Updated on 03/01/2023 05:57
- According to the Ukrainian president, Russia’s war of aggression should have legal consequences for Moscow. But that’s complicated.
- In the meantime, Kiev has once more reported dead and injured in the shelling.
- An overview of what has happened since Tuesday evening and an outlook for Wednesday.
The Ukrainian
Zelenskyj meets chief prosecutor from the International Criminal Court
At a meeting with chief prosecutor Karim Khan from the International Criminal Court in Kiev, Zelenskyj said, among other things, that he hoped for help in determining the number of war victims. “We don’t even know the official number of civilians killed in the areas occupied by Russia,” the president said in a statement.
An action by the International Criminal Court, for example, once morest the head of the Kremlin
Ukraine: Deaths and injuries from Russian shelling
Meanwhile, according to the military leadership in Kiev, fighting between the Ukrainian army and Russian units in the Donbass continues. In its evening report, the Ukrainian general staff mentioned fighting near the village of Bohdanivka and in the area of the town of Chasiv Yar. That would coincide with Russian reports that the connecting roads from the besieged city of Bakhmut to the west are already acutely endangered. There were also battles on other sections in the Kharkiv, Luhansk and Donetsk regions. “The most difficult situation is still Bakhmut,” said Zelenskyj.
According to the local administration, four people were killed and five injured in Russian shelling in the Cherson area. The information might not be independently verified.
IAEA once more alerted to fighting at Ukrainian nuclear power plant
Artillery fire around the Ukrainian nuclear power plant Zaporizhia once more alarmed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Around 20 detonations were apparently heard near the plant on Monday, said IAEA chief Rafael Grossi, citing the UN agency experts stationed in the power plant. In the recent past, there has been an increasing security presence on the premises. “This is a worrying trend that demonstrates the urgency and importance of establishing a nuclear safety and protection zone at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.”
Poland buys 1,000 new infantry fighting vehicles for its army
The Polish army will receive more than a thousand new “Borsuk” (badger) armored personnel carriers and hundreds of escort vehicles. Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak signed an agreement on this with the manufacturing company Huta Stalowa Wola in southeastern Poland, as reported by the PAP news agency.
Selenskyj conducts briefings with the military
At a meeting with military leaders, President Zelenskyi discussed the situation at the front. Eduard Moskalyov, who was recently dismissed as head of the so-called United Forces Operation, was given command of the “Odessa” area.
From 2018, the “United Forces Operation” referred to the ongoing fight once morest eastern Ukrainian separatists as an “anti-terrorist operation”. With the Russian invasion, this separate command structure for the army, national guard and secret service units deployed in the East lost its area of responsibility.
OECD opens its own regional office in Kyiv
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has its own regional office in Kiev from this Wednesday. According to the Ukrainian media, the relevant premises would be provided by the Embassy of Slovakia, said OECD Secretary General Mathias Cormann during a visit to Kiev. A team of four OECD officials will coordinate the implementation of a new country program on the ground, it said. The industrialized nations organization sees Ukraine as a potential member.
More people in Kiev than before the war began
Despite the Russian war of aggression that has been going on for more than a year, more people live in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev than before the war began. “Right now there are regarding 3.5 million people in the city,” First Deputy Mayor Mykola Povorosnyk told the Ukrinform state agency. Among them are around 230,000 officially registered internally displaced persons. Shortly before the outbreak of war, the official population was just under three million. By mid-March 2022, less than 800,000 people remained in Kiev.
Ukraine Prime Minister: “The most difficult time of the heating season” is over
According to Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal, following repeated heavy Russian air raids on Ukrainian infrastructure, the country is now through “the most difficult period of the heating season”. “We resisted the Russian energy terror and provided warmth in the houses of the Ukrainians,” Schmyhal said. There have been no power outages in the country’s energy grid for 17 days. “And it’s not likely to happen either – unless there’s a massive missile attack.” From October, massive Russian missile and drone attacks had led to problems with electricity and water supplies in large parts of Ukraine.
That brings the day
A good year following the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the foreign ministers of the G20 group of leading economic powers in India will meet on Wednesday. The appearance of the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in New Delhi is eagerly awaited.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko begins a visit to China. The focus is on expanding the cooperation between the two “comprehensive strategic partners”, as it was called. The visit of Kremlin chief Putin’s ally comes shortly following the presentation of the Chinese position paper on the Ukraine war.
© dpa