22.06.2024
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 01:57 British right-wing populist Farage: West has provoked Putin +++
The British right-wing populist Nigel Farage blames the West for Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. “We provoked the war,” said the head of the Reform UK party in a BBC interview. Referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin, he added: The “perpetual” eastward expansion of the EU and NATO gave Putin a reason for the war. The Kremlin chief was able to tell his people that the West “is after them.” At the same time, Farage sees Putin as an aggressor: “Of course it’s his fault.” Farage, a long-time EU parliamentarian, played a key role in driving Brexit forward.
+++ 00:55 Kyiv’s ambassador warns against citizen’s income debate +++
The Ukrainian ambassador Oleksii Makeiev warns against misusing the debate about Ukrainian refugees for party-political purposes. “Victims of war should not be instrumentalized in election campaigns,” Makeiev told the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND) in response to the accusation that too few of the Ukrainians who have fled to Germany are working and too many are receiving citizen’s allowance. “The requirement to first demonstrate a certain level of German language skills delays the start of work,” he says. “Many of them have a university degree; some even have doctorates. And yet they cannot find work here.” He and Labor Minister Hubertus Heil are in close contact with Ukrainian asylum seekers. Efforts are being made to “actively integrate them into the labor market.”
+++ 23:26 Selenskyj: Negotiations with EU can now begin +++
According to its President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine is a big step closer to joining the EU. “The European Union has approved the negotiating framework for Ukraine – many have fought for it at various levels,” said Zelensky in his evening video address. This means that negotiations can now actually begin. This is a “significant success.” According to Zelensky, Kyiv has already formed a negotiating delegation for the accession talks. The head of state is convinced that the negotiations will be successful. “Ukraine is and will remain a part of a united Europe,” he said.
+++ 22:14 Kiev plans second peace conference this year +++
Ukraine wants to hold a second international peace conference in 2024. This is what the deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Igor Zhovkva, told Interfax Ukraine. “We want to hold the second peace summit before the end of the year,” says Zhovkva. “Ukraine, like no other, wants peace as soon as possible.” There is a “high probability” that the next conference will take place “in one of the countries of the global south.” The first peace summit took place on June 15 and 16 in Switzerland. According to Zhovkva, Ukraine would be ready to start negotiations with Russia “tomorrow” if Moscow immediately withdraws its troops from Ukrainian territory.
+++ 21:38 Netherlands announce delivery of Patriot system +++
The Netherlands want to supply a Patriot air defense system to the Netherlands in cooperation with another country. This was announced by Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren, according to the Dutch news agency ANP. According to Ollongren, the Netherlands has gathered all the components for the Patriot system. She did not provide any information about the cooperation partner or when the system will be delivered to Ukraine. In May it was reported that the Netherlands wanted to build a Patriot air defense system in the short term and with the support of other countries and supply it to Ukraine.
+++ 20:57 Estonia temporarily closes border crossing to Russia +++
Estonia will temporarily close the border crossing to Russia in Narva over the weekend for security reasons. The police and border protection authority of the Baltic EU and NATO country justified the move with significantly slower border controls on the Russian side. As a result, cross-border commuters had to wait for hours on Thursday and Friday for the opportunity to cross the border. In order to avoid endangering people’s health and public order, the crossing will remain closed on Saturday and Sunday, the authority announced. Estonian media speculate that the slower controls are related to the celebrations planned in Narva for the Estonian Victory Day against the Red Army in 1919 on June 23.
You can read all previous developments here.