07/21/2023
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 03:30 IAEA has so far no access to Zaporizhia roofs +++
Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency are still waiting for access to the roofs of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which is occupied by Russian troops. The specialists carried out further inspections of the facility at the beginning of the week, but so far have not discovered any visible signs of explosives or mines, says IAEA Director Rafael Grossi. According to Grossi, the IAEA continues to demand access to the roofs of the reactors and their turbine halls. A week ago, the head of the Russian nuclear agency Rosatom, Alexei Likhachev, had rejected allegations that Moscow was allegedly planning to blow up the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.
+++ 01:21 Selenskyj wants to get rid of Minister of Culture +++
After dissatisfaction with the handling of state funds, the Ukrainian President Zelenskyj wants to sack Culture Minister Olexander Tkachenko. Zelenskyi said in his evening video speech that he had asked Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal to consider replacing Tkachenko. Ukrainian media had previously reported that the culture minister wanted to spend 500 million hryvnia (around 12 million euros) to complete a national museum commemorating the Ukrainian victims of the Holodomor genocide in the 1930s. “In times of war like this, the main focus of the state, and thus also of state resources, should be on defense,” Zelenskyj criticizes. Of course, museums and other cultural areas are important, he emphasizes, “but right now we have other priorities.”
+++ 23:39 Belarusian Red Cross admits involvement in child kidnapping +++
The head of the Belarusian Red Cross publicly states that his organization is involved in kidnapping children from the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine to Belarus. In an interview with the state broadcaster Belarus 1, Dzmitry Shautsou says that the Red Cross brings Ukrainian children to the country for “rehabilitation”. “If you accuse the Republic of Belarus of kidnapping children who come to us for rehabilitation – frankly, the Belarusian Red Cross was, is and will be actively involved,” he said. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies condemns the actions and calls for the Belarusian organization to be expelled.
+++ 22:03 circumvention of the sanctions against Russia: USA are working on measures for Kyrgyzstan +++
Kyrgyzstan has denied helping its ally Moscow circumvent sanctions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine, but did not rule out the involvement of private companies. The Washington Post reports that US officials are particularly concerned about Kyrgyzstan’s role in Russia’s plans to evade sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine and acquire high-tech products like Chinese drones, according to Reuters. According to the newspaper, the Biden administration is preparing new economic measures to put pressure on the country not to circumvent the sanctions.
+++ 21:35 USA warn of attacks by Russia with sea mines +++
The US government has again warned that after Russia pulls out of the international grain deal, it could expand its attacks on civilian ships in the Black Sea and then blame them on Ukraine. “Our information indicates that Russia has been laying more naval mines in the approaches to Ukrainian ports,” said the National Security Council’s communications director, John Kirby. “And yesterday we observed that Russia released video of the discovery and detonation of what they claimed was a Ukrainian sea mine.” It is possible that this video could be a “harbinger” of a false flag attack.
+++ 21:07 Russians “half surrounded” – Ukrainian colonel general hopes for Bakhmut’s liberation +++
Russian forces in Bakhmut are half-encircled while Ukraine lays the foundations for recapturing the city, Colonel-General Oleksandr Syrskyj told the BBC. “Right now, the formation of Russian troops is like an arc, concentrated in Bakhmut. And they are half surrounded. It’s impossible not to take advantage of that,” says the commander of Ukraine’s eastern forces in the interview. Syrskyi points out that the recapture of the city captured by Russia at the end of May is not only of symbolic value, but also of strategic value, as it represents an important transport hub that allows Russian forces to advance further. According to the general, the Wagner Group contractors who led the effort to capture the city suffered such heavy losses that they have become useless in battle. Ukraine will be able to capture Bakhmut with ten times less casualties, says Syrskyi.
Read the events of the previous day here.