Boris Johnson and Olaf Solz give press conference on Ukraine
Boris Johnson and German Chancellor Olaf Soltz give a joint press conference on Downing Street. Johnson accused Russia of war crimes. He said: It is a war crime to indiscriminately attack civilians. Russia’s crimes in Ukraine will not go unnoticed or unpunished. He added that the bombing of the refugee station “shows the depths in which Putin’s once-despised army has sunk.” Updated at 15.44 BST 2 minutes ago 15:51 Olaf Solz is talking now. He thanked Boris Johnson for hosting him on Downing Street and said they had had a lot of discussions in recent weeks, but that it was good to meet up. He said: Killing civilians is a war crime and the Russian president is responsible for these war crimes. Boris Johnson and I share that appreciation. I again call on Russia to finally agree to a ceasefire and withdraw its troops. This war must stop immediately. 5 minutes ago 15:48 Boris Johnson said: The Europe we knew just six weeks ago no longer exists. However, Putin “succeeded in uniting Europe and the whole transatlantic alliance in support of Ukraine and solidarity with each other.” He added that the United Kingdom and Germany “will hold a joint cabinet meeting between our two governments next year”. Updated at 15:50 BST Before 6 meters 15:47 Boris Johnson praised the “seismic decisions” made by Olaf Solz to move away from Russian fossil fuels and pledged to support Germany in the future. He said the UK would send another εκατο 100 million in high-quality equipment to include more Starstreak missiles, 800 anti-tank missiles, precision-guided ammunition capable of “staying in the sky”, as well as additional helmets, body armor and night vision. Before 10 p.m. 15:43
Boris Johnson and Olaf Solz give press conference on Ukraine
Boris Johnson and German Chancellor Olaf Soltz give a joint press conference on Downing Street. Johnson accused Russia of war crimes. He said: It is a war crime to indiscriminately attack civilians. Russia’s crimes in Ukraine will not go unnoticed or unpunished. He added that the bombing of the refugee station “shows the depths in which Putin’s once-despised army has sunk.” Updated at 15.44 BST 1 hour ago 14:53 Boris Johnson said he was “absolutely excited” to host the German chancellor on Downing Street at a “very important” time for Europe, Ukraine and bilateral relations. Boris Johnson with German Chancellor Olaf Solz ahead of a bilateral meeting at 10 Downing Street in London. Photo: Tom Nicholson / PA Speaking at No. 10, the Prime Minister said: The relationship between the United Kingdom and Germany is absolutely crucial, crucial, crucial for both of us and we have a lot to talk about. He thanked Olaf Scholz for coming, who replied: “Thank you for having me here.” Updated at 14.58 BST 1 hour ago 14:51 Outgoing Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick warned against “politicizing policing”, saying it was “a threat not only to policing but to confidence in the entire criminal justice system”. He left Scotland Yard this morning and was applauded by police as he walked out. Dame Cressida Dick has now left Scotland Yard for the last time as she relinquishes her role as Met Commissioner He was applauded by the police as he left – Scott Beasley (@SkyScottBeasley) April 8, 2022 In a “letter to London”, Dick wrote: Of course, as I look back, there are more that we wish we had achieved. We hear criticism, we know that not everyone trusts us to provide a good service when they need us, and we have seen among us those whose horrible actions have disappointed all of you and us so terribly. Each of us leads to become better, to uproot those who do not follow our standards and do not deserve to wear our uniform. To improve our response so that all our communities feel protected by us. We listen and act according to what you tell us, in order to change for the better. Just this week we launched our plan for violence against women and girls, which was shaped by the views of hundreds of Londoners. The current politicization of policing is a threat not only to policing but also to confidence in the entire criminal justice system. Operational independence from local and central government is vital to an effective democracy and is a model respected around the world. We must all treasure it and protect it. Updated at 14.55 BST 1 hour ago 14:46 Boris Johnson, left, welcomes German Chancellor Olaf Solz to Downing Street. Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth / AP Updated on 15.03 BST 1 hour ago 14:43 German Chancellor Olaf Soltz has arrived in Downing Street for talks. Boris Johnson will appear on the side of Solz at 15.15, as Britain and Germany present a united front in the midst of the war in Ukraine. Johnson is expected to offer aid to Berlin, which is still heavily dependent on Russian gas, to reduce its dependence on Moscow’s energy exports in a bid to starve Vladimir Putin’s war machine of capital. The prime minister is expected to urge the Solt’s government to step up sanctions against the Kremlin following reports of war crimes committed by Russian troops on the outskirts of Kiev. In a tweet, Johnson said: “I look forward to welcoming the BundesKanzler Scholz to the UK today. “I applaud his determination to end its dependence on Russian energy. How we respond to the Russian invasion will determine the international order for years to come. “We can not let Putin’s crimes go unpunished.” Updated at 14.56 BST 1 hour ago 14:31 Asked if he believed the attack on the station was a war crime, Ben Wallace said evidence would be gathered to prove the answer, but added: “Occasional evidence points to a number of war crimes committed by Russia.” Wallace insisted that Putin’s war would pay off: “There will be more Ukraine after that, there will be more forces on the border with NATO, there may be more NATO members as a result of Putin’s actions,” Wallace said. Updated at 14.39 BST 1 hour ago 14:28 Russia may have committed another war crime by targeting civilians fleeing a railway station in eastern Ukraine with precision-guided missiles, the defense minister said. Ben Wallace has vowed to “do everything possible” to ensure that Vladimir Putin fails in Ukraine and predicted that the war would boomerang on the Russian president, perhaps prompting more nations to join NATO’s defense alliance, the PA reported. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at least 30 people had been killed in the attack on the crowded Kramatorsk station, which was a civilian evacuation site. Another 100 people were injured, Zelensky said, as he blamed Russia for “an evil without limits”, while the Kremlin denied that it had targeted the station. Wallace, who visited Romania for talks, said the strike was a repeat of the Russian president and his generals targeting civilians. Speaking to Constanta, he said: Not far this morning, in a place called Kramatorsk, what appears to be Russian missiles hit civilians queuing for trains in search of a safer place from the war. Hitting civilians and vital infrastructure is a war crime. These were precision-guided missiles aimed at people trying to find humanitarian shelter. Wallace said sanctions aimed at Russia should not be lifted to allow Putin to return to his “super yachts and normalcy.” “Whatever happens in Ukraine, we must not let the international community forget that. “What Putin is doing here today is building his own cage around him.” He said the RAF would increase its contribution to protecting NATO’s eastern wing in Romania from four to six planes, “because Putin only hears one thing and that is power.” “We will do everything we can to see him defeated in Ukraine. “There is more to be done, Britain will do more, it will contribute more.” Updated at 14.36 BST 2 hours ago 14:23 Patrick Windour Boris Johnson went on paper on disputes with Germany over support for Ukraine, welcoming Berlin’s “initial determination” to end its dependence on Russian energy ahead of a meeting in London with German Chancellor Olaf Solz. It is the first meeting between the two men since Social Democrat Scholz was elected head of a three-party coalition government, and a week has passed since Germany resisted British calls for big economies to set a timetable for ending its dependence on Russia. . Ahead of a meeting with Soltz on Downing Street, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom said: “I applaud his determination with the authorities to end its dependence on Russian energy. How we respond to the Russian invasion will determine the international order for years to come. “We can not let Putin’s crimes go unpunished.” Scholz has been criticized at home and by Ukrainian politicians for not moving fast enough to wean Germany off decades of dependence on cheap Russian energy and for delaying supporting the transfer of the heavy weapons Ukraine needs. It has also been warned by German industrialists that an immediate gas embargo would lead to mass unemployment, a position largely shared by the Greens, its coalition partners. 2 hours ago 14:13 Nicola Davis The number of Covid-19 cases remains at record levels or close to most of the United Kingdom, with only Scotland falling, new figures from the Office for National Statistics reveal. ONS data for the week ended 2 April, based on smears collected from randomly selected households, show that, for the second consecutive week, about one in 13 people across the UK are believed to have Covid – about 4, 88 million infections. However, the picture differed between countries. In England, the number of infections per week remained stable, with an estimated 7.6% or one in 13 people in the community believed to have Covid. In Wales, the estimated rate increased from one in 14 to one in 13. In Scotland, 396,800 people – about one in 13, down from one in 12 last week – were estimated to have …
