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 results of the battles, here are the main points of the day.
The fact of the day
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed on Tuesday the “firm support” provided by North Korea to the Russian military operation in Ukraine, a few hours before his arrival in Pyongyang for an exceptional visit. Vladimir Putin is making a state visit there on Tuesday and Wednesday, at the end of which a strategic partnership agreement could be signed between these two countries whose alliance the West perceives as a threat.
Moscow and Pyongyang have been allies since the end of the Korean War (1950-1953), but have grown closer since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. “Russia supported (North Korea) and its heroic people in their struggle to defend their right to choose the path of independence (…) and it will unwaveringly support them in the future,” wrote Vladimir Putin in an article published by the official North Korean daily Rodong Sinmun and the KCNA agency.
Americans and Europeans have been worried for months about the accelerated rapprochement between Moscow and Pyongyang, accusing the North Koreans of helping Russia militarily for its assault on Ukraine in exchange for technological, diplomatic and food assistance. According to the West, Pyongyang has drawn on its vast stocks of munitions to massively supply Russia, and the Pentagon last week accused Moscow of using North Korean ballistic missiles in Ukraine.
Today’s statement
“ “This aid allowed Russia to maintain this military-industrial base, to maintain the war machine, to maintain the war. This must therefore stop.” »
The sentence was signed this Tuesday by Anthony Blinken, head of American diplomacy. “What they do… is they provide essential support to Russia’s military-industrial complex,” he said at a press conference citing the fact that approximately “ 70% of machine tools imported by Russia come from China” and “90% of microelectronics”.
Anthony Blinken thus supports the remarks made the day before by the head of NATO: “China is fueling the largest armed conflict in Europe since the Second World War and, at the same time, it wants to maintain good relations with the West” , had castigated Jens Stoltenberg. “At some point, unless China changes course, allies must impose a cost. There should be consequences,” he added.
Words that did not please Beijing. “We urge [le secrétaire général de l’Otan] to stop blaming others and sowing discord, and not to add fuel to the fire,” said Lin Jian, a spokesperson for Chinese diplomacy.
The number of the day
2. This is the number of people killed this Tuesday by a mine in Russia near the Ukrainian border. The explosion occurred in the Bryansk region in a prohibited area with warning signs, the local governor announced.
The Bryansk region, regularly hit by fire from Ukraine, was hit in March 2023 by the incursion of pro-Ukrainian armed groups, pushing the Russian authorities to strengthen their defense in the area.
In the regions of Ukraine that they occupy, Russian troops have also deployed numerous minefields to prevent any offensive by kyiv’s forces.
The trend
Ukraine will introduce partial power cuts throughout the day on Wednesday across the country to alleviate an electricity network heavily damaged by Russian bombing, operator Ukrenergo announced on Tuesday.
“On June 19, all regional electricity distribution companies will implement hourly power cuts for industries and homes,” said the group, specifying that these measures will extend over 24 hours while they concern until now, smaller time slots, during consumption peaks.
Our file on the war in Ukraine
“The reason (for these restrictions) is an anticipated increase in consumption due to higher temperatures,” said Ukrenergo, specifying that “critical infrastructure” would not be affected by these cuts.
In the spring of 2024, massive Russian drone and missile strikes devastated many Ukrainian power plants, creating shortages, forcing kyiv to ration power and import electricity from its European neighbors. Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that these Russian bombings had led to Ukraine’s electricity production being halved since the winter.