President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky speaks before an iftar meal to celebrate the holy Islamic month of Ramadan at a Muslim center outside of Kiev.
(Photo: dpa)
Kyiv Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has described the liberation of the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea from Russian occupation as the only alternative. “The world should know: respect and order will not return to international relations until the Ukrainian flag returns to Crimea,” Zelensky said in a message tweeted on Friday night. On the other hand, repression, murder, war and evil are currently spreading under the Russian flag, said Zelensky in a video that was also published in the evening.
“The de-occupation of Crimea is without alternative not only for Ukraine but for the whole world. I’m sure of it,” Zelensky said in the video of a meeting with Muslim military personnel, including representatives of the Crimean Tatars. The occasion was the breaking of the fast in Ramadan.
Just as Ukraine values the territorial integrity of other states, the country also demands respect for its sovereignty, Zelensky said, referring to a proposal by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva that Kiev could forgo Crimea in exchange for a peace deal with Moscow. “All of our East, South, all of our communities, all of our people deserve to live and live free, too,” Zelenski said.
Many Crimean Tatars left the peninsula for fear of political persecution. Numerous members of the Muslim minority are in Russian custody. Crimea also has a large community of Tatars who have come to terms with the Russian authorities. Zelensky stressed that the world will live in peace and tranquility again only when the aggressor Russia is defeated and Crimea returns to Ukraine.
Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 after the fall of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. The nuclear power reacted to Ukraine’s plans to retake the peninsula by threatening to use all means at its disposal to prevent a reconquest.
Blinken rules out talks between Kyiv and Moscow
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is currently ruling out ceasefire talks between Ukraine and Russia. “For some, the idea of a ceasefire may be tempting – and I understand that. But if that amounts to practically ratifying Russia’s seizure of significant Ukrainian territories, then that just wouldn’t be a just and lasting peace,” Blinken told the Funke media group’s newspapers and the French newspaper Ouest-France (Saturday).
Russia could regroup its troops and attack again after a certain time, the minister justified his opinion. “Russia must get to the point where it is ready to engage in constructive negotiations.” The goal must be a just and lasting peace. The Russian leadership recently made it clear that it currently sees no basis for negotiations.
Reports: US military secrets surfaced online again
According to media reports, new documents containing US military secrets about Ukraine, China and the Middle East have surfaced online. According to a report by the New York Times, the more than 100 classified documents published on Friday (local time) on Twitter, among other things, contained information about Ukraine’s air defense capabilities.
The documents appeared to come from the US military and intelligence agencies, the Wall Street Journal wrote. The Pentagon and the CIA are investigating the matter.
This is how the Handelsblatt reports on the Ukraine war:
A similar publication of secret documents about Ukraine’s preparations for an offensive against Russia was already known on Thursday. The New York Times reported that national security circles are wondering how much classified information has leaked out after the revelations and are making every effort to find the leak.
Ukraine plans to resume power exports to the west
After months of Russian rocket fire, Ukraine is now planning to resume exporting electricity to the West. “The Ukrainian power grid has been working for almost two months without any consumption restrictions and with a power reserve,” said Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko, according to a statement on Friday. This would generate additional financial resources for the reconstruction of the destroyed and damaged energy infrastructure. An export of a maximum of 400 megawatts was agreed with the European energy supply network, to which Ukraine was connected shortly after the beginning of the war.
The actual amount of export will depend on the needs of Ukrainian consumers, Halushchenko said. “Supplying our consumers with electrical energy is undoubtedly a priority.”
Despite Russia’s invasion more than 13 months ago, Ukraine exported electricity to neighboring ex-Soviet Moldova and the European Union from June until the start of targeted Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy supplies in October. In 2022, power generation in Ukraine fell by over 27 percent due to the Russian invasion. Among other things, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant near Zaporizhia, which has been under Russian control since March, was completely shut down in September.
What will be important on Saturday
In many German cities, initiatives with a view to the war in Ukraine are calling for Easter marches. In the east of Ukraine, the Kiev troops are still trying to fend off the Russian attacks. The focus of the fighting continues to be in the Donetsk region and above all in the city of Bakhmut, where the Russian troops say they are continuing to advance.
More: Current news on the development of the Ukraine war can be found in our news blog