Russia has threatened to attack French troops as a “priority” if they are deployed on the ground in Ukraine, calling them “legitimate targets”.
Vladimir Putin’s spy chief Sergei Naryshkin issued the threat to “all Frenchmen who come to the territory of the Russian world”, presumed to be a reference to Ukraine.
The remarks from Russia’s chief of foreign intelligence come after Emmanuel Macron refused to rule out deploying European soldiers on the group in the war. Other Western leaders distanced themselves from the comments, though they were welcomed by some eastern European Nato states.
France responded to the threat by calling on the Kremlin to avoid “irresponsible provocations”.
Meanwhile, Russia has announced plans to evacuate some 9,000 children from the country’s Belgorod region bordering Ukraine amid shelling in the area.
Kyiv has increasingly been hitting strategic Russian targets, including oil and gas infrastructure, behind the extensive front line that has changed little after more than two years of war.
The children are to be moved further east, away from the Ukraine border, according to Belgorod governor Vyacheslev Gladkov.
Ukraine’s foreign minister to visit India next week, sources say
Ukraine‘s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, will visit India next week as Kyiv looks to build support for its peace plan, two Indian officials aware of the matter said, the first visit by a top Ukrainian leader since Russia‘s invasion over two years ago.
New Delhi, which has traditionally had close economic and defence ties with Moscow, has so far refused to criticise Russia for the February 2022 invasion, instead stepping up purchases of Russian oil to record levels.
Kuleba’s visit comes at the invitation of his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, after a telephone call between the leaders of the two nations at the beginning of the year, said one of the officials.
Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity.
Ukraine‘s peace plan, as presented by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, calls for removing all Russian troops, restoring Ukraine‘s 1991 post-Soviet borders and a process to make Russia accountable for its actions.
Apart from talks with Indian officials, Kuleba is also set to “review the India-Ukraine inter-governmental commission”, one of the officials said, referring to a panel charged with keeping up the two nations’ economic, cultural and technological ties.
India’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Maryam Zakir-Hussain20 March 2024 07:30
Russia confirms new navy chief after Black Sea warship losses
Vladimir Putin has appointed a new commander of the Russian navy as he looks to fight back against Ukraine’s sweeping attacks on his prized naval fleet in occupied Crimea.
Admiral Aleksandr Moiseev, who commanded the Crimean Black Sea fleet (BSF) for a year back in 2018, was appointed to what some analysts say is Russia’s most difficult military role during a ceremony in Mr Putin’s hometown of St Petersburg.
My colleague Tom Watling reports:
Namita Singh20 March 2024 07:03
IOC excludes Russian and Belarusian athletes from Paris Olympics opening ceremony
Russian and Belarusian athletes will not be allowed to take part in the traditional parade at the opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics, the IOC said yesterday.
The opening ceremony on 26 July will see thousands of athletes travel on boats down the River Seine for several miles toward the Eiffel Tower, instead of the normal parade of teams inside a stadium.
The IOC said athletes from Russia and Belarus who are approved to compete at the Olympics as neutrals will have a chance only “to experience the event” – likely watching from near the river. The IOC has laid out a vetting procedure for Russian and Belarusian athletes to be granted neutral status, with requirements including that they must not have publicly supported the invasion of Ukraine, or be affiliated with military or state security agencies.
Namita Singh20 March 2024 06:30
Air defence Ukraine’s priority, says Zelensky
Air defence remains Ukraine’s main concern, said Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky as he appealed to allies for support.
Russia has launched 130 missiles, more than 320 attack drones and almost 900 guided bombs in attacks this month alone, Mr Zelensky said, during a monthly meeting of Ukraine’s defence contact group, also attended by US defence secretary Lloyd Austin.
Ukrainian defence minister Rustem Umerov, who attended the gathering, said on Telegram that participants “demonstrated their unity and resolve in helping Ukraine. Our forces are critically in need of ammunition. The ammo will be delivered!”
Last week, the Biden administration said it would send $300m in military assistance to Ukraine, but added that it was an extraordinary move funded by unexpected savings from Pentagon contracts.
