The Ukrainian army announced last night that it had had to withdraw to certain areas of the northern front, in the Kharkiv region where Russia launched a new offensive on May 10.Follow the situation live.
SRI LANKAN MERCENARIES DEAD IN UKRAINE
At least 16 Sri Lankan mercenaries have died fighting in Russia’s war in Ukraine, the South Asian island nation’s deputy defense minister said Wednesday. “We have confirmed the information that 16 mercenaries were killed,” Pramitha Tennakoon told reporters in Colombo, adding that at least 288 retired soldiers had been recruited in this conflict.
PROTECT UKRAINIAN SKIES FROM RUSSIAN MISSILES?
France and the European Union “must help kyiv protect itself from Russian air attacks”, believes a group of intellectuals and soldiers in an article published at the beginning of the week by our colleagues from World. “We should be able to afford to intercept all the missiles that come close to cities like Lviv, for example. Our fighter planes, which are over Romania or Poland, do not need to return to the Ukrainian territory to shoot down these terrorist missiles which are targeting civilians today”, estimates Xavier Tytelman, signatory and former military aviator and aeronautical specialist, on LCI.
War in Ukraine: is it possible to protect kyiv’s airspace?Source : TF1 Info
ELECTRICITY RATIONING LIFTED IN SEVERAL REGIONS
Ukraine began on Wednesday morning lifting electricity rationing imposed across the country the evening before, due to damage inflicted on energy infrastructure by Russian strikes in recent months. “Emergency cuts were lifted at 9 a.m. in kyiv (8 a.m. in Paris) in the Kiev region, in the Odessa region, in the Donetsk region and in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Workers in the energy sector energy have restored electricity to all homes”, indicated the operator of these regions, DTEK.
V. ZELENSKY CANCELS HIS VISIT TO SPAIN
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who was expected in Madrid on Friday for an official visit, has canceled his visit to Spain, according to the Spanish press, information confirmed by the official program of the Spanish royal palace. The royal palace updated the sovereign’s agenda on Wednesday morning, indicating that the meeting between King Felipe VI and the Ukrainian head of state, as well as an official lunch in honor of Volodymyr Zelensky, were canceled. According to local media, the latter made this decision due to the new Russian offensive in northern Ukraine.
V. PUTIN SALUTES BEIJING’S “SINCERE DESIRE” TO HELP “SOLVE THE CRISIS”
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed Beijing’s “sincere desire” to work to resolve the Ukrainian crisis in an interview published Wednesday by Chinese state media ahead of his visit to China. The Russian leader is due to arrive in the Chinese capital on Thursday with the hope of obtaining clearer support for his war effort from his “dear friend” and counterpart Xi Jinping.
The two-day visit marks Vladimir Putin’s first foreign trip since his re-election in March and his second to China in just over six months. “Beijing is well aware of the root causes of the crisis and its global geopolitical importance,” continued the Russian president, who refers to a 12-point document published by China in February 2023 to explain its position. “The ideas and proposals contained in the document show the sincere desire of our Chinese friends to help stabilize the situation.”
UKRAINIAN ARMY WITHDRAWS TO “CERTAIN AREAS” OF THE NORTHERN FRONT
The Ukrainian army announced on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday that it had had to withdraw to certain areas of the northern front, in the Kharkiv region where Russia launched a new offensive on May 10. “In some areas, near Lukiantsi and Vovchansk, in response to enemy fire and an infantry assault, our units maneuvered towards more favorable positions in order to save the lives of our soldiers and avoid casualties. The battle continues” , the Ukrainian general staff said on social networks.
UKRAINIAN DRONES
Russia claims to have neutralized 17 Ukrainian drones which notably targeted a fuel depot in the Rostov region (south) housing the military headquarters of the Russian operation in Ukraine. “During the night, several attempts by the Kiev regime to carry out terrorist attacks (…) against targets on Russian territory were prevented,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Russian air defense systems intercepted and destroyed these aerial drones in several regions bordering Ukraine, as well as ten ATACMS missiles over the annexed Crimean peninsula, according to the same source. The attack did not cause a fire, “no one was injured”, assures the local governor, Vassili Goloubev, on Telegram.
COUNCIL OF EUROPE
Foreign ministers from the 46 member states of the Council of Europe will meet on Friday morning in Strasbourg to discuss support for Ukraine following the Russian invasion.
This summit comes as the Council of Europe celebrates its 75th anniversary, an anniversary which will be celebrated Thursday evening during a ceremony at the Strasbourg opera.
WASHINGTON WILL SUPPORT kyiv UNTIL ITS SECURITY IS “GUARANTEED”
Ukraine, which is currently beset by a Russian offensive in the northeast and power cuts after strikes on its power plants, will benefit from Washington’s support until its security is “guaranteed”, promised Tuesday the head of American diplomacy Antony Blinken, during a surprise visit to kyiv. “The United States has been with you since day one” and “we will remain with you until Ukraine’s security, sovereignty and ability to choose its own path are guaranteed,” he said. -he declared in a speech to students in the Ukrainian capital.
GOOD MORNING
Hello everyone. Welcome to TF1info to follow the latest news around the war in Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022 after the Russian invasion ordered by Vladimir Putin.
A promise made to kyiv. On a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital on Tuesday, May 14, the head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, assured that the country would benefit from Washington’s support until its security was “guarantee”. “The United States has been with you since day one” And “We will stand by you until Ukraine’s security, sovereignty and ability to choose its own path are guaranteed.”he said in a speech to students in the Ukrainian capital.
Arriving in the morning, he assured during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that American military aid was “on the way”. “Some of it has already happened, more will come” And “this will make a real difference on the battlefield”, launched the American Secretary of State.
These promises come as Ukraine is in the grip of a Russian offensive in the northeast. Furthermore, on Tuesday evening, the Ukrainian public electricity company Ukrenergo announced that it was “required to carry out controlled emergency outages in all regions”, including in the capital – where 10% of homes had to be disconnected from the network -, following the bombing of power stations and an increase in power consumption linked to a drop in temperatures. Russian forces have carried out some of their most devastating strikes on energy infrastructure in Ukraine in recent months, destroying key facilities there.