Over the weekend, the EU issued a positive statement on the new entry, one of the most important steps for a country to become part of the bloc.
“A truly historic week begins this Monday,” Zelenskyy said of the EU’s longawaited response to granting Ukraine candidate country status.
After Ukraine received the green light from the European Commission on Friday, EU countries will meet on Thursday and Friday to decide whether to include Kyiv in the candidate category, a decision that must be taken unanimously.
“Obviously we expect Russia to intensify its attacks this week,” the Ukrainian president warned, according to which his country’s troops are preparing for this scenario and are “ready”.
Zelenskyi said the Russians are “regrouping their forces towards Kharkiv and the Zaporizhia region” and continue bombing fuel infrastructure. He said the army would respond to the attacks but acknowledged “significant casualties.”
Russia is in the process of gaining full control of the breakaway Luhansk region
Sergei, the governor of Luhansk, a region in the east of the country that has been the target of intense bombing in recent weeks, said that “the Russians tried to advance into the Toshkivka area and were partially successful,” but stressed that the Ukrainian artillery worked and the whole advance was unsuccessful.
Toshkiva is south of Lysychansk, Severodonetsk’s twin city, which focuses the offensive on the Donbass mine basin (eastern Ukraine).
2 of 3 mortars explode on May 26, 2022 at the edge of the main road leading to the city of Lysyhansk in eastern Ukraine. — Photo: Aris Messinis/AFP
On May 26, 2022, a mortar exploded on the side of the main road leading to the city of Lysyhansk in eastern Ukraine. — Photo: Aris Messinis/AFP
In Lysychansk there are signs of preparations for street fighting: soldiers installed barbed wire and policemen moved the wreckage of burntout vehicles to try to stop the Russians.
The local government on Sunday denied the Russian takeover of all of Severodonetsk but admitted Moscow troops “control” most of the city.
- The fear of residents of Lysychansk in eastern Ukraine
- Ukrainians are stemming Russian attacks in the east and NATO says it fears a ‘years’ war
The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed control of Metiolkine on the outskirts of Severodonetsk.
Severodonetsk is a strategic position for the battle in Donbass, a region partially controlled by proRussian separatists since 2014.
On the southern front, the Ukrainian army claims that Russian forces “cannot advance on the ground” and just keep bombing.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it used cruise missiles to attack a factory in Mykolaiv and “destroyed 10 155mm howitzers and up to 20 armored vehicles that the West supplied to the Kiev regime over the past 10 days.”
Mykolaiv is a port and industrial city that was home to half a million people before the war. The place is a target of Russian attacks as it is on the way to Odessa, Ukraine’s main port.
3 of 3 EU Diplomacy Chief Josep Borrell in Brussels, Belgium. — Photo: Yves Herman via Reuters
EU chief of diplomacy Josep Borrell in Brussels, Belgium. — Photo: Yves Herman via Reuters
This Monday, the head of the European Union (EU) diplomacy, Josep Borrell, said that Russia was committing a “real war crime” by blocking the export of cereals and grains from Ukraine.
Russia has used its hydrocarbons as a weapon against the EU, cutting off gas flows to several countries last week.
At the same time, Russian oil imports to China increased by 55% in May compared to the same period last year.
To reduce dependence on Russia, countries like Germany are turning to less ecological solutions, including coalfired power plants.
“It is bitter, but essential, to reduce gas consumption,” said Economics Minister ecologist Robert Habeck, although the federal government had promised to phase out coal by 2030.
Austria also announced on Sunday the reactivation of a decommissioned coalfired power plant in 2020. Before the war, the Vienna government had intended to phase out this energy source and produce 100% renewable electricity by the end of the decade.