A minimal compromise in the face of a growing military risk: the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency visited the Ukrainian nuclear power plant in Zaporizhia on Wednesday in search of a solution acceptable to Kiev and Moscow in order to secure the site. The idea of a demilitarized zone around this site in south-eastern Ukraine occupied since March by the Russians seems to have died after months of fruitless exchanges.
Rafael Grossi, who spent a few hours there before returning to the territories under Ukrainian control, therefore now wants to work on “principles” capable of minimizing the risk of a nuclear “catastrophe”. kyiv and Moscow, which have been at war for more than a year, accused each other of having bombed the plant. Russian soldiers stationed at the plant site during Rafael Grossi’s visit on Wednesday said they were preparing for a possible Ukrainian attack.
The main information to remember
- The International Atomic Energy Agency wants to secure the Ukrainian nuclear power plant in Zaporijjia.
- Ukraine is asking for ammunition with a longer range than the 80 km it has had so far.
- A 13-year-old girl wrote a letter to her father, imprisoned for criticizing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In order to be able to inflict further defeats on Russia, Ukraine demands longer-range ammunition than the 80 km it has hitherto had available for the Himars to destroy Russian supply routes. The United States has promised ammunition capable of hitting a target 150 km away and Moscow claims that these have already been delivered. kyiv has not confirmed this and claims to need much more Western armaments. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov judges in this respect that Americans and Europeans are “de facto fighting” alongside kyiv.
Fears around the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant
Prevent a “take by arms”: Russian troops deployed at the Zaporijjia nuclear power plant in Ukraine claim to be preparing for an attack from Kiev, which denies and in return accuses Moscow of using the site as a “shield”. Journalists were able to go there on Wednesday on the occasion of the presence of the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, as part of a press visit strictly supervised by the army. Russian.
According to Rafael Grossi, the IAEA is seeking an agreement between the two belligerents on several key “principles”, in particular those not to attack this nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, and not to deploy heavy weapons there. . Ukraine accuses Russia of having deployed at least 1,000 soldiers and equipment in the complex to protect them from bombardments, kyiv planning to carry out a counter-offensive in this southern region.
The question of the consumption of American ammunition in the event of war
US Chief of Staff General Mark Milley warned on Wednesday that a war between the United States and another major power would result in “extraordinary” ammunition consumption, and that the country must ensure be ready.
Ukraine and Russia have used huge amounts of artillery ammunition since Moscow invaded its neighbor in February 2022, raising concerns about the stockpile the United States has, itself having supplied a lot of it. ammunition in Kiev. “The incredible level of ammunition consumption” is a “big lesson” from the conflict in Ukraine, which remains a “limited regional war”, General Mark Milley said.
“If there was a war on the Korean peninsula, or a power war between the United States and Russia, this consumption would be extraordinary,” he added. “We still have work to make sure that our (…) stocks are ready” in order to deal with all situations, said Mark Milley.
A 13-year-old Russian letter to her father sentenced for criticizing the war
“Dad, you are my hero”: A 13-year-old Russian schoolgirl sent a letter of support to her father sentenced to prison and on the run for criticizing the offensive in Ukraine. Emblematic of the repression against those who oppose this conflict, the case of Alexei Moskaliov, 54, separated from his daughter Maria, 13, arouses great emotion in Russia. The case took an incredible turn on Tuesday when a court in Efremov, 300 km south of Moscow, sentenced Alexei Moskaliov to two years in prison for having “discredited” the army, before announcing that he ci had vanished while he was under house arrest.
In a letter made public on Wednesday and whose authenticity was confirmed by the family’s lawyer, Vladimir Bilienko, Maria Moskaliova expresses her support for her father. “I love you very much, you are not guilty of anything, I will always be on your side”, writes the young girl, who was placed in a home and prohibited from any telephone contact with her father. “I’m sure everything will be fine and we will be together again (…) I know you will not give in, you are strong, we are strong (…) I will pray for you and for us”, she adds. The situation of Alexei Moskaliov, considered a fugitive by the authorities, is not known, any more than that of his daughter Maria, whom the family lawyer could not meet.