Situation on the ground, international reactions, sanctions: the point on the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
kyiv accused of having struck in Russia
The governor of Russia’s Belgorod region on Friday accused Ukraine of carrying out a dawn helicopter attack on what he described as an “oil depot” in the town about 40 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
The Kremlin considered that this incident would not “create the appropriate conditions for the continuation of negotiations”. The Ukrainian side did not formally deny it, but suggested “sabotage”.
Evacuation from Mariupol postponed
The Red Cross announced that the team sent to Mariupol in Ukraine had to turn back, the planned evacuation of thousands of civilians from this city besieged by Russian forces being “impossible”. A new attempt will take place on Saturday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked Emmanuel Macron to try “to obtain from Russia the necessary conditions for a humanitarian operation” in this city, during a new interview, said the French presidency.
Resumption of talks
Russian-Ukrainian talks aimed at ending the conflict resumed Friday via videoconference, according to Kremlin negotiator Vladimir Medinsky. “Our positions on Crimea and Donbass have not changed,” he said, referring to two Ukrainian regions, one which Russia annexed in 2014 and the other which is partially under the control of pro-Russian separatists.
Ukraine is still waiting for a “real response to the proposals that were made in Istanbul” earlier this week, noted for his part the head of diplomacy Dmytro Kouleba.
To read : Moscow judges that the Ukrainian attack on Russian soil will weigh on the talks
kyiv had in particular proposed the neutrality of Ukraine and to renounce joining NATO, provided that its security was guaranteed by other countries against Russia.
In the military field
The Russians “continue their partial withdrawal” from the north of the kyiv region towards the Belarusian border, indicated the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, which denounces looting by Russian soldiers. In this same area, the villages of Sloboda and Lukashivka, south of Chernihiv, were taken over by Ukrainian troops. In the East, “Russian forces have failed to take any territory for 24 hours”, according to the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
The Ukrainians claimed to have liberated 11 localities in the Kherson region (south). Two people were killed and two others injured in Russian shelling on Thursday, according to the regional governor.
kyiv also announced that it had exchanged 86 of its soldiers for Russians, without specifying the number of the latter.
53 cultural sites damaged
At least 53 cultural sites have been damaged in Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco).
Russians irradiated in Chernobyl?
Ukraine’s Chernobyl nuclear power plant was not damaged during its occupation by Russian soldiers, but they probably exposed themselves to radiation, particularly by digging trenches in the contaminated area, Ukrainian authorities said.
To read : Chernobyl plant intact but Russians probably irradiated
The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said “not to be able to confirm” this information.
Moscow welcomes India’s position
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov hailed in New Delhi India’s balanced approach to the war in Ukraine.
India, which US President Joe Biden had found “hesitant” in its response to the invasion of Ukraine, refused to join votes condemning Moscow at the United Nations.
EU calls on Beijing not to support Moscow
The EU has warned Beijing that any support for Moscow to circumvent Western sanctions will hurt its economic relations with Europe, its largest trading partner, calling on it to pressure Russia to end the conflict in Ukraine.
More than 4.1 million refugees
Some 4,102,876 Ukrainian refugees have fled their country since the invasion of Ukraine, according to the High Commissioner for Refugees.
To read : Nearly 7,000 Ukrainian students currently attending school in France