DHe believes that any concrete chance of Ukraine joining NATO will be thwarted for the time being. According to the German Press Agency, alliance members such as the United States and Germany have recently clarified behind closed doors that they do not intend to make any commitments beyond the vague NATO declaration from 2008 for the time being. In it, the then Heads of State and Heads of State agreed that Ukraine and Georgia should be NATO members. But, there is no firm schedule or timetable for this.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently called on NATO to clear the way for joining the Western military alliance at its next summit in July. Zelenskyj said after a visit to Kiev by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg that the majority of people would not understand if Kiev did not receive a “deserved invitation” to the summit in Lithuania, whether in Ukraine, Europe or NATO. . He reasoned that no one is currently contributing more to Euro-Atlantic security than Ukrainian players. So his country has done everything to ensure that Kiev’s application is granted.
At the request of the German Press Agency, US President Joe Biden’s government did not comment on internal talks ahead of the summit in Lithuania. However, he implicitly confirmed that he considers further arms supplies and other assistance to Ukraine more important in the current situation than plans to join NATO. “We are focused on getting practical support into the hands of the Ukrainians as soon as possible,” a senior government official told dpa. It also examines what can be done in the long term to strengthen Ukraine’s ability to resist and deter aggression.
All Improvements in Live Ticker:
07:30 am – Governor: Ukrainian conflict is a shell of a Russian village
Ukrainian forces shelled a village in Russia’s Bryansk region on the border with Ukraine, the local governor said. “In the morning, the Armed Forces of Ukraine shelled the village of Kurkovychi in the Starodubsky District,” Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomas writes via Telegram. There were no injuries. A fire broke out in a house.
05:19 – Russia: Grain deal on hold due to Russian export embargo
According to Russia, there has been no progress on extending the grain deal, which expires on May 18. Andrei Ledenev of the Russian Embassy in the United States wrote in a telegram that some parts of the agreement did not comply with the government in Moscow’s intention to export its own agricultural products through Black Sea ports. The financial and logistical problems of sending Russian grain and fertilizers due to the West’s “sanctions strategy” have not yet been resolved. “Importing agricultural equipment to Russia is difficult.”
1:48 am – Wagner Boss: Mercenaries need 300 tons of ammunition per day.
According to their boss, Yevgeny Prigozh, the Wagner mercenary unit was still out of ammunition. The Battle of Pakmut requires about 300 tons of artillery shells per day, but Wagner receives only a third of this amount, Prigozhin wrote in his Telegram channel. “300 tonnes per day corresponds to ten cargo containers – that’s not much.”
In a separate statement, he explained that his troops had advanced about 120 meters into Bagmut, losing 86 of his fighters. Prigozhin repeatedly clashed with the government in Moscow over the conduct of the war in Ukraine and insufficient support for his militias.
9:46 pm – Zelenskyj: Anti-aircraft defense should be more effective
After recent Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced more effective anti-aircraft defenses. “We are working as intensively as possible with our partners to make the security of our airspace more reliable,” Zelenskyj said in his video address on Monday evening. “Last night alone, from midnight to 7 a.m., we shot down 15 Russian missiles,” Zelensky said. “But unfortunately not all of them are.”
Zelensky’s statement was attributed to Russian attacks with cruise missiles and rockets throughout the day and night on Monday. At least 34 people were injured when several projectiles landed in Pavlohrad, central Ukraine. Many buildings were destroyed or damaged. Zelenskyj announced a response to the attacks. “Russian aggressors will respond to such an attack,” he said.
8:15 pm – US: More than 20,000 Russian fighters killed in Ukraine since December
According to US statistics, more than 20,000 Russian fighters have been killed and 80,000 wounded since December in the war in Ukraine, particularly the Battle of Pakmut. Half of the dead were Wagner mercenaries, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Monday, citing US intelligence. Many of the mercenaries were ex-prisoners who were poorly trained and sent into battle without adequate military leadership.
“Russia’s attempted offensive in the Donbass through Bakmut has failed,” Kirby said. “Russia has not succeeded in seizing really strategically important territory.” Russia is paying a “horribly, terribly high price” for this. Russian forces and the Ukrainian army have been fighting for months over the city of Pakmut in eastern Ukraine.
Kirby did not provide any information about losses on the Ukrainian side. Ukraine should decide for itself whether to provide information on dead and wounded soldiers, he said. “They are victims here. And Russia is the aggressor.
7:50 pm – Scholz: New ammunition for Ukrainian Gebhardt tanks from August
According to President Olaf Scholes, Ukraine can expect ammunition for the Cheetah anti-aircraft tank from Germany from August. Production is being set up, but it will take some time, Scholes said at a public talk in Bendorf, near Koblenz. The president insisted that Ukraine should not shell Russian territory with German-supplied weapons. Other Western countries supplying weapons to Ukraine have drawn on these rules. Scholz said that everything must be done to prevent a war between Russia and NATO, with all necessary assistance.
President Olaf Scholes promised Ukraine new ammunition for the Leopard in Koblenz.
Which: REUTERS
16:13 – Ukrainian army announced counterattacks in Pakmut
In months of fighting around the city of Pakmut in the Donetsk region, Ukrainian troops continue to put up fierce resistance against the invading Russians. Russia is trying to bring the city under its control with maximum pressure, but has so far failed, said Oleksandr Chirskyj, commander of Ukraine’s ground forces. “In some parts of the city, our units counterattacked the enemy and they left some positions.”
Ukrainian troops engaged in bitter street fighting with fighters from the Russian mercenary Wagner and other units in Pakmut. The Ukrainians, surrounded on three sides and guarding the so-called Road of Life, are the only link they still maintain there with the West, with particular emphasis on the supply and distribution of soldiers.
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