► The Apostolic Nuncio in kyiv summoned by the Ukrainian government
The apostolic nuncio in Ukraine, representative of the pope in the country, was summoned by the country’s foreign ministry on Thursday, August 25.
This summons is a sign of dissatisfaction on the part of kyiv and comes the day after Pope Francis’ remarks on the death of Daria Dougouina, the daughter of a Russian ideologue close to Vladimir Putin.
“I think of this unfortunate young woman who died because of a bomb under the seat of her car in Moscow », the pope said. This sentence provoked a rare reaction from the Ukrainian ambassador to the Holy See, Andriï Yourach, who in a tweet judged the pope’s speech ” disappointing “.
► The Zaporizhia nuclear power plant “totally disconnected” from the network
The Zaporijjia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, under Russian control and the victim of several bombardments, is “completely disconnected” of the network after the damage of the lines of communication, announced Thursday the Ukrainian operator Energoatom.
“The two reactors of the plant in operation have been disconnected from the network. As a result, the actions of the invaders caused a total disconnection of the Zaporizhia NPP from the power grid, for the first time in its history.”the state group Energoatom said on Telegram.
According to the Ukrainian operator, fires on the territory of the Zaporizhia thermal power plant, located near the nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, twice caused the disconnection of the last line of communication connecting the site to the electrical network. “Three other lines of communication had previously been damaged in terrorist attacks” Russians, continues Energoatom.
War in Ukraine: employees of the Zaporizhia power plant under pressure
For weeks, Moscow and kyiv have accused each other of several bombings that targeted this nuclear power plant, which has six reactors with a total capacity of 6,000 megawatts and has been occupied since March by Russian troops. Ukraine also accuses Russia of stockpiling heavy weapons in the Zaporizhia power plant and using it as a base to strike at Ukrainian positions.
► Zaporijjia power plant: warning from Washington
American diplomacy warned on Thursday August 25 that any Russian attempt to divert nuclear energy from Ukraine would be “unacceptable”.
“The electricity it produces belongs by right to Ukraine and any attempt to disconnect the plant from the Ukrainian grid to redirect (electricity) to the occupied regions is unacceptable”State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.
► Vladimir Putin signs a decree to expand the army
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed a decree ordering a 10% increase in the number of soldiers in the army, in the midst of an offensive against Ukraine and against a backdrop of growing tensions with Western countries. The army will have to have two million members, including 1.15 million soldiers, against 1.9 million, including just over a million combatants, in 2017, according to this decree published by the government and entering into force on January 1 next.
Concretely, without counting civilian personnel, this represents an increase of 137,000 soldiers, or more than a tenth of the current combat force. This measure, the reasons for which are not explained in the decree, comes as the Russian army has been carrying out an offensive in Ukraine for more than six months, which is very costly in human and material resources. The Kremlin has so far refrained from proceeding with a general mobilization, a measure feared by many Russians.
► Ukraine wants an international tribunal to judge Russia’s aggression next year
In the seventh month of Russia’s war against Ukraine, kyiv intends to create an international tribunal next year to try Vladimir Putin and those responsible for the invasion of the country, revealed Thursday August 25 Andriï Smirnov, deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential administration.
“A large majority of Ukrainians believe in victory over Russia”
“This is the only option to quickly hold accountable the criminals who started the war against Ukraine. The best, fastest and most efficient »insisted Andriï Smirnov.
The “crime of aggression” is similar to the concept of “crime against peace” used in the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials at the end of the Second World War.