China criticizes sanctions and NATO presence in Eastern Europe
A day after US President Joe Biden warned against military aid to Russia, China
Western sanctions against the government in Moscow sharply criticized. “The sanctions against Russia are becoming increasingly outrageous,” said the Chinese deputy
Foreign Minister Le Yucheng in Beijing on Saturday. Russian citizens were being deprived of foreign assets for no reason, he said, referring to measures against oligarchs associated with Russian President Vladimir Putin. In Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said relations with China were strengthening.
Mined ports?
Because of the Russian war on Ukraine, the danger from sea mines is apparently increasing in the north-west of the Black Sea. The Russian domestic secret service FSB accuses Ukraine of having mined several ports, including those in Odessa and Ochakiv. Some of the more than 400 sea mines were torn loose in a storm. These are now threatening ships in the Black Sea, according to the Russian side. In the worst case, the mines could drift into the Mediterranean Sea.
The Ukrainian portal “Black Sea News”, which specializes in shipping, also quotes from the report by the Russian secret service, but blames the Russian Black Sea Fleet for the mines.
847 civilians killed, according to the UN
According to the UN, 847 civilians had been killed since the Russian invasion began on February 24 by Friday. At least 1,399 non-combatants were injured, the UN Human Rights Office said. Most people were killed by artillery fire or rocket attacks. The UN says they are assuming a much higher number of unreported cases, as reports of many deaths in embattled cities could not be verified.
Russian cosmonauts cause a stir with yellow and blue suits
Three Russian cosmonauts have arrived at the ISS space station wearing suits in the yellow and blue colors of the Ukrainian national flag. The choice of color immediately sparked debate. Now Russia’s space agency Roskosmos has contradicted speculation about a connection to Ukraine. “In general, the choice is due to the fact that this is the corporate color of Moscow State Technical University,” Roscosmos spokesman Dmitry Strugovets told Gazeta.ru news site. “And all three crew members who arrived at the station yesterday are graduates of this university.”
Strugovets added that one of the three Russian astronauts, Oleg Artemyev, had already worn such a yellow and blue suit in the past. Artemyev was docked with his colleagues Denis Matveyev and Sergey Korsakov in a spacecraft at the ISS on Friday. According to the Ria Novosti agency, Artemyev explained the choice of color by saying that a lot of yellow material had accumulated in the camps.
Legend:
The three Russian cosmonauts on the ISS space station.
Archyde.com
190,000 civilians evacuated from combat zones
Since the start of the Russian invasion, Ukraine has evacuated 190,000 civilians from front-line areas via evacuation corridors, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said in a television interview. Corridors in the Kyiv and Luhansk regions were open on Saturday, but a planned corridor to the besieged eastern port city of Mariupol is only partially functional as buses from Russian troops are not allowed through.
Legend:
A woman waits on a bus to be evacuated from the city of Brovary near Kyiv.
Archyde.com
War could slow down grain exports for domestic use
The war in Ukraine could shut down grain exports from the country, according to Oleh Ustenko, economic adviser to the Ukrainian president. “Ukraine has enough grain and food reserves to last a year.” But if the war continues, the country will not be able to export grain. According to him, Ukraine is so far the world’s fifth largest wheat exporter.
Official part of the rally over
Thousands listened intently to the speeches of Selenski and Cassis. The rally will now continue with music and further speeches.
Criticism of Nestle
Selenski thanks the banking country Switzerland for the sanctions. In his speech he also criticized Nestlé, “your Swiss company”. Nestlé’s slogan is “good food, good life,” said Selenski. And this company does not want to leave Russia. “Business in Russia works even though our children are dying and our cities are being destroyed.” The audience responded with boos.
Selenski demands even more commitment from Switzerland
Now Selenski takes the floor and first welcomes Federal President Ignazio Cassis. «Dear Mr. President, dear Ignazio, Greetings to all Swiss friends of Ukraine. We thank Switzerland very much for not standing aside.” But Selenski also finds clear words for Switzerland: “The money of the people who unleashed this war is in your banks. Help fight this. So that their funds are frozen. This is also a fight against evil. These people also enjoy privileges in their cities, their properties. It would be good to take away those privileges.”
Cassis hopes “that the guns will soon be silent again”
“Switzerland combines neutrality with a humanitarian tradition,” says Cassis. It is a small country that stands up for freedom. Switzerland is ready to mediate in the background or to host negotiations. “We’re standing here out of respect for Ukraine, in the hope that guns will quickly fall silent again,” Cassis said. He demands that humanitarian corridors open immediately. Switzerland also wants to help if destruction turns into construction again.
