In a speech to Irish lawmakers Wednesday, Zelensky said Russian forces were “destroying livelihoods,” including food storage depots, blocking ports so Ukraine could not export food and “put out food.” in the fields”. “For them, hunger is also a weapon, a weapon against us ordinary people,” he said, accusing Russia of “deliberately provoking a food crisis” in Ukraine, a major global producer of commodities such as wheat and sunflower oil. He said it would have an international impact, because “there will be food shortages and prices will go up, and that is the reality for the millions of hungry people and it will be harder for them to feed their families. ” Zelensky spoke via video at a joint meeting of the two Irish parliaments, the last of a series of international speeches he used to rally support for Ukraine.
KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR: – In Bukha, Ukraine, burnt, piled corpses among the last horror – The Russian retreat to Kyiv was a memorable military failure – Ukrainian President Zelensky accuses Russian army of war crimes at UN – EU proposes ban on Russian coal in new sanctions – US official: US allies to ban new investment in Russia – Harvard Student Website Helping Ukrainian Refugees Find Home – Japan’s top envoy brings back 20 Ukrainians from Poland – Go to for more coverage
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS: BRUSSELS – A senior European Union official says bloc member states should consider ways to offer asylum to Russian soldiers who want to leave Ukraine’s battlefields. European Council President Charles Michel on Wednesday expressed “outrage at the crimes against humanity committed against innocent civilians in Bucha and many other cities”. He called on Russian soldiers not to obey orders. “If you do not want to get involved in the murder of your Ukrainian brothers and sisters, if you do not want to become a criminal, lay down your arms, stop fighting, leave the battlefield,” said Michel, who represents the bloc’s governments. , in a speech to the European Parliament Supporting an idea that has been circulated in the past by some EU lawmakers, Michel added that granting asylum to Russian deserters is “a valuable idea that should be pursued”.
ATHENS, Greece – Greece has been added to the list of European countries deporting Russian diplomats, with the Foreign Ministry announcing on Wednesday that it had declared 12 diplomats undesirable. The ministry said it had declared 12 members of Russian diplomatic and consular missions accredited in Greece “personae non gratae” and that the Russian ambassador had been informed. He did not specify which diplomats were deported or give a reason, other than that the move was made in accordance with international treaties.
NICOSIA, Cyprus – The Cypriot Foreign Minister says a second batch of food, medicine and other items being sent to Ukraine is the most humanitarian aid the Eastern Mediterranean island nation has ever sent abroad. Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said on Wednesday that the 215-meter (237-tonne) batch was destined for the war-torn country through the European Union’s civil protection mechanism. It valued it at more than 2 million euros ($ 2.2 million). Includes items such as tents and sleeping bags. According to Citizens’ Commissioner Panagiotis Sentonas, he told the state-run radio and television station CyBC that the contributions came from ordinary citizens, private companies, the Cyprus Red Cross and the government.
BERLIN – Germany’s foreign minister has accused Russia of spreading misinformation to justify the war in Ukraine. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Wednesday that “as Russian tanks destroy Ukrainian cities, the Kremlin’s propaganda machine censors the news, restricts social media, spreads misinformation and punishes those who dare to lie.” He said the goal was “both clear and cynical: to discourage the courageous people of Ukraine while the Russians remain in the dark.” Bayerbok spoke in a videotaped message at a ministry-sponsored misinformation conference, in which participants also cited examples of Russian efforts to provoke resentment in Europe against Ukrainian refugees.
LONDON – Intel says it is suspending all business in Russia, making it the last foreign company to leave because of the Moscow war in Ukraine. “With immediate effect, we have suspended all business in Russia,” the US chip maker said late Wednesday. The company had already suspended shipments to customers in Russia and neighboring Belarus after the outbreak of war. Intel said it was working to support its 1,200 employees in Russia and had implemented “business continuity measures” to reduce disruption to its global operations, although it did not provide details. “Intel continues to join the global community in condemning Russia’s war on Ukraine and calling for a speedy return to peace,” it said in a statement.
