Russia ‘will bomb any country that arrests Putin’


Ukrainian soldiers ride atop an APC on the frontline in Bakhmut – LIBKOS/AP

Russia would bomb any country that detains Vladimir Putin using the International Criminal Court arrest warrant, Russia’s ex-president Dmitry Medvedev has warned.

The ICC last week called Putin a war criminal over his alleged role in abducting thousands of Ukrainian children, often from orphanages or care homes.

But Mr Medvedev cautioned that any attempt to execute that arrest warrant would be seen by Moscow as a “declaration of war”.

“Let’s imagine – it’s clear that this is a situation that will never happen – but nevertheless let’s imagine it does,” the Putin ally said.

“The current head of a nuclear state arrives on the territory of, say, Germany, and is arrested. What is this? A declaration of war against the Russian Federation.”

Mr Medvedev said that if this happened “all of our means, rockets and others, will fly on the Bundestag, in the Chancellor’s Office and so on.”

Mr Putin could face arrest in more than 100 countries that recognise the jurisdiction of the ICC warrant.

Russia, like the US, is not one of the 123 countries that are parties to the ICC under the Rome Statute, which established the court.

A future trial of Putin is therefore highly improbable, but the warrant is expected to have an impact on his ability to travel because he could be arrested and sent to The Hague.

03:01 PM

That’s all for today

Here is a summary of today’s top stories.

  • Russia would bomb any country that detains Vladimir Putin using the International Criminal Court arrest warrant, Russia’s ex-president Dmitry Medvedev has warned.

  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the southern region of Kherson, where he toured local infrastructure and promised to “restore everything” following Russia’s invasion.

  • A senior Ukrainian military commander said Thursday that a counter-attack could be launched soon against “exhausted” Russian forces near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, the stage for the longest battle of Moscow’s invasion.

  • Russia has made “several kilometres” of gains in the north-east and is likely to try and recapture Kupiansk, according to British military intelligence.

  • Finland’s defence minister on Thursday said he did not want to donate Hornet fighter jets to Ukraine, despite a Ukrainian request for such planes to help with its fight against Russia.

Please follow along tomorrow for all the latest updates on Ukraine.

02:54 PM

Russia says economy will adapt to sanctions by 2024

Russia’s economy will have finished adapting to Western sanctions by 2024, Moscow’s prime minister said Thursday, saying that his country had survived the international attempts to isolate it.

After the Kremlin sent troops to Ukraine last year, Moscow’s economy was hit with a flurry of sanctions and the exit of major Western companies – as well as the departure of thousands of educated Russian professionals.

In a speech to the Russian parliament, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin acknowledged the damages from the sanctions but vowed a quick recovery.

“Let’s be realistic, the outside pressure on Russia is not weakening,” he said.

“But we still expect that the adaptation period will end in 2024 already. Russia will embark on the path of long-term progressive development,” he said.

02:29 PM

Pictured: President Zelensky walks along a street in a village in Kherson

Zelensky walks along a street in a village - UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/via REUTERS

Zelensky walks along a street in a village – UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/via REUTERS

02:20 PM

Zakharova coins a Russian-style full formal name for Prince of Wales

Russia’s top diplomat has suggested that the Prince of Wales on his trip to Poland might be bringing with him the depleted uranium ammunition that the Kremlin is seething about, writes Nataliya Vasilyeva.

Maria Zakharova, the flamboyant spokeswoman of the Russian foreign ministry, on Thursday cited a news story on The Tatler magazine’s website, saying that its wording about William visiting “British and Polish troops involved in the war in Ukraine”, in her opinion, “dispels all doubts whether Britain and Poland are involved or not.”

She also raised Russia’s concerns about Britain’s plans to supply Ukraine with depleted uranium shells for the Challenger 2 tanks.

“I wonder if William Charles-ovich has brought depleted uranium ammunition for his troops,” she said, coining a patronymic for the Prince of Wales by using his father’s first name.

Vladimir Putin earlier this week raised alarm about the potential supplies, saying their use would be tantamount to using a “dirty” nuclear bomb.

01:49 PM

Slovakia says sent four MiG-29s to Ukraine

Slovakia on Thursday said it had transferred the first four of the MiG-29 fighter jets it had promised Ukraine, with nine others to follow in the coming weeks.

