Berlin (agencies)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned yesterday that the decrease in US aid to Kiev sends a bad message, at a time when US President Joe Biden faces a Republican blockade that prevents him from providing further support.
With the possibility of a decline in US aid, Zelensky urged Germany to throw its economic weight into mobilizing partners in the European Union to provide more support to Kiev.
The Ukrainian president told German radio ARD that the lack of support from the United States sends a bad signal.
In response to a question about whether he hopes that Berlin will play a greater role in the event of a decline in American aid, Zelensky replied, “Germany can be able to mobilize the European Union countries,” adding, “Many countries have important economic relations with Germany and their economy depends on Germany’s decisions.” ; Because Germany has a strong economy.”
In a separate interview last Wednesday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged European countries to increase the weapons provided to Ukraine, raising the possibility of stopping aid provided by the largest contributor, the United States.
“Europe must do more to support Ukraine in defending itself,” Schulz told the weekly newspaper Die Zeit, adding that the contributions allocated by European countries for 2024 “are not large enough.”
Biden has made supporting Ukraine a priority, but Republican lawmakers have led a campaign to stop these efforts, refusing to approve new budget aid unless Democrats first agree to take comprehensive and tough measures against illegal immigration on the border with Mexico.
As the US presidential elections approach, which may once again pit Biden against Donald Trump, Zelensky warned that the return of the former Republican president to the White House would likely lead to a “different policy” regarding the crisis.
On the ground, Russian air defenses thwarted a drone attack yesterday on the Slavanneft-Janus refinery in the city of Yaroslavl, northeast of Moscow, according to Mikhail Yevrayev, governor of the Yaroslavl region.
He added that the incident did not result in a fire or casualties at the refinery, which is about 250 kilometers from the capital, Moscow. Yevrayev wrote about the incident that occurred at the third largest oil refinery in Russia in terms of 2022 production: “Law enforcement agencies and special units are working at the scene of the incident, and there were no injuries or fires.”
The attempted attack followed a series of similar drone attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure in the past few weeks, some of which disrupted fuel production.
For its part, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced yesterday that artillery crews belonging to Russian paratrooper units destroyed a field warehouse containing ammunition and three mortars belonging to the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the right bank of the Dnieper River in Kherson Province.
The ministry said, “During reconnaissance, Russian paratroopers discovered a field warehouse containing ammunition and 3 mortars for the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” according to what the Russian Sputnik news agency reported.
The ministry noted that the coordinates of the Ukrainian forces' targets were transferred to the artillery crew for destruction.
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