Cassis will travel to Poland and Moldova on Monday. There he wants to find out first-hand about the situation of the refugees and about Swiss humanitarian aid.
Cassis impressed by the courage of the Ukrainians
«People are deeply impressed by the courage of the Ukrainian people as they fight for democracy and freedom. We are also impressed by the determination with which it stands up against oppression and defends the basic values of the free world, which are also values of Switzerland,” says Cassis.
Federal President speaks at demonstration in Bern
Cassis takes the floor and is the first to greet Selenski, who is connected live. Cheers break out. “These people here in Bern want to show that the people of Ukraine are not alone, dear Volodymyr,” says the Federal President. “We sympathize when suffering hits your country,” he says.
Mayor of Berne condemns the war
The demonstration will be initiated by the Ukrainian Ambassador to Switzerland and the Mayor of Bern, Alec von Graffenried. “We are against the war and will reject any war,” says von Graffenried in front of the demonstrators.
Selenski switched live in Bern
Federal President and Foreign Minister Cassis and Ukrainian President Selenski will soon speak in Bern against the war in Ukraine: The Ukrainian President wants to join in live via video.
It was initially planned that Selenski would only speak to those present in a video message. Demonstration «Solidarity with Ukraine, stop the war now!» should start at 3 p.m. Cassis will deliver the introductory speech at 3:15 p.m. Then Selenski will speak to those present.
Fifa Foundation donates $1 million to victims of war
The foundation of the world football association Fifa has provided one million US dollars for aid for the victims of the war in Ukraine. As Fifa announced on Saturday, a first aid package has already been handed over by truck to the Ukrainian association UAF. This is dressing material intended to cover the most urgent needs.
“We want to do our bit by helping the people of Ukraine and those fleeing the war,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino. “The Fifa Foundation stands ready to provide much-needed assistance in consultation with the football community in Ukraine and the region.”
Russian attacks kill Ukrainian civilians
Ukraine has reported several deaths and injuries in renewed Russian attacks. In the town of Bucha, northwest of the capital Kyiv, seven civilians were killed by shelling on Friday, the police in the Kyiv region said on Saturday. In the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, the regional police authority said dozens of people were dead and injured in attacks on Friday. The information could not initially be independently verified.
Residential areas were shelled again, the Ukrainian side said. Kyiv has repeatedly accused Moscow of targeting civilian buildings during the war that began on February 24. Russia rejects this, even if the destruction of civilian infrastructure is obvious.
Almost 10,000 Ukraine refugees have registered in Switzerland
So far, 9,826 people from Ukraine have registered in the six federal asylum centers, as the SEM tweeted on Saturday. 4,417 of them have already been accommodated privately.
Cassis gives introductory speech to Selenski’s live message in Bern
The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will be connected live to the solidarity demonstration for Ukraine in Bern. His speech will be introduced by Federal President Ignazio Cassis.
The Ukrainian embassy in Bern made a request to this effect, said Michael Steiner, head of communications for the Foreign Affairs Department (EDA), to the Keystone-SDA news agency. The FDFA and the embassy then agreed on this procedure.
It was initially planned that Selenski would only speak to those present in a video message. Demonstration «Solidarity with Ukraine, stop the war now!» should start at 3 p.m. Cassis will give the introductory speech at 3:15 p.m., Steiner said. Then Selenski will speak to those present.
Russian gas continues to flow to Europe
Despite hostilities in Ukraine, large volumes of Russian gas continue to flow through the country to Europe. According to orders from European customers, 106.6 million cubic meters would be pumped through the neighboring country’s pipeline system on Saturday, spokesman for gas giant Gazprom, Sergey Kupriyanov, announced on Saturday. The contractually possible maximum utilization is 109 million cubic meters of gas per day. Ukraine receives important transit fees from the transit of Russian gas for its own state budget.
Further escape corridors set up
According to the Kiev leadership, ten escape corridors have been set up for the harassed civilian population in the war zones of Ukraine. One leads from the city of Mariupol, which has been particularly hard fought for days, in the south towards the city of Zaporizhia, said Deputy Prime Minister Irina Wereshchuk. The refugees were to be picked up by buses at the Berdyansk intermediate station, and aid supplies would also be handed over there.
Four corridors led to the city of Bakhmut from the contested Luhansk region in the east of the country, Vereshchuk said in a video. Other escape routes were set up from villages and towns around the capital, Kyiv. The routes are announced anew for each day.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian military in Zaporizhia has imposed a curfew from 3 p.m. CET. It is valid for 38 hours until early Monday morning, said Deputy Mayor Anatoly Kurtiev. “Don’t go out at this time!” The city in southern Ukraine has become an important transit point for refugees, especially from Mariupol.