After three weeks of the Russian army’s offensive in Ukraine, the front lines stabilized on Thursday March 17. But the bombardments continue in several cities. Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, received a standing ovation as he spoke by videoconference to the German parliament. He urged Germany to tear down the new “wall” erected in Europe against freedom since the Russian attack. Update on the latest information from the war.
- Putin a “war criminal” according to Biden, “unacceptable” for the Kremlin
On Wednesday evening, US President Joe Biden called his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin a “war criminal”. These are, according to the Kremlin, “unacceptable and unforgivable” remarks. Shortly before, the American president had confirmed the sending of 800 million dollars (720 million euros) of additional military aid to Ukraine. Or an “unprecedented” envelope of one billion dollars in one week. “We are helping Ukraine build additional and longer range air defense systems,” he said.
This Thursday, France also notified “the release in the coming days of a financial assistance envelope of 300 million euros”, confirmed Jean-Yves Le Drian, the head of diplomacy. France is also delivering defense equipment and fuel support to Ukrainian forces.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky directly challenged Joe Biden to demand the establishment of a no-fly zone over his country. But the American president considered that such a decision – which could involve NATO forces shooting down Russian planes – would constitute too great an escalation.
- In Russia, a “real and necessary self-purification of society”
Again on Wednesday evening, Putin addressed his government. The speech was televised. The Russian president defended the “special military operation” of his army in Ukraine, in the words of his propaganda, which “is proceeding successfully, strictly according to the plans established in advance”. Very offensive, he explained that “the empire of lies” – that is to say Western countries, media and social networks – will want to rely on “a fifth column of national-traitors” to achieve their anti-Russian aims.
Also, “every people, the Russian people in particular, will always be able to recognize scum and traitors, spit them out as one would spit out a fly from the mouth”, he said. Putin is certain “that such a real and necessary self-purification of society will only strengthen our country”.
This Thursday, a Kremlin spokesman provided after-sales service: “In such situations, many people turn out to be traitors and leave our lives on their own. Some quit, some leave the country. It is a purification. Others break the law and are punished in accordance with the law,” said Dmitry Peskov.
- Approved in the Bundestag, Zelensky calls on the Chancellor to tear down the “Wall”
“It is not a Berlin Wall but a Wall in Central Europe between freedom and servitude, and this wall grows bigger with each bomb dropped on a Ukrainian city”, declared Volodymyr Zelensky in front of the Bundestag, the German Parliament , where he received a standing ovation. His remarks particularly targeted the Chancellor, Olaf Scholz. “Give Germany the leadership role it deserves,” continued the Ukrainian warlord. He regretted the close economic cooperation between Berlin and Moscow, particularly in energy matters.
In the aftermath, the Chancellor praised the “hard-hitting words” of the Ukrainian president, without however responding directly to his requests. The German government continues to oppose a boycott of the import of Russian gas and oil, on which the country is very dependent, a measure that is however demanded by Ukraine.
- Russia “pretends to negotiate”, says Jean-Yves Le Drian
As in Aleppo (Syria) or Grozny (Chechnya), the “Russian logic [..] is based on the usual triptych: indiscriminate bombardments, so-called humanitarian ‘corridors’ designed to then accuse the adversary of not respecting them, and talks with no other objective than to pretend to negotiate”, assured the head of French diplomacy in an interview at Parisian.
Russian-Ukrainian talks nevertheless continued on Wednesday. Moscow affirms that they relate in particular to a statute of neutrality of Ukraine. Ukraine, however, rejected the concept of Swedish-style neutrality, put forward by Russia, because it would not provide it with “absolute security guarantees” in the event of an attack. Previously, the Ukrainian president had said he was ready to renounce any membership of his country in NATO.
- The Kremlin rejects the decision of the ICJ ordering it to suspend its offensive
The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the highest court of the UN, had ordered Russia to immediately suspend its military operations in Ukraine. It rejected the decision on Thursday. “We will not be able to take this decision into account,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, stressing that both sides – Russia and Ukraine – had to agree for the decision to be taken. can be implemented. “In this case, no agreement can take place,” he said.
- Possible slowdown in global economic recovery, warns OECD
The war in Ukraine risks costing global growth one point in one yearwarned the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on Thursday in a report. Inflation could also take an additional 2.5 points. “The economic impact of the conflict is highly uncertain and will depend on the duration of the war and the responses of states,” the institute said.
While “the role of Russia and Ukraine in the world economy is small” (the two together represent 2% of world GDP), they have a “significant influence on the world economy” due to their shares of exports of many raw materials, continues the OECD. She evokes wheat – the two nations representing 30% of planetary exports -, corn (20%), mineral fertilizers and natural gas (20%) as well as oil (11%). Not to mention palladium and nickel, of which Russia is a “key exporter”, or argon and neon (Russia and Ukraine).
- 27 dead in the vicinity of Kharkiv, another in kyiv
Russian artillery fire on Thursday left at least 21 dead and 25 injured in the town of Merefa, near the besieged city of Kharkiv (east), local authorities announced. A school and a cultural center were destroyed. At least six other people died in cluster bomb attacks in Kozacha Lopan, a village about fifty kilometers north of Kharkiv.
In addition, the remains of a missile shot down over kyiv led to the death of at least one person on Thursday, according to the emergency services.
- In Mariupol, 30,000 people evacuated in one week
Map locating the bombed theater of Mariupol, home to hundreds of residents
AFP
The authorities of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, besieged by Russian forces, announced the evacuation of 30,000 people in one week. They specify that they do not yet know the results of the bombardment, yesterday, of a theater where civilians were sheltering.
Moscow has denied the bombardment, attributing it to the Ukrainian nationalist Azov battalion. Some 350,000 people are still in the city and “continue to hide in shelters and cellars”, the town hall said. According to her, on average “50 to 100 bombs” are dropped by Russian planes every day. In all, more than 2,000 civilians died in Mariupol, according to the tally by local authorities.
- Council of Europe suspends relations with Belarus
After excluding Russia, the Council of Europe announced on Thursday to suspend its relations with Belarus because of the “active participation of the country” in the invasion of Ukraine. Belarus is not a separate member of the organization, having never signed the European Convention on Human Rights. But the country cooperated with the organization, as a signatory State of twelve other conventions, in particular the Convention on the fight against trafficking in human beings, the European Cultural Convention, or the Convention on the conservation of wildlife. in Europe.