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Ukrainian task forces in Zaporizhia
Photo:
DIMITAR DILKOFF / AFP
What has happened in the past few hours
According to Ukraine, it has recaptured more than 400 square kilometers of territory in the Cherson region since the beginning of October.
The army put its own land gains in the Cherson region at 29 towns since the beginning of the month.
The Russian army, on the other hand, wrote in its daily report on Thursday that it had "succeeded in beating back the enemy" in the region.
Kherson is one of four regions in Ukraine that Russia declared annexed despite international protests.
The annexation of the territories is not accepted by the West and other countries and is condemned as a breach of international law.
Meanwhile, more civilians died in attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Russian shells hit the Ukrainian-controlled town of Zaporizhia in the region of the same name on Thursday morning;
Russia has also declared them annexed.
At least 14 people were killed and three others injured within 24 hours in the Ukrainian-controlled part of the Donetsk region, which is also claimed by Moscow.
This was announced by the Ukrainian Presidential Office.
In Russia, meanwhile, criticism of the military leadership is growing.
The deputy head of the Russian-backed Kherson administration, Kiril Stremouzov, accused the "generals and ministers" in Moscow of not understanding the problems at the front.
A moderator on Russian state television, Vladimir Solovyov, who otherwise always stands by the Russian government, asked on his live stream channel: »Please explain to me what a brilliant idea the general staff has now.
Do you think time is on our side?'
Two Russians who fled to Alaska in a small boat to escape mobilization in their homeland also made headlines.
The men had applied for asylum in the United States, two state senators said on Thursday.
The two Russian citizens had arrived on Saint Lawrence Island in western Alaska, which is about 65 kilometers from the Russian coast.
The incident shows that "the Russian people do not want to take part in Putin's war of aggression against Ukraine," said Senator Dan Sullivan.
That says Kyiv
According to the Ukrainian President, NATO must prevent the possibility of a Russian use of nuclear weapons - if necessary with preventive strikes.
Speaking at the Lowy Institute in Sydney, Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed the importance of preventive measures.
NATO “must rule out the possibility of Russia using nuclear weapons.
But it is important – and that is why I am turning to the international community, as I did before February 24th – that these are preventive strikes, so that they know what will happen if they use them.«
He emphasized: "Not the other way around: wait for hits from Russia and then say: 'Oh you're like that, then you'll get it from us now'."
The statements caused a stir on the Russian side.
A spokesman for the Ukrainian President immediately emphasized that Zelenskyy's demand had been misunderstood.
He only said that before February 24 - the beginning of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine - preventive measures were necessary to prevent the war.
After his appointment in front of the institute in Sydney, Selenskyj published his video message every evening.
In it he called on the West to keep up the pressure on Moscow - also to force the return of the annexed Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.
Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin took possession of the nuclear power plant for Russia on Wednesday as part of the annexation.
Selenskyj called the step "worthless and stupid".
Moscow says so
The Kremlin has sharply condemned Zelenskyy's comments on NATO's possible pre-emptive strikes against Russia.
"Zelensky's statements are nothing more than a call to start World War III with unforeseeable terrible consequences," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
According to him, the United States and Great Britain control Kiev's actions.
You are therefore also responsible for Zelenskyj's statements, said Peskov.
The Russian Foreign Ministry also heavily criticized Zelenskyj's statements.
Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova claimed that the West was initiating a nuclear war.
"Every person on the planet must realize that the weapon-filled and unstable puppet Zelenskyy has turned into a monster with hands that can destroy the entire planet," she said.
International Reactions
US President Joe Biden
sees the danger of a nuclear confrontation with catastrophic consequences after threats from the Kremlin as greater than in 60 years.
The world has not faced the prospect of "Armageddon" since the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, Biden said on Thursday evening at a performance in New York.
He knows the Russian President pretty well, Biden said.
And the Kremlin boss does not joke when he talks about the potential use of tactical nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, as the Russian military is weak in the fighting in Ukraine.
At the same time, he does not believe that it would be possible to simply use tactical nuclear weapons without this leading to "Armageddon," stressed Biden.
Russia recently annexed four occupied Ukrainian territories in violation of international law, and Putin, among others, announced that they would defend them with all available means.
The EU states
have founded a new political community with almost all other European countries as a sign against the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine.
The heads of state and government of the more than 40 partners involved met on Thursday in the Czech capital of Prague for a first meeting in the new format.
Among them was Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who described the so-called European Political Community as a "great innovation".
The aim of the new association is to enable closer exchange between EU countries and partners outside the EU.
The meeting in Prague should also send a clear message to Putin that he is almost completely isolated on the European continent.
You'll find more about it here.
Former Chancellor Angela Merkel
warns against dismissing threats in the Russian war against Ukraine as a bluff.
The attack on Ukraine was a "profound turning point," Merkel said on Thursday evening.
And one that “we are all well advised to take words seriously and grapple with, and not dismiss them as bluffs from the outset.”
She again emphasized that a lasting peace in Europe could only come about with the involvement of Russia.
"As long as we haven't really managed to do that, the Cold War isn't really over either."
economic consequences
The chairwoman of the gas price commission, Veronika Grimm, warns against excessive expectations of the planned gas price brake.
"We will permanently end our dependence on Russia," said the economics professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg to the newspapers of the Funke media group.
"Due to the higher liquid gas procurement prices, the gas price will remain significantly higher than before the Russian attack on Ukraine, despite a gas price brake." The commission could not pretend that nothing had happened.
Grimm campaigned for a gas price brake in the form of a one-off payment.
»It will be important to maintain a high savings incentive.
If it were a one-time payment, that would clearly be the case,” she said.
The traffic light coalition of SPD, Greens and FDP recently announced a "defensive umbrella" to support consumers and companies because of the rising energy prices.
A gas price brake is intended to cap the prices for at least part of consumption in such a way that private households and companies are not overwhelmed.
A commission of experts set up by the federal government is to present recommendations for the design of the price brake.
At a meeting next weekend, the commission wants to develop a "resilient proposal" and present it to politicians.
What is still happening today
Chancellor
Olaf Scholz
and his
EU colleagues
are looking for a
way out of the energy crisis at a
summit in Prague
from
10 a.m.
In particular, the heads of state and government will discuss the possibility of a general price cap for gas in order to reduce costs for consumers and companies.
More than half of the EU states are pushing for such a Europe-wide maximum price for gas;
However, Germany and some other countries fear problems for security of supply.
Concrete decisions are likely to be made in the coming weeks.
Russian President
Vladimir Putin turns 70 today
.
He wants to celebrate the anniversary in his hometown: In St. Petersburg he receives state guests in the magnificent Constantine Palace.
An "informal summit" of the heads of state of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is planned, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
With the reception in the palace, Putin is likely to want to demonstrate once again that he is not isolated internationally, despite his war of aggression against Ukraine.
aar/dpa/AFP