Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has threatened Russia with breaking off talks if Russia pushes ahead with annexing more Ukrainian territories. In his video speech, Zelenskyy refers to the referendums announced by the Russian side in occupied territories about annexation to Russia. “If the occupiers continue down the path of pseudo-referendums, they will end all opportunities for dialogue with Ukraine and the free world,” says Zelenskyy.
In the first few weeks after the Russian invasion in February, delegations from both sides met repeatedly for talks, which have not been continued since the end of March. Russia had already annexed Crimea in 2014, citing an internationally unrecognized referendum. (Reuters)
We reject Russia’s war of aggression, which violates international law, without ifs and buts, with the utmost determination. And in the same way we stand in solidarity with the Ukrainian civilian population, the Ukraine, which has to suffer this aggressive warrior. And that’s not even a topic of discussion in the party.
A cargo ship has docked in a Ukrainian port for the first time since the end of the Russian naval blockade. “The bulk carrier Fulmar S has arrived at the port of Chornomorsk and is ready for loading,” announced the Ukrainian Ministry of Infrastructure on Sunday on its Telegram channel. Ships that have left Ukrainian ports in recent days have been stuck there since the beginning of the war. The resumption of shipping traffic and the associated grain shipments from Ukraine are important for stabilizing food prices worldwide.
So far, eight ships carrying grain have left Ukrainian ports since the beginning of August. They were among dozens of freighters that had been stranded there since the war began in February because of the Russian naval blockade and the Ukrainian military’s mining of its own ports. With the arrival of the Fulmar S, the grain corridor now has an “entrance and exit,” explained Infrastructure Minister Olexander Kubrakow. This is an important signal for the markets.
The Fulmar S, flying the flag of Barbados, is docked in the port of Chornomorsk, which is part of the Odessa catchment area. In the future, the Ukraine also wants to obtain the release of the Mykolaiv seaport for grain transport. A corresponding proposal had been made to the UN and Turkey, Kubrakow said. The aim is to increase grain exports to three million tons per month. (dpa)
Because of the exploding prices for gas and food as a result of the Ukraine war, a “social catastrophe” is looming in this country from the point of view of the left – with potential danger for democracy in Germany as well. “As a society, we are running into a perfect storm,” said party leader Martin Schirdewan on Sunday in the ARD summer interview. He warned of a “huge wave of fuel poverty” which, combined with high inflation, would mean “people can no longer afford food, rents will continue to rise”.
In his own words, Schirdewan sees the danger of the country running into a “manifest crisis of democracy” because of the impending upheavals in the coming months. The extreme right is already beginning to mobilize. But they are not concerned with the social question, but with their “anti-democratic program” (dpa)
Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office is investigating nearly 26,000 war crimes cases since the Russian invasion began on February 24. 135 people have been charged, says the head of the war crimes department, Yuri Bilousov, in an interview with Reuters. Of the accused, 15 are in custody in Ukraine and the other 120 are on the run. 13 cases were referred to the courts. Judgments were made in seven cases. “Sometimes we’re asked why we’re going after low-ranking soldiers. It’s simply because they’re here. If the generals were here and we were able to catch them, we’d definitely be going after generals.” (Reuters)
For the second time in a few days, Moscow and Kyiv have accused each other of shelling the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. The Ukrainian army fired a rocket at the nuclear power plant on Sunday night, the Russian news agency Interfax reported, citing the occupation administration in the city of Enerhodar, where the power plant is located. The Ukrainian nuclear agency Enerhoatom, on the other hand, accused the Russians of shelling the site under their control themselves.
During the attack, a spent nuclear fuel storage facility was hit and sensors for measuring radiation were damaged. Enerhoatom also reported that shortly before the explosion, hundreds of members of the Russian crew hid in bunkers. The information provided by both sides could not initially be checked independently.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had already informed EU Council President Charles Michel about the latest attack – and called for new sanctions against Russia. “Russia’s nuclear terrorism requires a stronger response from the international community: sanctions on Russia’s nuclear industry and nuclear fuel,” Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter. (dpa)
According to the Russian army, it has destroyed tons of ammunition that NATO countries have supplied to Ukraine. A warehouse with a total of 45,000 tons of ammunition was hit in the southern Ukrainian region of Mykolaiv, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on Sunday. This could not be verified independently. Konashenkov also reported that five other weapons depots had been attacked – one of them in the particularly hard-fought eastern region of Donetsk.
In Donetsk, Russia’s air forces also attacked the small town of Bakhmut, killing up to 130 Ukrainian soldiers, Moscow said. That too could not be verified. Bakhmut is considered the cornerstone of a defensive wall that the Ukrainian army has built around the metropolitan areas of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk. This is coming under increasing pressure. (dpa)
The human rights organization Amnesty apologizes in part for its controversial criticism of Ukraine’s war tactics. “Amnesty International deeply regrets the anger and outrage our press release on the combat tactics used by the Ukrainian military has caused,” it said in an email sent to Reuters on Sunday. “Amnesty International’s priority in this and any other conflict is to ensure the protection of civilians. Indeed, that was our only goal when we published this latest investigation. We fully stand by our findings, we regret but that caused suffering.” (Reuters)
According to the state-owned company Energoatom, an employee was injured in a Russian attack on the Ukrainian nuclear power plant Zaporizhia on Saturday evening. The site of the interim storage facility, in which 174 casks with spent fuel elements are located outdoors, was hit by rockets, the operator announced on the short message service Telegram.
The nuclear power plant is the largest in Europe and was brought under control by Russian troops at the beginning of the war. The operation is running thanks to Ukrainian technicians. Already on Friday, grenades hit a high-voltage line on the nuclear power plant site. The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, spoke on Saturday of the risk of a nuclear catastrophe because of the shelling. (Reuters)
Mr. Schröder has absolutely no understanding of what Russia is really doing, how it is acting. Russia does not want negotiations, Russia wants territories to be conquered.