“The first four MiG-29 fighter jets have been safely handed over to the Ukrainian armed forces… In the coming weeks, the rest of the planes will be handed over,” Slovak defence ministry spokeswoman Martina Kakascikova said.

01:17 PM

Finland should not give Hornet fighter jets to Ukraine, says defence minister

Finland’s defence minister on Thursday said he did not want to donate Hornet fighter jets to Ukraine, despite a Ukrainian request for such planes to help with its fight against Russia.

“My view as Finland’s defence minister is that we need these Hornets to secure our own country,” Antti Kaikkonen told a news conference in Helsinki.

“I view negatively the idea that they would be donated during the next few years. And if we look even further, my understanding is that they begin to be worn out and will have little use value left,” he said.

Finland is replacing its ageing Hornet fleet with F-35 fighters it ordered in 2021, but the delivery of the first new planes is still two to three years away.

Finland will, however, give additional military equipment to Ukraine, including three more Leopard 2 tanks that come on top of a similar-sized donation made earlier, Kaikkonen told a news conference.

01:02 PM

Pictured: Prince William in Poland

Prince William at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to lay a wreath at the monument dedicated to Polish soldiers who lost their lives in conflict - Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson Collection

Prince William at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to lay a wreath at the monument dedicated to Polish soldiers who lost their lives in conflict – Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson Collection

12:43 PM

Belgium urges South Africa to use relationship with Russia to help end war in Ukraine

Belgium on Thursday called on South Africa to use its relationship with Russia to help end the war in Ukraine, during a state visit by the Belgian king to Pretoria.

“Given your strong historical links with Russia we would be delighted if you consider using your channels of communication to advance on a path towards peace” Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib said during a press conference in Pretoria.

Lahbib is accompanying Belgium King Philippe and Queen Mathilde during their five-day and first state visit to South Africa.

“We have always looked up to South Africa as a key partner for peace and the defence of human rights,” Lahbib said.

President Cyril Ramaphosa responded by saying Pretoria continues “to use the channel we have with Russia…to talk about how the conflict can be brought to an end”.

12:08 PM

Hungary would not arrest Putin, says PM Orban’s chief of staff

Hungary would not arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin if he entered the country, Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff said on Thursday, adding that it would have no legal grounds.

Hungary signed and ratified the Rome Statute that created the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant on Friday accusing Putin of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine.

It said there were reasonable grounds to believe that Putin bears individual criminal responsibility.

When asked if Putin would be arrested if he came to Hungary, Orban’s chief of staff, Gergely Gulyas, told a briefing that the Rome Statute had not been built into the Hungarian legal system.

“We can refer to the Hungarian law and based on that we cannot arrest the Russian President … as the ICC’s statute has not been promulgated in Hungary,” Gulyas said.

When asked, he said his government “had not formed a stance” on the arrest warrant issued against Putin.

“These decisions are not the most fortunate as they take things towards further escalation and not towards peace, this is my personal subjective opinion,” Gulyas added.

11:48 AM

Zelensky visits Kherson region and vows to ‘restore everything’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has visited the southern region of Kherson, where he toured local infrastructure and promised to “restore everything” following Russia’s invasion.

The visit, to a region where Ukraine staged a successful counteroffensive against Russian occupying forces late last year, was his second outside Kyiv this week.

On Wednesday he visited troops near the eastern frontline city of Bakhmut. “I spoke with local residents about their current issues and needs,” Mr Zelensky wrote on the Telegram messaging app under footage of his visit to Kherson region.

“We will restore everything, we will rebuild everything. Just like with every city and village that suffered because of the occupiers.”

11:28 AM

Pictured: A father and daughter in Druzhkivka – both in military fatigues

Ivan Synchina, 48, (R) and his daughter Marta Synchina, 25, pose for a picture in Druzhkivka, eastern Ukraine - ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP

Ivan Synchina, 48, (R) and his daughter Marta Synchina, 25, pose for a picture in Druzhkivka, eastern Ukraine – ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP

11:09 AM

Sanchez and Xi to discuss Ukraine

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Thursday he would discuss a peace plan for Ukraine with Chinese President Xi Jinping during an official visit to China next week.

“We will also talk about Ukraine where the most important thing is to be able to guarantee a stable and lasting peace,” Sanchez told reporters in Brussels, where he attended an EU Summit.

