Did you miss the latest events on the war in Ukraine? Do not panic, 20 minutes takes stock for you every evening at 7:30 p.m. Who did what ? Who said what? Where are we ? The answer below.
news of the day
Crossover in Bakhmout. The regular Russian army is beginning to take over the positions of the paramilitary group Wagner, which claimed responsibility for the capture of the city in eastern Ukraine this weekend. This operation takes place at a time when the Russian army is in a delicate situation on the flanks in Bakhmout, having lost, according to the Ukrainians, 20 square kilometers to the north and south of this city against their forces.
“We are withdrawing the units from Bakhmout today. By June 1, the bulk will relocate to rear bases,” Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigojine said in a video posted on Telegram. In these images, he greets his men by giving them instructions and wishing them good luck, this time avoiding repeating his criticisms of the Russian army staff, with which he is in open conflict. “We retire, we rest, we prepare, then we will receive new tasks,” added Yevgeny Prigojine. A Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister, Ganna Maliar, confirmed the information.
sentence of the day
His passing leaves you with a huge void. She upsets us all. »
Emmanuel Macron sent in a letter his “sincere condolences” to the employees of Agence France-Presse after the death in eastern Ukraine of their colleague Arman Soldin who was “the face” of a “passion”, “the duty to inform”.
Despite the “sorrow” and “anger”, “the memory of Arman Soldin will also be evoked with admiration and pride”, added the head of state. “His name will remain associated with the honor of your profession,” he told AFP journalists, assuring them, in a handwritten sentence, of his “sincere condolences” and his “constant support. »
The number of the day
36. This is the number of drones launched by Russia in the night and destroyed by kyiv. Moscow “continues to terrorize Ukraine” and has launched 36 drones, Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram. “None of them achieved their objective,” he assured, thanking the country’s anti-aircraft defense.
The Ukrainian Air Force said the Iranian-made and Shahed 136/131 type drones were launched from the north and south. “The enemy was no doubt targeting critical infrastructure and military sites in the south of the country,” she said in Telegram. Since early May, Russia has intensified its nightly missile and drone attacks on Ukraine.
The trend of the day
Vladimir Putin’s threat is carried out. The Russian president announced on March 25 that Moscow was going to deploy “tactical” nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus, a country located at the gates of the European Union. This transfer has begun, according to the country’s president, Alexander Lukashenko. Russia for its part did not immediately comment. “The transfer of nuclear charges has started, it has already started,” said the Belarusian head of state, answering a question from a Russian journalist in a video broadcast by the unofficial Telegram channel of the Belarusian presidency, Pul Pervogo.
The opponent in exile Svetalana Tikhanovskaïa denounced Thursday a threat for the whole European continent. “This does not just endanger the lives of Belarusians, but also creates a new threat for Ukraine, for all of Europe”, wrote on Twitter Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa. “When it comes to tactical nuclear weapons, most are as powerful as the one that killed 140,000 people in Hiroshima,” she added. So-called “tactical” nuclear weapons can cause immense damage, but their radius of destruction is more limited than that of “strategic” nuclear weapons.