air force and artillery support. “We continue to conduct offensive actions in different directions, occupying elevated areas and forest strips with the aim of gradually driving the enemy out of the outskirts of Bakhmut. “Having realized this, the enemy units carry out desperate actions,” Sirskii said in a message published on the social network Telegram.
The intention of the local army is to deliver an ax blow to the country occupied by the Russians. This military operation, which has brought little progress to the Ukrainians, is predicted to be protracted and deadly. The scenario in which it essentially develops is the regions of Donetsk (east) and Zaporizhia (south).
Yevhen, 25, inspected his mother’s destroyed house on Friday after the Russian attack on the outskirts of Kiev. GENYA SAVILOV (AFP)
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