2023-07-08 07:51:18
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky celebrated his country’s ‘courage’ by visiting Serpents’ Island in the Black Sea, where his army secured a prestigious victory at the start of the war against Russia, which entered its 500th day on Saturday. .
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This symbolic milestone is crossed while Kyiv, engaged in a counter-offensive against Moscow, obtained Friday the commitment of Washington to deliver cluster bombs to it, a few days before the NATO summit in Vilnius.
To mark the 500th day of a conflict that has killed more than 9,000 civilians according to the UN, the Ukrainian president visited Serpents’ Island, which Moscow seized shortly after the start of the invasion on February 24, 2022 before having to abandon it to Kyiv forces.
“Today we are on Serpents’ Island, which will never be conquered by the occupier, just like the rest of Ukraine, because we are the land of courage,” Zelensky said in a statement. undated video posted on social media on Saturday.
The Ukrainian contingent stationed on this small rock at the start of the invasion had refused to surrender and had ordered the Russian warship Moskva to “fuck off”, during a radio exchange that had become cult and set up in symbol of Kyiv resistance.
These Ukrainian soldiers had certainly ended up being captured before being exchanged with Russian prisoners. But the Moskva sank in the Black Sea after being hit, according to Kyiv, by Ukrainian missiles. Moscow had mentioned an explosion on board but had to abandon the island in June 2022.
“I want to thank here, from this place of victory, each of our soldiers for these 500 days”, declared Mr. Zelensky in this video where we see him laying flowers at a memorial on this island located a few tens of kilometers from the ribs.
“Difficult decision”
On Friday, the Ukrainian president obtained a diplomatic victory after Washington’s decision to deliver cluster munitions to him, which he described as “an indispensable aid program”.
The United States has thus taken a further step in its support for Ukraine by agreeing to provide its ally with these weapons, which kill indiscriminately by dispersing small explosive charges before or after impact.
“It was a very difficult decision for me,” US President Joe Biden told CNN.
But Washington finally considered that this delivery represented “the right thing to do” in view of the developments on the ground and after having received the commitment of Kyiv to minimize “the risks posed to civilians”.
On the other hand, Washington dampened the hopes of Mr. Zelensky who was hoping for Western support for his country’s entry into NATO at the next summit in Vilnius on July 11 and 12.
Kyiv “still has many steps to go before it can become a member,” warned White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
9,000 civilians killed
Turkish Head of State Recep Tayyip Erdogan, receiving Mr. Zelensky in Istanbul on Friday, on the contrary considered that Ukraine “deserved” to join the Atlantic Alliance and called on the two belligerent countries to “return to peace talks “.
Mr Zelensky had a long meeting with the Turkish President, who maintains close ties with both Kyiv and Moscow, during which the July 2022 agreement which allows Ukraine to export cereals through the Black Sea despite the war.
That deal expires on July 17, and Russia has said it sees no reason to extend it. “We hope that the agreement will be extended,” said Mr. Erdogan, who intends to raise the subject with Mr. Putin, whom he is due to receive in August.
The Ukrainian president prayed Saturday morning alongside Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew for the victims of war.
On the ground, the conflict continues to claim victims, the UN deplored on Friday, reporting more than 9,000 civilians killed, including 500 children, since the start of the war.
Far from the front line, in the city of Lviv (west), ten people were killed during a bombardment early Thursday. 42 people were injured in the same attack, including three children, according to a report released Friday morning.
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