10:35 AM

Estonia PM speaks against easing Russia sanctions

Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas on Thursday spoke against any weakening of sanctions against Russia under a deal to export Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea, and called for the G7 to tighten its oil cap to squeeze Russia’s revenue more.

“We know that Russia is earning less from the oil… we see the economic sanctions, including the oil price cap, are having am effect on the Russian economy and their ability to fuel the war machine,” she said on arriving to talks among the EU’s 27 national leaders in Brussels on Thursday and Friday.

“We should continue with that,” she said, adding that Estonia would agree to raise the cap again should oil prices rise. She spoke against any weakening of sanctions against Russia as sought by Moscow in the grain deal talks.

“We shouldn’t weaken the sanctions,” she said, adding Russia could still use 18 ports for its agri-food exports to third countries and that only a dozen-or-so of Russian banks were targeted by Western sanctions.

10:13 AM

Russian defence minister pledges to boost country’s air defences

Russia’s defence minister has pledged to boost the country’s air defence forces in an apparent reaction to increasing attacks on Russian border towns from across the Ukrainian border, writes Nataliya Vasilyeva.

Sergei Shoigu at a meeting with Russia’s top brass on Wednesday evening said the military would aim to add new units with advanced air defence systems and replace older missing systems with newer ones.

He said several new air defence regiments are expected to be added by the end of the year.

The modernisation of the missile defence for Moscow is also expected to be completed soon, he said.

Recent cross-border attacks on military targets in Russian border areas and Crimea have exposed the vulnerabilities of Russia’s missile defence.

After an unidentified drone was shot down over Moscow suburbs, a senior Russian lawmaker went as far as to suggest that private companies chip in to set up their own, simplified air defence using drones.

The Institute for the Study of War in its daily briefing said Russia is “unlikely to generate such forces within several years”, let alone by the end of this year, citing chronic delays in the air defence industry even before the invasion.

10:03 AM

China’s Xi invites Spanish PM on state visit next week

Chinese President Xi Jinping has invited Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to Beijing for a state visit as Xi tries to galvanize support for China’s peace proposal for Ukraine.

Spain’s minister for the presidency, Félix Bolaños, confirmed late Wednesday that Mr Sánchez would visit China on March 30-31, citing Xi’s “possible mediation in the war in Ukraine” as a key reason for the visit.

Spain takes over the European Union’s rotating presidency in July, and Mr Sánchez has portrayed his nation on the world stage as a staunch NATO ally of Ukraine.

He plans to hold commercially focused meetings during the Boao Forum for Asia on the Chinese island of Hainan on March 30 before traveling to Beijing to meet with Xi on March 31, Mr Sánchez’s office said.

09:41 AM

Ukraine in pictures:

President Volodymyr Zelensky (C) taking a selfie with servicemen after meeting them in a warehouse and handing out awards, near Bakhmut - HANDOUT/AFP

President Volodymyr Zelensky (C) taking a selfie with servicemen after meeting them in a warehouse and handing out awards, near Bakhmut – HANDOUT/AFP

Ukrainian Mi-24 and Mi-8 helicopters fly towards Russian positions during a combat mission in Donetsk region - Evgeniy Maloletka/AP

Ukrainian Mi-24 and Mi-8 helicopters fly towards Russian positions during a combat mission in Donetsk region – Evgeniy Maloletka/AP

A Ukrainian tank heads toward Bakhmut - ARIS MESSINIS/AFP

A Ukrainian tank heads toward Bakhmut – ARIS MESSINIS/AFP

09:19 AM

Ukraine says ‘will take advantage’ of Russian fatigue in Bakhmut ‘very soon’

A senior Ukrainian military commander said Thursday that a counter-attack could be launched soon against “exhausted” Russian forces near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, the stage for the longest battle of Moscow’s invasion.

“The aggressor has not given up hope of taking Bakhmut at all costs despite losses in manpower and equipment. Russia’s main fighting force on this front is the Wagner mercenary group,” said the commander of Ukraine’s ground forces, Oleksandr Syrsky.

“Sparing nothing, they are losing significant strength and becoming exhausted. Very soon we will take advantage of this opportunity, like we did near Kyiv, Kharkiv, Balakliya and Kupiansk,” he added, referring to succesful counter-offensives last year.

