The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict has escalated in recent weeks, with Poland announcing its plan to send warplanes to support Ukraine. However, it seems that the United States and Germany have no plans to follow suit and send fighter jets to the region. As tensions continue to rise, both sides face an uncertain future, and the safety of civilians hangs in the balance. In this article, we will explore the latest developments in the Russia-Ukraine war, including Poland’s decision to send warplanes and the response of the US and Germany.
The United Nations-backed inquiry published a report about Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine, which include willful killings, systematic torture, and deportation of children. The report was released on Thursday, exactly a year after the bombing of a theatre in Ukraine’s southeastern city of Mariupol, which killed hundreds of people. The head of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine stated that there were issues that needed to be raised that could point to possible genocide, but Russia dismissed the report.
The Pentagon released a video on Tuesday showing the moments before the Russian fighter crashed into a US Reaper drone in the Black Sea after spraying it with jet fuel. The declassified footage showed an Su-27 Flanker jet making two exceptionally close passes of the un-crewed drone, spraying fuel in front of it, which the US experts said was a new harassment tactic.
The Kremlin has stated that the decision on whether to retrieve the downed US Reaper drone from the Black Sea would be made by the Russian military. Dmitry Peskov, the spokesperson for President Vladimir Putin, stated that the Russian military would deal with the drone if they deemed it necessary for their interests and security.
Denis Pushilin, the Russian-installed leader in occupied Donetsk, said that he did not see any signs of Ukraine withdrawing from Bakhmut. He stated that the situation remained complicated and difficult, and there were no clear indications that the enemy was going to withdraw its units.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, discussed the “significance of the principle of territorial integrity” during a phone call with Chinese diplomat Qin Gang. Kuleba emphasized the importance of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s peace formula for ending the aggression and restoring just peace in Ukraine.
Qin, according to a statement from the Chinese foreign ministry, “hopes that all parties will remain calm, rational, and restrained, and resume peace talks as soon as possible.” The Chinese President, Xi Jinping, is expected to visit Putin in Moscow next week and to subsequently hold a virtual meeting with Zelenskiy.
Polish authorities have detained nine members of a Russian spy ring who they accuse of gathering intelligence on weapons supplies to Ukraine and planning to sabotage the deliveries. Six individuals have been charged with preparing acts of sabotage and espionage, and charges are being prepared against the remaining three.
The UN has called for a 120-day renewal of a deal that allows the safe export of grain shipments from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports ahead of a deadline later this week. Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova responded to UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric’s remarks, stating that the deal “is being extended for 60 days.”
In an address to Russia’s business elite, President Putin informed the country’s leading billionaires that Russia is currently facing a “sanctions war.” He urged them to invest in new technology, production facilities, and enterprises to help Russia overcome what he said were the western attempts to destroy the economy.
