Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will participate in a Ramstein format meeting in Germany this Thursday to discuss military support for Ukraine in the face of the Russian invasion. This meeting comes after an aerial bombardment in Zaporizhia, which caused 13 deaths and as the Russian army continues its advance in the east of the country, while clashes continue in the Russian region of Kursk. In this context, Ukraine also announced that it had struck a Russian oil depot in Engels, supplying Russian aircraft.
Information to remember
⇒ Volodymyr Zelensky will participate in a meeting with Ukraine’s allies in Germany on Thursday
⇒ At least 13 dead in Russian bombing of Zaporizhia
⇒ Ukraine strikes oil depot in southwest Russia overnight
Volodymyr Zelensky will meet with allies in Ramstein on Thursday
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky indicated that he would participate on Thursday in a meeting in Germany in the “Ramstein format”, which brings together Ukraine’s main allies, to discuss the aid to be given to this country in the face of the Russian invasion. “Tomorrow (Thursday) I will participate in a meeting in the Ramstein format and I also plan talks with partners at the level of defense ministers and military commanders,” Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday, in his daily address broadcast on the networks social.
Thirteen dead in Russian bombing of Zaporizhia
A Russian aerial bombardment on the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhia left at least 13 dead and 30 injured on Wednesday January 8, said the authorities of this large southern city, targeted in recent weeks by increasing attacks from Moscow. “The Russians hit Zaporizhia with aerial bombs […] There is nothing more cruel than launching aerial bombardments on a city knowing that ordinary civilians will suffer,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reacted on Facebook.
Since November, Ukraine has feared an offensive towards this city which is approximately 35 kilometers from Russian positions and 50 kilometers from the nuclear power plant of the same name, occupied by Russia since 2022. This strike takes place while the army Russia continues its advance in the east of the country, and clashes continue in the Russian region of Kursk. Ukrainian police also said on Wednesday that two people were also killed and five others injured following Russian artillery and drone bombardments against the southern region of Kherson.
Ukraine strikes Russian oil depot in Engels
For its part, the General Staff of the Ukrainian army said on Wednesday that it had struck an oil depot in Engels, in the Russian region of Saratov, during the night, claiming that this site supplied fuel to the Engels military airfield. 2, “where the enemy strategic aviation is based”. Two Russian firefighters died while fighting the fire sparked by this strike, the governor of this region located 500 kilometers from the Ukrainian border and already affected by attacks in the past announced on Telegram.
The attack on the depot “creates serious logistical problems for Russian strategic aviation” and “significantly reduces its ability to strike peaceful Ukrainian cities and civilian sites,” said the Ukrainian General Staff.
UN “concerned” by summary executions of Ukrainian soldiers
The UN is “deeply concerned” by the increase in allegations of summary executions of Ukrainian soldiers held captive by the Russians, indicating on Wednesday that it had been able to verify 68 cases since the start of the war. “I call on the Russian authorities to stop the summary executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war, to condemn these acts and to prosecute those responsible,” said the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Nada Al -Nashif, recalling that “summary executions constitute a war crime”, during a meeting of the Human Rights Council on Ukraine.
“OHCHR also continues to document cases of torture of prisoners of war by Russian and Ukrainian armed forces, which constitutes a violation of international law,” she continued. OHCHR also verified the summary execution of 170 civilians since the start of the war in areas controlled by Russian armed forces.
Ukrainian commander of the “Anne of kyiv” brigade arrested
Ukrainian investigators announced Wednesday that they had arrested a unit commander of the “Anne of kyiv” brigade, partly trained by France and shaken by scandals since last month. This brigade is the subject of investigations by the Ukrainian Bureau of Investigation (SBI) for a matter linked to abuse of power and desertions, its spokesperson told AFP on January 2.
The SBI explained on its website that it had “arrested the commander of a company of the 155th mechanized brigade who not only left the service but also incited his men to do so”. In addition, this officer is accused of having “failed to comply with the order to transfer the company under the operational subordination of another unit at the end of last year”, according to the SBI press release.
EU denounces Russian gas cuts in Transnistria
The head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, accused Russia on Tuesday evening of “using gas as a weapon” and of waging a “hybrid war” in Moldova, where the pro-Russian separatist territory of Transdniestria is no longer supplied with gas Russian since the beginning of January. “Russia continues to use gas as a weapon and Moldova is once again the target of its hybrid war,” denounced the diplomat on the social network
Tension is rising between Russia and Moldova, where the pro-Russian separatist region of Transdniestria fears it will find itself completely without electricity after the end of Russian gas supplies. The Russian giant Gazprom announced in December the cessation of deliveries to Moldova, in the context of a financial dispute with this former Soviet republic with European aspirations.
Volodymyr Zelensky downplays Donald Trump’s comments on Ukrainian integration into NATO
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday downplayed the comments of American President-elect Donald Trump, who said the day before “understanding the feeling” of Russia regarding Ukraine’s possible membership in NATO. “At one point Biden said ‘they should be able to join NATO’. Well Russia had someone on their doorstep, I can understand (the Russians’) feeling about that,” he said on Tuesday. the next president of the United States in front of the press.
Asked about these comments on Wednesday during a press conference in kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for “not to draw immediate conclusions about the policy of the United States.” “We must work and do everything possible so that Ukraine receives decent security guarantees, worthy of our people, which could stop Putin,” he added. He suggested that the war against Russia was encouraged by the fact that “Ukraine has not been protected by a serious alliance of guarantors for its security.”