Norway: arrest of a second Russian with a drone
Norway announced on Saturday that it had arrested a Russian national with a drone after he was seen taking photos of an airport in the far north of its territory, the second such case this week.
The 51-year-old man, who was also in possession of a camera and whose name has not been disclosed, was arrested on Friday on suspicion of having flown a drone over this Scandinavian country, which he confessed, according to authorities.
Police in the northern city of Tromso said in a statement that they “confiscated a large amount of photographic equipment, including a drone and a cache of memory cards”.
The material seized included photographs of an airport in Kirkenes, in the Far North, not far from the border with Russia, and Norwegian army Bell helicopters, she said.
Norway has been on high alert since mysterious unmanned aerial vehicles were spotted near offshore oil and gas rigs.
As Ukraine’s invasion led to a dramatic drop in Russian energy supplies, that kingdom overtook Russia as Western Europe’s main natural gas supplier.
The head of German diplomacy believes that Russia could use refugees as a “weapon”
The head of German diplomacy warned this Saturday against the hybrid war waged by Russia which could seek to divide Europe by also promoting an influx of refugees on its territory.
The minister fears in particular an influx of refugees from countries other than Ukraine, “because this war is hybrid and other countries are taking part in it”, accusing Serbia of contributing to a sharp increase in the arrival of migrants in Europe.
The EU Member States as a whole criticize this Balkan country for being a gateway to the Union for Turkish, Indian, Tunisian, Cuban and Burundian migrants, who do not need a visa to get there.
Refusing a situation “where people are used as a weapon”, Germany is in contact in particular with the Czech Republic and Slovakia to find solutions against this de facto reactivation of the “Balkan route”.
Oil depot on fire in Russia after strike on Ukraine border region
A strike hit this Saturday an oil depot which caught fire in the Russian region of Belgorod, bordering Ukraine, said local official, the shootings multiplying in recent days in this area.
“Another bombardment at home. One of the projectiles hit an oil depot,” said the governor of the region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, on his Telegram account. He posted a photo showing heavy black smoke billowing from a burning structure.
According to him, the emergency services are currently trying to extinguish the fire. “There is no risk of spread,” assured Viatcheslav Gladkov.
Iran denies supplying arms to Moscow for ‘use’ against kyiv
Iran again denied on Saturday having supplied Russia with weapons intended for use in the war in Ukraine, a country invaded by the Russian army.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said his country had “not provided and will not provide any weapons for use in the war in Ukraine”, according to a statement from his ministry.
kyiv and its Western allies accuse Moscow of using Iranian-made drones in attacks on Ukraine in recent weeks. The subject is expected to be discussed on Monday at a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Luxembourg.
The first Russian soldiers of the new joint “military grouping” have arrived in Belarus
The first Russian soldiers of the new military grouping between Moscow and Minsk arrived in Belarus, the Belarusian authorities said on Saturday, after the announcement this week of the creation of this force supposed to defend the country’s borders against a Ukrainian threat.
“The first trains of Russian soldiers making up the regional military grouping have arrived in Belarus,” the Belarusian Defense Ministry said in a statement, without specifying the number of Russian soldiers deployed in this framework.
Elon Musk announces that SpaceX can no longer afford the Starlink internet network in Ukraine
SpaceX boss Elon Musk assured Friday that his company no longer had the means to continue to finance the Starlink Internet network in Ukraine, an appeal to the US government to take over.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, SpaceX has delivered thousands of terminals there which provide an Internet connection through a constellation of satellites forming the Starlink network.
On Friday, he warned that the space company “cannot continue to fund the existing system indefinitely and send thousands of additional terminals (…). This is not reasonable.”
>> Our article can be found here.
Kyiv forces advance in Kherson region
The BFMTV teams were able to go on site, to Novovorontsovka, in the oblast of Kherson, and see the advance of the Ukrainian army in the region. Exceptional pictures.
On the spot, uniforms, ammunition and canned goods were left abandoned, witnesses of Russian setbacks.
“I think we won this war. In any case, it’s a matter of time. You saw, they left everything behind, they can’t manage,” said a Ukrainian soldier who took part in the the counter-offensive.
>> The rest can be read in our article.
US to maintain armored battalion in Lithuania due to Russian threat
The United States will maintain an armored battalion in Lithuania until at least early 2026, a senior Lithuanian official said in Washington on Friday, citing the persistent threat posed by Russia.
The battalion has been stationed in the town of Pabrade, near the border with Belarus, since 2019, but the Russian invasion of Ukraine has raised fears of a Russian attack on NATO’s eastern flank.
“Actions as we see them in Ukraine and attempts to involve Belarus even further in the military offensive against Ukraine are not likely to appease us,” said Kestutis Budrys, national security adviser to the Lithuanian President.
Vladimir Putin believes he is doing “everything right” in Ukraine
Russia is acting “right” in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin addressed a autosatisfecit on Friday after almost eight months of war and despite the series of setbacks recorded by his army against the Ukrainian forces.
“It’s not nice what’s happening now, but (if Russia hadn’t attacked Ukraine on February 24) we would have been in the same situation a little later, the conditions would just have been worse for us. So we are doing everything right,” replied the Russian president to a journalist who asked him if he had any regrets.
Saudi Arabia announces $400 million in humanitarian aid to Ukraine
Saudi Arabia on Saturday announced $400 million in humanitarian aid for kyiv, the official SPA news agency reported.
The latter also specifies that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke on the telephone to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and took the opportunity to underline “the kingdom’s position to support everything that will contribute to de-escalation, and the kingdom’s desire to continue the efforts of mediation”.
In September, Ryad had played an unexpected role of mediator, leading to an exchange of prisoners between Moscow and kyiv.
>> The article can be found here.
Washington announces $725 million in additional military aid to Ukraine
The United States will provide an additional $725 million in military aid to Ukraine for its defense against the Russian invasion, the Pentagon and the State Department announced on Friday.
“This payment will bring the total of American military assistance provided to Ukraine to an unprecedented amount of more than 18.3 billion dollars” since the entry into office of Joe Biden, specified the head of the American diplomacy Antony Blinken in a statement.
Joe Biden had promised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday “to continue to provide Ukraine with what it needs to defend itself, including advanced systems” of air defense.
>> Our full article on this announcement.
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Welcome to this live from Saturday October 15, 2022 dedicated to the conflict in Ukraine.