Enlarge image
Destruction in Lysychansk (photo from June 18)
Photo: Aris Messinis / AFP
What has happened in the past few hours
There are conflicting
reports on the situation in the embattled
city of Lyssychansk
in eastern Ukraine
.
According to their own statements, Russian troops have blocked the city from the south.
This was announced by the Ministry of Defense in Moscow.
The defenses of Ukrainian troops had been breached, it said.
Earlier, the general staff of the Ukrainian army had spoken of air attacks by Russia on Lysychansk on the west bank of the Seversky Donets river.
"The Ukrainian defenders successfully repelled a storm on the southern outskirts of Lysychansk," it said.
All of the information is difficult or impossible to independently verify.
That says Kyiv
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
is
confident that his country will meet the criteria for
EU membership
.
Ukraine is now concentrating on EU requirements, the head of state said in his evening video address.
“But does that scare us?
no
Because we have successfully completed hundreds before that.« The criteria for joining include the rule of law, the fight against corruption, guarantees of fundamental rights and a functioning market economy.
Zelenskyy called on his compatriots to be happy about the decision of the EU summit to give Ukraine the status of a candidate country.
He compared the path to membership to climbing Mount Everest.
Anyone who talks about how difficult the further route will be in the last 1848 meters devalues his success in having already conquered the mountain at 7000 meters.
Ukraine has acquired
candidate
status, Zelenskyy said.
'It didn't fall from the sky.
Ukraine has done a lot for this.«
Moscow says so
Russia
has condemned the granting of EU candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova as a
geopolitical maneuver against Moscow
.
The decision confirms that "a geopolitical takeover" of the former Soviet republics is being actively pursued "to keep Russia in check," said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.
The EU is thus pursuing the goal of establishing relations with the eastern neighboring countries on the basis of a principle of dependency.
Brussels uses "political and economic blackmail methods" and forces the candidate countries to impose "unlawful sanctions" on Moscow.
The EU's "aggressive approach" has the potential to create new divisions and deep crises in Europe.
International reactions
In view of the high prices for food, gas and fuel as a result of the war, the
SPD
in the Bundestag is bringing up
special payments to employees to secure their livelihood
.
"If employers and unions agree on one-off payments to employees to cushion particularly difficult moments in the next few months, then the state could also make a sensible addition," said parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich to the newspapers of the Funke media group.
In view of the severely
curtailed gas supplies
from Russia, Mützenich said: "Looking ahead to autumn and winter is certainly worrying." The federal government is doing everything it can to have enough
gas reserves
to bridge this critical period, but no one can guarantee that it will succeed.
The risks are significant.
"When production comes to a standstill, this has unforeseeable consequences for employees." Inflation will probably remain high and there could be a
recession in the global economy
.
»In the next few months we will face very serious economic and social challenges that will affect everyone.«
Until further notice,
no European Football Union
competition matches will be played in the
Moldovan region of Transnistria
.
This was announced by Uefa on Friday after a corresponding decision by the Executive Committee.
"The decision is based on the considerations and conclusions of organizations specializing in international political and strategic analysis, whose reports were consulted by the Uefa administration as part of the assessment of the current situation in the Transnistrian region," it said.
It is in line with previous decisions against the background of the Russian army's invasion of Ukraine.
Sheriff Tiraspol is affected by the ban on playing in the region in the qualification for the upcoming Champions League season.
The club was asked to "propose an alternative venue outside of the Transnistria region that meets all the requirements of the relevant UEFA regulations for its home games in European competition, as long as the ban applies in this region".
Miscellaneous
Conservationists link the
deaths of thousands of dolphins
in the Black Sea to the war.
At least 3,000 animals have died, research leader Ivan Rusev wrote on Facebook.
The use of
sonar technology and explosions
destroyed the animals' "sensitive navigation system".
They can no longer catch enough fish and are therefore more susceptible to infectious diseases.
As a result, more animals are dying, according to an expert at a national park near Odessa in southern Ukraine.
According to him, there are also reports of dead animals from Bulgaria and Romania.
"We ask everyone who sees dead dolphins on the beach to report it." In recent years, fishing and poaching have posed the greatest threats to dolphins.
What is happening today
Thousands of people want to protest
in
Munich
from 12 p.m. in the
run-up to the G7 summit .
An alliance of numerous organizations calls for a
mass rally
on the Theresienwiese and a demonstration through downtown Munich.
Opponents of the G7 summit are calling for a quick end to dependence on oil, gas and coal as a consequence of Russia's war against Ukraine
Die Linke continues its
party conference
in Erfurt
, where it wants to elect a new leadership.
Controversies are also expected on how to deal with the Ukraine war
bbr/AFP/dpa