BEIJING (Reuters) – China says reports and images of civilian deaths in the Ukrainian city of Butsa are “deeply disturbing” and called for an investigation. Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Wednesday that China supports all initiatives and measures “that help alleviate the humanitarian crisis” in the country and “is ready to continue to work with the international community to prevent any harm to civilians.” ». The Bucha assassinations could be used to further pressure Beijing on its largely pro-Russian stance and its efforts to guide public opinion on the war. China has called for talks but has refused to criticize Russia for its invasion. He opposes economic sanctions on Moscow and accuses Washington and NATO of provoking the war and provoking the conflict by sending weapons to Ukraine. Zhao’s remarks echo those of the previous day’s Chinese ambassador to the United Nations, Zhang Joon, who called for an investigation, describing reports and images of civilian deaths in Bhutto as “deeply disturbing.”
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis kissed a battered Ukrainian flag brought to him from the Ukrainian city of Bukha and called for an end to the war again. Francis welcomed half a dozen Ukrainian children to the stage of the Vatican Auditorium at the end of his general audience on Wednesday and gave each of them a giant chocolate Easter egg. He urged them to pray for them and for all Ukrainians. “Recent news of the war in Ukraine, instead of bringing relief and hope, has brought witness to new atrocities, such as the Bucha massacre, and even more horrific atrocities against civilians, defenseless women and children,” the pope said. “They are victims whose innocent blood cries out to heaven and begs for this war to stop and for their weapons to be silenced. “Stop spreading war and destruction.” He told the crowd: “These children had to leave to get to a safe place. That’s the fruit of the war. “ The pope was holding a dirty Ukrainian flag that he said had arrived the previous day at the Vatican from Bukha, where evidence emerged of deliberate killings of civilians during the occupation of the city by Russian troops. Kissing him, he said: “This flag comes from the war, from that martyr city of Bucha … Let us not forget them. “Let us not forget the people of Ukraine.”
BUDAPEST, Hungary – The Hungarian Foreign Ministry summoned the Ukrainian ambassador on Wednesday after days when officials from the two countries were negotiating offenses over Hungary’s position on the war. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wrote in a social media post on Wednesday that “we condemn the military attack, we stand for the sovereignty of Ukraine”, but that “this is not our war, so we want and will stay out of it”. The Hungarian government has refused to supply arms to Ukraine or allow them to be transported across the Hungarian-Ukrainian border and has opposed imposing sanctions on Russian energy imports. This position has provoked criticism of the Hungarian government from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksyy, who said on Ukrainian television on Monday that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban would have to choose between Moscow and the “other world” of the West. Orb ,n, who won a landslide victory in the Hungarian elections on Sunday, in a winning speech introduced Zelenski as one of the opponents he and his right-wing party had defeated. On Tuesday, Szijjarto called on Ukrainian leaders “to stop attacking Hungary and to take into account the will of the Hungarian people.”
COPENHAGEN, Denmark – Norway is stepping up its police and intelligence services, mainly in the northern part of the country, which has a nearly 200-kilometer land border with Russia and wants to spend 100 million kroner ($ 11.5 million). ) in this. Norway’s internal intelligence service says the threat of intelligence from Russia to the Scandinavian country has increased, Justice Minister Emilie Enger Mehl said on Wednesday. The money will be spent on staff and equipment. The government also wants to exercise more control over Svalbard, a Norwegian archipelago in the Russian-occupied Arctic. Under a 1920 treaty, Norway has sovereignty over Svalbard, but other signatory countries have the right to exploit its natural resources – coal.
The governor of Russia’s Kursk region on the border with Ukraine said on Wednesday that Russian border guards had been shot dead on Tuesday. Governor Roman Starovoit told the Telegram messaging service that the border guards responded to the fire and that there were no “losses or damage” from the Russian side as a result of the incident. The Ukrainian army has not yet commented …
