End of Russian gas in France: “we have taken drastic measures to prepare for winter”, says Agnès Pannier-Runacher
“We have taken drastic measures to prepare for winter. These measures are to increase our natural gas storage. We are increasing them by supplying ourselves with liquefied natural gas” from several parts of the world, explains on BFM Business Agnès Pannier -Runacher, Minister of Energy Transition. And “today we are ahead of previous years in filling our strategic storage”.
Opening of talks in Istanbul on Ukrainian cereals
The quadripartite talks on the question of the resumption of exports by the Black Sea of Ukrainian cereals began on Wednesday in Istanbul shortly after 2:15 p.m. (1:15 p.m. French time), a Turkish official told AFP. These talks bring together military experts from Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations, with a view to establishing secure corridors through the Black Sea.
Ukraine: at least five dead in a Russian strike near Mykolaiv
At least five civilians were killed by a strike that ripped open a building near Mykolaiv, a large city in southern Ukraine near the front, the deputy head of the presidential administration Kiril Tymoshenko announced on Wednesday.
Denouncing multiple rocket launchers in several places in the region, he indicated on Telegram that a “hospital and residential buildings were damaged” and that “according to preliminary data, five civilians” were killed in the district. of Vitovsk, east of Mykolaiv. He accompanied his message with a photo of the destroyed building, showing a small three-story building with one facade completely demolished.
Russia demands two months of pre-trial detention against the opponent Yachine, who denounced the crimes of Boutcha
The Russian Investigative Committee has called for the two-month imprisonment of opponent Ilia Yachine, who faces up to 10 years in prison for “disseminating false information” about the army. The Russian authorities on Tuesday opened a “criminal investigation” against Ilia Yachine, 39, the last figure of the Russian opposition to have been arrested, while most of them have chosen exile or have already been imprisoned.
He chose to stay, publicly condemning the intervention in Ukraine. The man was due to complete a 15-day prison sentence on Tuesday for disobeying the police when he was prosecuted for allegedly spreading lies about the Russian army, engaged in Ukraine. According to his lawyer, the authorities accuse him of having denounced on April 7 on his YouTube channel the murders of civilians by Russian soldiers in the Ukrainian city of Boutcha, crimes which according to Russia were staged.
“If Russia were to completely cut off the gas, there would be an impact”, says Olivier Véran
“If Russia were to cut gas completely there would be, yes, an impact on the availability of gas in France and in Europe,” government spokesman Olivier Véran said on Wednesday, “the threat is real. and serious.” He recalls however that “France is much less dependent than its European neighbors on Russian gas: 17% of the gas used in France comes from Russia. For the Germans it is 55%.”
“Faced with this threat, we are rebuilding stocks, we are diversifying supply routes and we are also calling for attention to the use that everyone can have of gas,” he said. “If I lower the heating of my home by one degree during the fall, I save 7% of the average gas consumption”.
Strikes in Chassiv Iar: death toll rises to 47
The death toll from the Russian bombardment on Sunday of an apartment building in Chassiv Iar (Donetsk), in this same mining basin, climbed to at least 47 dead, according to Ukrainian relief on Wednesday morning. The latest report put the death toll at 45. Tuesday evening.
Grain talks: a ‘confidential’ meeting
Military experts from Ukraine, Russia and Turkey are discussing the possibilities of grain exports from Ukrainian ports under Russian blockade in Istanbul on Wednesday. The greatest discretion surrounds the holding of these discussions behind closed doors between experts and in the presence of a United Nations delegation, which the Turkish Ministry of Defense intends to keep “confidential”, he told AFP .
Neither the place nor the time of the meeting have been made public by the ministry but the Russian delegation joined Istanbul at the end of the morning and, according to the Russian agency Ria Novosti, the discussions will begin at 11:00 GMT. A statement to the press will be published at the end of the work, according to the same source.
At least 1 dead in Kharkiv after a new Russian bombardment
The governor of the Kharkiv region indicated on Telegram that at least one person had died after a new Russian bombardment on this eastern Ukrainian city.
“The terror on the civilian population in the Kharkiv region by the Russian occupier continues,” the governor wrote on Telegram.
Five people were injured in the same strike.
Russia is likely to seize several cities in Donbass in the coming weeks
British intelligence said on Wednesday that Russia is likely to seize several towns in Donbass in the coming weeks, such as Siversk and Dolyna, as troops from Moscow close in on Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.
“The areas of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk remain the main objective at this stage of the operation”, write the British.
At the same time, the Russians are trying to undermine the authority of kyiv in the occupied cities, by developing new administrations.
Germany unveils full list of weapons delivered to Ukraine
The German government on Tuesday unveiled the full list of military equipment delivered to Ukraine, after extending its support by 2 billion euros.
The list mentions 7 Panzerhaubitze 2000 guns, cars, armored vehicles, air defense systems but also 14,9000 anti-tank mines.
The full list can be accessed here.
Opening of talks between Russia and Ukraine on the grain issue
A meeting between Russians and Ukrainians in the presence of UN representatives is due to open on Wednesday in Turkey on the difficult issue of grain exports via the Black Sea. They “will meet tomorrow in Istanbul on the safe delivery to international markets of grain waiting in Ukrainian ports,” Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on Tuesday.
Russia confirmed this meeting, while emphasizing that it wanted in particular to keep “the possibility of controlling and searching ships to avoid the smuggling of weapons”. Ukraine, for its part, said it was “in favor of the settlement of the question of the release of Ukrainian cereals under the auspices of the UN”.
‘Current Russian offensive actions are likely aimed at preparing for future offensives’, says ISW
“Russian forces continue to regroup, rest, re-equip and rebuild,” the Institute for the Study of Warfare (ISW) says in its final point, speaking of an “operational pause.” The army, however, continues to “bomb critical areas to establish the conditions for future ground offensives”. “The current Russian offensive actions are probably aimed at preparing for future offensives, the timing of which remains uncertain,” adds the ISW.
More than 37,500 soldiers killed on the Russian side, according to the Ukrainian authorities
In its daily report, the Ukrainian authorities published this Wednesday the human and material damage inflicted on Russia since the beginning of the conflict. According to them, 37,570 soldiers were killed on the Russian side. It is also specified that 3832 armored vehicles were destroyed, 188 helicopters or 1649 tanks.
It is important to stress that these figures are not given on the Russian side, and that Ukraine itself gives little information on its own military losses.
Despite Ukraine, Brazil wants to buy “all it can” diesel from Russia
Brazil intends to buy as much diesel as it can from Russia despite its invasion of Ukraine and sanctions on Moscow, Brazilian Foreign Minister Carlos Alberto Franco França told the UN on Tuesday.
This statement comes after an announcement by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro that an agreement is “almost” on the verge of being reached on this subject with Russia.
“We must be sure to have enough diesel for the agro-industry and for Brazilian drivers,” the minister told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of the UN Security Council chaired by Brazil.
Hi there!
Welcome to this direct dedicated to the follow-up of the war in Ukraine