"Filling Ukraine with weapons from NATO countries , training its troops in the use of Western equipment, deploying mercenaries and holding border exercises increases the likelihood of an open and direct conflict between Russia and NATO." This is the new warning issued by the Russia to the West, through the voice of Russian Security Council Vice President Dmitry Medvedev .
Medvedev added that "such a conflict always runs the risk of turning into a total nuclear war . It would be a disastrous scenario for everyone".
ITALY - With regard to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine , Mario Draghi's visit to the USA is still taking place.
" We must do everything for peace ", reiterated the Prime Minister, even after his return to Italy, fearing that the "geopolitical upheavals" of these months will drag on "for a long time". This is the reason why we must continue "to support the courage of the Ukrainians fighting for the freedom and security of all of us" and also start thinking about "reconstruction", the same issue also addressed in the bilateral at the White House with Joe Biden, because "the destruction of its cities, its industrial plants, its fields will require enormous financial support". In short, a new "Marshall Plan", "like the one that contributed to the special relations between Europe and the United States", in which Europe must do its part because this "is Europe's time and we must embrace it".
SWEDEN AND FINLAND IN NATO - Ursula von der Leyen also referred to the threat to world order: the President of the European Commission met the Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida together with the President of the European Council Charles Michel.
And just in these hours, the political leaders of Finland , which has always been a neutral country, have announced their intention to join NATO "without delay" , to guarantee their own security.
But Sweden would also be ready to ask to join the Atlantic Alliance. A meeting to this effect has been convened in Stockholm in the coming days.
THE FIGHTING - On the war front , meanwhile, the operational command reports that the Ukrainian armed forces yesterday eliminated 23 Russian soldiers, two tanks and an ammunition depot heading south. “In the regions of Mykolayiv and Kherson, the enemy continues to conduct military operations on the captured border - he writes on Facebook -. Our units do not allow invaders to attack or advance. Instead, the effective use of missile weapons and artillery killed 23 Russian soldiers, destroyed two enemy tanks, two infantry fighting vehicles and an ammunition depot in the Kherson region ”.
“The enemy has again launched a missile attack on the Odessa region - adds the note -, but the rapid and targeted response of the Ukrainian air defense units neutralized the missile. The Russian fleet - recalls Ukrinform - has at least fifty missiles always ready to be launched from ships.
(Unioneonline)
( HERE all the news about the war)
( HERE all the videos)
The day by the hour:
Draghi: "Everyone at the table for peace"
At the opening of the CDM, speaking to the ministers about the goal of peace, Prime Minister Mario Draghi reiterated that the initial effort is that all allies, but in particular Russia and the United States, find themselves seated at a table. Because the war has taken on a "new physiognomy". And the real goal is to ask "how is the future built". A table where, of course, Ukraine is the main actor. In this context, the premier said, Biden must call Putin. "Contacts - he explained - must be restarted, intensified at all levels".
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"We are negotiating to evacuate 38 seriously injured from Azovstal"
Ukraine is only negotiating the evacuation of 38 seriously wounded fighters from Azovstal. The Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk communicated this on Telegram, reports the UNIAN agency. These are very difficult negotiations, Vereshchuk said. "We are working step by step. We will exchange 38 very serious ones, then we will move on. Now there are no negotiations for the exchange of 500 or 600 people, as reported by some media," he added.
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Mattarella and Macron: "Supporting Ukraine"
Sergio Mattarella and Emmanuel Macron agreed "to continue to increase European support for Ukraine": this was learned from Elysée sources after a phone call this afternoon between the two heads of state in which - the presidency informs French - "the issue of the war in Ukraine was addressed, underlining the importance of maintaining the unity and close coordination that prevailed between European partners since the beginning of the conflict".
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UN opens investigation into violations attributed to Russian forces
The UN launches an investigation into the atrocities attributed to Russian forces in Ukraine. The UN human rights council voted with a large majority today in favor of opening an investigation into the alleged serious violations committed by Russian forces in Ukraine, thus helping to strengthen diplomatic pressure on Moscow. In particular, the council approved by 33 votes in favor of two the draft resolution presented by Ukraine to launch an investigation into alleged violations in the regions of Kiev, Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Sumy between the end of February and March.
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France: "Kiev's accession to the EU will be discussed at the June summit"
Ukraine's request to obtain EU candidate country status, currently "under examination by the Commission, will be the subject of a discussion at the level of leaders during the European Council next June": this is what said the French foreign ministry, recalling that Emmanuel Macron and the foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian "have repeated several times that Ukraine is part of the European family". In recent days, the president of the European Commission herself, Ursula von der Leyen, reported that the EU executive will express its opinion on Kiev's request next month.
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Zelensky: "We will never recognize Russian Crimea"
"I never talked about recognizing the independence of Crimea, we will never recognize it as part of the Russian Federation." This was stated by Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Zelensky interviewed by Bruno Vespa at “Porta a Porta”. "Even before the war - added Zelensky - Crimea had autonomy, but it has always been Ukrainian territory. We have said that we are ready to talk to Russia. Now we cannot deliberate a decision on Crimea because there is war, the let's leave aside if it hinders the meeting and I believe that this proposal was right ".
