International Writing, Feb 26 (EFE) .- Fourth day since Russia began the invasion of Ukraine: the Ukrainian army says that it maintains its positions, although it recognizes that the situation around Kiev is getting worse and admits the entry of Russian troops in Kharkov , in the north of the country.
It is the second city of Ukraine in population, with approximately 1.4 million inhabitants.
The international community increases economic sanctions against Russia and military aid in favor of the Ukrainian government.
The EU, UK, Canada and the US have issued a joint statement pledging to remove certain banks in Russia from the Swift messaging system, the transaction system that is the foundation of the global financial system and is used by 11,000 banks. in 200 countries or territories to be able to make transfers.
These are the most important events at the beginning of the fourth day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine:
AT THE MILITARY LEVEL
The Ukrainian forces maintain their positions and the fighting is being fought in “the same places as three days ago”, according to the adviser to the Presidency of Ukraine Mikhail Podoliak. “We control the situation in the regions of Ukraine.”
“Ukraine resists (…) they believed that they could take over Ukraine in four, twelve, sixteen hours at the most, they were convinced. But the reality is different. The positional battles are being fought in the same places as three days ago,” he stressed. .
– Russian troops launched a missile attack on an oil storage plant located in the town of Kryachky, about 25 kilometers southwest of Kiev, and hit one of its ten tanks, which burst into flames. Local authorities warned that if the fire spreads to the other deposits, an ecological catastrophe could occur.
– The situation worsens around Kiev, where the country’s political leadership is located. “This is happening because one of the key objectives of Russia is to eliminate the political leadership of Ukraine, and this can be done in Kiev, because it is in Kiev and it will not go anywhere,” Podoliak stressed.
– Heavy fighting in the town of Vasilkiv, about 40 kilometers southeast of the Ukrainian capital, according to the head of the administration of the Kiev region, Alexei Kuleba.
– Russian troops entered the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv in the north of the country on Sunday and suffered the first losses, according to the State Service for Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine. “Enemy vehicles are moving through the city. Due to the operational situation, transport in the Oleksiyivka district was canceled,” the entity reported on its Telegram channel, where it published a video showing several armored vehicles in an urban area. .
– Ukraine claimed to have killed more than a thousand Russian soldiers in the war launched by the Kremlin last Sunday against the country and to have captured more than three hundred soldiers who surrendered. He estimated at least 198 Ukrainian deaths.
MILITARY AID
The foreign ministers of the European Union meet this Sunday by videoconference to study an aid package for the Ukrainian armed forces.
© Provided by Agencia EFE
“I am going to convene a virtual meeting of the EU Foreign Ministers at 6:00 p.m. to adopt new measures to support Ukraine, against Russia’s aggression,” the High Representative for Foreign Policy of Ukraine announced on Saturday night. the EU, Josep Borrell.
– Military aid to the Ukrainian government continues: the last was from Australia, which announced this Sunday the shipment of weapons to Ukraine to support its defense after being invaded by Russian troops and is studying the possible expulsion of the Russian ambassador to the country. oceanic.
– France announced this Saturday that it will send Ukraine defense equipment and fuel, and will take measures to freeze the financial assets of Russian personalities in the country and fight against Russian propaganda. A Security and National Defense Council decided “the additional delivery of defense equipment” to the Ukrainian authorities, which will also be supported with fuel.” It did not specify what type of military aid is going to be sent.
The Netherlands, Belgium or Germany already announced on Saturday the shipment of military aid.
But other help arrives:
– Billionaire Elon Musk has activated Starlink, a satellite internet service, in Ukraine after receiving a request from the Ukrainian government. “Starlink service is now active in Ukraine. More terminals on the way,” SpaceX’s owner wrote on his Twitter account.
– The hacker group Anonymous declared “cyber war” on Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, for invading Ukraine, with demands that it withdraw its troops from there or launch cyberattacks against major Russian government websites. “The Anonymous group is in a state of cyberwar against the Russian government,” the hackers said on their Twitter account, in a message that was accompanied by a video and the hashtag #Ukraine.
“Your recent attempt to threaten Finland and Sweden is a disgrace. It threatens these countries if they join NATO. Today we take down the sites of the Federal Antimonopoly Service, the Kremlin, (TV network) Russia Today and other sites linked to the Russian authorities,” Anonymous declared.
THE ECONOMY AND THE SWIFT SYSTEM
The United States and the European Union (EU), along with other Western partners, have agreed to remove “certain” Russian banks from the Swift international system, a sweeping economic move in response to Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine.
“We are committed to ensuring that certain banks in Russia are removed from the Swift messaging system. This will ensure that these banks are disconnected from the international financial system and disrupt their ability to operate globally,” says a joint statement signed by the EU, Canada, the United Kingdom and United States.
The exclusion of Russian entities, whose names are not specified in the statement, from the Society for Global Interbank Financial Telecommunication (Swift, for its acronym in English) occurs after intense consultations in recent days between the US and European countries, some of whom had raised their doubts about it.
The Swift transaction system is the foundation of the global financial system and is used by 11,000 banks in 200 countries or territories to make transfers.
Likewise, the Western allies agreed to “impose restrictive measures” against the Central Bank of Russia with the aim of “preventing the use of its international reserves to undermine the impact” of the sanctions.
In a statement, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said “all these measures will significantly harm Putin’s ability to finance his war. They will have an erosive impact on the economy. Putin has embarked on a path aimed at destroying Ukraine, but what he is also doing, in fact, is destroying the future of his own country,” he said.
© Provided by Agencia EFE
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the deal: “It seems that Ukraine has won the sincerity and attention of the whole normal and civilized world. And the practical result: here it is, SWIFT. How much meaning is there in this word for the Russian Federation! (It means the) disconnection from the global financial civilization,” Zelensky said in a new video addressed to the nation.
(c) EFE Agency