Namita Singh20 March 2024 06:16
Moldova expels Russian diplomat over polling stations in breakaway region
Moldova yesterday expelled a Russian diplomat over the opening of polling stations for Russia’s presidential election in the breakaway region of Transnistria after summoning the Russian ambassador.
Moldova’s foreign ministry has twice called in Moscow’s envoy, Oleg Vasnetsov, to protest the opening of the polling stations in Transnistria, an unrecognised pro-Russian enclave, despite Moldova’s opposition.
The country’s pro-European government doubled down on punitive action against Moscow, saying it would bar a Russian delegation from a United Nations meeting taking place in Chisinau in May.
Pro-European president Maia Sandu said the Russian move indicated a lack of respect for Moldova’s sovereignty and promised a government response at a press conference on Monday.
The envoy, Mr Vasnetsov, said Moscow would draw up a response to what he described as an unfriendly act by Moldova, Russia’s Tass news agency reported.
Namita Singh20 March 2024 06:00
Western leaders line up to condemn Putin’s sham election – as result labelled most corrupt in Russian history
The Kremlin claimed that President Putin won more than 87 per cent of the vote, by far the biggest landslide in post-Soviet Russian history. That follows years of repression and a crackdown on dissent that has accelerated since Moscow invaded Ukraine two years ago and the whole election process being controlled. In claiming victory, Putin again sought to threaten the West against deploying troops to Ukraine, saying that a possible conflict between Russia and Nato would put the world “a step away” from a third world war.
Tom Watling20 March 2024 06:00
Ukraine evacuates civilians amid Russian air attacks
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky in his nightly video address decried Russia’s “constant” attacks on Ukraine’s northeastern region of Sumy.
“Since the beginning of the month, Russian aviation has already dropped almost 200 guided bombs on the communities of Sumy region,” he said. “Villages, cities, civilian infrastructure.”
Authorities in Sumy said there had been 30 instances of shelling yesterday. One person had been killed in the border community of Velyka Pysarivka, focal point of an evacuation which got under way last week.
About 200 people have been evacuated from the endangered areas near Velyka Pysarivka in the past week, Ukrainian local officials said.
Both sides deny targeting civilians in the war that Russia started with its full-scale invasion on Ukraine two years ago and which has killed thousands and displaced millions since.
The development and use of drones and other air weapons has increasingly shifted the conflict away from the battlefield to air attacks on each other’s military, energy and transport infrastructure.
Namita Singh20 March 2024 05:16
US officials say pact with strategically key Pacific island nations underscores American commitment
U.S. officials stressed Tuesday that newly-approved legislation providing billions of dollars in funding for three strategically important Pacific island nations is an important sign of American commitment, which comes amid warnings China is actively trying to pry them away from Washington’s sphere of influence.
Tom Watling20 March 2024 05:00
French troops in Ukraine ‘priority and legitimate targets’ for Russia
Russia has threatened to attack French troops if they are deployed on the ground in Ukraine, calling them “priority and legitimate targets”.
“This means that the fate of all Frenchmen who have ever come to the territory of the Russian world with a sword would await it,” said Russia’s chief of foreign intelligence Sergei Naryshkin, according to the TASS news agency.
It comes weeks after French president Emmanuel Macron refused to rule out the idea of European troops on the ground in Ukraine.
France has responded to Naryshkin’s comments, saying: “We consider these kind of provocations irresponsible.”
Namita Singh20 March 2024 04:55
Russia reports air attacks across border regions
Russian forces said they repelled numerous air attacks yesterday night and earlier today, with intensified pounding of border regions forcing evacuations of civilians.
Russian officials said air defence systems destroyed Ukraine-launched missiles and drones over Belgorod, Kursk and Voronezh regions bordering Ukraine. Drones were also downed deeper in Russia in the Saratov region.
Russia’s defence ministry, posting on the Telegram messaging app, said air defence units had intercepted a dozen rockets and missiles over the Belgorod region by 10pm yesterday. Soon after, it said it had intercepted two more missiles, including a US-made Patriot, over neighbouring Kursk region.
Early today, governor of the Saratov region, Roman Busargin, said that two Ukraine-launched drones were intercepted near the city of Engels. Russia has a strategic bomber military base near the city.
No casualties or major damage were reported in any of the Ukraine-launched attacks.
Namita Singh20 March 2024 04:26