Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on people from all over the world to publicly protest today, March 24, one month after the Russian invasion began. “Russia’s war is not just the war against Ukraine. Its meaning is much broader,” says Zelensky, delivering his English speech for the first time in a traditional evening video message on the street in Kiev. “Come to your squares, to your streets. Make yourself visible and make sure that you are heard. Freedom is important, people matter, peace is important. Ukraine is important.” While fighting is now taking place inside Mariupol, where 11-year-old gymnast Kateryna Dyachenko
died from the collapse of her house, the specter of chemical weapons and the nuclear threat returns to the exchange of accusations. In the evening the Kiev authorities informed the International Atomic Energy Agency that a forest near the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is on fire.
Ukraine asks NATO to send “medium range missiles”, because “we cannot win a war without offensive weapons”. Almost the entire city of Irpin, on the northwestern outskirts of Kiev, – the mayor of Kiev quoted by the BBC says – has returned to Ukrainian hands. Vitalij Klitshcko affirms that the counter-offensive repelled the Russian attack also in Makariv, another town about seventy kilometers west of the capital. The Ukrainian army “destroyed the plan to surround Kiev,” added Klitshcko. And according to the Wall Street Journal, which cites a senior NATO executive, the number of Russian soldiers dead, wounded, taken prisoner or missing in the war in Ukraine could reach 40 thousand. Analysts of Alliance arrived at this figure using statistical averages from recent conflicts, according to which there are about three injured for every dead. NATO estimates that between 7,000 and 15,000 Russian soldiers have died so far.
In some areas near Kiev, Russian forces were pushed back by the Ukrainian resistance . This was stated by a Pentagon official, according to which Russia has launched over 1,200 missiles since the invasion began. The Ukrainian edition of the Russian news site Strana.ua reports that the mayor of the city of Mariupol, Vadim Boychenko, has left the city , “because there was no longer any connection there”. The Ria Novosti site writes it. “As the head of Donetsk regional military administration Pavel Kirilenko explained, Boychenko has left the city because there is no connection there.”
Meanwhile, the economic war between Russia and the West continues with a particular reference to energy. Putin said Russia will no longer accept payments in dollars and euros for its gas delivered to Europe, but will only accept rubles. The question of the possibility of new sanctions on Russia, which also include oil and gas, will be at the center of the whirlwind of diplomatic meetings tomorrow in Brussels where the leaders of NATO, the G7 and the European Union are scheduled. But the signs on the eve certainly do not seem calming with the Russian Foreign Ministry which has delivered to the US embassy in Moscow a list of American diplomats who have been declared unwelcome and will be deported. The ministry itself affirms this – according to Tass reports, adding “PUTIN’S MOVE – Meanwhile , Russia has announced that it will no longer accept payments in dollars and euros for its gas delivered to Europe , but will only accept rubles. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin. An announcement that causes the drop in European stock exchanges: Frankfurt -1.3%, Madrid -1.4%, Paris and Milan -1%, London -0.1%. After Putin’s words, the ruble has improved immediately and has now fallen below 100 against the dollar(98.8). However, the Russian currency remains weak compared to the pre-war period in Ukraine when it traded at 75 on the greenback. The price of gas in Europe recorded a 34% jump and then retraced to 125 euros (+ 27%) per MWh, after Putin’s decision. In London the price rises to 298p per Mmbtu. Against “high and volatile gas prices”, we “propose common procurement and stricter rules for storage, because instead of competing with each other by bringing prices up, we have to use our weight and start buying gas together. As Europeans, not as 27 different member countries. Also we should use our storage facilities in some member countries to guarantee supplies everywhere in the Union. ” This was stated by the president of the Commission Ursula von der Leyen to the Pe. Putin’s claim to receive Russian gas payments in rubles representsa “breach of contract” . This was stated by the German Economy Minister Robert Habeck. “We will now discuss with our European partners how to react,” he added. Germany imports 55% of its natural gas needs from Russia. THE WAR CONTINUES – A bridge in Chernihiv was bombed, 130 kilometers from Kiev, considered crucial for bringing humanitarian aid and evacuating civilians. The Kyiv Independent reports it. A Russian air raid destroyed the museum named after the painter Arkhip Kuindzhi in Mariupol, where paintings by numerous Ukrainian artists were kept. According to the municipal council’s complaint on Telegram, about two thousand works were preserved in the bombed building including paintings, sculptures and other artistic creations. Konstantin Chernyavsky, president of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine, told local media that three well-known paintings by Kuindzhi were part of the museum’s collection, but were not in the facility. The voices of those fleeing the horror of the war in Ukraine
