09/21/2022
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 01:15 Expected Putin speech has apparently been postponed +++
A speech by Russian President Vladimir Putin that was expected for Tuesday evening has apparently been postponed. Russian state media had announced the appeal, but then only broadcast older speeches by Putin. Observers had assumed that the President would comment on the announced sham referendums in areas of eastern Ukraine. However, there was no official announcement – and consequently no explanation for the delay. Journalists close to the Kremlin indicated in the evening that Putin would now give the speech on Wednesday morning. “Go to sleep,” Margarita Simonyan, an editor for Russia’s state broadcaster RT, wrote on Telegram around 10:30 p.m.
+++ 00:33 Union wants the Bundestag to vote on the delivery of heavy weapons +++
The Union wants to put the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine to a vote in the Bundestag. The motion entitled “Defend peace and freedom in Europe – now resolutely support Ukraine with heavy weapons” states: “As the economically strongest European nation, Germany must now assume leadership responsibility and deliver heavy weapon systems – including those from the Bundeswehr stocks – to Ukraine and provide the necessary training.” Above all, those battle tanks and armored personnel carriers from industry stocks that are quickly available must be delivered to Ukraine more quickly. According to the agenda of the Bundestag, it is still unclear whether the motion should be voted on directly after the debate on Thursday or whether it should be referred to the committees for further discussion.
More about this here.
+++ 00:14 Selenskyj is unimpressed by the announced sham referendums +++
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacted with demonstrative calm to the announcement of sham referendums on the annexation of occupied areas of his country to Russia. “Our position does not change due to noise or any announcements,” he emphasizes in his evening video address. “We are defending Ukraine, we are liberating our country and most importantly we are not showing any weakness.” Selenskyj expressly thanks for the unanimous condemnation of the Russian plans by many countries and organizations. “We have the full support of our partners,” he says. At the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, he said he wanted to make Ukraine’s position clear and unambiguous. He will be connected to New York via video.
+++ 23:32 OSCE: Accession referendums have “no legal effect” +++
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) condemns plans for a vote on the accession of eastern Ukrainian regions to Russia. It is said that these “referendums” in occupied territories would contravene the international law of war and would be illegal. “The results would therefore have no legal effect,” stressed OSCE Chairperson and Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, OSCE Secretary General Helga Schmid and other senior representatives of the organization in a joint statement. Foreign policy chief Josep Borrell makes it clear that the EU will also not recognize referendums in occupied areas of Ukraine on accession to Russia. According to Borrell, the votes cannot be seen as “free expression of the will of the people” in these regions.
+++ 22:48 Duma deputy denies possible general mobilization +++
According to information from the parliament, a general mobilization in Russia is currently not an issue. “There will be no general mobilization,” said the head of the defense committee in the State Duma, Andrei Kartapalov, in an interview with “Parlamentskaya Gazeta”. According to Kartapalov, the recent tightening of the law, which observers point to a possible preparation for the imposition of martial law in the country, served to secure Russia’s defense capability in the long term.
+++ 22:08 Decline in the Ukrainian wheat harvest expected in 2023 +++
According to a minister, the Ukrainian wheat harvest could drop to 16-18 million tons in 2023 from 19 million tons this year. The reason is the expected decrease in the sown area for winter wheat, explains Deputy Minister of Agriculture Taras Vysotskyi. Farmers prefer to sow oilseeds because of the higher price and stable export demand, according to Ukrainian agriculture officials. This could reduce the acreage for winter wheat by 20 percent.
+++ 21:45 Macron: Imperialism has returned with the Ukraine war +++
French President Emmanuel Macron sees a resurgence of imperialism in the Russian war of aggression. “What we have been seeing since February 24 is a return to the days of imperialism and the colonies,” said the French head of state in New York before the UN General Assembly. France rejects this, strives for peace and therefore Macron continues to seek dialogue with Russia.
+++ 21:12 AfD MPs cancel trip to Russia +++
After sharp criticism, three AfD members of the state parliament break off their trip to Russia. “Mr (Christian) Blex said he was not in the Donbass and will end the trip,” explains a spokeswoman for the AfD parliamentary group in North Rhine-Westphalia. According to the politician, his two companions from Saxony-Anhalt, Hans-Thomas Tillschneider and Daniel Wald, are also traveling back, the spokeswoman said. There was initially no confirmation of this from the AfD parliamentary group in Saxony-Anhalt. The trip to Russia caused a lack of understanding among representatives of other parties, and there was also a shake of the head within the AfD.
You can read earlier developments relating to the Ukraine war here.