Russian invasion
Conference in Malta: Ukraine sees support for its own peace formula
People push a broken down vehicle past a disused restaurant. photo
© Bram Janssen/AP/dpa
Ukrainian President Zelenskyj sees support from more than 60 countries in Malta for his peace formula. The news at a glance.
Meanwhile, there was a fire at an oil refinery in Russia. A drone attack was suspected. Despite major restrictions imposed by the Russian authorities, people also gathered in several cities across the vast country to commemorate victims of Stalin’s repression.
Zelensky appeals for “unity of the world”
Ukraine continued to prepare its planned peace summit at the conference in Malta. “Ending Europe’s largest war since World War II with a just, lasting and comprehensive peace will have a major positive impact on other explosive conflicts unfolding around the world,” the head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said on Saturday . “We bring peace closer.” Yermak announced specific results of the meeting without giving details.
According to information from government circles, Germany was represented at “high official levels from the Chancellery and the Foreign Office.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj praised the meeting as a sign of unity against the aggressor Russia. “The unity of the world is what it really takes to defeat the aggressor,” he said in his video message distributed on Saturday evening. Similar conferences had previously taken place in Copenhagen and Jeddah.
Fire in Russian refinery: drone attack suspected
A fire broke out overnight on the site of an oil refinery in southern Russia. There were no casualties or damage, as the authorities in the Krasnodar region announced. The fire has now been extinguished. No official cause of the fire was given. However, it was suspected on social networks that a drone attacked the area. A video purporting to show the incident was also shared. Russian fighter jets repeatedly launch their attacks against Ukraine from Krasnodar.
Commemoration in Russia for victims of political repression
Despite enormous restrictions by the authorities, people in several Russian cities remembered the victims of political repression during Soviet times. With a view to the official memorial day on October 30th, several ambassadors from Western countries, among others, laid flowers on Lubyanka Square in the center of Moscow on Sunday. Prominent Russian human rights activists were also present, including the co-founder and chairman of the Memorial organization, which has now been banned by the Russian judiciary, Svetlana Gannushkina and Oleg Orlov.
However, the police only let a few people through to the so-called Solovetsky Stone, which was cordoned off with bars. The stone serves as a memorial in Moscow to the millions of people who died, particularly under Soviet dictator Josef Stalin from 1924 to 1953. Until a few years ago, human rights activists always called for major actions at the site on October 29th and traditionally read out the names of the victims, many of whom were shot in the 1930s, under the motto “Return the Names”.
Such actions are currently prohibited. The Russian authorities officially justify this with alleged anti-Covid measures. Since there have been almost no corona restrictions in Russia for a long time, Kremlin critics see this as pure harassment in times of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
Open political discussions in Russia are becoming increasingly difficult
According to British intelligence services, the Kremlin continues to work to restrict freedom of expression in the country. The Russian Ministry of Education and Science reportedly ordered universities in mid-October to avoid open discussions about any “negative political, economic and social developments” in Russia in academic activities. This is what the British Ministry of Defense wrote in its daily intelligence update on the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
Video message from Ukrainian President Yermak on Telegram Umjerov message on Telegram Secret service update Message from the Ukrainian Presidential Office from Sunday