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Emergency services are facing a fire in the depot of a freight station in Kharkiv on Tuesday – it was partially destroyed in a Russian attack
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SERGEY BOBOK / AFP
What has happened in the past few hours
In Russia, three young men are in custody after reciting a poem at a protest against the mobilization.
A court detained Artjom Kamardin, Igor Shtovba and Nikolaj Dainenko for two months on Wednesday, the human rights organization OVD-Info said.
The men are being investigated for "incitement to hatred with the threat of violence".
If charged and convicted, they face six years in prison.
They took part in a reading in front of a statue of the poet Vladimir Mayakovsky in Moscow on Sunday.
As can be seen on a YouTube video, a man said at the beginning of the reading that it was an action against mobilization.
Kamardin then read his critical poem »Kill me, militiaman!«.
He was arrested during a search of his home on Monday.
That says Kyiv
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has asked Germany to continue supplying arms to Kyiv and to tighten up the planned eighth package of EU sanctions against Moscow.
"On the subject of defense, I underlined our expectation of a missile defense system from Germany - thank you for your willingness to help with air defense," said Zelenskyj on Wednesday in his daily video address after a phone call with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD).
The EU's new package of sanctions was also discussed during the meeting.
"As of today, there is still something to add to the eighth sanctions package," he demanded.
Zelenskyy also thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for his mediation in the prisoner exchange and military cooperation.
He thanked US President Joe Biden for the new military aid of over 1.1 billion dollars (equivalent to around 1.14 billion euros).
Once again Zelenskyi underlined that despite the sham referendums in the regions occupied by Russia, Ukraine will not accept territorial losses and will retake its territory.
He called on the Russian soldiers in Russian to flee – or to surrender.
That's the only way they could save their lives.
According to Selenskyj, Canada should coordinate the removal of landmines in his country.
"I have invited Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to lead a global initiative to rid our country of Russian mines and shells," Zelenskyy said.
As a result of the Russian war, Ukraine has one of the largest concentrations of mines in the world.
He thanks Canada for the willingness to help.
In a report by Trudeau's office on the talks between the two heads of state, Zelenskyy's proposal was not mentioned.
International reactions
Turkish President Erdoğan
wants
to talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the sham referendums in the Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian President is demanding Turkey's support for the affected regions and "that we convince Putin," Erdoğan said on Wednesday evening.
On Thursday he will discuss this with the head of the Kremlin.
Regarding the sham referendums, Erdoğan said: "I wish they wouldn't hold a referendum and we could solve this problem through diplomacy instead." Turkey is a member of NATO and has good relations with Ukraine, but is also considered a close partner of Russia.
The phone call could also be about plans to build a new nuclear power plant in Sinop on Turkey's Black Sea coast.
Talks are being held with Putin about this, Erdoğan said, according to the state news agency Anadolu.
Turkey's first Akkuyu nuclear power plant is currently under construction in southern Turkey, and the Russian state-owned company Rosatom is in charge of construction.
According to President Maia Sandu,
Moldova
, which is adjacent to Russia , needs to strengthen its defense capabilities.
"Moldova is a neutral country... but now Russia does not respect our neutrality and keeps its military on the territory of Moldova," Sandu explained.
Moldova applied for membership of the European Union earlier this year and has sharply criticized the war in Ukraine.
In early September, Russia threatened Moldova with military action if the security of Russian soldiers in the separatist-ruled region of Transnistria was threatened.
Russian troops have been stationed in Transnistria since the early 1990s.
The
head of the district council, Reinhard Sager
, warns that the influx of refugees will overload the area.
"When it comes to accommodation, we are faced with an excessive demand on our system," he told the "Bild" newspaper.
In his opinion, the wrong incentives are being created by the fact that Ukrainian refugees are receiving better benefits directly from the job centers.
"As a result, this leads to more immigration to Germany, including from people who have already found refuge in other countries," he said.
Sager advocated "adjusting the January 1 rates to those of the other refugees."
Initially, refugees from Ukraine were entitled to care under the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act.
Since June they have received basic security, i.e. the same benefits as, for example, Hartz IV recipients, and are therefore somewhat better off.
CDU leader Friedrich Merz caused a stir and outrage on Tuesday because he accused Ukrainian refugees of “social tourism”.
A short time later, Merz apologized for it.
aar/dpa/Reuters/AFP