May 13, 2024
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 01:31 Lithuania’s President: Shoigu’s dismissal intended for a Russian audience+++
According to Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, the dismissal of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu is intended as a signal to the Russian public. “This is happening for the domestic market. This is happening in order to be able to continue this war. Let us have no illusions that Putin is ready for peaceful negotiations,” said the head of state of the Baltic EU and NATO country, according to Lithuanian media reports.
+++ 00:01 Blinken: Months of delay in aid for Ukraine has its price +++
Undoubtedly, the “months-long delay in approving the supplementary budget and delivering equipment to Ukraine has come at a price,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken tells CBS News. Despite the setbacks, Blinken says he believes Ukraine can “hold the line in the east” since Russian troops launched a new offensive in the Kharkiv region on May 10. “I am convinced that Ukraine can effectively hold the line in the east.” It can continue to exploit the advantages it has gained in the Black Sea by shipping as much to the world via the Black Sea as it did before the Russian invasion of Ukraine and by keeping Russian forces at bay in Crimea, among other places , to make it more difficult for them to continue this aggression.
+++ 22:05 Putin’s long-time chief diplomat Lavrov remains +++
After 20 years in office, Sergei Lavrov will remain Russia’s foreign minister in the future. The corresponding proposal from Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin has already been received by the upper house of parliament, it said on Telegram. The 74-year-old has been in office since 2004, making him one of the longest-serving foreign ministers in the world. Putin’s close confidant is considered indispensable for Russia in times of crisis. There had been repeated speculation as to whether Lavrov might no longer be represented in the new government that is currently being formed in Russia, given his long term in office. Instead, Putin unexpectedly fired his long-time Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on Sunday evening in the middle of the war.
+++ 21:29 Peskov explains why Putin is transferring Shoigu +++
According to President Vladimir Putin’s wishes, 65-year-old Andrei Beloussov is to move to the top of the Russian war machine – by replacing the veteran Sergei Shoigu as defense minister. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov justified this step, according to a report from the Russian state agency TASS. According to him, Putin’s decision to appoint a civilian official to head the Defense Ministry is motivated by the need to innovate. The economy of the security bloc in general and the Ministry of Defense in particular should be integrated into the country’s economy. Kiev-based security expert Jimmy Rushton speculates that Putin’s decision is based on his belief that victory lies in overproduction compared to Ukraine and the West.
+++ 21:05 Power castling in Moscow: What happens now to Sergei Shoigu? +++
Sergei Shoigu, the Russian Defense Minister since 2012, should no longer hold his office according to the wishes of Head of State Vladimir Putin. Shoigu is now set to replace Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev. Patrushev will be given a new task, the Kremlin said. The US think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW) had already speculated last week that Putin could curtail Shoigu’s power. Shortly before, Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov was arrested as part of a corruption investigation. Shoigu and Ivanov reportedly maintained a close relationship. Long-time Moscow correspondent Ina Ruck calls it “almost transported away.” You can read more about moving chairs in Moscow here.
You can read all previous developments here.