► More than 4 million refugees
The number of Ukrainian refugees who have fled their country since the invasion by the Russian army on February 24 passed the 4 million mark on Wednesday, according to figures from the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
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A total of 4,019,287 Ukrainians – mostly women and children – have left the country to flee the war started by Russia, according to the UNHCR. Poland alone hosts more than 2.3 million people.
► Russia does not consider the negotiations promising
On the 35th day of the Russian invasion, the Kremlin on Tuesday showered hopes of decisive progress in the peace negotiations. “At this time, we cannot report anything very promising or any breakthrough. There is a lot of work to be done”said Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov. However, he qualified as ” positive “ the fact that the Ukrainian side has “finally started to formulate concrete proposals and put them in writing”.
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These statements contrast with the tone used the day before at the end of a session of talks in Istanbul. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that the signals given during the negotiations were “positive”. At the end of the discussions, Moscow announced that it would reduce “radically” its military operations in kyiv and Chernihiv (north).
► Violent explosions in kyiv
Despite Russian promises, many strikes were heard overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, even in the city center of the Ukrainian capital. Anti-aircraft alarms sounded again in the morning.
Chernihiv was also a victim of bombardment ” All night long ” by artillery and aircraftsannounced the governor of the region, specifying that civil infrastructures had been destroyed and that the city was still without water or electricity.
► A bombed Red Cross building
A building of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) was the target of Russian bombardments in Mariupol, a besieged strategic port in southeastern Ukraine. “Occupants deliberately shelled an ICRC building in Mariupol”said Lioudmyla Denisova, in charge of human rights at the Ukrainian Parliament. “At the moment, we have no information about the victims”she added, without specifying how many people could have been in the building at the time of the shootings.
The day before, Vladimir Putin had demanded that the “nationalists” Ukrainians in Mariupol “lay down their arms” in order to “Find a solution to the humanitarian situation”, according to a Kremlin press release published after an exchange with Emmanuel Macron.
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According to local authorities, more than 80% of Mariupol’s infrastructure is destroyed or damaged. At least 5,000 people are believed to have died in the besieged port city as the Russians advance through the city center. Negotiations to establish a humanitarian corridor have not been successful.
► Food aid for one million Ukrainians
The World Food Program (WFP) said on Wednesday it was providing emergency food aid to one million people in Ukraine after Russian forces invaded that country.
“Trucks, trains and vans are delivering food to the most vulnerable people across the country today and more (humanitarian) convoys are expected in the coming days”assures the UN agency.
► No lifting of sanctions
Western leaders are skeptical after the announcement of these advances in the discussions. “We will see if they keep their word”, US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday. The latter met with the French, British, German and Italian leaders in order to “continue to increase the cost paid by Russia”according to the White House.
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Volodymyr Zelensky, for his part, made the lifting of economic sanctions on Moscow conditional on the end of the war and the withdrawal of Russian troops: “This question can only be considered once the war is over and we have recovered what is ours”.