Russia increases the pressure on eastern Ukraine, focusing on the Kharkiv region (where there are heavy bombings and a "difficult" situation) and slowing the advance into the Donbass for the moment, while the Azovstal steel plant remains besieged, where An attempt is underway to evacuate civilians, including 600 wounded.

In Odessa , around 6 pm (local time), media and witnesses reported hearing numerous explosions. The operational command of the Ukrainian army in the south of the country said on Telegram that the runway of the airport was damaged.

This morning Kiev reported Russian shots on buses to evacuate civilians in Lugansk , where Moscow also bombed residential buildings and schools. Also attacked was a Russian village in the Starodunsky district, which was hit by two Ukrainian missiles which damaged plants used for loading oil without causing casualties or injuries.

Zelensky speaks again and says he is willing to dialogue with Moscow "despite the atrocities of the Russians" but warns: "The risk of the negotiations failing is high". The usual exchange of accusations, with the Ukrainian president attributing the stalemate to the Russians, while the Moscow Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov blames Kiev and NATO, also accused of evoking specters of nuclear war that the Kremlin "excludes". “ The NATO countries are doing everything to prevent the completion of the special operation through political agreements . We are seeing the manifestation of the classic double standard and hypocrisy of the Western establishment right now. By publicly expressing support for the Kiev regime, the NATO countries are doing everything to prevent the completion of the operation by reaching political agreements ”, Lavrov's words.

A G20 case opens: Indonesia, which will host it in November, has formalized the invitation to Russia and Ukraine. Putin has not yet decided whether to participate in the event, but the invitation was enough to provoke the reaction of the White House. The US accuses the Russian president of "depravity" and asks Indonesia to exclude him from the meeting.

Meanwhile, CNN raises another case tinged with yellow: at least six Russian businessmen have died in the last three months of apparent suicide , some with their families. Four are executives of Gazprom or one of its subsidiaries.

According to the British government, Putin will announce a mass mobilization on May 9 to declare "total war" on Ukraine. And the senior officials in Moscow, seeking a "revenge" for military failures, would be pushing the Russian president in that direction. Consequence would be the activation of martial law.

( HERE all the news about the war)

( HERE all the videos)

Here is the news by the hour.

In Mariupol, "the Russians killed twice as much as Nazi Germany"

Mariupol mayor Vadym Boychenko said Russian forces killed twice as many residents of the city in the two-month war as Nazi Germany in its two-year occupation. The Guardian reports it. During the Second World War, the Nazis killed 10,000 civilians during the two years they occupied Mariupol. The Russians doubled that number, Boychenko said.

***

Johnson, "strengthen Ukraine for Putin to fail"

In a telephone conversation he had with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that he intends to continue to militarily strengthen Kiev and that he remains committed to making "Putin fail". The BBC reports online. "President Zelensky has provided information on the intense fighting in eastern Ukraine and the continuing siege of Mariupol," a spokesman for Downing Street said. The parties also discussed "progress in UN-led efforts to evacuate Mariupol".

***

Azov, "twenty injured civilians evacuated from Azovstal"

Twenty wounded civilians were evacuated from the besieged Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol in southern Ukraine. The Guardian writes it, which reports the video of the deputy commander of the Azov regiment Svyatoslav Palamar, according to which among them there are women and children. "They are probably going to Zaporizhzhia," he added. Earlier, the official Russian agency Tass announced that a group of 25 civilians, including six children, had managed to get out of the Azovstal steel plant, where hundreds of soldiers are stranded. Ukrainian civilians.

***

Russian reconnaissance plane purple Swedish airspace

A Russian reconnaissance plane has violated Swedish airspace. This was announced by the defense of Stockholm. The episode, announced today, would have occurred yesterday evening.

***

New exchange of prisoners

Today there was another prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia. The deputy premier announced it

Kiev's Iryna Vereshchuk, adding that seven soldiers and seven civilians have returned home. One of the soldiers in the hands of the Russians was a woman who was five months pregnant, he specified, without clarifying how many Russians were released.

