2023-05-21 18:16:48
New military aid, green light to send F-16 fighter jets, assurances of support ” unwavering of the G7… The visit of the Ukrainian president to Hiroshima, on the occasion of the summit of the seven most industrialized democracies which was held on Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 May in Japan, was crowned with an undeniable diplomatic success for Kyiv.
A French aircraft to transport Volodymyr Zelensky
It was on board an aircraft of the French Republic that Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Hiroshima on Saturday. “By inviting President Zelensky, we have shown the unwavering solidarity of the G7 with Ukraine”, said Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida by way of welcome. In the martyred city of 1945, this presence also had symbolic value. On Sunday, the Ukrainian head of state laid a wreath decorated with yellow and blue ribbon in front of the cenotaph of the victims of the atomic bomb.
In the final communiqué, the G7 reaffirmed its unanimous support for Kyiv, committing to “to support Ukraine as long as necessary in the face of Russia’s illegal war of aggression”. But the first resister to the Russian invasion did not come looking only for words and symbols. He obtained the American promise of new deliveries of ammunition, artillery and armored vehicles worth 375 million dollars (346 million euros), adding to the green light from Washington to the supply of the planes of F-16 fighter.
F-16 planes for kyiv
On Friday, Joe Biden indeed let it be known that Washington would now support a joint initiative by its allies to train Ukrainian pilots on these devices. The schedule for the delivery of the planes, their number, as well as the list of countries that will supply them have yet to be determined. Poland, which has F-16s, has already indicated that it would be willing to sell them to Ukraine, as has the Netherlands. Devices that should not allow attacking Russian territory, insisted Joe Biden in Hiroshima.
This green light, which responds to a long-standing request from kyiv, is an important victory for Volodymyr Zelensky. The only downside to this stay on Japanese soil: the Ukrainian president did not manage to meet Brazilian President Lula, who was reluctant to condemn the Russian invasion and invited to participate in certain exchanges on the occasion of the G7. “A conflict of agenda”according to Brasília.
On the other hand, Volodymyr Zelensky met, for the first time since the start of the conflict, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, another heavyweight reluctant to get angry with Moscow. “I fully understand your suffering and the suffering of the Ukrainian people,” said the Indian Prime Minister pledging to do “all we can” to end the conflict.
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The Pope entrusts a mission to Ukraine
Pope Francis has entrusted a mission in Ukraine to Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, president of the Italian Episcopal Conference, and from the community of Sant’Egidio known for its work in the service of diplomacy. He asked her to “contribute to the easing of tensions in the conflict in Ukraine, in the hope, never denied by the Holy Father, that this can launch paths of peace”confirmed Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni, without further details.
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