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Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine has entered its 23rd day, and here is a summary of some of the main events on March 18:
- The mayor of Lviv, Ukraine, said an aircraft maintenance plant near Lviv was hit by a missile; the mayor said there were no reports of casualties and rescuers were on the scene
- Large clouds of smoke rising over the western Ukrainian city of Lviv can be seen from the direction of the airport
- A building near Lviv airport was attacked early Friday morning.Lviv is just 70 kilometers from the Polish border, far from the main war zones to the east and south
- The BBC’s Jonah Fisher in Lviv said it had been considered a safe place until the shelling on Friday morning.He said the shelling could have been an attempt by Russian troops to “cut off the arms supply line into the country” as the main route often goes through Poland
- Ofcom says it has revoked Kremlin-backed broadcaster Russia Today (RT)’s broadcast license in the UK, effective immediately
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A building near Lviv airport was attacked
- The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said in its daily update on Facebook that an estimated 14,200 Russian soldiers had been killed since the conflict began; meanwhile, U.S. officials said on Thursday that Russia had lost more than 7,000 troops and more About 14,000 people were injured. The BBC cannot independently verify the claims
- According to Ukrainian TV “Ukraine 24”, the mayor of the southern city of Voznesensk in the Mykolaiv region was quoted as saying that a warehouse storing weapons in the city was shelled by Russia
- The British Ministry of Defence said the Russian military had made “very little progress this week”. The latest morning briefing noted that Ukrainian troops around Kyiv and Nikolayev “continue to thwart Russian attempts to encircle these cities.”Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Sumy and Mariupol are still surrounded by Russian troops and under heavy artillery fire
- Ukrainian counterattacks and Russian logistical problems are hindering Russia’s offensive, according to a British military assessment. Due to limited mobility and lack of air superiority, the Russian military cannot effectively replenish “basic necessities such as food and fuel” to frontline troops
- Western officials told the media that the situation on the ground in Ukraine has not changed dramatically, and Ukraine’s resistance to Russia has brought the situation to a stalemate
- At the same time, U.S. Pentagon officials said that Russian military operations on multiple fronts were frozen, not only in insufficient supplies of fuel, food and ammunition, but also in the face of resolute resistance from Ukraine.
- Ukrainian authorities say civilians emerge alive from the rubble of a theatre in Mariupol after it was bombed by Russia
- Mariupol’s deputy mayor, Sergei Orlov, previously told the BBC that an estimated 1,000 to 1,200 people had taken refuge in the theatre before the bombing.
- The head of Ukraine’s northern Chernihiv state said 53 civilians had been killed in the Russian offensive since Wednesday
- Russian journalist Marina Ovsyannikova said she hoped the protests in front of a TV show, holding a placard saying “No war, stop war”, would raise questions about local Russian media coverage
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A Ukrainian soldier passes a wrecked armored vehicle in Kharkiv
- BBC international affairs editor John Simpson said Turkey was very careful to position itself as an intermediary between Russia and Ukraine – and it appeared to be paying off.On Thursday afternoon, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to tell him Russia’s exact demands for a peace deal with Ukraine
- Chinese foreign ministry officials met with the Russian ambassador to China on Thursday to exchange views on bilateral relations, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement on Friday (March 18).Cheng Guoping, the foreign security commissioner of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, met with Andrey Denisov, the Russian ambassador to China, to exchange views on bilateral counter-terrorism and security cooperation, the statement said.
- Australia and Japan tightened sanctions on Moscow. Canberra has added Russian billionaires Oleg Deripaska and Viktor Vekselberg to its sanctions list, along with 11 banks and government entities. Meanwhile, Tokyo sanctioned another 15 Russians and nine groups, including Russian state-owned arms exporter Rosoboronexport.
Biden to speak with Xi Jinping on Friday
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On November 16, 2021, US President Biden held a video meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
U.S. President Joe Biden will speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday (March 18) to discuss managing the rivalry between the two countries and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the White House said on Thursday.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki added that the call was part of “an ongoing effort to maintain open lines of communication between the U.S. and China.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Friday that President Xi Jinping will exchange views with U.S. President Joe Biden on China-U.S. relations and issues of mutual concern on Friday evening Beijing time.
U.S. Secretary of State Blinken said at a news conference on Thursday local time that President Biden will speak with President Xi Jinping on Friday and stressed that “China will take responsibility for any actions it takes to support Russian aggression” and that the United States will not hesitate to Make China pay the price.
Blinken said China had a responsibility to use its leverage over Putin and defend international rules, but Beijing appeared to be “moving in the opposite direction”.
Blinken did not elaborate on the price China might pay, nor did Washington provide evidence that China has expressed a willingness to help Russia.
Moscow has denied seeking military assistance from China. Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that Russia was capable of operating in Ukraine and had not asked other countries for help.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian also said this week, “Recently, the U.S. has been spreading false information against China one after another on the Ukraine issue, with sinister intentions.”
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Sullivan, the US national security adviser, and Yang Jiechi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission, held a seven-hour meeting in Rome, Italy on Monday (March 14). After the talks, U.S. officials described the meeting as “intense” and said senior U.S. and Chinese officials had “substantial discussions” on issues involving Russia’s war with Ukraine.
In response to the call between Biden and Xi Jinping on Friday, BBC North America editor Sarah Smith (Sarah Smith) analyzed that Biden “believes that the Ukraine war represents a real struggle between authoritarianism and democracy, and Xi Jinping does not believe that democracy can be in 21. The century went on, which she said illustrates an “ideological gap” between the two men over China’s position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
U.S. officials believe Xi is one of the few world leaders who could have an influence on Putin. But Xi Jinping has so far refused to condemn Russian aggression, and the United States is very concerned that China could help Russia provide military equipment for use in Ukraine.
Zelensky: Germany ‘is looking for a new path’
image source,Facebook/ Zelensky
In his latest Facebook address released overnight, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Germany was “looking for a new path away from Russia”.
Zelensky said his speech to the German parliament on Thursday was delivered “not only as a president, but as a Ukrainian citizen, as a European.”
In his speech, he called on the Germans to do more to help Ukraine destroy a new wall Russia has built in Europe to try to separate freedom from slavery.
Zelensky criticized in his speech that German energy policy and business interests contributed to the dividing wall, and Zelensky’s remarks would not make these lawmakers comfortable.
Addressing Ukrainians on Thursday night, Zelensky said: “For decades we have seen Germany fighting for the economy. For the new Russian gas pipeline and the old European dream. Russia has not taken it seriously for a long time. The dream of this collaboration.”
“We’re seeing a change in German views,” he noted. “It’s very important. We’re seeing Germany looking for a new path.”
Since the end of the Cold War, Germany has tried to use trade, commerce and energy links to integrate a peaceful Russia into the West.
But the Russian invasion dashed those hopes and prompted an urgent search for trade opportunities elsewhere in Germany.
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