The war in Ukraine continues as ceasefire talks have not yielded results. Russia has launched massive attacks on enemy positions in the Ukrainian border regions of Kharkiv and Sumy in an offensive that aims to expand the territory captured in the invaded country or keep Kiev's troops away from Russian soil.
In diplomatic circles, China has distanced itself from the presence of its citizens in Russian ranks. While verifying the identity of soldiers captured by Ukraine, Beijing insists that it has always advocated for neutrality and has always urged its citizens to "stay away from conflict zones and refrain from participating in military operations from any side."
A Russian delegation arrives in Istanbul to discuss normalization of relations with the US
The Russian delegation, led by the country's ambassador to the US, Alexander Darchiev, arrived in Istanbul on Wednesday, where they will hold negotiations with the United States on the normalization of diplomatic relations, as reported by the Russian press. "We are prepared for a serious conversation about the return of diplomatic assets illegally confiscated (by Washington) to the Russian side," Darchiev said, quoted by the TASS agency, upon landing in Istanbul.
The diplomat adds that this circumstance is "key" for bilateral relations to return to normal. According to the diplomat, the leaders of both countries have opened a "window of opportunities" to resolve the issues that had accumulated in Russian-American relations. "There have been some advances in visa issuance and travel restrictions, but we need to find a way to radically improve the situation," he emphasized. The agency's spokesperson, Tammy Bruce, clarified in a press conference that they will not discuss the war in Ukraine in this case, but the rapprochement between the two countries may influence the solution that Trump seeks for the conflict.
A Russian citizen fined for putting quotes around a comment about fighters in Ukraine
Russian justice has imposed a fine of 30,000 rubles (about 350 dollars) on a woman who put quotes around the word "defenders" in a comment about Russian fighters in Ukraine. According to a statement from the Siberian Courts, where the events took place, the woman, a resident of the city of Megion, made the controversial comment on the VKontakte social network, the Russian Facebook.
In addition to putting quotes around the word "defenders," the Russian also used the phrase "so-called" in the same sentence, according to the accusation. Her actions were recognized by the court as a "discrediting of the participants in the special military operation" in Ukraine. The woman argued in her defense that she was unaware of the consequences that the comment could have. Discrediting the Army is punishable in Russia with fines ranging from 30,000 to one million rubles (350 to 12,000 dollars) or prison sentences of up to 5 years in case of aggravating circumstances. EFE
The Kremlin condemns as "unacceptable" the temporary detention of a Russian diplomat in France
The Kremlin has condemned as "unacceptable" the temporary detention of a Russian diplomat in France and warned that the incident will worsen "the already deteriorated bilateral relations" between the two countries. The new French ambassador to Moscow, Nicolas de Rivière, was in fact summoned to receive a formal complaint for the 24-hour detention at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris.
The EU delivers another 1,000 million to Ukraine financed with frozen Russian assets
The European Union has delivered another new loan of 1,000 million euros to Ukraine within the framework of the G7 agreement by which international partners committed to providing Kiev with around 45,000 million euros in credits financed with the extraordinary revenues generated by Russian assets frozen by sanctions. "This provides crucial funding for Ukraine and makes Russia pay for the aggression," said European Commissioner for Economy, Valdis Dombrovskis, who announced the disbursement within the framework of the Association Council between Ukraine and the EU held today in Brussels.
The EU committed to providing 18.1 billion of the package agreed by the G7 in macro-financial assistance to Ukraine, of which with this payment, 5 billion will have been disbursed since the beginning of the year. Ukrainian Prime Minister, Denys Schymal, thanked the support of the Twenty-Seven and indicated that during his meeting with the European Commissioner, they discussed the use of frozen Russian assets. "Ukraine relies on EU leadership to channel those funds towards our reconstruction," he wrote on social media.
Russia confirms massive attacks on Ukrainian positions in Kharkiv and Sumy regions
Russia confirmed today massive attacks on enemy positions in the Ukrainian border regions of Kharkiv and Sumy, after Kiev reported the start of Russian offensives in both locations.
"Units of the Sever military group (...) caused damage to the formations of two assault brigades, mechanized and airborne, a coastal defense brigade, two assault regiments, and four territorial defense brigades in Sumy," the Ministry of Defense war report states, as reported by Efe.
This attack hit Ukrainian troops in up to eight locations in Sumy, including the towns of Krasnopillya and Ugroidi, which are just a few kilometers from the Russian border.
In addition, Moscow hammered the positions of four Ukrainian brigades and one regiment in four towns in Kharkiv, including the capital.
Meanwhile, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the Russian army has made only marginal advances towards its main objective in its offensive in the Donbas, the city of Pokrovsk.
In its advances towards that city, according to the ISW, Moscow would have suffered about 45,000 casualties in the first three months of the year, in addition to losing five tank divisions. Russia has already started its offensives in Kharkiv and Sumy, according to the Ukrainian Army
Russia says there were no damages in the attack with 8 drones on the Turk Stream pumping station
The Russian Ministry of Defense accused Ukraine today of attacking the gas pipeline pumping station 'Korenovskaya' in the Krasnodar region with 8 drones, near the Sea of Azov, in violation of the energy truce agreed by both countries with US mediation.
"The Ukrainian Army carried out an attack with 8 drones against the 'Korenovskaya' pumping station in the Krasnodar region," denounced the Russian military command in Telegram, according to Efe.
According to Defense, the station, which supplies the Turk Stream, has a pumping capacity of 31,500 million cubic meters per year.
"All drones from the Ukrainian Armed Forces were shot down by anti-aircraft defense systems. No damage was caused to the station," said the military unit.
It added that it was "a deliberate attack by the Kiev regime against an international energy facility."
Additionally, early Wednesday, Ukraine launched two drones against the gas distribution station in Temryuk, which supplies the city and port of the same name in Krasnodar, on the shores of the Sea of Azov, according to Defense.
"Both drones were shot down at a safe distance from the facility," added the Russian command.