Hundreds of civilians are said to be still in the heavily contested city in eastern Ukraine.
(Photo: dpa)
Kyiv Against the background of the war, which has now lasted almost a year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj has called for further western sanctions against Russia – for example against its nuclear energy branch. “It is not easy. There is some resistance,” said Zelenskyy in his evening video message on Sunday.
But there was also a time when other punitive measures against Russia seemed difficult, he added. “Now they apply, for example in relation to oil and oil products from Russia.”
Heavy and extremely bloody fighting is continuing, particularly in eastern Ukraine. Meanwhile, NATO announced that it had become the target of a hacker attack. Although an end to the war is still not in sight, the alliance also announced that Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg intends to vacate his post next autumn.
Earlier in the day, Zelenskyi issued a decree putting 199 Russians on a national sanctions list, including representatives of the Russian nuclear power plant operator Rosenergoatom. A Ukrainian was also fined who is said to have defected to the side of the occupiers at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which was occupied by Russia.
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022 and has since annexed several territories in violation of international law. In response to the brutal war of aggression, Western states have already imposed far-reaching punitive measures against Moscow. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced a few days ago that a new package of sanctions would soon be launched.
Heavy fighting for Bachmut continues
Meanwhile, in the heavily contested city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian armed forces are coming under increasing pressure. The Russian private army Wagner claimed to have taken a suburb and was now advancing towards the centre.
Initially, there was no comment from Kiev. However, the Ukrainian side had previously emphasized that Bakhmut was still under their control. In the city, which once had more than 70,000 inhabitants, only a few thousand remain.
NATO was the target of a hacker attack on Sunday. A spokeswoman confirmed on the evening of the German Press Agency that cyber experts from the defense alliance were actively dealing with an incident that was affecting several websites. Social networks like Twitter had previously said that pro-Russian activists had attacked the website of NATO’s Special Operations Headquarters (NSHQ). She was temporarily unavailable.
This is how the Handelsblatt reports on the Ukraine war:
The alliance had also previously announced that Secretary General Stoltenberg wanted to give up his post in autumn of this year as planned. The member states are therefore under pressure to find a successor.
After almost nine years, the NATO Secretary General wants to end his term in autumn.
(Photo: Reuters)
“He has no intention of seeking another mandate extension,” said his spokeswoman Oana Lungescu. Stoltenberg’s mandate has already been extended three times and he has been in office for almost nine years. Previously, it had once again been speculated that the 63-year-old’s term of office could be extended again against the background of the war in Ukraine.
What will be important on Monday
On Monday, Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council plans to discuss further steps to better protect state institutions against Russian agents.
In addition, Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) is on a two-day visit to Finland and Sweden. The main focus should be on the planned NATO membership of both countries, which they had jointly applied for in May 2022 under the impression of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
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