US President Biden surprises with visit to Kiev

International

Almost a year after the start of the Russian war in the Ukraine the battles continue – and are particularly fierce at the moment. Heavy and extremely bloody fighting is continuing, especially around the city of Bakhmut in the eastern region of Donetsk. Both sides report high losses.

Shortly before the first anniversary of the Russian invasion, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy insisted on speeding up military aid for his attacked country.

In our news blog you will find out everything you need to know about the latest developments in the war in Ukraine.

20. February

10:59 a.m .: Biden announces further arms deliveries in Kiev

US President Joe Biden arrived in Ukraine on Monday under the strictest security measures. Before an announced visit to Poland, Biden arrived in the capital Kiev with his delegation in the morning. He also met President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Both commemorated the fallen Ukrainians together. During the stay there was an air raid alarm. As the first anniversary of the Russian invasion approaches, this is Biden’s first visit to Ukraine since the war began. For security reasons, the Trip kept secret for a long time.

Biden said he would be delivering more weapons announce, including artillery shells, anti-tank systems and surveillance radars to protect the Ukrainian population against air raids. Selenskyj called his US colleague’s visit an “extremely important sign of support”.

7:11 a.m .: US Secretary of State Blinken fears Chinese support for Russia

Meanwhile, the US government has expressed concern over possible arms shipments from China Russia shown. The USA would have information according to which China “Considering providing lethal support” to Russia, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on US television on Sunday. When asked what he meant by that, Blinken replied: “Weapons, primarily weapons.” Ammunition would also fall into this category, Blinken explained.

He did not say which concrete indications this finding is based on. He made it clear to China’s top foreign policy leader, Wang Yi, that such support poses a serious problem for US-China relations. According to Blinken, it is already known that Chinese companies are supporting Russia with “non-lethal” equipment. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, this also includes commercial drones from the manufacturer DJI.

19th of February

3:24 p.m .: Sweden against Finland’s earlier NATO membership

Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has warned against admitting Finland to NATO before his own country. For strategic reasons, both membership applications should be ratified at the same time, Kristersson told the Financial Times newspaper. “The very close military cooperation between Sweden and Finland (…) would be significantly more complicated if we were separated as members.” They started the recording process together and should finish it together.

In May 2022, under the impression of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the two Nordic countries had applied for inclusion in the western alliance. All members have to ratify the accession, but Turkey has so far blocked it. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan justifies this primarily with alleged support for terrorists in Sweden. There is now a debate going on in Finland about whether or not to wait for the neighbor.

2:53 p.m .: Kadyrov praises Russian Wagner mercenaries – wants to build up his own troops

Chechen ruler Ramzan Kadyrov has praised the Russian mercenary group Wagner and its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin for their operations in Ukraine. The Wagner units achieved “impressive success,” Kadyrov wrote on his Telegram channel on Sunday. He further explained that he wanted to set up his own professional mercenary troupe once he was no longer in government office.

Ramzan Kadyrov is the ruler of the Russian province of Chechnya.Image: AP / –

Russia is also using units from Chechnya in the war of aggression against Ukraine. They formally belong police and National Guard, but in fact mainly follow Kadyrov’s command.

2:20 p.m.: Ukrainian parliamentarians boycott OSCE assembly

Ukrainian MPs will boycott the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on February 23-24 in Vienna over Russia’s participation. That’s what a delegate, Yevheniya Kravchuk, from the presidential party Servant of the People said on Ukrainian television on Sunday. “We will not attend the official events of the Parliamentary Assembly, not a single one”she explained.

The OSCE is the largest European security organization.Image: www.imago-images.de / imago images

Nevertheless, they will go to Vienna and discuss with partners how the OSCE can get out of its crisis. The OSCE, founded in 1995, is the largest European security organization. But it is blocked by Russia’s attack on Ukraine. This session coincides with the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022. In general, the German OSCE Secretary General, Helga Maria Schmid, spoke out against Russia’s exclusion from the organizationto keep diplomatic channels open.

08:36: EU condemns efforts by the IOC to Russia and Belarus

The European Union (EU) has condemned the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for exploring ways for Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris to participate. A corresponding resolution was adopted with 444 votes in favour, 26 against and 37 abstentions. This is reported by the industry service insidethegames.biz. The application stated that participation by activists from the two countries, whether neutral or not, “runs counter to the multifaceted isolation of these countries and is used by both regimes for propaganda purposes”. The resolution marks the upcoming one-year anniversary of the war that began with the invasion of Russia on February 24, 2022.

The EU and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen have rebuffed the IOC. Image: www.imago-images.de / imago images

During his trip to Germany at the end of January, President Thomas Bach defended the IOC plans, arguing with the human rights requirements of the Olympic Charter and the United Nations. Excluding athletes “because of their passport” violates the principles. Bach relied on an “overwhelming majority” that he identified in the Olympic movement after “consultation talks”. At the end of February 2022, the IOC recommended that international federations exclude athletes from Russia and Belarus from competitions.

08:13: “The Observer”: Many scenarios for the end of the Ukraine war

The British Sunday newspaper “The Observer” comments on the course of the war in Ukraine: “Dark clouds are hanging over this battle Life and Death, now in its second year. Western arms continue to arrive slowly. There are still no fighter planes. At the same time, political tensions are increasing. Although US President Joe Biden, who will mark the anniversary of the war in Warsaw on Tuesday, has provided the lion’s share of arms and aid to Ukraine, both he and NATO have been too cautious in confronting Russia. (…) Despite the intense pressure from Eastern Europe, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is sticking to his cautious stance. Most Germans are now in favor of peace talks, even if they involve territorial concessions.

“The Observer” comments, among other things, on Scholz’s cautious attitude towards arms deliveries.Image: dpa / Peter Kneffel

The broader debate revolves around how this war will end. There is still no agreement on this. Future scenarios include a Ukrainian victory and/or 1917-style Russia collapse, a total defeat for Ukraine, an escalation leading to a direct NATO-Russia conflict in Europe, a country-wide escalation of the war, or a frozen one Conflict – effectively a stalemate – similar to the situation after Russia invaded Crimea and Donbass in 2014.”

8 a.m.: Federal agency: Ukraine refugees relieve the labor market massively

Around a year after the start of the war against Ukraine, the Federal Agency for Work from a significant relief for the German labor market by refugees from the country. Since the beginning of the war, around 65,000 more Ukrainians have been employed in jobs subject to social insurance than before the fighting began, said Daniel Terzenbach, board member of the federal agency, to the German Press Agency in Nuremberg.

In addition, there are 21,000 Ukrainians in mini-jobs. They all deceive to combat the lack of personnel in the German Business at. “The German job market is receptive,” said Terzenbach. He expects that the number of employees from Ukraine will increase significantly in the coming weeks and months – then when the Women and Men have completed the integration and professional language courses of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.

You can find older news about the war in Ukraine here.

(nik/with material from dpa/AFP)

Egweni Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner mercenary group, is becoming more and more involved in political events.

Jegweni Prigozhin (61) is not really a radiant man. “He has become a symbol of Russia at war,” says the New York Times. “Unscrupulous, shameless and lawless.”. The “NZZ” also doesn’t mince words. She states: “His coarseness makes him a ghostly symbol of the current state of Russia.”