Two-thirds of Ukrainian children forced to leave home: Live update.
Ukraine’s military receives only about 10 percent of the weapons the West is asking for “to put it on par” with Russia, while Moscow is increasing defense spending to combat a war that shows no signs of ending any time soon.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will chair today’s meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels, Belgium, where dozens of defense ministers will try to “identify and consider the next steps needed to help Ukraine. defense against Russian aggression.”
Ukrainian officials say those next steps must include lots of guns and ammunition. Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted on Monday that Kyiv requested 1,000 155 mm cannons, 300 multiple launch missile systems, 500 tanks, 2,000 armored vehicles and 1,000 drones.
Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said Ukraine uses 5,000 to 6,000 shells a day, while Russia uses 10 times more.
“No matter how hard Ukraine tries, no matter how professional our military is, without the help of our Western partners we would not be able to win,” Malyar told a televised press conference. win this war”.
It appears that Russia will significantly increase its military budget to continue its slow but steady assault on the Donbas: British defense officials said Russia’s defense spending could increase by US$12 billion – coming close to a 20% increase in Russian President Putin’s defense budget.
The UK Ministry of Defense said that Russia is allowing its defense industrial base “to be gradually mobilized to meet the needs posed by the war in Ukraine. However, the industry could face difficulties. difficulty in meeting many of these requests, partly due to the effects of sanctions, and a lack of expertise.”
Latest developments
►The announcement by Russia’s state-controlled energy group Gazprom that it will reduce the flow of natural gas through a key European pipeline by about 40% appears to be more of a political move than a matter of fact. technical issues, the German deputy chancellor said on Wednesday.
►A Moscow court has extended the detention of WNBA star Brittney Griner until at least July 2, Russian state news agency TASS reported on Tuesday. Griner has been in custody since February 17, accused of bringing vape cartridges containing cannabis oil into the country. The US State Department alleges that she was improperly detained.
► Russia has banned dozens of British media and defense figures from entering the country in response to what the Foreign Office alleges are British media misrepresentation of Moscow and its actions in the country. Ukraine.
Nearly two-thirds of Ukrainian children displaced from their homes: UNICEF
Nearly two-thirds of Ukrainian children have been displaced from their homes, with families sometimes leaving their fathers behind to fight, UNICEF said. Some families have moved to the relatively peaceful part of western Ukraine while others have fled across the border to Poland or other countries. Afshan Khan, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, says trauma and fear can have long-term effects on children’s physical and mental health. Khan said the war in Ukraine was a “crisis of children’s rights”.
“Children are forced to leave their homes, friends, precious toys and belongings, family members, and face uncertainty about the future,” says Khan. “This instability is robbing children of their futures.”
Russian forces have been bombing Ukrainian cities indiscriminately, sometimes cutting off humanitarian evacuation corridors. Result: At least 277 children died and another 456 children were injured.
“The use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas and attacks on civilian infrastructure must stop,” Mr Khan said. “It is killing and ravaging children and preventing them from returning to any normal life in the towns and cities that are their home.”
Ikea sells factories in Russia, closes stores
Global furniture giant Ikea said on Wednesday that it will sell four of its factories in Russia and liquidate inventory in 17 stores due to supply chain problems and the war in Ukraine. The company, which halted operations in Russia a week after the invasion, said it would drastically reduce its workforce. The Swedish-founded company said it would continue to pay employees until the end of August. Ikea also halted operations in Belarus, Russia’s neighbor and strongest ally.
“The war in Ukraine … is a human tragedy that continues to affect people and communities,” Ikea said in a statement on its website. “Businesses and supply chains around the world have been hit hard and we don’t see a return to business any time soon.”
‘We are not terrorists’: Zelenskyy will not fire missiles at Russian cities
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine will not use any long-range missile systems that the West can provide to attack residential areas in Russia.
Zelenskyy spoke from afar to Danish media on the eve of a meeting of global defense ministers in Brussels that it is possible to determine the weight and amount of support weapons that countries will provide to the army. Ukraine. Ukrainian cities have been attacked from afar by the Russian army’s long-range weapons that his army cannot reach.
“We are not interested in shelling civilians, we are not terrorists,” Zelenskyy said. “We need the right weapons … that can operate at such long distances.”
Zelenskyy said he was ready to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with or without a mediator, on ending the war and withdrawing Russian troops from Ukrainian territory.
“Only President Putin decides whether the Russian military should stop,” Zelenskyy said. “In Russia there is one person who decides absolutely everything for the citizens of Russia and for the Russian army.”
Contribution: Associated Press