Ukraine has claimed gains near the devastated eastern town of Bakhmut, the epicenter of fighting with Russian forces.
Ukraine has claimed gains near the devastated eastern town of Bakhmut, the epicenter of fighting with Russian forces. Meanwhile, Eurovision organizers refused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to speak in the final on Saturday. Franceinfo takes stock of the main information of this new day of conflict.
Ukraine claims breakthrough near Bakhmout
Ukraine has claimed gains near the devastated eastern town of Bakhmut, the epicenter of fighting with Russian forces. The boss of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner, Yevgeny Prigojine, confirmed the Ukrainian breakthrough near Bakhmout, where his men are in the front line, accusing the Russian regular army, which holds the flanks, of having “I went” ses positions.
“The capture of Bakhmout will not bring anything to Russia because the flanks are crumbling and the front is collapsing”the latter was alarmed in a video, accusing the Russian general staff of seeking to “water down” the situation.
The Russian army, for its part, claimed to have repelled 26 Ukrainian attacks on a 95 kilometer long front in the Soledar sector, near Bakhmout. “All attacks by Ukrainian units have been repelled. No breakthrough of the defense of Russian forces has been allowed”the ministry added.
Political storm around a “possible Russian missile” found in the heart of Poland
The announcement of the discovery of the remains of a missile “probably Russian” in the heart of Poland caused a political storm in Warsaw, with the opposition crying foul and demanding the resignation of the Minister of Defence.
The person concerned, Mariusz Blaszczak, for his part accused the commander of the operational forces of having neglected the search operations for the remains of the projectile and of not having informed anyone of the incident. However, he did not ask for his resignation or suspension.
Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, for his part, assured that he was not informed of this affair until the end of April, even if the Chief of the Defense Staff, General Rajmund Andrzejczak, claims to have revealed it to officials. “at the time of the events”.
Russian military helicopter crashes in Crimea, two dead
A Russian army Mi-28 helicopter crashed during training in annexed Crimea, causing the death of its two pilots, announced the Russian Ministry of Defense, which says it favors the track of a failure technical.
“Today, during a planned training flight in the Jankoy district of Crimea, an Mi-28 helicopter crashed”without ammunition on board, the ministry said in a statement, assuring that“there is no damage to the ground”. “Both pilots are dead. The preliminary cause (…) is a technical failure”he added.
The Mi-28 is a multi-tasking attack helicopter designed to destroy armored vehicles and troop concentrations day or night. Its crew consists of two people.
Volodymyr Zelensky wants to speak in the Eurovision final, the organizers refuse
Unable to organize the competition that Ukraine had won last year, because of the Russian invasion, the country delegated the organization to the United Kingdom, which came second. But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he wanted to speak in the final on Saturday.
No question, decided Thursday evening the organizers. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the organization of broadcasters which oversees the competition, explained that it had rejected its application on behalf of “the non-political nature of the event”: “This principle prohibits political or similar statements during the competition”, the EBU said in a statement. A spokesman for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak claimed the government was “disappointed” by this decision, noting that the organizers of Eurovision had nevertheless decided to exclude Russia from the competition after the invasion of Ukraine.
New Belgian aid to Ukraine, thanks to taxes on frozen Russian assets
The Belgian government has announced the release of a new envelope of nearly 100 million euros to support Ukraine and its population, aid drawn from the tax revenues garnered on Russian assets frozen in Belgium.
Half of the 92 million allocated will be in the form of armored vehicles, armaments, ammunition, with first deliveries planned “very quickly”he said in a statement.
The other half is intended for the civilian population, for humanitarian aid provided in major cities in coordination with the UN, and for the “consolidation” of the Belgian diplomatic presence in the region. Belgium is thus going to open two diplomatic posts in Chisinau in Moldova, and Yerevan, capital of Armenia.
Since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022, Belgium has already provided Ukraine with around 300 million euros in military and civilian aid, including this new envelope.
Pernod Ricard ceases its operations in Russia after a controversy over its Absolut vodka
The world number two in spirits Pernod Ricard has finally given in to the controversy that has erupted in Sweden over the discreet resumption of its exports of Absolut Swedish vodka to Russia. The French group announced on Friday May 12 that it was going to stop selling its products there.
Pernod Ricard, which owns, among other things, Havana Club rum, Jameson whiskey and Mumm champagne, “is able to confirm that it ceased all exports of its international brands to Russia at the end of April 2023“, he said in a press release. “We will also be ceasing the distribution of our wallet in Russia, a process which we believe will take a few months”, he added. Concretely, the group will no longer ship anything to Russia, but the stock still there will be distributed in the coming months.
