Ukraine is personally calling on NATO for more weapons
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba has called on NATO allies to supply more weapons to bolster Ukraine’s war effort, including warplanes, heavy air defense systems, missiles and armored vehicles. Speaking at NATO headquarters, where NATO foreign ministers meet later today, Kuleba said there are three issues on his agenda when he talks to allies and holds bilateral meetings: “Arms, weapons and weapons”. The Ukrainian Foreign Minister said that there is no distinction between offensive and defensive weapons – any weapons, including tanks and fast aircraft, will be used to defend Ukraine. He added that any country that makes this distinction is hypocritical. “Strange as it may sound, today weapons serve the purpose of peace.” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba calls on allies to provide weapons. G-7, NATO foreign ministers meet in Brussels for special meeting on Russia-Ukraine war pic.twitter.com/vb3vje1bZ8 – Bloomberg Quicktake (@Quicktake) April 7, 2022 Updated on 07.07 BST Before 8 p.m. 09:00 Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Przydacz was in the media in the United Kingdom this morning, telling BBC Today that the country needed financial assistance for the large number of Ukrainian refugees currently in Poland. PA Media reports that he said: They could offer a little more financial support, you know, these 2.5 million people need housing. Half of them are basic children, whom we successfully integrate into the Polish school system. But it also has some costs. Suddenly, in a few weeks, we are 2.5 million older. Therefore, any kind of financial assistance would be very welcome. Przydacz also said he opposes countries that have quotas for accepting refugees: These are our neighbors. Ukrainian friends are very welcome to stay in Poland. People are free people. If they want to go to Great Britain and Great Britain is ready to host them – we have absolutely nothing against them. But we are strongly opposed to the policy of quotas or forcing people to live in a country. 15 minutes ago 08:53
Ukraine describes Hungary’s willingness to pay for Russian gas in rubles as an “unfriendly act”
Tensions between Ukraine and Hungary have not eased this morning, with Reuters quoting two simultaneous updates. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said this morning that it considered Hungary’s willingness to pay for Russian gas in rubles a “non-friendly act.” Ukraine also said that Hungary’s stance on allegations of Russian atrocities reinforces Russia’s sense of impunity and encourages Russia to “commit new atrocities against Ukrainians.” Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said: “If Hungary really wants to help end the war, here’s how to do it: stop destroying unity in the EU, support new anti-Russian sanctions, provide military assistance to Ukraine and do not create additional sources of funding for the Russian military machine. “It’s never too late to get on the right side of the story.” For his part, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szigijarto confirmed that fuel for Hungary’s nuclear power plants had arrived by air from Russia. The Russian attack on Ukraine made rail missions impossible. He reiterated that Hungary does not support proposals for European energy sanctions against Russia. He added that imposing any sanctions on nuclear-related activities would also be a “red line” for Hungary. Tensions between Hungary and Ukraine have been rising in recent days. Viktor Orban described Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as one of the enemies he “dominated” with his election victory at the weekend. For his part, Zelensky said Orban was afraid of Moscow and had to choose between Russia and the “other world.” The two countries share about 135 kilometers (85 miles) of border, following roughly the Tisza River in western Ukraine. 18 minutes ago 08:50 Defense ministers from the Black Sea littoral states made a video call to discuss the war in Ukraine, floating mines and regional security, the Turkish Defense Ministry said, adding that the ministers had called for an immediate ceasefire. Reuters reports from Ankara that in a statement, Turkey said that the defense ministers of Bulgaria, Georgia, Poland, Romania and Ukraine met by teleconference at the invitation of Turkey, adding that they had “very effective” talks. “Apart from landmines, the importance of co-operation in the Black Sea for peace, tranquility and stability was stressed,” said Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, who attended the call after the meeting. According to his ministry, the ministers discussed possible measures to alleviate the humanitarian crisis and provide assistance to Ukraine. Turkish military diving teams have so far detonated three separate floating mines in the Black Sea, while Romania has also defused a stray mine in its waters after the Ukraine war. 37 meters before 08:32
