Did you miss the latest events on the war in Ukraine? 20 minutes takes stock for you every evening at 7:30 p.m. Between the strong declarations, the advances on the front and the dramatic results of the fighting, here is the gist of the day.
The fact of the day
Russian diplomacy accused Ukraine on Monday of having played a “key role” in the anti-Israel riots which broke out the day before at an airport in Dagestan. A crowd of men invaded the tarmac and the terminal of the airport in the capital Makhachkala on Sunday evening, amid tensions across the world linked to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
These clashes were “the result of a planned and externally driven provocation” in which Kiev played a “key and direct” role, said Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova in a statement. . The operation aimed to “undermine” relations between Russia’s different religious communities, she added, without however providing evidence of such manipulation.
“The Russian Foreign Ministry’s accusations about Ukraine’s involvement in the events in Dagestan are an attempt to shift the responsibility” to Kiev, responded the spokesperson for Ukrainian diplomacy, Oleg Nikolenko. Finally Volodymyr Zelensky, of Jewish faith, judged on Sunday that these incidents demonstrated “the Russian culture of hatred against other nations”.
The number of the day
Eight. Like the number of Ukrainian Storm Shadow missiles aimed at Crimea and shot down by Russian forces, according to Moscow. One person was injured by falling debris, said the governor of Sebastopol, installed by Moscow, Mikhail Razvojaïev. At the same time, the Ukrainian army claimed to have “successfully struck” a Russian anti-aircraft defense system in annexed Crimea overnight from Sunday to Monday. “The Armed Forces of Ukraine successfully struck a strategic site of the anti-aircraft defense system on the western coast of Crimea,” the army’s strategic communications center said on Telegram without further details.
Sentence of the day
Some countries, out of fear that the world might stabilize, deliberately create problems, interfere in regional issues, interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, and foment color revolutions.
Speaking on Monday at the Xiangshan Forum, which brings together military and diplomats from 90 countries, Chinese general Zhang Youxia issued a veiled criticism of the United States, targeting in particular its support for Ukraine and Taiwan. Speaking after the Chinese general, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu also accused Washington of wanting to create instability in Asia. “After provoking an acute crisis in Europe, the West is trying to extend the crisis potential to the Asia-Pacific,” he said. And “the West’s posture towards escalation towards Russia poses the risk of a direct conflict between nuclear powers, which would have catastrophic consequences”.
Today’s trend
Polish authorities have indicated that they are detaining a Norwegian “with direct links to neo-Nazi groups” in Norway and wishing to join Ukrainian forces. The suspect, arrested in September while trying to enter Ukraine from Poland, is being held in detention on the grounds that his presence could represent a threat to Polish internal security.
“He planned to join the International Legion for the Territorial Defense of Ukraine,” Polish intelligence services ABW said in a statement Monday. “During a previous stay in Ukraine, he is suspected of having recovered equipment (crests, parts of uniforms, weapons) from the bodies of Russian soldiers,” the press release continues. Polish services did not disclose his identity but said he was awaiting extradition to Norway. During his arrest, drugs as well as “documents relating to the promotion of extremism and progressive radicalization” were found in his possession, according to ABW.