What has happened in the last few hours
On the 345th day of the war against Ukraine that Russia started, these are the key data at 12:00 this Friday, February 3:
The EU is celebrating an important summit on Ukraine’s integration in Kyiv. The capital of Ukraine, Kyiv, is the scene of a summit with the EU this Friday, aimed at sending a “strong signal” of support from the 27 for the Russian-occupied country aspiring to become a member of the association community as quickly as possible. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Kyiv on Thursday, accompanied by the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, and some 15 European commissioners.
Kyiv deploys anti-aircraft alerts ahead of the start of the Twenty-seven summit. The anti-aircraft alarm sounded across Ukraine this morning, coinciding with the summit that took place in Kyiv between the European Commission and the Ukrainian authorities. According to the Belarusian analysis group Hajun Project, the alarm was due to the launch of two Russian bombers from Machulishchi airfield near Minsk. Russian bombers usually do not fly over Ukrainian airspace for fear of being shot down by anti-aircraft systems, so their attacks always come from Russian or Belarusian territory.
Charles Michel, in Kyiv: “We will support you every step of the way on your way to the European Union”. The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, this Friday from Kyiv, where the EU-Ukraine summit is taking place, indicated European support for the country occupied by Russian troops and assured that there would be “no ceasefire” in ” Firmness” will give “against Russian aggression. Michel arrived in the Ukrainian capital this Friday to chair the summit with Ukraine, a first-ever appointment in Kyiv that aims to send a signal of political support against the Kremlin in the midst of the war. There will be no truce in our firmness. We will also support you every step of the way on your way to the EU,” he hinted on Twitter, alluding to Ukraine’s accession process.
At least two dead and one seriously injured in a Russian bomb attack on a residential building in Kharkov. According to regional governor Oleh Siniehubov, at least two men were killed and another seriously wounded in a new Russian shelling of a block of flats in north-eastern Ukraine’s Kharkiv province today. The attack occurred in the town of Barvinkove, Izium district. The victims, aged 49 and 42, were brothers. His 70-year-old father was injured and is in hospital.
Russia is expropriating 500 Ukrainian properties in Crimea. Moscow-installed authorities in Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014, have announced the expropriation of around 500 properties in the peninsula, some owned by Ukrainian politicians and businessmen. The Speaker of the Crimean Parliament Vladimir Konstantinov said those affected were “accomplices of the Kiev regime” and among the confiscated properties were sports and tourism infrastructure and banks.
In this photo from the Associated Press, members of Ukraine’s emergency services try to put out a fire at a shopping center in Kherson after Russian shelling on Friday.