Russia claims to have destroyed four fuel storage facilities in Ukraine
A quick snapshot from Reuters here shows that the Russian Defense Ministry says it used missiles to destroy four fuel storage facilities in the Ukrainian cities of Mykolayiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia and Chuchiv. The ministry said the facility was used by Ukraine to supply its troops near the towns of Mykolaiv and Kharkiv and in the Donbas region in the southeast of the country. There is no independent verification of this claim yet. Yesterday, the Ukrainian State Emergency Service released images of firefighters working to extinguish the flames in a fuel depot that had been hit in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Firefighters working at the site of a fuel storage facility destroyed by an air raid in the Dnipropetrovsk region, in a photo released yesterday. Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine / Reuters 43m before 08:25 A brief excerpt from UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss in Brussels here after she spoke briefly to the media ahead of today’s round of meetings. He spoke in support of the US Alliance, but said that maintaining some independence was important for Russia. The United Kingdom now bans all imports of Russian energy. “We are imposing sanctions on more banks and stepping up arms supplies to Ukraine.” 1 hour before 08:00 Mark Voyger is an expert on Eastern Europe and Russia – a senior non-resident partner in the Transatlantic Defense and Security Program at the Center for European Analysis – and has interviewed Sky News in the UK and made two particularly interesting points. Speaking from Warsaw on the issue of the Black Sea, he was in favor of a NATO patrol to prevent Russian military activity. He said: The Black Sea is now turning into a Russian lake just like the Sea of Azov, and the Black Sea is shared by many NATO members: Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey. So I would say we should finally do that. If there is no no-fly zone, if we feel reluctant to enforce it, we can do something about a no-fly zone in the Black Sea, if you will, because Russia is targeting international navigation. They asked him who was winning the war and he had this to say: Ukraine wins it on the ground, regularly, operationally, internationally, strategically. I will say informatively, the information war is definitely crucial. Unfortunately, you know, Putin is still in power and winning the war at home. It slowly but steadily rebuilt the Soviet system – a totalitarian system that forbids any disagreement and stifles access to free information. So internationally, Ukraine is winning. Internally, Russia is winning, until we can penetrate through this thick wall of lies and propaganda and convince the Russian people that it is bad even for the Russians. 2 hours ago 07:32
Australia will impose sanctions on 67 Russians for Ukraine
Foreign Minister Marise Payne said Australia had imposed sanctions on 67 Russians for invading Ukraine. “Today, I announce 67 further sanctions on Russian elites and oligarchs, those close to Putin who facilitate and support his outrageous actions,” Reuters told reporters as it arrived at NATO. Australia is not a member of NATO, but like Japan, it is present at today’s meeting as a guest. Australian Foreign Minister Mary Payne speaks to the media as she arrives for a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels. Photo: Olivier Matthys / AP2h ago07: 29
Austria will deport four Russian diplomats
Austria is the latest European country to announce diplomatic sanctions against Russia. This morning, the Foreign Ministry announced that it was deporting three Russian diplomats from the embassy in Vienna and one from the consulate in Salzburg. Reuters reports that a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Russian officials had behaved in a manner incompatible with their diplomatic regime. They have to leave the country by April 12. There has been a wave of deportations of Russian diplomats – although some countries, notably Britain, Canada and Australia, have not yet taken action. 2 hours ago 07:24 Following is a video of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky saying that Russia would consider weak sanctions as “permission to attack”. Russia will consider weak sanctions as “permission to attack”, says Zelenskiy – video2h ago07: 22 Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba posted some photos of himself at his NATO meetings in Brussels and reiterated his line of “three things”: He met with Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at NATO headquarters in Brussels. I came here today to discuss three most important things: guns, weapons and weapons. Ukraine’s urgent needs, the sustainability of supplies and the long-term solutions that will help Ukraine prevail. He met with Secretary General @jensstoltenberg at NATO Headquarters …
