LIVE – War in Ukraine: Russia claims to capture Avdivka, a village in the west

Russia has claimed that it captured the village of Tonenke, west of the town of Avedivka, in February, and has continued its slow advance against a Ukrainian army that is short on men and ammunition. “The area of ​​Tonenke (…) was liberated thanks to the coordinated actions of units of the Central Army Group,” the Russian Defense Ministry indicated in its daily report.

Close to the Russian army and followed by more than 1.2 million people, Moscow’s forces are trying to reach the left bank of the local river to launch an offensive towards the villages of Semenivka and Omansk, according to the Rybar Telegram channel. .

Dutch Defense Minister Kajasa Ollongren announced it “The first F-16 fighter jets will arrive in Ukraine this summer”In an interview with Radio Svoboda. “Everyone is working hard, especially Ukrainian pilots and technicians, who must learn to master the F-16 and be able to operate and fight with it when Ukraine has the proper infrastructure.” she said.

The minister, however, did not want to specify the date of shipment. Denmark and the Netherlands formalized their commitment to supply Ukraine with up to 61 fighter jets in August 2023 after Ukrainian pilots are trained.

Pyotr Tolstoy, the vice-president of the Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, threatened France and Emmanuel Macron in an interview with BFM-TV this Thursday. “We are going to kill all the French soldiers who come on Ukrainian soil, he declared. I want to say directly that the idea of ​​sending French troops to Ukraine will end with coffins at Orly”.

Emmanuel Macron, Saturday, March 16, confirmed it “Field Operations” Ukraine may be required by the West “at one point”Even if it “Don’t want it”. In late February, the president had already mentioned a possible send-off “soldiers”

on the ground.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on the West to have the “political will” to help his country counter Russia by providing more anti-aircraft systems, following a missile attack that targeted the capital on Thursday.

“This terror continues day and night. It is possible to put an end to it thanks to global unity (…) if our partners show enough political will, this is absolutely possible,” Mr Zelenskiy said in a specially called social media post. . For air defense like the Patriots.

Ukraine announced it had shot down 31 Russian missiles targeting Kiev on Thursday, the first major attack on the capital since February 7, with Moscow vowing to retaliate for the bombing of Russian territory. “All missiles were shot down in Kyiv region”, The missiles included two Iskandar and Kinjal ballistic missiles as well as 29 cruise missiles fired by strategic bombers, the Air Force said. According to the Ukrainian Presidency, 13 civilians were injured in different areas of the city as the debris caused damage.

“I want a total ceasefire on Earth during the Olympic Games. No more bombs falling on civilians in Ukraine, Gaza or the West Bank. National Secretary of the French Communist Party, LCI supports Fabian Roussel. “I think personally about the athletes, some train abroad, so that they can participate in the Olympics. That game is a moment where we all come together, that seems important to me. He continued, questioning the International Olympic Committee’s decision that Russian and Belarusian athletes would not parade for the July 26 ceremony.

“For me, this decision is consistent with what has already been done for eight years, because since Sochi 2014, since the scandal in Russia, the flag, national anthem, political and sports recognition have been banned”, Former Minister of Sports and Olympic and Paralympic Games Roksana Marasinanu’s reaction to LCI. Indeed, on Wednesday, the International Olympic Committee decided that Russian and Belarusian athletes would not parade for the July 26 ceremony. “Now, with the invasion of Ukraine, I think the IOC wants to go further by banning the parade of Russians and Belarusians during the ceremony, as the Paralympic Committee has already done”She continues.

• Several explosions in the center of Kiev. They sounded early this Thursday morning, after an aerial warning for missiles and drones launched by Russia. About ten loud explosions were heard, as well as anti-aircraft fire. kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko reported “Rocket Debris”
  fell in a certain neighborhood, especially at a “residential building”with some “Cars on Fire”, in a message on Telegram. The last large-scale Russian strike on the Ukrainian capital took place in late January.

• European leaders meeting in Brussels. Twenty-seven meet Thursday and Friday, at a summit in Brussels, to better handle Ukraine and better position themselves to counter the increasingly worrisome Russian threat. Many ideas are on the table. European leaders will specifically discuss plans to use windfall profits generated by Russian assets frozen in Europe immediately after the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

• An agreement between European Union states and the European Parliament to limit certain Ukrainian agricultural imports from June was suspended hours after it was announced., due to opposition from several countries, including France. The agreement concerns the exemption of Ukrainian agricultural products from customs duties, such as eggs, poultry, oats, corn and even honey, but not wheat.

• Bombings kill civilians in Ukraine and Russia. Both countries reported strikes on Wednesday that have left scores of civilians dead on each side of their common border, where bombings have recently increased. In the Russian region of Belgorod, near the border, three civilians were killed and four others wounded on Wednesday, according to the local governor. At least four people were killed and seven wounded in a Russian strike on Kharkiv, in Ukraine, about 70 km away, according to the regional governor. Toll is likely to increase “Ten People Who Could Get Caught in the Debris”He had earlier warned on television.

An AFP reporter noted that after an air alert for missiles and drones launched by Russia, there were several explosions in the center of the Ukrainian capital Kiev on Thursday morning.

From 5 am (3 pm GMT), as well as ten loud bursts of anti-aircraft fire were heard. Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, reported in a message on Telegram that “rocket debris” had fallen in some neighborhoods of the capital, particularly “residential buildings,” and “cars were on fire.”

The last large-scale Russian strike on the Ukrainian capital took place in late January.

Hello and welcome to this live broadcast dedicated throughout the day to news of the war in Ukraine.