The US broadcaster CNN has published video footage that is said to show Russian soldiers and military vehicles in the Ukrainian city of Bucha near the bodies of civilians for the first time. After the Russian gas stop for Poland and Bulgaria, the EU has criticized Moscow. However, one is prepared for this scenario, emphasized Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. However, Russia also threatened other countries with similar steps. Russian attacks continued in Ukraine, killing several people.
According to CNN, the videos recorded by a drone in Butscha on March 12 and 13 were located and checked for authenticity. The source will not be named due to security concerns.
After the withdrawal of Russian troops, images of killed Ukrainian civilians from the suburbs of the capital Kyiv caused horror around the world. A total of more than 400 bodies were found in Bucha, some with their hands tied behind their backs. Russia denies responsibility for the atrocities.
“First Piece of Evidence”
The footage is “the first piece of evidence from Bucha showing Russian vehicles and troops operating on the road where Ukrainian forces found the bodies as they retook the city on April 1,” CNN wrote. A video from March 13 showed a Russian military vehicle at an intersection near three objects. These have already been identified as corpses on other satellite images and video recordings that have already been published.
Another drone video from the same day shows another Russian military vehicle driving down a road towards the bodies. In a March 12 video, several Russian soldiers gathered around a military vehicle parked in front of a house near the bodies.
Russian gas stop
Gazprom announced in the morning that it had stopped supplying gas to Poland and Bulgaria. At the same time, the Russian state-owned company warned the two EU countries against tapping into Russian gas that is being supplied to other countries via their territory.
Sofia and Warsaw stressed that they had fulfilled their payment obligations. The Bulgarian government announced that all payments required by the current contract were made on time. Russia wants gas payments to be made in rubles, which the EU opposes. Russia continues to supply gas to Austria.
Von der Leyen: EU prepared
According to von der Leyens, the freeze on Russian gas deliveries to EU countries is not unexpected for the Union. “We are prepared for this scenario,” she said. They are in close contact with all EU countries and have worked to ensure deliveries from other countries.
In addition, there are contingency plans for such a situation. The German politician criticized it as “another attempt by Russia to use gas as an instrument of blackmail”. This again shows the unreliability of Russia as a gas supplier.
Ukraine: New Russian attacks
Meanwhile, governors from several Ukrainian regions reported renewed Russian shelling. In the Donetsk region in the east, three civilians were killed in three separate incidents, according to the region’s governor Pavel Kyrylenko. At least six people were injured.
In the city of Kharkiv in the east of the country, three people were killed and another seven injured as a result of shelling. This was announced by the governor of the region, Oleh Synyehubov, on Telegram. From the Sumy region in the north-east of the country it was said that yesterday another place on the border with Russia was shelled by the Russian side.
Transnistria reports shelling from Ukraine
According to the authorities, a village near the border with Ukraine in the pro-Russian separatist region of Transnistria in Moldova, where a large Russian ammunition dump is located, was shelled. The Transnistrian “Ministry of the Interior” said several drones flew over the village of Kolbasna during the night.
In the morning Kolbasna was then shot at from Ukraine. There are no dead or injured. The drones also flew from Ukraine to Transnistria, according to the “ministry”. The information cannot be independently verified.
Fire in Russian ammunition depot
Multiple explosions were heard in Russia’s Belgorod region on the Ukrainian border. According to authorities, an ammunition depot caught fire. This is located near the village of Staraya Nelidovka, the governor of the region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said on Telegram. Gladkow said no residential buildings or houses were destroyed and there were no civilian casualties.
Debate: What resources does the West have?
Russian President Vladimir Putin has been at war in Ukraine for several weeks, and there is no end in sight. Solidarity with Ukraine welds Europe and the USA together. What means does the West have to end the war? What are the consequences of alleged crimes against civilians? What could a political solution look like?
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