Russia and Ukraine Updates: Kremlin annexes four more Ukrainian regions after fake referendums | News | DW
Four Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine (Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia) that held so-called “referendums” on joining Russia will be incorporated into the country on Friday, the Kremlin said.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend a ceremony in the Kremlin where they will be officially folded into Russia.
Peskov told reporters that the heads of the four regions will sign treaties to join Russia during Friday’s ceremony in the Kremlin’s St. George’s Hall.
Putin will also give a major speech after the signing in the Kremlin and will meet Moscow-appointed administrators of the regions.
Ukraine and the West have denounced the vote as a hoax and said they will never recognize the Ukrainian regions as part of Russia.
Here is more news from or about the war in Ukraine on September 29.
Pope Francis says he is involved in prisoner exchange efforts in Ukraine
Pope Francis said he was involved in efforts to organize a prisoner exchange in Ukraine, although it was unclear what role he played. He mentioned his efforts during a meeting with the Jesuits in Kazakhstan last week, according to La Civiltà Cattolica, a Jesuit newspaper.
The Pope said he receives a steady number of visits from Ukrainian people and officials who tell him about the war. One was a military officer who focused on prisoner exchanges and gave him a list of more than 300 prisoners.
The Pope said the officer “asked me to do something to make an exchange possible. I immediately called the Russian ambassador to ask if something could be done, if a prisoner exchange could be expedited.”
Ukraine and Russia swapped 270 prisoners of war last week following previous swaps earlier in the war.
Finland will close its border to Russian tourists from Friday
Finland will close its border to Russian tourists from midnight local time (2100 GMT) on Friday, which is expected to result in a significant reduction in cross-border traffic, the Finnish government said.
“The decision in principle aims to completely prevent Russian tourism to Finland and the associated transit through Finland,” said Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto during a press conference.
Entry for family visits, as well as for work and study, will still be allowed, Haavisto said.
Other EU member states bordering Russia (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland) already restricted the entry of Russians on 19 September, preventing Russian citizens with Schengen visas from entering for tourism, business or for sporting or cultural events.
EU officials have previously said the bloc must agree on a common position on entry requests from Russians fleeing their country because of the war in Ukraine.
The Swedish Coast Guard found the fourth Nord Stream leak
A fourth leak has been found in Nord Stream’s gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, the Swedish coast guard said on Thursday.
“There are two leaks on the Swedish side and two leaks on the Danish side,” a coast guard official told reporters.
The fourth leak was on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, near a larger hole found on neighboring Nord Stream 1, the official said.
The report came after three pipeline leaks were found near the Danish island of Bornholm following several explosions recorded by seismologists.
European Union authorities suspect the damage was deliberate sabotage amid tensions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the bloc has pledged a “robust” response to any attempt to disrupt its energy infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said that leaks from Nord Stream’s pipelines have occurred in an economic sea zone in Denmark and Sweden, and that those countries are “fully controlled” by US intelligence services.
NATO sees ‘deliberate’ sabotage in Nord Stream leaks
NATO said leaks from Nord Stream gas pipelines appeared to be sabotage and vowed a “determined response” to any attack on its critical infrastructure.
“All currently available information indicates that this is the result of deliberate, reckless and irresponsible acts of sabotage,” the alliance said in a statement.
“We are supporting the ongoing investigations to determine the origin of the damage,” it said.
NATO also said that any deliberate attack on critical infrastructure in member countries “would be met with a united and decisive response.”
Russian ex-diplomat says Putin ‘put himself in a situation where he has no good way out’
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “was a huge miscalculation based on disinformation [Putin] received,” and the Russian leader “put himself in a situation where he has no good exits,” former Russian diplomat Boris Bondarev told DW.
According to Bondarev, the Russian army has been incompetent when it comes to conducting military operations in Ukraine.
“I don’t see how Russia can win and can achieve a real victory,” Bondarev said.
However, he said he could not rule out Putin using nuclear weapons. “The people who brag about nuclear strikes against the West, against the United States, are sure that there will be no retaliation,” the ex-diplomat added.
Bondarev resigned due to the war in Ukraine in May 2022. He was the only Russian government official to do so publicly.
German intelligence provides Ukraine with information on Russian positions — reports
According to the German newspaper Die Zeit and the German public service company ARD, the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) passes classified information on Russian positions and troop movements to Ukraine. These are said to be detailed reconnaissance from satellite images, intercepted radio messages and mobile phone conversations.
However, the data would reportedly be passed on to Ukraine with a delay of up to a few days, making it “not immediately” useful for planning and controlling deadly attacks. Also, only images from Ukraine itself would be shared, not images from Russia.
German media also reported that the BND had previously checked that the transfer of targeted information to Ukraine is legally permissible. In an expert report in May, the security service concluded that the disclosure of the reports was legally covered and that under international law it did not amount to Germany entering the war.
Baerbock condemns sham votes in occupied Ukrainian territories
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock sharply condemned the so-called referendums in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories.
During these “sham referendums,” Baerbock said, “people were taken out of their homes or out of their jobs” at gunpoint “to vote in glass ballot boxes.”
“This is the opposite of free and fair elections,” she added.
Baerbock accused Russia of wanting to enforce a “dictated peace”.
But as long as Russia’s occupation of the regions continues, the citizens there are neither safe nor free, the minister said.
She also justified the delivery of heavy weapons to Ukraine. These contribute to “Ukraine being able to protect the lives of its citizens.”
On Wednesday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a phone call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Germany would never recognize the results of the Moscow-organized annexation votes in the Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mario Draghi also said Italy will not recognize the results of “illegal” annexation referendums. The Italian leader’s office said Draghi had spoken to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to assure him of Rome’s “continued support” for Kyiv.
Russian partial mobilization likely to cause ‘brain drain’: UK Ministry of Defence
The number of wealthy and well-educated Russians leaving their country in the wake of the partial mobilization announced by President Vladimir Putin could have a significant impact on the Russian economy, according to an intelligence update from the British Ministry of Defence.
“When combined with the reservists being mobilized, the domestic economic impact of reduced labor availability and the acceleration of the ‘brain drain’ is likely to be increasingly significant,” the update said.
It said the number of those leaving to avoid conscription probably exceeds “the size of the total invasion force Russia was fielding in February 2022.”
Ukraine’s Zelenskyy appeals to Germany again for more weapons
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he once again called for additional arms deliveries from Germany in a phone call with Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday.
“On the topic of defense, I emphasized that we are waiting for an anti-missile defense system from Germany,” Zelenskyy said in his daily video address on Wednesday night, adding that he was “grateful” for Germany’s willingness to help with anti-aircraft defense.
Zelenskyy said he had discussed a number of other topics with the German chancellor, including the suspected sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines. He said he had also insisted that the planned new package of EU sanctions against Russia would be “really strong, not just symbolic.”
The German government said Scholz assured Zelenskyy in the phone call that Berlin would “concretely help Ukraine politically, economically and with humanitarian aid, and to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
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tj/sms (AFP, Reuters, AP)