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Ukraine conflict – day 351: Zelenskyy thanks EU, Kremlin warns NATO against 'direct' role
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Europe;Ukraine
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola stands next to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium. /Alain Rolland/Reuters
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola stands next to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium. /Alain Rolland/Reuters

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola stands next to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium. /Alain Rolland/Reuters

TOP HEADLINES

· Russian forces have significantly stepped up attacks in eastern Ukraine and are trying to break through Ukrainian defenses near the town of Kreminna, said Luhansk regional governor Serhiy Haidai. He added that Ukraine's military were holding their ground near Kreminna but they needed more weapons to hold out.

· Russian attacks remained intense in the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions, said Ukrainian officials. Moscow's forces concentrated on the areas of Kupiansk, Lyman, Bakhmut and Aviivka, the General Staff said on Facebook. Kyiv says it expects a big push from Moscow as the anniversary of the conflict approaches.

· Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy said "thank you" in a speech to EU lawmakers, who gave him a long ovation, some of them wearing the blue and yellow colours of the Ukrainian flag. "I would like to thank you, all of you, who have been helping our people, our ordinary citizens, our resettled people here who called on their leaders to increase and enhance their support," he said.

· Zelenskyy met UK leaders in London and inspected Ukrainian troops training on western war gear, then flew to Paris to meet President Emmanuel Macron and Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Macron's plane then brought him to Brussels.

· Zelenskyy urged France and Germany to deliver combat planes and heavy weaponry "as soon as possible," saying time was of the essence in the fight against the Russians. "The sooner Ukraine gets long-range heavy weaponry, the sooner our pilots get planes, the sooner this Russian aggression will end and we can return to peace in Europe," he said in Paris. READ MORE BELOW

· Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Paris was "inappropriate."  She said in Brussels: "I believe our strength is community and unity... but there are times when favoring internal public opinion risks being to the detriment of the cause, and this seems to me to be one of those cases."

· UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said UK Challenger 2 tanks would be deployed in Ukraine next month. "The Ukrainian crews who arrived last week will be using Challenger 2 tanks to defend Ukraine sovereign territory next month," Sunak said at a joint press conference with Zelenskyy.

· Sunak also said "nothing is off the table" in terms of military aid for Ukraine, and that fighter jets for Ukraine were "part of the conversation."

· Russia said that it would respond if the UK sends warplanes to Ukraine, warning of an escalation. "Russia will find a response to any unfriendly steps taken by the British side," Moscow's embassy in London said. It added that London would bear responsibility for the ''bloody harvest' of the next round of escalation as well as military and political consequences ensuing from this for the European continent and the whole world."

· Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that any delivery of advanced NATO-standard fighter jets would only bring pain and suffering to Ukrainians and criticized NATO countries taking a more "direct" role in the conflict. READ MORE BELOW

· The White House flatly rejected a new report by veteran U.S. investigative journalist Seymour Hersh that the U.S. was behind the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines last year. In a self-published report, Hersh wrote that U.S. Navy divers helped by Norway had planted explosives on the pipelines running under the Baltic Sea between Russia and Germany last June and detonated them three months later. The Norwegian foreign ministry said: "These claims are false." 

· The Kremlin said the world must know the truth about who blew up the Nord Stream gas pipelines and that there should be an international probe of the sabotage after the U.S. investigative journalist's finidings.

· The Wagner mercenary group said it had ended its recruitment drive at prisons across Russia, which aimed to bolster Moscow's forces fighting in Ukraine. "The recruitment of prisoners to the private mercenary group Wagner had stopped completely," its founder Yevgeny Prigozhin said in a statement. 

· In December 2022, among the EU members for which data is available, Poland granted the highest number of temporary protection statuses to Ukrainians fleeing Ukraine (31,860) as a consequence of Russia's offensive, followed by Germany (25,110), Romania (11,260) and France (6,070).

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) welcomes Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (R) upon his arrival at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris. /Emmanuel Dunand/AFP
France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) welcomes Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (R) upon his arrival at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris. /Emmanuel Dunand/AFP

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) welcomes Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (R) upon his arrival at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris. /Emmanuel Dunand/AFP

IN DETAIL

Zelenskyy asks for support as he visits London, Paris and Brussels

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's tour of European capitals brought him to Brussels on Thursday to lobby EU leaders for jets and long-range weapons to bolster Kyiv's defenses against the Russian attack.

After almost a year of the most brutal combat on European soil in decades, Kyiv's unlikely war leader, a former television actor, has made only two trips abroad to rally Kyiv's Western allies.

On Wednesday, he met UK leaders in London and inspected Ukrainian troops training on western war gear, then flew on to Paris to dine with President Emmanuel Macron and Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

Macron's plane then brought him to Brussels, where he was to make a much-anticipated address to the European Parliament, then attend the regular summit of the 27 European Union heads of state and government.

The EU leaders will also tout the $72 billion they have spent on military and financial aid to Kyiv, including funds spent on hosting four million Ukrainian refugees.

Ukraine's army is facing a renewed Russian offensive and its commanders want modern western fighter jets to free its skies from Moscow's raiders.     

"The sooner Ukraine gets long-range heavy weaponry, the sooner our pilots get planes, the sooner this Russian aggression will end and we can return to peace in Europe," Zelenskyy said in Paris.

"There is very little time," he warned.

Macron and Scholz pledged that Europe would back Ukraine until its eventual victory. Arriving at the Brussels summit, Scholz told reporters: "We are gathered here today to give a sign of solidarity and unity. 

"We can send out this signal once again and show that we will continue our support for Ukraine in defending its independence and integrity for as long as necessary."

An empty grave in the forest near the town of Izyum, Kharkiv region, where the bodies of 451 dead people were buried during the Russian occupation. /Sergey Bobok/AFP
An empty grave in the forest near the town of Izyum, Kharkiv region, where the bodies of 451 dead people were buried during the Russian occupation. /Sergey Bobok/AFP

An empty grave in the forest near the town of Izyum, Kharkiv region, where the bodies of 451 dead people were buried during the Russian occupation. /Sergey Bobok/AFP

Kremlin criticizes NATO countries' 'direct' role in the conflict

The Kremlin said it would be Ukrainians who would suffer if the UK or other Western countries supplied fighter jets to Kyiv, and said Moscow would press on with its military campaign in Ukraine regardless of what arms the West sent.

During a visit to London on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the UK to send advanced fighter jets to Kyiv as part of the next stage of Western arms supplies to help Ukraine's forces.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that any delivery of advanced NATO-standard fighter jets would only bring pain and suffering to Ukrainians and criticized NATO countries taking a more "direct" role in the conflict.

"This is nothing more than the growing involvement of the United Kingdom, Germany and France in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine," Peskov told reporters.

"The line between indirect and direct involvement is gradually disappearing. One can only express regret in this regard, and say that such actions... lead to an escalation of tension, prolong the conflict and make the conflict more and more painful for Ukraine," he added.

If the West agrees to Zelenskyy's calls for fighter jets, Peskov said, Russia will not be deterred and will continue with what it calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine until Moscow has met its objectives.

Source(s): AFP ,Reuters

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