Explosions in Odessa

"Ukrainian media and witnesses report multiple explosions in the southern city of Odessa in Ukraine just after 6pm local time." CNN reports it citing a witness who saw at least one fighter plane over the city. The operational command of the Ukrainian army in the south of the country said on Telegram that the runway of the Odessa airport was damaged. The explosions were heard soon after air raid sirens sounded throughout the city.

***

Berlin, "we will not pay Russian gas in rubles"

“Turning to Putin, I say it very clearly: we will not be blackmailed! In the future we will not pay for Russian gas in rubles. One thing is clear: we are doing everything possible to become independent from Russia as quickly as possible ”. German Finance Minister Christian Lindner tweeted it.

***

Angelina Jolie on a surprise visit to Lviv

Actress and director Angelina Jolie was spotted in a bar in the city of Lviv, Ukraine. This was reported by the international media who also post a video. The images show the 46-year-old actress, special correspondent of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, as she enters a bar wearing casual clothes and a backpack who greets with a smile at the camera lens. Immediately recognized by Ukrainian fans, Jolie also stops to sign autographs.

***

Moscow, "the principle is that nuclear conflict is inadmissible"

Russia urges other states to stick to the logic written in the documents to prevent a nuclear war and strictly follows the principle that such a conflict is inadmissible. The director of the Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Vladimir Yermakov, told TASS today. "It is imperative to reaffirm the principle that the risks of a nuclear war that must never be triggered must be minimized through the prevention of any armed conflict between nuclear powers," added the senior diplomat.

***

Kiev: "Russia will leave the ISS for sanctions"

Russia will leave the International Space Station due to the sanctions imposed for the invasion of Ukraine. "The decision has already been made, we are not obliged to talk about it publicly," said general manager Dmitry Rogozin in an interview reported by the Bloomberg agency, citing Tass and Ria Novosti. "I can only say this: in line with our obligations we will inform our partners of the end of our work on the ISS one year in advance," he added.

***

Gb: “Putin could declare" total war "in Kiev

Vladimir Putin could abandon the term "special operation" to refer to the invasion of Ukraine and speak of "total war" in Kiev. The Independent reports it citing rumors of Russian and Western officials. Seeking a "rematch" for military failures, senior officers of the Russian army - the British media reports - would be pushing the Russian president to announce the change during the annual Victory Day parade on May 9. The move would allow the Kremlin to activate martial law, engage its allies in military aid and proclaim mass mobilization.

***

Ukrainian targets hit by Russian submarines in the Black Sea

The Russian Defense Ministry has confirmed what the Ukrainian military has been saying for nearly a week: Moscow is using submarines in the Black Sea to hit Ukrainian targets with cruise missiles. CNN reports it. "The crew of a diesel-electric submarine of the Black Sea Fleet launched a volley of Kalibr cruise missiles from the Black Sea against the military infrastructure of the Ukrainian armed forces," the ministry said on its Telegram channel by publishing a video that it would show the launch of the missiles.

***

Bucha, bodies of tortured men found

A grave with the bodies of three men tortured, gagged and shot in the head was found in the woods near the village of Myrotske, in the district of Bucha, in the Kiev region. The Kiev police wrote on Facebook quoted by Ukrinform. "The victims were tortured for a long time; bullet wounds were found in the limbs. The three men were shot in the ear. This is another mass grave dug by Russian soldiers in the Bucha district. where more than a thousand citizens were killed and tortured, "said the chief of police of the Kiev region Andriy Nebytov.

***

Kiev: "Russian propaganda spreads chaos in Europe"

"When the war started, Russian propaganda channels like First Channel, Ntv and others changed their schedules to devote themselves entirely to news. They receive a lot of money to spread disinformation, not only in Russia but also across Europe. This is dangerous because disinformation spreads chaos in Europe ". This was stated by Ukrainian Minister of Information Oleksandr Tkachenko, adding that he had asked "European colleagues to sanction these channels which still broadcast on satellite platforms".

***

Kiev: "Evacuating civilians from Mariupol, Moscow rejects all proposals to help them"

Moscow rejects all proposals to help save the population of Mariupol from Russian bombing: Ukrainian negotiator and advisor to President Zelensky Mikhailo Podoliak said, according to Ukrainska Pravda.

