Live – Vladimir Putin attends nuclear deterrence force exercise

Nuclear deterrence

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday attended training of his strategic deterrence forces, troops responsible for responding to threats including nuclear war, the Kremlin announced.

“Under the leadership of Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Vladimir Putin, the ground, sea and air strategic deterrence forces conducted training and practical launches of ballistic and cruise missiles,” the Kremlin said in a statement.

China

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu spoke today via video conference with his Chinese counterpart, Russian Defense Telegram reported. “They discussed the situation in Ukraine”, we can read on the social network. Sergei Shoigu told his Chinese counterpart his concerns about possible provocations by Ukraine with a “dirty bomb,” the Russian military notes.

Mercedes

German automobile group Mercedes-Benz will sell its assets in Russia to a local investor, the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade confirms, amid an attack on Ukraine and Western sanctions, AFP reported.

“Mercedes-Benz will sell shares in its Russian subsidiaries to a local investor,” Russian company AVTODOM said in a statement. AVTODOM, the new owner of the Russian subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz, will be able to attract other companies as partners to organize the joint production of cars at the Mercedes plant in Yesipovo, which will open in 2019 and is located about fifty kilometers from Moscow. , according to the same source.

Mercedes

Mercedes is the third automaker to announce its exit from Russia, according to Russian media outlet Nexta.

Yacht Race

South Africa will allow a sanctioned Russian oligarch’s yacht to dock in Cape Town, the BBC reported. South African opposition leaders urged the government to seize the 465-foot-long (141 m) boat. But a spokesman for President Cyril Ramaphosa said there was “no reason” to comply with Western sanctions.

Commandos Afghans

According to the US intelligence base Foreign policy, Russia will recruit members of the Afghan National Army Commando to fight in Ukraine. These commandos – numbering between 20,000 and 30,000 men – were trained by US and British forces before the Republic of Afghanistan fell to the Taliban, prompting the Americans to withdraw in August 2021.

Russian losses

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry estimated in its daily report (the figures have not been verified) that 480 Russian soldiers had died in the past 24 hours.

Gerson

“Recapturing Kherson will take days,” reports our special correspondent in eastern Ukraine, Marie-Aline Melyi, who was able to speak with soldiers in Kiev. “In recent days, the Ukrainian army announced the recapture of dozens of locations in this region,” he adds. “While the Russians have the most superior firepower in the east, the dynamic is reversing.

Demining

After Lyman’s liberation, the city is riddled with mines, making it extremely dangerous for its people. Our Special Envoys have gone to secure the site and meet demining personnel to help restore normal life. Work across the region will take decades.

Vandalism

Since June, there have been at least six incidents of railway sabotage in Russia, according to the British Ministry of Defense in its daily update. The latest happened a few days ago, near the border with Belarus.

The attack was carried out by the Russian anti-war group “Stop the Wagons”. “This is part of a larger trend of dissident attacks on railways in Russia and Belarus. Russian authorities have already cracked down on STW’s online presence,” the group said. “Russian leaders will be increasingly concerned that even a small number of citizens have resisted the conflict enough to engage in physical sabotage.”

244th day of war

Russia continues to label it a nuclear threat, while the US warns Moscow of the consequences of a possible strike. For his part, Volodymyr Zelensky is calling on Westerners to commit to the reconstruction of Ukraine. An update on the situation on this 244th day of the war.

Macron and Scholes

The French president and the German chancellor will try to restart the Franco-German alliance this Wednesday, which has been weighed down by persistent conflicts over everything from energy to security in the wake of the war in Ukraine. During lunch at the Elysée, the two leaders will aim to “strengthen Franco-German cooperation” and respond to common challenges “in an integrated and united manner,” the French president briefed on Tuesday.

Putin acknowledged difficulties on the pitch

Addressing his ministers during his new coordination meeting, Putin on Tuesday spoke about Russia’s difficulties in the Ukrainian conflict for the first time since the war began. The Kremlin mastermind wants to review the system and especially the equipment of the Russian army, while videos of soldiers at the front point to the living conditions and lack of equipment. The Kremlin wants the entire economy to serve the military. .

38 billion

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on the international community on Tuesday for a fiscal effort to cover the $38 billion budget deficit expected to be caused by a Russian invasion of Ukraine next year.

Speaking from Kyiv at an international conference dedicated to the reconstruction of Ukraine in Berlin, President Zelensky urged participants to “make a decision to close the Ukrainian budget deficit hole” by 2023.

The first exchange between Biden and Sunac

In their first phone call, US President Joe Biden and Britain’s new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stressed the need to “support Ukraine” and cooperate in the face of “challenges posed by China,” the White House said Tuesday.

Joe Biden and Rishi Sunak “agree on the importance of working together to support Ukraine and hold Russia accountable for its aggression, address challenges posed by China, and ensure sustainable and affordable energy resources,” the US executive underlined in a press release. liberation

Fact check

On Monday, Moscow released evidence that it had developed a “dirty bomb” in Ukraine. The montage is made up of five photographs. Between diversions and archives, these scenes prove nothing.