Russia under pressure after two attacks in Crimea, Ukraine threatens to dismantle a bridge, NATO calls for an urgent "
inspection
" of the Zaporijjia power plant... On the 175th day of the conflict,
Le Figaro
takes stock, this Wednesday August 17, on the latest information from the war in Ukraine.
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Russia under pressure in Crimea after two attacks targeting it far from the front
Two attacks recently targeting Russian military installations in Crimea show Ukraine's ability to strike far from the front line and disrupt Russian logistics, putting Moscow under pressure eight years after the annexation of this peninsula.
The Russian army has, exceptionally, recognized that the most recent of the explosions which occurred on Tuesday in an ammunition depot near the village of Djankoï, in the north of Crimea, was the fact of an “
act of sabotage
”.
The explosion was preceded a week earlier by an attack targeting the military airfield in Saki, in the west of the peninsula, which a Ukrainian official on condition of anonymity described as a “
well-planned special sabotage operation
” .
.
Read alsoFrom his capture in Ukraine to his exfiltration from Russia, the story of the incredible odyssey of agent Georges K.
While Kiev has not officially acknowledged its responsibility for these two attacks, the presidential adviser Mikhaïlo Podoliak evoked a "
demilitarization in action
" of Crimea, a reference to the terminology used by Russia to justify its invasion of Ukraine triggered on February 24.
Other officials such as Defense Minister Oleksiï Reznikov preferred to be ironic, suggesting that these explosions had been the result of poorly extinguished cigarettes, a joke that has gone viral in Ukraine.
For weeks, Ukraine has claimed to be carrying out a counter-offensive in the Kherson region, having enabled it to reconquer dozens of villages.
More recently, she claimed to have decommissioned several strategic bridges.
»SEE ALSO – On the front line in the Donetsk region, the Ukrainian army is fighting with mortars
Ukraine threatens to dismantle a bridge linking mainland Russia with Crimea
Ukraine on Wednesday threatened to dismantle the Kerch Bridge, built at great expense by Moscow to connect Russia to the annexed Crimean peninsula.
“
This bridge is an illegal structure and Ukraine did not give permission for its construction.
It damages the ecology of the peninsula and must therefore be dismantled.
It doesn't matter how: voluntarily or not
, ”wrote Ukrainian presidential adviser Mikhailo Podoliak on Telegram.
The Kerch Bridge, which was inaugurated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in May 2018, represented a colossal and costly two-year project to build the 19 kilometers linking mainland Russia to Crimea and open up the peninsula four years after its annexation by Moscow.
Read also War in Ukraine: "the recovery of Crimea is part of kyiv's main war objective"
Zaporijjia power plant: NATO calls for an urgent "inspection" from the IAEA
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday it was "
urgent
" for an "
inspection
" by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to take place at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, under Russian control. and around which strikes and clashes multiply.
The plant, the largest in Europe, was taken in early March by Russian troops at the very start of their invasion of Ukraine.
Since August 5, kyiv and Moscow have accused each other of bombing, while strikes landed once near a radioactive storage building, and another time caused the automatic shutdown of a reactor.
The occupation of the site by Russian soldiers "
constitutes a serious threat to its security and increases the risk of a nuclear accident or incident (...) It is urgent to authorize an inspection by the IAEA and to obtain the withdrawal of all Russian forces,
” said Jens Stoltenberg during a press conference.
Russian control of Zaporizhia “
endangers the people of Ukraine, neighboring countries, as well as the international community
“, he insisted, speaking after a meeting with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.
The recent strikes that targeted the plant, raising fears of a nuclear disaster, prompted a meeting of the UN Security Council last week and IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi pleaded for the dispatch of an on-site mission “
as soon as possible
” to inspect the site.
Read alsoRenaud Girard: "Stop the nuclear danger in Zaporijjia"
Meeting between Zelensky, Erdogan and Guterres on Thursday in Ukraine
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres will travel to Ukraine on Thursday where he will take part in a meeting with the Ukrainian and Turkish presidents, in particular to discuss the export of cereals from Ukrainian ports, his spokesperson announced on Tuesday.
"
At the invitation of President
Volodymyr Zelensky
, the Secretary General will be in Lviv on Thursday to participate in a trilateral meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Ukrainian leader
," said Stéphane Dujarric during a press briefing, specifying that Antonio Guterres would then travel to Odessa and then to Turkey.
The meeting will "
examine
" the implementation of the international agreement signed in July in Istanbul to allow grain exports from Ukraine, an agreement "
of which Turkey is a key element
", he added. .
“
A number of issues will be raised, in general, such as the need for a political solution to the conflict.
I have no doubt (about) that the question of the nuclear power plant (of Zaporizhia) and others will also be discussed
”, indicated the spokesperson, specifying that a bilateral between the Ukrainian president and the secretary general should also take place.
»SEE ALSO – A meeting scheduled for Thursday August 18 between Zelensky, Erdogan and Guterres in Ukraine
Macron and Modi want to 'work together' on the conflict
French President Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have agreed to "
work together to bring the conflict to an end
" in Ukraine, the Elysee Palace said in a statement late Tuesday evening.
The two leaders exchanged by telephone about "
the war led by Russia in Ukraine and its destabilizing consequences for the rest of the world
", according to the French presidency.
Emmanuel Macron, who had received the Indian Prime Minister in May in Paris, underlined the "
determination of France to continue its support for Ukraine
".
India has refrained from openly condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and from joining in the votes to that effect at the UN.
In June, she nevertheless co-signed a G7 declaration committing to “
respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of other States
”.
Read alsoWar in Ukraine: during his interview with Macron, Zelensky called for “tougher sanctions against Russia”
Putin accuses the United States of dragging out the conflict
Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused the United States of dragging out the conflict in Ukraine.
He thus criticized the country for seeking to “
destabilize
” the world, referring to the recent visit to Taiwan by the speaker of the American House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi.
“
The situation in Ukraine shows that the United States is trying to drag out this conflict.
And they do the same by cultivating the possibility of conflict in Asia, in Africa, in Latin America
,” Vladimir Putin told the International Security Conference in Moscow.
He denounced an “
insolent demonstration of their lack of respect for the sovereignty of other countries and their international obligations
”.
»SEE ALSO – Putin accuses Washington of dragging out the Ukrainian conflict
