Did you miss the latest events on the war in Ukraine? 20 minutes takes stock for you every evening. Between the strong declarations, the advances on the front and the results of the battles, here are the main points of the day.
The fact of the day
The region, whose capital is Kharkiv, the country’s second city, remains a major objective for the Kremlin. Which explains the launch of a ground offensive in the region of northeastern Ukraine. While the scale of this new Russian operation is not yet clear, kyiv has feared an attack in the region for weeks.
According to a highly placed source in the Ukrainian military command, Moscow wants to create a “buffer zone” in the regions of Kharkiv and Sumy to prevent kyiv from striking the region of Belgorod, in Russia, which is very regularly targeted.
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry assured that assaults had been “repulsed” but that “fighting of various intensities” continued and that reserve units had been deployed to “strengthen the defense” of the area. Evacuations of civilians were ordered around Vovchansk, a local official said.
Today’s statement
“ We stand with Ukraine and must provide the necessary support for its defense” »
The German Foreign Ministry called for “ensuring support” for Ukraine in the face of this new Russian offensive. “The people of Kharkiv continue to courageously resist Russia’s constant bombing. Your courage calls for our solidarity. Together with our partners, we stand by Ukraine and must provide the necessary support for its defense,” the ministry writes on X.
The number of the day
400. This is in millions of dollars the amount of new aid granted by the United States to Ukraine. The White House announced this military aid in the form of equipment and training aid, to “provide assistance to Ukraine”, according to a press release.
The trend
freshly invested for a fifth term, Vladimir Putin kept Mikhail Mishustin at the head of his government, after weeks of intense speculation about a possible reshuffle in Moscow. The Russian president must appoint or confirm his ministers, after his electoral victory in March in a presidential election devoid of any opposition.
Our file on the war in Ukraine
“A lot has been done under difficult conditions and it seems to me that it would be good if we continue to work with you,” the president told his prime minister on Friday, according to a Kremlin account. “I think we are on the right track,” he assured her, telling her that he had submitted his nomination to the Duma, the lower house of the Russian Parliament. Mikhail Michoustine, former director of the federal tax service, was appointed Prime Minister in 2020.