WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that Kyiv is “significantly” ramping up its drone production. Russia is also suspected of expanding its domestic drone production.
Drones have increasingly become vital to both Russian and Ukrainian military efforts.
In recent weeks, Kyiv has had several successful drone attacks as part of its counteroffensive to reclaim its territory.
Meanwhile, Russian drone attacks have destroyed Ukrainian grain storage facilities along the Danube River.
Ukraine counteroffensive making progress amid uncertainty: NATO’s Stoltenberg
A Ukrainian counteroffensive that is attempting to drive out invading Russian forces from occupied territory is making progress but there is still much uncertainty, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has told a conference in Norway.
He said NATO would support Ukraine till it won the war, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin had underestimated the Western military alliance.
Internal discussions were taking place within NATO on how to end the war in Ukraine and find a path to peace, Stoltenberg said.
He also said that Ukraine itself would decide the terms of peace.
“It is the Ukrainians, and only the Ukrainians, who can decide when there are conditions in place for negotiations, and who can decide at the negotiating table what is an acceptable solution,” Stoltenberg said.
Stoltenberg said the alliance had seen no changes in Russia’s nuclear forces and saw no reason at present to change its own setup.
During its invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has regularly made veiled and not-so-veiled threats that it might use its nuclear arsenal under certain conditions.
Russia using ‘propaganda and Wagner’ in Africa, Ukraine’s Kuleba says
Dmytro Kuleba Dmytro Kuleba
Kuleba said Russia was using base means to get African countries on its sideImage: Volodymyr Tarasov/Avalon/Photoshot/picture alliance
Russia is pressuring governments in Africa to have close ties to Moscow, using fighters from the Wagner mercenary group and “propaganda” to further this goal, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dymytro Kuleba told the AFP news agency in an interview this week.
“Russia is trying very hard to keep countries in its orbit through coercion, bribery and fear,” Kuleba said, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s publicly voiced concern about food security in Africa was hypocritical in view of Moscow’s withdrawal from the Black Sea grain deal that allowed for safe exports of Ukrainian foodstuffs.
“People in Africa saw that all of Putin’s stories about how he cares about African countries are lies” after Russia’s exit from the deal, Kuleba said, saying Ukrainian farmers and people in Africa were the main victims of the move.
Kuleba also said that the Ukrainian army would liberate all territory currently occupied by Russian forces no matter how long it took.
“Our goal is victory, victory in the form of the liberation of our territories within (Ukraine’s) borders of 1991. And we don’t care how long it takes,” he said during the interview in Kyiv.
He said, however, that Ukraine would still need a steady supply of Western arms and ammunition to achieve this goal, adding that Kyiv had guaranteed some Western countries that their donated weapons would not be used against targets on Russian territory.
Joseph Schulte cargo ship reaches Romanian waters
A spokesperson for the Bernhard Schulte Ship management (BSM) said the Joseph Schulte container ship is in Romanian waters and is expected to reach Istanbul Thursday evening. BSM owns the ship jointly with a Chinese bank.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also confirmed the ship had left Ukrainian waters, on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
The Hong Kong-flagged ship had been trapped at the Odesa port since February 24 last year, when Russia invaded Ukraine. It was the first ship to use a temporary corridor set up after Russia last month terminated a UN-brokered deal to move vital grain exports out of blockaded Ukraine ports.
The corridor can be used by merchant ships at their own risk, said Deputy Prime Minister
Olexandr Kubrakov.
Ukraine ramps up numbers of drones as Zelenskyy emphasizes importance
In his nightly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed that Kyiv is “significantly” increasing its production of drones.
As part of his address, Zelenskyy emphasized the importance of drones in defending Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion.
“Drones are the ‘eyes’ and protection on the front line… Drones guarantee that people will not have to pay with their lives when drones can be used,” said the Ukrainian leader.
In recent weeks, Kyiv has had several successful drone attacks as part of its counteroffensive efforts to reclaim territory.
