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BRITISH TANKS
Russian diplomacy assured Saturday that the sending of British Challengers 2 heavy tanks to Ukraine, announced by London, would only “intensify” the fighting and had little chance of reversing the situation on the front.
“Sending tanks will in no way hasten the end of military hostilities, but will only intensify them, causing further casualties,” the Russian Embassy in London said in a statement, adding that it was “little probable” that these tanks will help the Ukrainian army to “turn the situation on the battlefield”.
TARGETED ENERGY SITES IN KHARKIV AND LVIV
Russian strikes targeted Ukrainian strategic energy infrastructure in Kharkiv (northeast) and Lviv (west) on Saturday, Ukrainian officials said. “Emergency power cuts have been implemented” after two strikes against infrastructure, Kharkiv region governor Oleg Sinegoubov said. In Lviv, the authorities warned of interruptions in the supply of water and electricity.
ZELENSKY
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday hailed Britain’s decision to provide heavy battle tanks to his country, saying London “sends the right signal” as kyiv increases demand for military equipment.
“During a conversation with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, I thanked him for taking decisions that not only strengthen us on the battlefield, but also send the right signal to our partners,” he said. wrote on Twitter.
CEASE-FIRE
Turkey wants to promote “localized ceasefires” in Ukraine because of hope for a more comprehensive peace agreement at this stage, Ibrahim Kalin, a close adviser to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said on Saturday. Neither Russia nor Ukraine “is in a position to win militarily”, he said, saying he was convinced “that in the end, they will have to negotiate to reach an acceptable outcome” for both parts.
“No one wants to stop fighting but we have to keep calling them on.” “If we cannot reach a comprehensive peace agreement, we will seek (obtain) localized, limited ceasefires, local de-escalations,” he said.
TANKS
Britain will supply Ukraine with Challenger 2 tanks, becoming the first country to send Western-built heavy tanks to help kyiv in the face of the Russian invasion, Downing Street said in a statement on Saturday.
During a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak underlined “the UK’s willingness to step up its support to Ukraine, including by providing additional Challenger 2 tanks and artillery systems,” Downing Street said.
London does not specify how many tanks it intends to send to kyiv, nor when, nor how it will provide training in the use and maintenance of the Challenger 2. But the two British and Ukrainian leaders agree on the “need to take advantage” of Ukrainian victories which “repelled Russian troops”.
RUSSIAN GAS
European countries will eventually resume imports of Russian gas, Qatari Energy Minister Saad Sherida al-Kaabi predicted on Saturday, saying the current market volatility is likely to continue. “Russian gas will come back, in my opinion, to Europe” even if it now has “a much greater diversity” of sources of supply, assured the man who is also the boss of QatarEnergy, the national company of the rich gas emirate. of the Gulf.
“The Europeans say today that it is out of the question” but “things are repaired over time”, he added during an energy forum in Abu Dhabi.
SOLEDAR
The small town in eastern Ukraine, at the center of a fierce battle with Russian forces and which Moscow claims to have taken, is still “under Ukrainian control”, the governor of the Donetsk region said on Saturday, Pavlo Kyrylenko.
“Soledar is under the control of the Ukrainian authorities, our forces have control of it”, he affirmed this official of the kyiv regime, adding that this locality and the nearby town of Bakhmout were the “hottest” points. from the forehead.
FIRE BOMBS
The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense shares images of a village in the Zaporizhia region, bombarded by the Russian army. Russian troops appear to be using incendiary weapons, the use of which is prohibited by the geneva convention.
MULTIPLE ATTACKS
Russia on Saturday fired missiles against key infrastructure in kyiv and other parts of Ukraine. Several explosions sounded in the morning in the capital. “A missile attack on critical infrastructure” is underway in Kyiv, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency Kyrylo Tymoshenko said on Telegram while the city’s mayor Vitali Klitschko reported explosions in the Dniprovskiy district, calling on residents to “stay in the shelters”. Fragments of a missile fell in the Golosiivsky district, causing no injuries.
In the Kharkiv region, “the enemy launched a new missile attack on critical infrastructure,” Governor Oleg Synegibov said. Emergency power cuts could take place in Ukraine’s second city. Attacks have also been reported in the Zaporizhia region. “The enemy is again attacking the territory of Ukraine,” also said the head of the Cherkasy region Igor Taburets, adding to expect large-scale alerts in the middle of the day.
ASSISTANCE
Through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, the Commission is coordinating the largest operation ever. 78,000 tons of humanitarian aid and civil protection materials have been delivered since February 15, 2022. More than 1,300 generators have been made available to the kyiv regime, 121 school buses have been provided and 1,702 patients have been evacuated to hospitals in 18 European countries.
POINT
In Soledar, which Russia assured the day before to have taken control, before being denied by kyiv, uncertainty remains. In this context, the UN sees “no sign of the end of the fighting” in Ukraine. The highlights of the last 24 hours.
kyiv
Several explosions sounded Saturday morning in kyiv, AFP journalists found, with Ukrainian officials saying strikes targeted key infrastructure in Ukraine’s capital.
“A missile attack on critical infrastructure” is underway in Kyiv, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency Kyrylo Tymoshenko said on Telegram while the city’s mayor Vitali Klitschko reported explosions in the Dniprovskiy district, calling on residents to “stay in the shelters”.
HELLO
Hello and welcome to this direct dedicated to the war in Ukraine. Find here all the information concerning this conflict started by Russia in February 2022