Global Courant 2023-04-25 20:05:48
The Russia-Ukraine conflict is now on its 427th day.
Ukrainian officials said the Russian army attacked Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region using S-300 air defense missiles and hit the local history museum in the city centre. (Reuters)
Tuesday, April 25, 2023
A Russian missile hit a museum building in a Ukrainian city, killing at least two people and injuring ten.
Ukrainian officials said the Russian army attacked Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region using S-300 air defense missiles and hit the local history museum in the city centre.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted a video from the site showing the dilapidated building and emergency responders inspecting the damage.
“The terrorist country is doing everything to completely destroy us,” said Zelenskyy.
1332 GMT — Sweden expels 5 Russian Embassy staff on suspicion of espionage
Sweden informed Russia that five employees at the Russian Embassy in Stockholm were suspected of spying and asked to leave the country.
Secretary of State Tobias Billstrom said their activities were “incompatible” with their diplomatic status.
Russian Ambassador to Sweden Viktor Tatarintsev was notified of the decision early Tuesday, Billstrom said in a statement.
A year ago, Sweden expelled three Russian Embassy employees as several countries fired Russian diplomats.
“One in three Russian diplomats in Sweden is an intelligence officer,” said Sweden’s SAPO internal security agency.
0906 GMT — Russia says Ukraine’s attacks on Black Sea Fleet jeopardize extension of grain deal
Russia’s Defense Ministry said Ukraine’s attacks on the Black Sea Fleet jeopardized the extension of the grain deal.
In a statement made by the ministry, in the investigation into the recent attacks on Russia’s facilities, it was revealed that Ukrainian unmanned vehicles launched these attacks from the port of Odessa, which is used for the implementation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
The ministry noted that the attacks were carried out on March 23 and April 24, and that Ukraine used the humanitarian corridor, which exclusively serves the purposes of the grain agreement, to launch the drone strikes.
“The terrorist acts of the Kiev regime threaten the next extension of the grain agreement after May 18,” the ministry said.
0318 GMT — UN chief and West scold Russia’s top diplomat over Ukraine
The head of the United Nations and representatives of Western countries scolded Russia’s top diplomat while he was chairing a UN meeting, accusing Moscow of violating the UN Charter by attacking Ukraine and occupying part of its territory.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responded by defending his country’s military action and accusing the United States and its allies of undermining global diplomacy, the foundation of the United Nations established to prevent a third world war.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described cooperation between the 193 member states of the UN as the organization’s “beating heart” and “guiding vision” and warned the Security Council that global cooperation is under the greatest pressure since the United Nations was created in 1945. warned. The ashes of World War II.
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0224 GMT — New EU sanctions on Russia until “mid-May”: Poland
Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau said a new set of sanctions against Russia were being discussed as the European Union declared war on Ukraine, but it was unlikely that the package would be adopted early “until May”.
According to the Polish state news agency PAP, Rau said it would be unrealistic to expect anything earlier.
“All this is still under discussion … I think the matter will be closed towards the end of May,” Rau said. “You can’t expect anything sooner.”
Poland this month proposed a new set of sanctions against Russia, including a ban on oil and diamond imports from the pipeline.
0100 GMT — Former Wagner commander to appear before Norwegian court
A former commander of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group who fled to Norway will appear in Oslo court to answer charges accused of involvement in a bar fight, resisting arrest, and carrying an airgun.
Andrei Medvedev, 26, crossed the Russia-Norway border in January and spoke about the time he fought Russian offensive forces in Ukraine. He applied for asylum in Norway.
In one case, he is accused of fighting with another person in front of a bar in Oslo on February 22. According to the charge sheet, when the police arrived, Medvedev resisted arrest and kicked at least one police officer.
0028 GMT — Russia warns again of escalating risks of nuclear conflict with the United States
The risk of a direct military confrontation between the two nuclear powers, Russia and the United States, is increasing, according to TASS news agency, a senior Russian diplomat.
Vladimir Yermakov, the foreign ministry’s head of nonproliferation, told the Russian state news agency Washington was raising risks through its stance with Moscow.
Since the start of the Ukrainian offensive 14 months ago, Moscow has issued regular accusations of increasing the risks of nuclear war against the United States and what it calls the “collective West,” in a rhetoric aimed at deterring Kiev’s allies.
“If the United States continues to follow the current course of conflict with Russia, as the risks are constantly on the verge of shifting directly to armed conflict, then the fate of START (nuclear arms deal) may be an inevitable consequence,” said Yermakov. .
Click here for our live updates from Monday, April 24.
Source: TRTWorld and its agencies
