- More than 3.5 million people have fled Ukraine since the start of the invasion by Russian armed forces. Some 100,000 civilians are still stuck in Mariupol, where Russian tanks entered after weeks of shelling.
- President Zelensky, who is ready to discuss a “compromise” with Putin for Donbass and Crimea, on Wednesday urged French companies operating in Russia to stop supporting the Russian “war machine” and to leave this country, citing Renault, Auchan and Leroy Merlin. On Wednesday evening, Renault announced that it was suspending “from this day on” the “activities of the Renault factory in Moscow” and evaluating “the possible options concerning its participation in its Russian subsidiary AvtoVAZ.
- Westerners will announce new sanctions against Russia and strengthen existing ones. Present Thursday in Brussels for three international summits, US President Joe Biden will announce joint action to strengthen Europe’s energy security and reduce its dependence on Russian gas.
10:28 p.m. – A Russian journalist killed in a bombing in kyiv
A Russian journalist was killed Wednesday in a bombardment on a northwestern district of kyiv, the Ukrainian capital increasingly under pressure from Russian artillery and rocket fire. Oksana Baulina died in a rocket blast while filming the damage caused by a previous strike on a shopping center in the Podil district, according to a statement from her online media “The Insider”. Another civilian was killed and two people accompanying the journalist were injured. Before joining The Insider, Ms Baulina was a producer for an anti-corruption foundation in her country, classified as an “extremist organisation” by the authorities.
10:10 p.m. – The UN will demand an end to the war in Ukraine from Russia
The UN General Assembly is debating a new resolution on Wednesday which, if adopted by a majority of member states, will “demand” from Russia an “immediate” end to the war in Ukraine. Since Wednesday morning, at the headquarters of the Organization in New York, Ukraine has presented during a special emergency session of the General Assembly a resolution supported by 88 countries and which had been initially prepared by France and Mexico for submission to the Security Council. This non-binding text “demands an immediate cessation of hostilities by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, in particular of all attacks against civilians and civilian objects”.
9:49 p.m. – War in Ukraine – Do we still know how to defend ourselves?
New threats, global rearmament… The conflict has put the military issue back at the heart of our concerns. Where are France and Europe really?
Read Nicolas Baverez’s perspective War in Ukraine – Do we still know how to defend ourselves?
9:24 p.m. – Joe Biden arrived in Brussels
The Air Force One plane carrying Joe Biden landed in Brussels shortly after 9:00 p.m. local time on Wednesday (8:00 p.m. GMT), according to images broadcast by the CNN channel. The American president, who wants to cement the unity of Westerners against the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, must participate Thursday in three major international meetings (NATO, G7, European Union) then go to Poland Friday and Saturday .
8:49 p.m. – US sanctions against Russian politicians
The United States will announce Thursday “a set of sanctions that concern both political figures” and “oligarchs”, national security adviser Jake Sullivan announced on Tuesday, on his way with Joe Biden to Europe. The American president must participate in several international summits in Brussels on Thursday, before going to Poland on Friday and Saturday. Jake Sullivan also said, during an exchange with the press on board Air Force One, that the G7 countries would launch an “initiative” to ensure that Russia could not circumvent the sanctions that have already been imposed on it. imposed following the invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
8:09 p.m. – Russia denounces “absurd” fears of cyberattacks
Russia on Wednesday denounced “absurd” American accusations, reacting to recent statements by President Joe Biden and the White House which called on companies to better protect themselves from possible computer attacks led by Moscow. “These accusations against us are absurd,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov said in a statement, accusing Washington of engaging in a “new outburst of Russophobia amid the situation in Ukraine.”
7:54 p.m. – For Marine Le Pen, Zelensky’s demands risk enriching Moscow
Marine Le Pen believes that the demands made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky before the French Parliament to put an end to the Russian invasion of his country have “no sense”, because they risk enriching Russia. The president of the National Rally, who thus takes up the same argument as the CEO of TotalEnergies, said she was “ready to find many solutions to make Russia bend”, but “not at the cost of hara-kiri the French economy and the purchasing power of the French”. The far-right candidate also reports that she “let herself be told” that the Ukrainian president’s speech “did not have exactly the same tone” as those delivered before the Israeli and German parliaments, because, “apart from the demands that French companies give up their holdings in Russian companies, there are no other specific demands”.
7:43 p.m. – The head of Ukrainian diplomacy calls for a global “boycott” of Renault
The head of Ukrainian diplomacy Dmytro Kouleba calls for a global “boycott” of the French car manufacturer Renault because of “its refusal to leave Russia”, following the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces.
Renault refuses to pull out of Russia. Not that it should surprise anyone when Renault supports a brutal war of aggression in Europe. But mistakes must come with a price, especially when repeated. I call on customers and businesses around the globe to boycott Group Renault. pic.twitter.com/STFeafnCoi
— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) March 23, 2022
7:41 p.m. – WHO calls for a “massive” increase in humanitarian aid
The World Health Organization calls for a “massive” increase in humanitarian aid to Ukraine in the coming weeks, stressing that the current problems are only “the visible part of the needs”.
7:29 p.m. – The United States considers that the Russian army committed “war crimes” in Ukraine
The US government announces that it “has established that members of the Russian forces committed war crimes in Ukraine” based on “careful review of available information from public and intelligence sources”, stating that courts should determine legal responsibilities.
7:15 p.m. – Expelling Russian diplomats from the UN: Moscow expels American diplomats in retaliation
Russia indicates, via a press release, that it has decided to expel American diplomats in retaliation for the expulsion by Washington of 12 members of the Russian diplomatic mission to the UN in early March.
7:04 p.m. – Washington to sanction more Russian oligarchs and politicians on Thursday
The United States will announce on Thursday “a set of sanctions that concern both political figures” and oligarchs. President Biden also said during an exchange with the press on board Air Force One that the G7 countries would launch an initiative to ensure that Russia cannot circumvent the sanctions that have already been imposed on it. following the invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
6:42 p.m. – Leroy Merlin persists and signs in Russia, a few hours after Zelensky’s call
Adeo, the holding company of Leroy Merlin, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked on Wednesday afternoon, among other companies, to leave Russia, replied that a closure would be considered a “premeditated bankruptcy paving the way for an expropriation which would strengthen the financial means of Russia”.
6:00 p.m. – Sweden will send 5,000 more anti-tank weapons
Swedish government announces sending 5,000 more anti-tank weapons to Ukraine to support it against Russian invasion, saying they are the same model of AT-4 class single-shot rocket launchers , already sent to 5,000 copies by the Swedish army.
5:27 p.m. – kyiv still under threat according to its mayor, a residential area bombed
A Russian bombardment targeted a residential area of kyiv on Wednesday without causing any casualties. For the mayor of the Ukrainian capital, Vitali Klitschko, his city remains threatened by the Russian army, still blocked on the northwestern outskirts, where fierce fighting is taking place.
