Biden calls Russia’s missile launch ‘unlikely’

According to the dpa and AP news agencies, he announced early in the morning: There were indications that the projectile was an anti-aircraft missile from Ukraine. He is said to have spoken of a missile from the S-300 system.

In a press statement, Biden had previously described it as “unlikely” that the missile hit was fired from Russia. “There is preliminary information that speaks against it,” said Biden, referring to the flight history of the projectile. Even at this point, he says it could have been a Ukrainian interceptor missile.

Scholz makes a press statement shortly after Biden. The impact of the rocket with two fatalities was a “terrible incident,” said the Chancellor. “We now have to do what is necessary, namely clarify.” Scholz said nothing about the origin of the rocket.

Poland’s President Duda had also previously expressed caution. Although the rocket is of Russian design, such are also used by Ukraine. “We currently have no conclusive evidence as to who fired the missile. Investigations are ongoing.” Nevertheless, Poland put part of its armed forces on a higher level of readiness.

A spokesman for the Polish government said that a decision had been made with the NATO allies to examine whether there were grounds for initiating the Article 4 procedures of the NATO treaty. Article 4 provides for consultations between the NATO states.

After the rocket hit, Ukraine called for a united response against Russia. A NATO summit with the participation of Ukraine should work out further steps, suggested Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and called for better air defense and new US fighter jets for Kyiv. There is no current statement on Ukraine about the news situation in the morning.

Second heaviest air raids since the beginning of the war

The joy of the successes on the first summit day in Bali only lasted a few hours. The group of 20 leading economies surprisingly agreed on a joint statement on Tuesday in which “most” states “condemn” the war in Ukraine and in which all 20 states reject the threat to use nuclear weapons.

In the run-up to the meeting in Bali, the G20 had not expected so much unity. The resolution has meanwhile been adopted unanimously. In German government circles it was said that the summit was “a great success”.

But Russia’s head of state Vladimir Putin had already reacted in his own way to the humiliation in Bali on Tuesday. He overran Ukraine with one of the heaviest airstrikes since the war began on February 24. A spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force spoke of around 100 rockets fired by Russia. The target of the projectiles was, among other things, Kyiv.

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Scholz condemned the attacks on Ukraine on Wednesday. “We find that power plants are being destroyed, that substations are being hit, that water supplies are being destroyed. This is not an acceptable form of warfare in this already unjustified war,” stressed the Federal Chancellor.

The G7 and NATO were even clearer in a joint statement: “We condemn the barbaric rocket attacks carried out by Russia on Tuesday on Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure.” The G7 and NATO also offered Poland their full support in the ongoing investigation to the missile impact.

In the major security crisis, the USA quickly took the lead. Biden immediately invited the G7 and NATO to the Hyatt hotel where the US President resides in Bali. A few hours after the missile hit Poland, the White House released a photo showing Biden on the phone with Poland’s President Duda. It’s very early in the morning and the President is wearing a polo shirt.

The opposite of Trump – but he is running again

The rapid reaction of the USA and the solidarity with international allies is a contrast to the administration of Donald Trump. “We will be fully committed to the world,” Biden said in Bali. According to his message, anyone who doubts the reliability of the United States does not need to do so, at least for the moment.

But at the same time as the G7 crisis meeting, Donald Trump is back. The ex-president announced at his golf resort in Mar-a-Lago that he wanted to enter the race for the White House in 2024. Biden’s predecessor was notorious for leaving global summits early. He also threatened to withdraw from NATO.

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In Bali, Biden was asked if he had anything to say about Trump’s candidacy, he was standing alongside Emmanuel Macron. Both exchanged a quick look. “Not really,” Biden replied and left.

After the excitement over the night’s incident, the G20 reverted to its regular program for the time being. In the morning, the heads of state planted trees in a mangrove forest on the fringes of the G20 summit. They posed for the cameras with shovels in hand. The day before, the G20 had dispensed with the traditional family photo.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who had represented Putin the day before, was no longer there. Lavrov had already left the G20 meeting early on Tuesday evening during dinner.

After the visit to the forest, another working session and bilateral meetings were on the agenda for the G20 members. In the afternoon, Scholz will meet, among others, India’s Prime Minister Narenda Modi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

More: Explosion in Poland – evidence of Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile.