Ukrainian authorities, on the other hand, had warned at the end of March that there would not be enough water to cool the reactors of the nuclear power plant in the summer.
(Photo: imago images / Ukrinform)
Kyiv, Washington The US secret service has warned that states like China and Russia want to transform the “rules-based international order”. Defense Intelligence Director Scott Berrier, speaking at a US Congressional hearing on Thursday, cited Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine, “China’s military confidence” in the Indo-Pacific, an “unprecedented number of North Korean missile launches” and “Iranian actions against US Armed Forces in the Middle East” as examples of this. Authoritarian countries would show a “greater risk tolerance” to a possible escalation.
With a view to Russia’s war against Ukraine, intelligence coordinator Avril Haines warned that the prospects of concessions from Moscow in possible negotiations are currently slim.
These can only be expected if domestic weaknesses change the way Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin thinks. However, it is unlikely that Russia will be able to conduct a significant offensive operation this year.
Selenski in the Netherlands
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the Netherlands on Thursday. There he demanded, among other things, a criminal prosecution of Russia because of the war of aggression and war crimes. Without justice, no peace is possible, he said in The Hague.
Selenski praised the work of the International Criminal Court based in The Hague. He initiated investigations shortly after the Russian invasion and issued an international arrest warrant against Putin for alleged war crimes in March.
In the afternoon Selenski was received by King Willem-Alexander. He thanked the King of the Netherlands “for supporting us in defending our freedom,” as the Presidential Office in Kiev announced in the evening. “Since the first days of the Russian attack, we have felt that the Netherlands and the entire Dutch people are on the side of Ukraine,” Zelenskiy was quoted as saying.
Selenski praised the work of the International Criminal Court based in The Hague.
(Photo: dpa)
Zelensky then visited an air force base with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and met Ukrainian soldiers who were in the Netherlands for training.
Zelensky was shown the weapons and systems on which Ukrainian soldiers are trained. “All of this brings victory closer, our common victory. We will defeat Russian evil and protect our freedom, our common European way of life,” he said.
Russia: Floods endanger safety of nuclear power plant
The Russian nuclear energy company Rosenergoatom warns of a threat to nuclear safety at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. Flooding could lead to a rupture of the Nowa-Kachowka dam.
Then the power cables for the pumping station of the cooling systems of the nuclear power plant would be flooded. That poses risks for nuclear safety, said an adviser to the director general of Rosenergoatom.
On the other hand, Ukrainian authorities had warned at the end of March that there would be too little water to cool the reactors of the nuclear power plant in the summer because the Russian armed forces had drained water from a supply reservoir. Some of the information cannot be independently verified.
Ukrainian air defense shoots down its own drone over Kiev
On Thursday, the Ukrainian anti-aircraft defense system shot down a drone belonging to its own armed forces over the capital Kiev. The military had lost control of the unmanned aerial vehicle, the Air Force said in the evening.
In order to avoid possible “undesirable consequences”, it was decided to shoot down the Turkish-type Bayraktar drone. “It’s a shame, but that’s the way technology works and cases like this happen,” the statement said.
In Kiev and the surrounding area, an air alarm was triggered in the evening because of the drone. Video footage posted on social networks showed the drone being shot down over central Kiev. The air alert was lifted after a short time.
Ukrainian military: Heavy fighting in Bakhmut continues
Russian forces continued their attacks in eastern Ukraine. Once again, the city of Bakhmut was the focus of events, the Ukrainian general staff reported in its situation report in the evening.
This is how the Handelsblatt reports on the Ukraine war:
Around 50 Russian attacks were repelled near Bakhmut, Limansk and Marjinka. “Russian occupying forces continue to suffer heavy casualties on the battlefield and all medical facilities in the temporarily occupied areas are overflowing with wounded occupying soldiers,” it said. The information provided by the military could not be independently verified.
Russia has been waging a war of aggression against Ukraine since February last year. For months, Russian troops have been trying to expand the areas they have occupied in eastern Ukraine.
What will be important on Friday
Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and his Danish colleague Troels Lund Poulsen visit the Bundeswehr base in Klietz in northern Saxony-Anhalt. There, Ukrainian soldiers are trained on Leopard 1 A5 main battle tanks.
More: Current news on the development of the Ukraine war can be found in our news blog