Dhe International Criminal Court (ICC) has launched investigations into possible war crimes in Ukraine. The investigation will start “immediately”, said ICC chief investigator Karim Khan on Thursday night. The gathering of evidence “has now begun”. He received the support of 39 states for his investigations.
Earlier this week, Khan announced that he would launch an investigation into the situation in Ukraine as soon as possible. He explained that there were “plausible reasons” to believe that “both alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed” in Ukraine since 2014. The former ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda had already accused alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine in December 2020.
All developments in the live ticker:
4:35 a.m. – IOC chief Bach on Putin: “Can’t look inside his head”
IOC boss Thomas Bach is trying to distance himself from the Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin, who has long been courted by the sports world. In a media round, the President of the International Olympic Committee assured that people hadn’t really spoken to each other “for a number of years”. “I can’t look inside his head,” Bach said when asked about Putin’s motives for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the breach of the Olympic truce, which was in force until March 20. “I can’t give an explanation,” Bach said.
The head of the IOC said he had not recently spoken to Putin on the phone and talked about the sport’s measures against Russia. On Monday, the IOC recommended that all international federations exclude athletes from Russia and its ally Belarus from competitions.
4:12 a.m. – Ex-chess world champion Kasparov sharply criticizes Putin
Former world chess champion Garry Kasparov has sharply criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “It is tragic for my country. Thousands of young Russians are dying for this mad dictator. Many of them were born under Putin and die under Putin,” said the 58-year-old in an interview with the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”.
He hopes “that this war will lead to the collapse of his regime”. It is the first time since the end of the Cold War that almost the whole world has come together. In my wildest dreams I would not have expected such solidarity within four or five days.”
03:30 – Amazon supports Ukraine with money and logistics
The Internet giant Amazon announces aid for Ukraine. “We support local humanitarian organizations with cash donations from Amazon and our employees, with logistics to get supplies to those in need,” CEO Andy Jassy wrote on Twitter. The group also offers its expertise in the field of cyber security.
01:41 – Romanian Air Force reports dead in two crashes
The crash of two Romanian military planes with eight dead has puzzled the country’s air force. A military helicopter crashed in southeastern Romania, killing all seven crew members, the Defense Ministry said on Wednesday evening, according to Romanian media reports. The helicopter crew was on a search mission after an Air Force MiG-21 Lancer fighter jet went missing. The Ministry of Defense later said the fighter jet had also crashed. The 31-year-old pilot died, the ministry said. The cause of the crash of the military aircraft was initially unclear.
Both incidents happened about 100 kilometers as the crow flies from the border with Ukraine on the Black Sea. The IAR-330 Puma helicopter first lost contact with the control tower while searching for the fighter jet and then crashed near the town of Cogealac, the reports said. Shortly before, the helicopter pilot had received the order from the control tower to turn back because of bad weather. The MiG fighter jet took off from the Mihail Kogalniceanu air force base near the port city of Constanta on a patrol mission and then disappeared from radar.
The US military has been stationed at the Mihail Kogalniceanu base for years. Since the escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, NATO troop contingents and equipment have been increased there.
01:31 – OSCE observer killed in attack on Kharkiv
A member of the OSCE observer mission in Ukraine has been killed in a Russian attack on the city of Kharkiv. Maryna Fenina, a local member of the OSCE observer mission, was killed in Tuesday’s attack, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe said on its website on Wednesday. She was fatally shot “while traveling to get supplies for her family in a city that has become a war zone.”
The OSCE complained that in Kharkiv, as in other Ukrainian cities, residential buildings and city centers were being hit by rockets and other projectiles. Innocent civilians would be killed as a result, said OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid and the acting OSCE Chair and Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau.
01:23 – SAP and Oracle suspend business in Russia
According to their own statements, the German software giant SAP and its US rival Oracle are suspending all activities in Russia. “We are ceasing our business in Russia as part of the sanctions and are also pausing all sales of SAP services and products in Russia,” said SAP CEO Christian Klein. In addition to initial humanitarian support of one million euros for Ukraine, the company “also offered to convert our office space at locations across Europe into camps and accommodation for refugees.” hired in Russia. The Ukrainian Minister for Digital Transformation had previously asked both companies for support.
1:00 a.m. – Inspector General of the German Armed Forces does not expect a quick Russian victory
The Inspector General of the German Armed Forces, Eberhard Zorn, does not expect a quick victory for the Russian army in Ukraine. “I find it remarkable how long the Ukrainian armed forces and the population have withstood the attacks,” the highest-ranking German soldier told the newspapers of the Funke media group. “We are now seeing that Putin is leading his followers into the war. This will go hand in hand with the increased use of air forces and artillery – also against civilian targets.” The morale of the Ukrainian population is enormous, which supports the army. “I doubt whether this moral support is available on the Russian side.”
12:53 am Germany confiscates a Russian billionaire’s yacht
According to Forbes magazine, German authorities in Hamburg have confiscated the yacht of Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov. The “Dilbar”, named after Usmanov’s mother, is one of the most luxurious super yachts in the world at 156 meters in length. It was built in 2016 and is worth $594 million, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
00:44 – US airspace closure to Russian aircraft in effect
A day after President Joe Biden announced that US airspace would be closed to Russian planes. Scheduled, charter and cargo planes are affected by the ban, the US Department of Transportation said on Wednesday (local time). The order applies to all aircraft owned, leased, chartered or operated by a Russian citizen. The order for Russian airlines, including Aeroflot, said the airspace closure would apply “with immediate effect” and until further notice.
00:40 – USA: Russian army targets civilians in Ukraine
According to the US government, the Russian army is increasingly targeting civilians in its war of aggression in Ukraine. Russia is bringing “extremely lethal weapons” into the country, US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said on Wednesday. This includes cluster bombs and vacuum bombs, which are internationally banned and have “no place on the battlefield”.
“Hundreds, if not thousands, of civilians have been killed or injured in the Russian offensive,” said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The consequences for the population are “staggering”. The Russian military is attacking buildings and cities that “are not military targets,” he emphasized: “The humanitarian impact will increase in the coming days.”
11:50 p.m. – Rating agency classifies Russia as junk
The US rating agency Fitch downgraded Russia’s credit rating to junk after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The rating grade for long-term foreign currency bonds was lowered from “BBB” to “B” and is therefore in the speculative range. Further downgrades are possible.
23:20 – World Bank halts all programs in Russia and Belarus
After the Russians invaded Ukraine, the World Bank stopped all programs in Russia and Belarus with immediate effect. This is announced by the development bank. The World Bank has stopped lending to Russia since 2014 after Moscow annexed Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula.
23:05 – Spain supplies Ukraine with offensive weapons
Spain wants to send Ukraine a shipment of offensive weapons and ammunition. These included grenade launchers and machine guns, said Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles in an interview with TV station Antena3. The cargo should be sent on Friday. Two planes are to bring the material to Poland near the Ukrainian border. There representatives of Ukraine could pick it up.