May 1, 2024
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 03:21 USA imposes import ban on Russian uranium +++
The USA bans the import of Russian uranium. The Senate passed the measure unanimously. The sanctions will take effect 90 days after the law comes into force. They contain exceptions in the event that the supply of domestic reactors is at risk. Uranium is used to power commercial nuclear reactors to generate electricity. According to the US Energy Statistics Agency (EIA), US nuclear power plants imported around twelve percent of their uranium from Russia in 2022.
+++ 01:12 Another rocket attack on Odessa: three dead +++
According to Ukrainian information, three people were killed in a Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian port city of Odessa. Three others were injured, the region’s governor, Oleh Kiper, said via Telegram. The attack damaged the civilian infrastructure. On Monday, a Russian missile hit a law school in the Ukrainian port city on the Black Sea, killing five people.
+++ 00:46 Crimea representative accuses Russia of torture on the peninsula +++
The Ukrainian Commissioner for Crimea, Tamila Tasheva, accuses Russia of torturing and disappearing people on the annexed Black Sea peninsula. “The Russians persecute human rights activists and journalists in Crimea, they kidnap civilians into dark cellars and torture them there, they make people disappear,” Tasheva told the Germany editorial network. “The Russians have turned Crimea into a huge military base and are using it as a base for attacks against Ukraine.” The poor human rights situation in Crimea is also denounced in reports from the Council of Europe and other organizations.
+++ 23:14 Protest against “Russian law” in Georgia: Police use violence against demonstrators +++
Resistance to what they call the “Russian law” is once again driving thousands of people onto the streets in Georgia. They demonstrated against government plans for stricter control over alleged foreign influence. According to media reports, police pushed away demonstrators at the parliament building in the capital Tbilisi and used pepper spray and a water cannon. There are said to be several injured. In parliament, MPs debated the controversial law in its second and penultimate reading, which, according to its opponents, should be used to control civil society, as in Russia. There will be a vote on it tomorrow.
+++ 21:55 Israel is dismantling its Patriots – Ukraine reports a need for +++
The Israeli Air Force will dismantle its Patriot air defense systems within two months as it replaces them with its own more advanced air defense equipment, the Israeli Defense Ministry announces. According to media reports, Israel is said to have eight US-made Patriot systems currently operating alongside its own air defenses, including the Iron Dome. The Defense Ministry is not saying what will happen to the Patriot systems after they are dismantled, but Ukraine has been demanding more Patriots for months to bolster the country’s air defenses in the face of escalating Russian airstrikes.
+++ 20:55 State Border Guard Service of Ukraine establishes new combat brigade “Hard” +++
The State Border Guard Service is establishing its third combat brigade, “Hart” (Ukrainian word for “harden”), this Tuesday on the occasion of Ukrainian Border Guard Day, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko announced on his Telegram channel. The State Border Guard Service fell under the control of the Ukrainian Armed Forces after the Russian invasion began in February 2022. This armed branch is responsible for monitoring the Ukrainian state border by land and sea. The units of the State Border Guard Service were the first to face Russian troops on February 24, 2022, when the war began. Klymenko says members of the newly formed unit have already served on the country’s eastern border.
+++ 20:32 Zelenskyj: In order for Ukraine to join NATO, it “needs victory” +++
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky does not expect his country to join NATO during the war with Russia. “In my personal opinion, we will only be in NATO after we have won,” said the head of state at a joint discussion with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Kiev. Several NATO members feared the risks of Ukraine joining NATO. It is therefore a political question. “And for Ukraine to be politically accepted into the alliance, it needs victory,” said Zelensky. Ukraine has been fending off a Russian invasion for over two years with the support of primarily NATO member states. In 2019, Kiev enshrined the goal of NATO membership in the constitution. Preventing Ukrainian accession is one of Russia’s declared war aims.
+++ 19:51 Blinken blames China for the flourishing of the Russian arms industry +++
Russia produced more ammunition, missiles, tanks and armored vehicles last year than at any time in its modern history, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says during a conversation with World Economic Forum President Borge Brende. “How was that possible?” Blinken asks. “Because it receives a massive input of machine tools, microelectronics and optics, mostly coming from China. 70 percent of machine tools and 90 percent of microelectronics come from China. These are dual-use goods, but we know exactly where so many of them are going go.” Blinken points to the dual challenge that Chinese support poses: not only does it allow Russia to sustain its military actions against Ukraine, but it also helps rebuild its industrial defense base.
You can read all previous developments here.