What has happened in the last few hours
On day 421 since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, this is the top news at 8:00 p.m. this Thursday, April 20, 2023:
NATO will discuss Ukraine’s possible accession at the July summit in Lithuania. The NATO summit in Vilnius (Lithuania) in July will discuss Ukraine’s possible entry into the alliance. This was stated by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who paid a historic visit to Kiev this Thursday, in a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski. “Let me be clear: Ukraine’s place is in the Euro-Atlantic family. Their rightful place is in NATO. And over time, our support will help make that possible,” said the Atlantic Alliance leader. Zelenskyy is also convinced that “one day Ukraine will be in NATO”.
The Kremlin replies that one of its goals in the offensive is to prevent Ukraine from joining the alliance. One of the goals of the Russian military campaign in Ukraine is to prevent that country from joining NATO, the Kremlin stressed on Thursday, commenting on the surprise visit of the Secretary General of the Atlantic Alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, to Kiev on Thursday. Asked whether preventing Kiev’s entry into NATO remains a war aim, Russian Presidency spokesman Dmitry Peskov replied in his daily press briefing: “No doubt. Otherwise, the security of our country will be seriously and significantly jeopardized.”
Ukraine claims Russian troops switched to “strategic defense” after their offensive failed. Russian troops have switched to strategic defense in their war against Ukraine after their trumpeted “winter offensive” failed, Andrii Yusov, spokesman for Ukraine’s defense ministry’s main intelligence directorate, told the national news on Thursday. “The enemy can conduct tactical operations and try to carry them out. Overall, however, the Russians are moving towards strategic defense. The much-vaunted major winter offensive is long overdue. Regular tasks failed,” Yusov said.
Several Ukrainian soldiers accused of treason for providing data from an airbase to the Russians. Several Ukrainian soldiers have been charged with high treason, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said on Thursday, for attempting to seize a Russian plane “without coordination with the relevant state authorities” last July after I told its pilot I would desert. To do this, they revealed details about the whereabouts of the Ukrainian Air Force personnel and the planes that enabled Russia to conduct a successful missile attack on the Kanatove airfield in the center of the country.
Prigozhin is asking that the ex-mercenaries who denounced alleged crimes by the Wagner group in Ukraine be condemned. The head of the Wagner group of Russian mercenaries, Yevgeny Prigozhin, on Thursday demanded that Russian courts open criminal cases against two former mercenaries who accused him and his paramilitary force of murdering civilians in Ukraine. “The League for the Defense of the Interests of War Veterans (…) filed a lawsuit to initiate criminal proceedings against Azamat Uldarov and Alexei Savichev [por difamar al Ejército ruso]’ he explained on his Telegram channel. In addition, the organization founded by Prigozhin called for the opening of a criminal case “for extortion” against Vladimir Osechkin, the exiled founder of Gulagu.net, an NGO that defends the rights of Russian prisoners.
Russia claims “almost nothing has been done” to renew Black Sea agreements. Russia believes “virtually nothing has been done” in response to its calls to renew Black Sea grain export agreements, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday. This is another in a series of pessimistic comments from senior Moscow officials about the pact that allowed Ukraine to resume exports.
Robles will announce new deliveries of anti-aircraft and maritime and amphibious projections to Ukraine tomorrow. Spain has pledged new shipments of military materiel to Ukraine to boost the mobility, armor and protection of its army, in addition to anti-aircraft capabilities and maritime and amphibious protection and projection. This is what Defense Secretary Margarita Robles will convey tomorrow, Friday, to the allied countries of the so-called Ramstein Group at a meeting they will hold at the German military base to oversee the war and each country’s cooperation.