The essentials in brief:
- Habeck wants to better control EU-Russia sanctions
- Blinken rules out talks between Kyiv and Moscow
- Selenskyj insists on the liberation of Crimea
- Other possible US military documents surfaced online
- Ukraine plans to resume electricity exports
Since the start of Russia’s war against neighboring Ukraine, the EU has launched ten packages of sanctions against Russia, which include trade restrictions and other measures. The German Economics Minister Robert Habeck is now calling for stricter action to be taken against companies that do illegal business with Russia via third countries and thus circumvent EU sanctions. The issue must be tackled much more forcefully and decisively, he told the newspapers of the Funke media group. “We owe that not least to the people of Ukraine.”
Habeck cited Denmark as an example of a better fight against circumventing sanctions. There, customs would check trade flows and customs data very carefully for anomalies and ask companies for comments if necessary. “If, for example, a large quantity of certain goods that previously went to Russia are suddenly to be delivered to another third country in pretty much the same quantity, that’s a reason to take a closer look.”
This request for information and these inspection powers are also known in German foreign trade law. “If this is used in a targeted manner, we can strengthen the joint clout of our authorities,” said Habeck. At the end of February, his house proposed concrete steps to better combat the circumvention of sanctions.
Blinken rules out talks between Kyiv and Moscow
“For some, the idea of a ceasefire may be tempting – and I understand that. But if this amounts to practically ratifying Russia’s seizure of significant Ukrainian territories, then this would not be a just and lasting peace,” Blinken told several newspapers.
Negotiations between Ukraine and Russia are currently not an option for US Secretary of State Antony Blinken
Russia could regroup its troops and attack again after a certain time, the minister justified his opinion to the newspapers of the Funke media group and the French newspaper Ouest-France. “Russia must get to the point where it is ready to engage in constructive negotiations.” The goal must be a just and lasting peace.
Selenskyj insists on the liberation of Crimea
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has described the liberation of the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea from Russian occupation as “there is no alternative”. “The world should know: respect and order will only return to international relations when the Ukrainian flag returns to Crimea,” Zelenskyy said in a Twitter message.
On the other hand, repression, murder, war and evil are currently spreading under the Russian flag, Zelenskyj said in a video. “The de-occupation of Crimea is without alternative not only for Ukraine, but for the whole world. I am convinced of that,” said Zelenskyy in a recording of a meeting with Muslim Ukrainian military personnel, including representatives of the Crimean Tatars. The occasion was the breaking of the fast in Ramadan.
Zelenskyi said Ukraine values the territorial integrity of other states and demands respect for its own sovereignty as well. He was apparently responding to a suggestion by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva that Kiev could renounce Crimea in order to make peace with Moscow.
Other possible US military documents surfaced online
According to several media reports, allegedly secret US military documents have appeared on social networks for the second time in just a few days. It should again be about information about the Ukrainian military, but also about other regions of the world such as China and the Middle East.
According to a report by the New York Times, the more than 100 classified documents 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 is investigating the matter, a spokeswoman for the US Department of Defense told the “WSJ”. The same also applies to the foreign intelligence service CIA.
The Pentagon made the same statement on Thursday, when it became known about a similar release of secret documents on Ukraine’s preparations for a military offensive against Russia. Ukraine has labeled the alleged US secret documents on preparations for a counter-offensive in the war against Russia as Russian fakes.
Ukraine plans to resume electricity exports
After a months-long hiatus, Ukraine is planning to resume power exports 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. 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.
Power line in western Ukraine near Lviv
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, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe near Zaporizhia, which has been under Russian control since March 2022, was completely shut down in September.
Russia plans tougher penalties for terrorism and sabotage
Russian lawmakers plan to increase penalties for terrorism and sabotage. Accordingly, the minimum sentence for acts that endanger life and aim to destabilize Russia is to be raised from 15 to 20 years. Persons guilty of “international terrorism” could be sentenced to life imprisonment instead of the current 12 years. The tougher measures are necessary to protect “against unprecedented threats” Russia faces from Ukraine “and its Western sponsors,” said Vasily Piskarev, chairman of the State Duma’s Committee on Security and Anti-Corruption.
qu/ack (dpa, rtr ,afp)
This article will be continuously updated on the day of its publication. Reports from the combat zones cannot be independently verified.