The essential :
- The port of Mariupol is besieged by the Russian armed forces, according to the mayor of the city. “Our hometown, our family of half a million people, is under ruthless attack,” writes the chosen one on Telegram. A ceasefire was put in place by the attackers to allow civilians to flee. The town hall of the city accuses Russia of not respecting the truce and suspends the evacuations.
- The UN Security Council will meet urgently on Monday March 7 to discuss the health crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. New negotiations between Kiev and Moscow must also take place during the day on the Belarusian border.
- NATO refused to establish a no-fly zone in Ukraine to prevent Russian bombing. The Ukrainian president denounced a form of “self-hypnosis” by members of the Alliance. For his part, Vladimir Putin considered that such an approach would make NATO active participants in the conflict.
- A demonstration in support of Ukraine, and against the war, takes place at Place de la République in Paris. Several thousand French people hammered home their opposition to the Russian invasion.
5:23 p.m. – Jadot accuses the Total group of complicity with Russia
Ecologist presidential candidate Yannick Jadot on Saturday denounced the “unacceptable complicity” of the French giant TotalEnergies with Moscow, castigating the fact that the company “remains the last multinational oil and gas present in Russia” after the invasion of Russia. ‘Ukraine.
4:10 p.m. – The striking video of the attack on British journalists by the Russians
The video of the attack on British Sky News journalists, which occurred earlier this week, was broadcast by the channel.
This is absolutely terrifying – Stuart Ramsay and his Sky News team were targeted by a professional Russian hit squad in Ukraine.
Amazing that cameraman Richie Mockler managed to film this despite being under heavy gunfire.
They’re safely back in the UK. https://t.co/Rs4xVuNukw pic.twitter.com/gKyIzbRNwN
— Tim Gatt (@TimGatt) March 4, 2022
3:58 p.m. – “Fierce” fighting continues around Kiev
In a hospital north of the capital on Saturday, wounded Ukrainian soldiers told AFP of their unequal fight under a deluge of Russian fire, while promising that they would return to the front as soon as they were fit to fight again. .
“We were on reconnaissance” and “we came across an enemy column,” said Private Motyka, 29, hit by shrapnel on his right flank. “We fought them and we killed their soldiers on foot, but they sprayed us with mortar fire,” he said. Pounded and almost surrounded, the Ukrainian battalion lost several men and had to retreat.
3:35 p.m. – “No to war!” : several thousand French gathered place of the Republic
Several thousand people gathered on Saturday afternoon at Place de la République in Paris to protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and to say “no to war in Europe”, noted an AFP journalist.
“We will be there every weekend, in Paris or elsewhere, until Mr. Putin leaves, withdraws his tanks,” Aline Le Bail-Kremer, a member of Stand With Ukraine, told AFP. at the initiative of the rally in the capital.
3:06 p.m. – Several European media cease their activities from Russia
The Italian public television channel RAI announced on Saturday that it would immediately suspend its coverage from Russia because of the recent Russian law threatening heavy penalties for any dissemination of “false information about the army”.
Earlier in the afternoon, the German public television channels ARD and ZDF also announced on Saturday the temporary suspension of their coverage from Moscow, the time to “examine the consequences” of this same law.
2:58 p.m. – “Don’t shoot”: the video that shows Zaporizhia personnel during the attack
Attacked by Russian troops on Friday morning, notably causing a fire and shooting towards its buildings, the Zaporijia power plant, located in southeastern Ukraine, is now controlled by the Russians.
During the attack, as this video shows, some of his staff had pleaded with the troops sent by Moscow to cease fire. On the loudspeaker, we hear a man asking the military to stop “firing on a dangerous nuclear installation”, accusing them of “threatening the security of the whole world”.
2:33 p.m. – Putin raises his voice against Westerners
Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed on Saturday that Russia would consider co-belligerent any country attempting to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine, a claim by Kiev that NATO has rejected.
“We will consider any development in this direction as a participation in the armed conflict of any country on whose territory a threat would be created towards our soldiers”, he said about a possible “no-fly zone over above the territory of Ukraine”.
2:31 p.m. – Blinken welcomes Poland’s reception of refugees
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken praised Poland on Saturday for welcoming hundreds of thousands of fleeing Ukrainians and said Washington plans to advance an additional $2.75 billion to deal with the humanitarian crisis caused by war.
“The Polish people know how important it is to defend freedom,” he said after meeting with Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau in Rzeszow, near the border with Ukraine. “Poland is doing vital work in response to this crisis,” he insisted.
Blinken said the White House has been seeking $2.75 billion (2.51 billion euros) to provide support for people fleeing Ukraine, and countries accepting them, since the attack Russian which began on February 24.
2:22 p.m. – No martial law in Russia, announces Putin
Russia does not plan to introduce martial law, President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday in response to persistent rumors to do so because of the conflict in Ukraine.
“Martial law is implemented (…) in the event of aggression, particularly in regions where fighting is taking place. We do not have such a situation and I hope that it will not intervene,” he said. he said, questioned by employees of the Russian airline Aeroflot.
1:56 p.m. – More than 1.3 million Ukrainians have fled the country
The High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) listed exactly 1,368,864 refugees on its dedicated website at 12:15 GMT (1:15 p.m. French time). These are nearly 160,000 more than during the previous tally on Friday. Authorities and the UN expect the flow to intensify as the Russian army continues to advance into Ukraine, with fierce fighting still around the capital Kiev. “1.3 million people have fled Ukraine in search of safety. Unless the conflict ends immediately, millions more are likely to be forced to flee,” UNHCR said in a tweet on Saturday. . According to the UN, 4 million people may want to leave the country to escape the war.
1:33 p.m. – London recommends that the British leave Russia
London on Saturday called on Britons whose presence is not “essential” to leave Russia as tensions escalate due to the war in Ukraine. “If your presence in Russia is not essential, we strongly advise you to consider leaving by the commercial destinations still available”, indicates the site of the Foreign Office.
Due to airline sanctions, the UK government has advised that it may not be possible to fly directly to the UK or through EU countries, but people wanting to leave Russia could travel via the Middle East or Turkey.