Day 434 since the beginning of the war: Ukrainian President Zelenskyj visits the Netherlands. A refinery catches fire in Russia after a drone attack. All information in the blog.
The most important things at a glance
Air alert over Kyiv
8:02 p.m.: In the Ukrainian capital of Kiev and the surrounding area, an air alert was briefly triggered on Thursday evening because of an unmanned aerial vehicle. Explosions and gunfire could be heard in the city center, residents said. The military authorities asked people to keep calm and go to shelters.
The air defense is in action, it said. Video footage posted on social networks showed a drone being shot down over central Kiev. The air alert was lifted after a short time.
“The enemy drone was shot down,” said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak. Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported “explosions and fires” in the Solomjanskyj district and warned people of possible drone debris.
US calls Russian drone attack allegations ‘ridiculous’
6:58 p.m.: The US government has dismissed accusations that Russia was behind the alleged drone attack on the Kremlin as “ridiculous”. “The United States had nothing to do with it. We don’t even know exactly what happened here,” National Security Council communications director John Kirby said on US television on Thursday. Referring to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Kirby said: “Mr. Peskov is lying.”
Peskov had previously said without providing any evidence: “We know that the decision on such acts and acts of terrorism is not made in Kiev, but in Washington. And Kiev carries out what they are told.” Kirby stressed that the US would not encourage or allow Ukraine to attack outside Ukrainian borders. “We do not advocate attacks on individual heads of state, we do not encourage them, we do not support them,” he added.
Despite rocket fire: train in Ukraine arrives on time
6.45 p.m.: A train in Cherson is about to leave when the Russian army shells the station. This does not affect the schedule. Here you can read more about it.
This is how Ukrainian farmers are defending themselves against Russia’s perfidious tactics
6:12 p.m.: According to estimates, around 30 percent of Ukraine is mined – and official clearance services are overwhelmed. But a farmer has an ingenious solution to this problem, as you can see in the video here.
USA: Russian use of nuclear weapons unlikely
17.51: The US secret service does not currently expect Russian nuclear weapons to be used in the Ukraine war. “It’s very unlikely, that’s our current assessment,” Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told the US Senate Armed Services Committee. This also applies in the event that Russia has to record heavy losses.
Mayor of Odessa arrested
4:58 p.m.: According to Ukrainian authorities, the mayor of Odessa, Hennady Trukhanov, has been arrested. The step is related to investigations into suspected corruption, said the prosecutor responsible for such cases.
Trukhanov was elected mayor of the Black Sea port city in 2014. He has been under investigation for allegations of infidelity since 2017. Trukhanov denies the allegations.
In the midst of the war against Russia, a number of corruption scandals have already caused a stir in recent months. The pressure on President Volodymyr Zelenskyj to step up the fight against the widespread problem had grown not least because of this. Tougher action against corruption is one of the conditions for Ukraine’s accession to the EU.
Selenskyj visit: Berlin police are investigating because of the treason of secrets
4 p.m.: The Berlin LKA has initiated investigations into the betrayal of secrets. The background is a media report on the Ukrainian President’s visit to Berlin. Read more here.