Russian forces seized a humanitarian convoy of 11 empty buses bound for Mariupol to rescue the Ukrainians fleeing the now ghostly city, making the drivers of the vehicles and several emergency services “prisoners”: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denounces the Moscow maneuver a few hours after his speech to the Italian Parliament and assures that Kiev is “doing everything to free our people”. President Zelensky demands the release of the convoy. Ukraine, video shows missiles launched from Crimea
Nine humanitarian corridors have been agreed for today in Ukraine, but not to exit Mariupol. Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, Iryna Vereshchuk says there is no agreement with Russia to establish a safe corridor from the heart of Mariupol. ” One hundred thousand people – denounces the Ukrainian president – were trapped in the ruined city of Mariupol , facing hunger under” constant “Russian bombing”. Zelensky renewed his calls for Russia to allow safe humanitarian corridors, and said civilians are facing “inhuman conditions” in a total siege: no food, no water, no medicine. “More than 7,000 people have fled the city in the last 24 hours, he said.Meanwhile, the toll of civilians killed in Ukraine since the beginning of the invasion by Russia rises to at least 977 , including 81 children. This was indicated by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (Ohchr). The injured are 1,594, including 108 children. THE CHRONICLE OF THE DAY LIVE EXCHANGE OF ACCUSES AND THE NUCLEAR THREAT – “Russia used white phosphorus bombs in Hostomel and Irpin”,Irpin Mayor Oleksandr Markushin said, quoted by The Kyiv Independent. “Russian forces targeted the satellite cities of Kiev with phosphorus bombs on the night of March 22 – said Markushin – The use of such weapons against civilians is prohibited by the Geneva Conventions”. The deputy chief of police of Kiev released a video accusing Russia of using phosphorus ammunition against the city of Kramatorsk in the east of the country, reports The Independent. For his part, the Kremlin spokesman, Peskov, speaks of “strong evidence” that the US has “developed bio-laboratory programs” in Ukraine – an accusation already rejected by Washington – and states that Moscow will use its nuclear weapons if it sees ” its very existence threatened “. “Russia’s use of chemical weapons is a real threat , US President Joe Biden said before setting off on his trip to Europe. DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS, TENSION RISES – Poland is expelling “45 Russian spies posing as diplomats”, announced Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski. “In an absolutely consistent and determined way, we are dismantling the Russian special services network in our country,” he said on Twitter. Russia’s ambassador to Poland, Sergei Andreev, said the espionage allegations were “unfounded”, and announced thatRussia reserves the right to take retaliatory measures. Diplomatic relations between Warsaw and Moscow have not been interrupted, added the diplomat: “The embassies remain, the ambassadors remain”. Germany wants to supply another 2,000 German Army rocket launchers to Ukraine. This is what emerges from a request made by the Ministry of Defense to the Federal Security Council, according to the Dpa. Meanwhile, the United States has not imposed sanctions on Roman Abramovich at the request of Volodymyr Zelensky: the Ukrainian president has asked Joe Biden to wait for the sanctions as the oligarch could play a role in facilitating peace negotiations with Russia. The Wall Street Journal reports it citing some sources.British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also today had a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during which he pledged to support him in the West’s request for “a substantial increase” of “lethal defensive weapons” destined for the forces of Kiev . Downing Street reports it, specifying that Johnson will “pressure” tomorrow in this direction with all his colleagues in the G7 and NATO headquarters.THE POPE’S APPEAL, UKRAINE HOPES FOR HIS VISIT – Pope Francis has returned to talk about the war in Ukraine . The Ukrainian ambassador to the Holy See assures us that “we will do everything possible to organize the visit of Pope Francis to Kiev”. Ukrainian ambassador: ‘We will do everything possible to organize the Pope’s trip to Kiev’