Bakhmut, which once had an estimated population of around 70,000 people, has virtually emptied of civilians over months of fierce fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces for the town.

09:02 AM

Russia makes gains in north-east – but commanders fear major offensive

Russia has made ‘several kilometres’ of gains in the north-east and is likely to try and recapture Kupiansk, according to British military intelligence.

In its daily briefing, the Ministry of Defence said that Russia had partially regained control over the approaches to the eastern Ukrainian town of Kreminna, after its troops were pushed back from the region earlier this year.

“In places, Russia has made gains of up to several kilometres,” the military intelligence said in an update, adding that Russian commanders are likely trying to expand a security zone and are also seeking to recapture the logistic hub of Kupiansk in Kharkiv.

They added: “Operationally, Russia’s intent in the north-east likely remains defensive. Commanders probably fear this is one of the sectors where Ukraine could attempt major offensive operations.”

08:36 AM

Russia hauls 1950s-era tanks out of storage to join battlefield

Russia appears to have pulled 1950s-era tanks out of storage in the latest sign of a serious armour shortage in its army.

Pictures and video have emerged of what experts say are T-54 and T-55 tanks being transported by rail from a military depot for mothballed equipment in Russia’s far east.

If sent into Ukraine the vehicles would likely become the oldest main battle tanks used in the conflict.

Read the full story here

08:13 AM

Watch: Prince William visits Poland to thank soldiers for ‘all that you’re doing’ in Ukraine

The Prince of Wales has made a surprise visit to Poland to “personally thank” British and Polish soldiers involved in the war in Ukraine for “defending our shared freedoms”.

Prince William landed in the southeastern city of Rzeszow, around 60 miles from the Ukrainian border, on Wednesday afternoon amid tight security to show his support for the troops responding to the ongoing humanitarian situation.

He said he was “struck by their passion as well as their shared determination to defend our shared freedoms” in the face of the conflict, telling them: “Everyone back home thoroughly supports you.”

Read the full story from India McTaggart here

08:03 AM

UN nuclear chief says Ukraine plant situation ‘remains perilous’

The UN nuclear agency’s chief has said that the situation at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia power plant “remains perilous” following a Russian missile strike this month that disconnected the plant from the grid.

Europe’s largest nuclear power plant needs a reliable electricity supply to operate pumps that circulate water to cool reactors and pools holding nuclear fuel.

Since a Russian strike on March 9, the plant has relied on a single backup power line that remains “disconnected and under repair”, according to Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

“Nuclear safety at the ZNPP remains in a precarious state,” Grossi said in a statement on Wednesday.

The plant’s lack of access to the grid and necessary repair work on its last emergency power line could cause a complete loss of power, making it reliant on diesel generators for the seventh time since Russia captured it a year ago, Grossi said.

“I once again call for a commitment from all sides to secure nuclear safety and security protection at the plant.”

08:01 AM

Pictured: A residential building damaged by a Russian missile strike in Zaporizhzhia

A view shows a residential building damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia - STRINGER/REUTERS

A view shows a residential building damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia – STRINGER/REUTERS

08:00 AM

EU leaders to discuss Ukraine war with UN chief

European Union leaders will discuss the war in Ukraine with U.N. chief Antonio Guterres on Thursday and also endorse a plan to ramp up the supply of artillery shells to Kyiv.

Guterres will be a guest at an EU summit in Brussels, days after the renewal of a deal brokered by the U.N. and Turkey on the safe export of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea.

That humanitarian measure will discussed at a working lunch with Guterres before the U.N. secretary-general takes his leave and EU leaders get an update on the war from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy via video link, officials said.

“We will, as always, reaffirm our unwavering commitment to assist Ukraine,” declared Charles Michel, president of the European Council of EU leaders.

The leaders will give their blessing to a plan – agreed by foreign ministers on Monday – to send 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine over the next year by digging into stocks and making a landmark move into joint procurement.

07:59 AM

Good Morning

Good morning and welcome to today’s liveblog.

We will be guiding you through all the latest updates on Ukraine.



Source link

Denial of responsibility! galaxyconcerns is an automatic aggregator around the global media. All the content are available free on Internet. We have just arranged it in one platform for educational purpose only. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials on our website, please contact us by email – [email protected]. The content will be deleted within 24 hours.

Leave A Reply

Your email address will not be published.