Thursday marks 50 days of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and a marked change in Moscow’s approach. Ukrainian officials have warned for days that they feared a major Russian military offensive in the eastern Donbass region.
We And European Union has pledged a combined $1.3 billion more in logistical support Ukraine prepares to launch as Russia an eastern invasion.
Meanwhile, organizations such as the United Nations have warned that a prolonged war in Ukraine could create more problems in an already struggling global economy, with food insecurity being a major concern.
Here are the latest developments:
casualties of WarThe United Nations Office of Human Rights (OHCHR) said on Thursday that as of April 12, the civilian casualties in Ukraine since the start of the Russian attack on February 24 stood at 1,932. It warned that “the actual figures are much higher.”
global impactThe UN Secretary-General has warned that the world is on the verge of a “perfect storm” as the war in Ukraine exacerbates an already struggling global economy. In a news release on Wednesday, the United Nations said the war could lead to a “three-pronged crisis” of food, energy and finance – regions already badly hit by COVID-19 and climate change. “We are now facing a perfect storm that threatens to devastate the economies of developing countries,” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. The people of Ukraine cannot tolerate the violence against them. And the most vulnerable people around the world cannot become collateral damage in another disaster for which they take no responsibility,” he said.
Major Russian warships damaged: One of the most important warships of the Russian Navy badly damaged In the Black Sea, a major blow to the army fighting against the Ukrainian resistance in 50 days Russian invasion of his neighbor. Russia’s Defense Ministry said Russian sailors evacuated Moskva, the flagship guided missile cruiser of its Black Sea Fleet, after the ammunition caught fire. Ukraine’s Operational Command South claimed on Thursday that Moscow was sinking after being hit by Ukraine’s Neptune anti-ship missiles. Russia’s defense ministry said on Thursday that Moscow was “rescuing” and taking measures to deliver it to the port. The ministry said the crew was moved to other Black Sea Fleet ships in the region. Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told CNN’s Brianna Keeler that Moscow “exploded” but said the United States could not say at this time whether the ship was hit by a missile. Whatever the cause of the fire, analysts say it strikes at the heart of national pride, along with the Russian Navy, compared to the US Navy that lost a warship or an aircraft carrier during World War II. Is performed.
Ukraine’s national security adviser Oleksey Danilov told CNN on Thursday that the alleged attack on the cruiser was a very important mission for his country’s military and vowed to take more such dramatic action. “This is a very important mission for us. Moskva was near Snake Island and was hit yesterday by two powerful Ukrainian-made missiles,” Danilov told CNN’s Friedrich Pleitzen in an interview.[Putin] Came to kill our children, our women, our citizens. This is our gift to him. And this is just the beginning. There will be more than one Moscow.” The Ukrainian national security adviser commended the Ukrainian military for the way it has defended the country, but cautioned against underestimating the Russian military. Danilov called on the international community to send more. repeated the request of the country. Weapons, weapons. “We are, first of all, grateful for what has already been given to us,” he said. “We need helicopters, aircraft, powerful weapons, howitzers … We need Much needed.”
Possible meeting between Zelensky and Putin: Turkey is still working on organizing a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Kavusoglu told Turkish news channel NTV on Thursday. “We know that important issues will be decided at the leader level, so we will try to bring leaders together,” he said. Cavusoglu said Turkey continues to negotiate with “cautious optimism”, especially after the recent incidents of alleged war crimes in Buka and Irpin, which “negatively affected this process.”
The Kremlin said on Thursday that the condition of a possible meeting between Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky is an agreement document for the two leaders to sign. Since the beginning of the invasion of Russia, Zelensky repeatedly called for talks There have been no talks with the Russian President, but so far at the highest level.
Russian opposition leader urges West to launch social media campaign against Putin regime: Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny has issued a series of tweets urging a new frontier of “truth and free information” against Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom he calls a “war criminal from the Kremlin”.
Navalny, who is serving nine years in prison After pleading guilty to fraud last month in a Russian penal colony, he said in his tweet that “the truth and free information hardened Putin’s insane regime like a spear,” in Russian American use by the Ukrainian military. Anti-tank weapons. Being used against armor.
Increase in international defense aid to UkraineA senior defense official said Thursday that the Pentagon is working to provide Ukraine with arms, ammunition and other security assistance worth $800 million, announced yesterday by US President Joe Biden. “We’re not under the illusion of the size and scale of this thing. But we’re also clock-conscious. We know that time is not our friend. And we’re going to do our best to move these shipments.” ” To move as soon as possible,” the official told reporters during an off-camera briefing.
The European Union on Wednesday approved an additional 500 million euros ($544 million USD) for military equipment for the Ukrainian armed forces, according to a news release from the European Council of the European Union.
“Next weeks will be decisive. As Russia prepares for an offensive in Ukraine’s east, it is vital that we continue and advance our military support to Ukraine to defend its territory and population and prevent further suffering,” foreign officials said. said Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Affairs and Security Policy.