Zelenskyy s’entretient avec Xi Jinping pour la première fois depuis le début de la Grande Guerre, les ambassadeurs de l’UE ne parviennent toujours pas à se mettre d’accord sur l’achat conjoint de munitions pour l’Ukraine, la Russie utilise environ 370 000 soldats dans les combats contre l’Ukraine.
Zelenskyi speaks with China’s Xi for first time since Russia invaded Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke by phone on Wednesday, April 26, in their first conversation since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The conversation was “long and meaningful”, Zelenskyi said, posting on Twitter.
He said he believes that “this call, as well as the appointment of Ukraine’s ambassador to China, will give a powerful impetus to the development of our bilateral relations.”
In a fuller statement, Zelenskyi said that during the hour-long call, they “discussed a full range of topical issues of bilateral relations. Particular attention was paid to the ways of possible cooperation to establish a just and sustainable peace for Ukraine.”
“No one wants peace more than the Ukrainian people. We are on our land and fighting for our future, exercising our inalienable right to self-defense. Peace must be just and sustainable, based on the principles of international law and respect for the UN Charter.”
“There can be no peace at the expense of territorial compromises. The territorial integrity of Ukraine must be restored within the 1991 borders,” he said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said that the call was made at the invitation of the Ukrainian President. She said China will send a special representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs to Ukraine and other countries “to have in-depth communication with all parties on political settlement” of what China calls “the Ukraine crisis”.
Commenting on Russia’s war against Ukraine, Hua Chunying said that China “always stands on the side of peace.” “China would not watch idly by, would not add fuel to the fire, and above all would not profiteer from this,” she added. China is “consistent and clear-cut in its readiness to develop bilateral relations with Ukraine,” she said.
“Dialogue and negotiation are the only viable way forward,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson tweeted. President Zelenskyi appointed former Minister of Strategic Industries Pavlo Ryabikin as ambassador to China. China will send an envoy to Ukraine who served as ambassador to Russia. The envoy, Li Hui, is the Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs, and served as the Chinese ambassador to Russia from 2009 to 2019. The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not specify when the trip will take place and which countries he would visit.
EU ambassadors fail again to agree on joint ammo purchases for Ukraine
EU Ambassadors failed to agree Wednesday over joint ammunition purchases for Ukraine. It is unclear if they can reach a compromise on Friday, Polish radio RMF FM said.
“The EU’s ammunition supply to Ukraine raises growing concerns,” a Western diplomat said.
The EU has committed to send one million rounds of ammunition to Ukraine in the next 12 months. Member nations will provide the shells from their stocks, and will jointly purchase the ammunition. The supplies from their own stocks largely fall behind schedule. EU countries have so far sent less than 40,000 ammunition rounds.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell released a letter calling on defense ministers of the 27 member states to address the problem. The idea is that they have to review their stocks, because it’s difficult to believe that they have nothing left, an unnamed source told RMF FM.
Tension and frustration mount among the EU member states over France’s position as it impedes a final deal. EU ambassadors discussed it today. France insists on restricting production and supply to EU manufacturers.
If the EU approaches weapons production like that, “we will never supply ammunition to Ukraine,” one of the diplomats said.
About 370,000 Russian troops fight against Ukraine, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry says
Russia is using about 369,000 troops and 5,900 pieces of heavy military equipment against Ukraine, Military Media Center of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said.
Russia threw into the battle up to 48 brigades and 122 regiments. Its forces in the war against Ukraine total at around 315 units.
“According to the reports we have, the Kremlin has not changed its long-term plan to push Ukraine to the negotiating table. To achieve the goal, Russian occupying forces will concentrate their efforts on conducting offensive operations to force Ukrainian troops out of key cities in Donetsk region,” the statement reads.
Chornobyl: the new meaning in the context of russia’s war in Ukraine. Ukraine in Flames #412
Nuclear disasters are among the most significant industrial catastrophes in world history. The Chornobyl tragedy of 1986 showed the Soviet government as a lying and cynical force that could hide from the population the nuclear accident and the threats it posed to their lives and health. Today we can see that the nuclear factor has become an even greater threat to world security as russian dictator vladimir putin is using nuclear blackmail against Ukraine and the entire civilized world. Watch Ukraine in flames #412 to hear about the anniversary of Chornobyl tragedy and its new meaning in the context of the russian-Ukrainian war.
Guests:
- Olena Pareniuk, Radiobiologist, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Safety Problems of Nuclear Power Plants of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
- Ihor Kulyk, Director of the Branch State Archive of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory
- Anatoliy Demskyy, Chornobyl Eyewitness, Former Head of the Nuclear Power Plant Safety Department