Did you miss the latest events on the war in Ukraine? Do not panic, 20 minutes takes stock for you every evening at 7:30 p.m. Who did what ? Who said what? Where are we ? The answer below:
news of the day
Hands off Wagner. Russian deputies voted on Tuesday a text punishing heavy prison sentences for “discrediting” private mercenary groups, such as that of Yevgeny Prigojine. This measure is already in force concerning the Russian army and serves to repress critics of the offensive in Ukraine.
The criminal sanctions punishing “the fact of discrediting the armed forces of Russia are extended to the formations of volunteers, organizations and natural persons who provide assistance to the armed forces to carry out their mission”, indicated the Duma, the lower house of the Parliament, on its website.
“All those who today risk their lives to ensure the security of the country and citizens are protected from provocations and lies” with this law, estimated the president of the Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, specifying that the “sanctions will be heavy, up to 15 years of deprivation of liberty”.
sentence of the day
The State of Evil continues to wage war on the civilian population”
New Russian bombardments on Ukraine claimed the life of at least one civilian on Tuesday. One person was killed and three injured in the morning after a strike on the center of Kramatorsk, in eastern Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. Six residential buildings were damaged, he said on Facebook, adding that rescue operations were continuing. The mayor of the city told him of 25 damaged buildings. “The State of Evil continues to wage war on the civilian population” but will “without fault” be punished for these “murders”, again launched the president to address Russia.
A city of about 150,000 people before the Russian invasion launched more than a year ago, Kramatorsk is near Bakhmout, the epicenter of fighting for months. Regularly bombarded by the Russian army, Kramatorsk has played the role of a regional center since the occupation of the city of Donetsk in 2014 by Russian and pro-Russian forces.
The number of the day
Three. This is the number of Russian poets imprisoned after taking part in a reading against the conflict in Ukraine. They were accused of threatening “state security” and were charged, the lawyer for one of the accused told AFP on Tuesday.
According to this lawyer, Leonid Solovyov, the three young men are being prosecuted for “public calls to commit activities against state security”, but also for “incitement to hatred” in an “organized group”. They face a total of ten years in prison for these two counts, said the lawyer.
Artiom Kamardin, Yegor Shtovba and Nikolai Daïneko were arrested in September after taking part in a reading in Moscow on Mayakovsky Square, a place where dissidents have gathered since the Soviet period. During this reading, Artiom Kamardine had recited a poem, Kill me, militiaman!very hostile to pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine.
The trend of the day
Nothing has yet been decided on the export of Ukrainian cereals. Consultations in Geneva on an extension of the deal that helped ease a global food crisis continued on Tuesday. “Consultations with all parties are continuing at all levels,” said Jens Laerke, a spokesperson for the United Nations humanitarian agency (OCHA), without being able to say what will happen when the expiry date expires. March 18 of the agreement, already extended by 120 days in the fall. “We will see on Saturday, what will happen on Saturday,” he said, pressed with questions by journalists in Geneva.
After discussions on Monday, Moscow had indicated that it did not oppose the extension of the agreement but only for 60 days instead of the double. For Moscow, this proposal represents a gesture of goodwill. However, 120 days are provided for in the document accepted last summer by Russia and Ukraine and whose application is guaranteed by the UN and Turkey.