Russia says it has repelled an infiltration of Ukrainian "
saboteurs
" on its territory, the Kremlin rules out Chinese mediation, the origin of the Nord Stream sabotage remains uncertain...
Le Figaro
takes stock of the latest information related to the war in Ukraine.
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Wagner
continues to suffer losses, admits his boss
The head of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner, Yevgeny Prigojine, admitted Thursday that his men continued to suffer losses in the fighting in Ukraine, during the visit to a cemetery which “continues to grow
”
.
A video broadcast by his press service on Telegram shows Evguéni Prigojine standing in front of dozens of graves surmounted by crosses and on which are placed wreaths of flowers.
Read alsoThe leader of the Wagner militia says he has taken the town hall of Bakhmout
“
Wagner
fighters
continue to be buried here and there is no problem with that to this day. We will improve it and make this cemetery a memorial for future generations
,” said Yevgeny Prigozhin.
“
Yes, (the cemetery) is getting bigger.
Those who fight sometimes die.
This is how life goes
, ”launched the boss of Wagner again.
Russia communicates very little about the losses it has suffered in Ukraine since the start of the offensive it launched in February 2022.
Russia says it has repelled an infiltration of Ukrainian "saboteurs" on its territory
Russia said Thursday it repelled a group of Ukrainian "
saboteurs
" who were trying to infiltrate its territory via the border region of Bryansk, where a Ukrainian pilot had already been arrested the day before.
Read alsoUkrainian War: "Putin wants to prevent Belarus from leaning towards the West"
“
The Border Guard Department
of
the Federal Security Service of Russia in the Bryansk region foiled an attempt to enter Russian territory by a 20-man Ukrainian reconnaissance and sabotage group near the village of Slutchovsk,
” said the governor of the region, Alexandre Bogomaz, on Telegram.
"
Units of the Russian Armed Forces, as well as units of the Border Guard Forces, opened fire on the enemy
," he added.
The Russian authorities have reported in recent weeks several attempted incursions by "
saboteurs
" from Ukraine into the border regions, which are also regularly targeted by artillery bombardments or drone attacks.
Kremlin rules out Chinese mediation
The Kremlin on Thursday ruled out the possibility of Chinese mediation to halt the fighting in Ukraine, saying Russia, which has suffered a host of military setbacks, had no choice but to continue its assault.
“
Of course China has tremendous and effective potential when it comes to its mediation services
,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov told the press.
“
But the situation with Ukraine
is complex, there is no prospect of a political settlement.
And, for the moment, we have no other solution than to continue the special military operation
,” he added, using the Russian authorities' euphemism to describe the offensive in Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov in March.
SPUTNIK / REUTERS
Macron calls on Xi to 'bring Russia to its senses'
Emmanuel Macron urged Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday to "
bring Russia to its senses
" vis-à-vis Ukraine and urged him not to deliver weapons to Moscow, during an interview with Beijing which concluded with calls for peace talks.
"
I know I can count on you to bring Russia to reason and everyone to the negotiating table
," said the French head of state during a face-to-face meeting at the People's Palace.
Read alsoIn Beijing, the pas de deux of Macron and von der Leyen
After all the ceremonial of a state visit - reception in front of the troops near Tiananmen Square, national anthems, 21 cannon shots - the two leaders tried to display a certain convergence of views.
We need "
a resumption of discussions as soon as possible to build a lasting peace
", estimated Emmanuel Macron at the end of the interview, while Xi Jinping pleaded for "
a resumption of peace discussions as soon as possible
".
“
Nuclear weapons cannot be used
”, underlined the Chinese head of state who condemned any “
attack against civilians
” as well as any “
use of biological and chemical weapons
”.
Nord Stream: the origin of the sabotage remains uncertain according to a Swedish prosecutor
The origin of the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines remains uncertain, said Thursday a Swedish prosecutor who is taking part in the investigation.
"
Our main assumption is that a state is behind
" this sabotage, Mats Ljungqvist said in a statement.
Who is responsible for it?
It is “
still not clear
”, added the prosecutor.
Washington and Moscow denied any responsibility and accused each other of being behind it.
“
It's a tough business.
It's a complex case
,” continued the magistrate, stressing that the facts took place “
at a depth of 80 m in the Baltic Sea
”.
Those responsible must have acted "
knowing very well that they would leave traces behind
" them, he also claimed.
Almost six months after the explosions that hit the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines, the responsibility for the underwater attack remains a mystery despite criminal investigations in the countries of the region (Germany, Sweden and Denmark).
Read alsoNord Stream 2: an American journalist accuses Washington of sabotage
Cybersecurity: Russia would have tried to register all Ukrainians before the start of the conflict
Even before its military offensive, Russia had launched a vast cyber espionage operation in Ukraine, in order to prepare attacks and identify the entire population, according to the American cybersecurity group Mandiant, which has been helping Kiev since the summer of 2021.
“
We have seen that the Russians have been prepositioned since 2014-2015.
On a number of targets, we saw traces that showed that the attacker was present, dormant
,” explained David Grout, Mandiant's regional chief expert, during a conference at the Lille International Cybersecurity Forum.
In support of the physical attack, cyberattackers from the Russian state have massively used "
wipers
", software that erases all data, targeting electricity, railways and communication networks.
These attacks, carried out by organized groups, have now resumed, he said.
Read alsoThese infiltrators that Russia had placed in Ukraine before the invasion
Mandiant, called to the rescue by Ukraine and which has mobilized several hundred people to parry attacks and restore systems, is one of the main American technology groups in support of Kiev, along with Amazon and Microsoft.