"The president and the head of the President's Office continue to appeal to world leaders to help us convince the Russian side that a humanitarian corridor from Mariupol is vital," Podoliak said. Some political leaders are appealing to Putin through their own. private communication channels try to convince him that this must be done for humanitarian reasons. But unfortunately there is no response from the Russian side. "

***

More than one million Ukrainians evacuated to Russia

More than one million people have been evacuated from Ukraine to Russia since February 24th. This was confirmed by the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov to the Chinese state media, quoted by the BBC. Lavrov explained that thousands of foreigners, as well as people from the eastern regions of Donetsk and Lugansk, are among those who have been evacuated.

Last Thursday, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on its website that 1,002,429 people have been evacuated to Russia since the beginning of the war, including 183,168 children.

***

Ukrainian fighter hits Russian village

A Ukrainian fighter today hit a Russian village in the Starodubsky district, in the Bryansk region on the border with Ukraine with 2 missiles: the shock wave damaged plants used for loading oil. This was stated by the governor of the region, Alexander Bogomaz, reported by Tass. There are no casualties or injuries. "Today at 6:50 am (5:50 am in Italy), Russian air defense systems detected a Ukrainian fighter plane. While measures were underway to prevent the target from entering Russian territory, 2 bullets hit the Zhecha settlement in the Starodubsky district, "Bogomaz said.

***

Shooting on buses to evacuate civilians in Lugansk

Russian soldiers fired on two buses that were evacuating civilians from the city of Popasna in the eastern part of Lugansk. This was announced by the mayor of the city reported by the Kyiv Independent. After the attack, the communication with the evacuation organizers who were in the vehicle was broken and it has not yet been possible to know if there are any victims, said the head of the civil-military administration of the city of Popasna Mykola Khanatov quoted by UNIAN . Mykola explained that Russian troops opened fire on the last half-parties.

***

Russian nuclear team at the Zaporizhzhia power plant

Ukraine informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (Aiea) that Rosenergoatom - a unit of the Russian state nuclear company Rosatom - sent a group of 8 nuclear specialists to the southeastern nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia who requested daily reports on the and "confidential matters" of the operation of the plant. This was announced by the IAEA on its website. The required reports also cover the management of nuclear fuel, spent fuel and radioactive waste. According to Ukrainian media "Rosatom is trying to take full control of the Zaporizhzhia power plant".

***

Kiev: "23,200 Russian soldiers killed"

At least 23,200 Russian soldiers have been killed in Ukraine since the invasion began, according to the Kiev Army. In its latest update on the losses suffered by Moscow so far, the Army also indicates that after 66 days of conflict there are also 190 fighter planes shot down, as well as 155 helicopters and 232 drones. Additionally, Kiev forces claim to have destroyed 1,008 Russian tanks, 436 artillery pieces, 2,445 armored troop transport vehicles, 4 ballistic missile systems, 151 rocket launchers, 8 ships, 1,701 vehicles, 76 tankers and 77 units. anti-aircraft defense and 32 units of special equipment.

***

Bombs in Lugansk: "Buildings and schools hit"

Two schools and 20 residential buildings have been damaged by Russian army bombing in the last 24 hours in the Lugansk region. This was announced by the head of the regional military administration Sergii Gaidai on Telegram reported by Ukrinform. "The Russians are storming Rubizhne and Popasna," wrote Gaidai.

***

Kiev: "Yesterday ten Russian planes shot down"

Ukrainian forces shot down ten Russian aircraft yesterday: the Kiev Army Air Force Command said, according to Ukrainian media reports. The aircraft destroyed are one 'Su-25' fighter and nine 'Orlan-10' drones.

***

Lavrov: "The lifting of sanctions is part of the negotiations"

The lifting of the sanctions against Russia is part of the peace negotiations between Moscow and Kiev, which continue every day but are "difficult": said the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, in an interview with the Chinese news agency Xinhua coverage by the international media. Earlier the Ukrainian president, Vlodomyr Zelensky, had said sanctions could not be part of the negotiations.

Lavrov also stated that "at the moment the Russian and Ukrainian delegations are discussing a draft of a possible treaty by videoconference".

(Unioneonline)

© Riproduzione riservata