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Zelensky: "The Russians must go, no compromise"
"The Russians must go and must answer for what they have done. We cannot accept compromises for our independence": Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this in speaking at "Porta a Porta". "Ukraine wants peace, very normal things like respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, the traditions of the people, the language. They may be trivial things but they are all things violated by Russia and that must be restored", continued Zelensky. . "We must free the villages and houses - he added - we must return what was looted".
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Russian ship "out of action" in the Black Sea
Russia has lost another ship in the Black Sea: Channel 24 writes, citing intelligence sources
Ukraine. The news has not yet been confirmed by Kiev. It is a logistical support ship that last night headed for the Isle of Snakes. According to preliminary information, a fire broke out on board, the cause of which is unknown, and the Russian forces managed to bring it to the port of Sevastopol, in the Crimea. If the news were confirmed, it would be the 14th Russian ship that has been knocked out of action by the Ukrainian forces.
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Johnson: "It is impossible to normalize relations with Putin"
No normalization with Vladimir Putin "is possible after the Russian invasion of February 24," the United Kingdom was very clear "about it. Boris Johnson said in a direct line with Lbc radio on the sidelines of a government meeting outside. based in Staffordshire. "No matter how hard I try - he cut short - I don't see how that's possible. He brutally violated human rights, international law, is guilty of the barbaric assault on a completely innocent country, normalizing relations would repeat the error of 2014 "after the annexation of Crimea.
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Putin: "Economic crisis due to sanctions"
"The sanctions imposed on Russia are largely responsible for a global economic crisis", said President Vladimir Putin quoted by Russian agencies.
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A thousand bodies recovered from the Kiev area. UN: "Choccante"
The scale of the illegal killings in Ukraine by Russian forces is "shocking": the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet said today, according to the Guardian. Bachelet recalled that in recent weeks they have been A thousand bodies were recovered in the area of the capital Kiev, adding that many of the violations it is experiencing since the Russian invasion could amount to war crimes.
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Moscow: "Risk of nuclear war"
"Filling Ukraine with weapons from NATO countries, training its troops in the use of Western equipment, deploying mercenaries and holding border exercises increases the likelihood of an open and direct conflict between Russia and NATO", said the vice president. of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, according to what Tass and Interfax report, adding that "such a conflict always has the risk of turning into a total nuclear war. It would be a disastrous scenario for everyone ".
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Minister Kuleba asks the EU to reserve a place for Ukraine
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba asks the EU "to reserve a place for Ukraine". This is what he said in response to an interview with Ard TV in Berlin, where he arrived today to participate in the G7 of foreign ministers in Schleswig-Holstein. "We are not talking about a quick entry as EU members, but we believe it is very important that a place be reserved for Ukraine". "We hear many times that Ukraine belongs to Europe", he concluded.
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Sweden towards NATO
The Swedish government has called an extraordinary meeting for next Monday to take one
formal decision on the NATO membership application. Immediately after the meeting, unless unforeseen circumstances, the application will be presented.
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Kiev, Russian cruise missile over Zaporizhzhia
"This morning Russian troops launched a cruise missile on the city of Zaporizhzhia" in southern Ukraine. This was reported by the regional military administration on Telegram, specifying that "according to initial information, a private building is on fire". It is not specified, the Ukrainian media add, whether the missile hit the city or was shot down by air defense.
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Mariupol, the Russians block the exits from the Azovstal dungeons
Russian troops are blocking the exits from the underground passages of the Mariupol Azovstal plant. This was stated by the adviser to the mayor of Mariupol Petro Andriushchenko on Telegram, quoted by Ukrinform. "The main objective of the Russian army is to block the exits from the underground passages, which have been pointed out to the enemy by a traitor. However, the defenders of Mariupol are making attempts to counterattack, risking everything. There are no words to describe the heroism of Mariupol's defenders, "wrote Andriushchenko.
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Cluster and phosphorus bombs over Dnipropetrovsk
Russian troops bombed the Kryvyi Rih district in the Dnipropetrovsk region of southeastern Ukraine overnight, also using banned phosphorus and cluster munitions. The head of the military administration of Kryvyi Rih, Oleksandr Vilkul, reports on Telegram, reports Ukrinform. "They bombed all night", he explains, also using "banned phosphorus and cluster munitions".
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Kiev, bombs on Dnipropetrovsk region, 1 dead
A Russian bombing of the Dnipropetrovsk region in southern Ukraine resulted in one death and one wounded. This was announced by the governor of the oblast Valentyn Reznichenko on Telegram, according to reports from the Kyiv Independet. In the early morning of today, Russian forces opened fire on the town of Zelenodolsk, the governor explained. An energy infrastructure facility was destroyed in the attack.
