2024-01-31 17:18:28
Five EU heads of government, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, called on member states on Wednesday January 31 to “redouble their efforts” in their military support for Ukraine against the Russian invasion before a crucial summit of the 27. At the same time, the European Union admitted that it could not deliver the million shells promised to Ukraine by the end of March, but affirmed that it would meet its targets by the end of 2024.
Information to remember
⇒ EU offers compromise to Orban on eve of crucial summit on Ukraine
⇒ ICJ rejects accusations of “terrorist financing” from kyiv against Moscow
⇒ Moscow says it destroyed 20 Ukrainian missiles over the Black Sea and in Crimea
EU falls short of military aid targets for Ukraine, but vows to do better
The European Union recognized this Wednesday that it will not be able to deliver a million shells to Ukraine as promised by the end of March, but promised to do better and achieve this objective before the end of 2024. We have already delivered 330,000 shells,” explained the head of EU diplomacy Josep Borrell to the press, following a meeting of European defense ministers in Brussels. “I expect this figure to increase by 200,000 shells” by the end of March, or “a little more than 52% of the objective” set last year, he added.
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“Yes, okay, on March 31, we won’t have the million,” he said. But a “positive dynamic” has been created, and this figure will be exceeded by the end of the year, with 1.1 million shells for Ukraine, he assured. By the end of 2024, the European Union will have an annual production capacity of some 1.4 million shells, he added. And this capacity will be increased to two million in 2025, said the European Commissioner in charge of the defense industry, Thierry Breton, on Wednesday.
ICJ rejects accusations of “terrorist financing” from kyiv against Moscow
The UN’s highest court on Wednesday rejected Kiev’s allegations that Russia had “financed terrorism” since 2014 in eastern Ukraine, concluding that the provision of weapons or training camps did not fall within the scope of the legislation. kyiv has called Moscow a “terrorist state” and said Russian support for separatist rebels was a harbinger of the February 2022 invasion.
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This case predates Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The ICJ will say on Friday whether it has jurisdiction to rule in separate proceedings regarding that war. The court this time declared that only money transfers could be considered support for suspected terrorist groups under the international convention on the financing of terrorism. This “does not include the means used to commit acts of terrorism, including weapons or training camps,” the court ruled.
Moscow says it destroyed 20 Ukrainian missiles over the Black Sea and in Crimea
The Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that it had destroyed twenty missiles launched by Ukraine over the Black Sea and in Crimea, an annexed peninsula where “debris” fell.
Air defense “destroyed 17 Ukrainian missiles over the waters of the Black Sea and three others over the Crimean peninsula,” the ministry said on Telegram, specifying that “debris” had fallen on the territory of ‘a “military unit” near the city of Sevastopol.
EU offers compromise to Orban on eve of crucial Ukraine summit
The European Union has proposed to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban an annual debate without a vote on financial aid to Ukraine, in the hope of seeing him lift his veto on 50 billion euros of support, said European officials on Wednesday on the eve of an extraordinary summit. “There is a proposal […] which is clearly an outstretched hand to Hungary,” a European diplomat told journalists on condition of anonymity, while recognizing that there was no agreement on this solution among Hungarian negotiators.
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At Thursday’s summit in Brussels, European leaders will try to convince Viktor Orban – Moscow’s closest ally within the EU – to abandon his opposition to the payment of this aid of 50 billion euros over four years, which Kiev desperately needs. Hungary demands to be able to carry out an annual review of these funds (33 billion in loans and 17 billion in donations), but the other EU countries do not want to give it these regular opportunities to veto.
Russia and Ukraine exchanged around 200 prisoners of war
Russia and Ukraine announced Wednesday that they had exchanged around 200 prisoners of war from each side, a week after the crash of a Russian military plane that Moscow said was carrying captive Ukrainian soldiers was shot down. through Kiev.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that “195 Russian soldiers” were exchanged for the same number of Ukrainian servicemen. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the return of “207” Ukrainians who were detained by the Russians.
Europe takes stock of military aid to Ukraine
The European Union asked the 27 on Wednesday for a detailed inventory of their military support for Ukraine in an attempt to strengthen it, at a time when kyiv is running out of ammunition against the Russian army. “It is important to clarify the situation and to know where we are and where we will be by March and by the end of the year,” explained the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell before the start of a meeting of EU defense ministers.
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The Europeans committed last year to supplying one million shells to Ukraine by the end of March, but this objective will not be achieved as planned, several ministers recognized. The Europeans have already delivered some 300,000 shells, and they will have a production capacity in 2024 of some 1.4 million shells, assures the European Commissioner in charge of the defense industry Thierry Breton.
On Wednesday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Prime Ministers of the Netherlands Mark Rutte, Estonian Kaja Kallas, Czech Petr Fiala and Danish Mette Frederiksen called on Europeans to “redouble their efforts” to ensure that military support for Ukraine lasts. as long as necessary.” The head of European diplomacy has put on the discussion table a proposal for reform of the “European Peace Facility”, instrument used by Europeans to jointly help Ukraine, in order to strengthen its orders to industry.
Nadezhdine, Russian opponent of the war, presidential candidate
Boris Nadezhdine, the only opponent of the assault in Ukraine in the running for the Russian presidential election, submitted on Wednesday the signatures of support necessary to register his candidacy for the election scheduled for March 15-17. Little known to the general public, this veteran of Russian political life, who advocates “the end” of the assault in Ukraine and denounces the authoritarian drift of Vladimir Putin, has aroused an unexpected enthusiasm in recent days, tens of thousands of Russians mobilizing to support his candidacy.
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The Electoral Commission should for its part rule on the candidacy of Boris Nadejdine in the next 10 days. Several hundred Muscovites had lined up in recent days to sign in his favor, a legal means for them to demonstrate their direct opposition to the Kremlin’s policies, in a country where any dissident voice is severely repressed.
Drone and missile attacks in Kharkiv
Russia carried out a new night attack against Ukraine with 20 Iranian-designed drones and three ballistic missiles, the Ukrainian armed forces said on Wednesday, stressing that the air defense downed a dozen devices. Ukrainian air defense systems, mainly in the southern and eastern regions of the front, shot down the drones, according to the same source which does not mention the missiles.
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The authorities have released little information at this stage on the damage caused by this new attack. Police in the Kharkiv region (east), which borders Russia, however, indicated that a supermarket and residential houses had been damaged during the attack.
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