NATO is meeting this Thursday and Friday in Prague under pressure from some of its members, including France, who want Ukraine to now be able to strike Russian soil with the weapons that the Allies provide it. The Alliance’s foreign ministers want to talk about it during this informal meeting, also intended to find arms and ammunition, in particular anti-aircraft defense systems, in the midst of the Russian offensive around Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second city.
The debate on the use or not on Russian territory of some of the weapons supplied to kyiv by the West, in this case long-range missiles, is agitating the capitals of the Alliance countries. Its secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, declared himself in favor of it, but several allied countries of Ukraine, including the United States, Germany and Italy, are much more reluctant, fearing a direct conflict with Moscow.
Information to remember
⇒ Green light from the 27 to tax Russian cereals imported into the EU
⇒ Ukraine says it hit two Russian patrol boats in the Black Sea
⇒ NATO meets on the use of Western weapons
Green light from the 27 to tax Russian cereals imported into the EU
EU member states agreed on Thursday to impose prohibitive customs duties on imports of Russian agricultural products, which are currently largely exempt, announced European Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis.
This measure, proposed in March by the European Commission, aims to “dry up” revenue allowing Moscow to finance its war in Ukraine, to “stop the illegal export of grain stolen from Ukraine” and to prevent Moscow from “destabilizing” the agricultural markets, said Valdis Dombrovskis on the social network
Ukraine says it hit two Russian patrol boats in the Black Sea
Ukraine claimed to have hit two Russian patrol boats in Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Moscow in the Black Sea, during the night from Wednesday to Thursday, continuing its efforts to push the Russian navy from its coasts.
This “special operation” was carried out by the Department of Military Intelligence (GUR), a structure within the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense known for its daring operations deep inside Russia and the Ukrainian territories it occupies, this source said. to the AFP. Ukrainian military intelligence shared a short video on social media in which a naval drone can be seen exploding on impact into a parked boat.
Russia says it neutralized 13 Ukrainian drones
The Russian Defense Ministry said it had neutralized 13 Ukrainian aerial drones in the south of the country and the annexed Crimea peninsula. On Thursday morning, “five Ukrainian aerial drones were shot down by anti-aircraft defense systems over the Krasnodar region,” the ministry said in a statement.
Eight other aerial drones were intercepted during the night “above the Black Sea, near the coast of Crimea”, according to the same source. The Russian army also claims to have destroyed two Ukrainian naval drones in the Black Sea during the night from Wednesday to Thursday, which were “heading towards Crimea”. kyiv promises to bring the fighting to Russian soil in retaliation for the numerous bombings on its territory.
NATO meets on the use of Western weapons
NATO is meeting this Thursday and Friday in Prague under pressure from some of its members, including France, who want Ukraine to now be able to strike Russian soil with the weapons that the Allies provide it. A strategic shift that certain Western countries such as the United States, Germany and Italy are currently refusing to cross, fearing a direct conflict with Moscow.
This informal meeting is also intended to find weapons and ammunition, in particular anti-aircraft defense systems, in the midst of the Russian offensive around Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second city. “Today we have 25% of what we need to defend Ukraine, I am talking about air defense systems” in particular the powerful American Patriots systems, recalled Volodymyr Zelensky on May 18 in an interview with the AFP. And its request to receive at least seven of these batteries has so far only resulted in the sending of one by Germany.