Regarding the casualties and destruction caused by Russia's war of aggression, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged justice for his country. "Justice for our state, for all our people who have lost their relatives, their friends, their health, their homes and their normal lives because of Russian aggression, because of the terror of the occupying forces," he said in his evening video address on Friday
Zelenskyj: The day of justice will come
Zelenskyj commemorated the victims of the short Russian occupation on Friday in the Kiev suburb of Bucha with international guests. Moldovan President Maia Sandu and the heads of government of Slovakia, Slovenia and Croatia - Eduard Heger, Robert Golob and Andrej Plenkovic - took part in the commemoration.
After their invasion a good 13 months ago, Russian troops captured the small town of Bucha near Kiev in early March 2022. On March 30th they withdrew again. Three days later, published images of the bound bodies of civilians caused international outrage. Bucha is a symbol of Russian war crimes around the world.
In the afternoon, Zelenskyy and his guests held a conference of "United for Justice" (United for Justice), at which Ukraine wants to gather support for the prosecution of Russian war crimes. "And the day will come when the world will hear that justice has been restored to Ukraine," Zelenskyy announced.
Zelenskyj about the possible end of the war
At his meeting with foreign heads of state and government, Zelenskyi reaffirmed his vision of a peaceful solution. First, a representative of Russia - whoever that might be, he doesn't know - must withdraw all troops from all areas of Ukraine without a fight. "Then the diplomatic format begins," Zelenskyy was quoted as saying by the Ukrainian media. However, should Ukraine be forced to forcefully expel all Russians, then there would be nothing to talk about in view of the many victims. "Then what should one talk about with such people at all?"
Zelenskyj accuses Russia of losing touch with reality
For Zelenskyy, Russia's intention to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus is a sign that the meeting between Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin and China's head of state Xi Jinping was not crowned with success. "One should have shown Russia a sense of reality, which the country has completely lost under President Putin," quoted the "Ukrajinska Pravda" Zelenskyj. Putin received Xi in Moscow the previous week. In addition, Belarus' ruler Alexander Lukashenko has lost all independence, said Zelenskyj. "I don't think he decides what weapons are on his territory anymore."
Against the background of high tensions with the West as a result of the Ukraine war, Putin recently announced that he would station tactical nuclear weapons in the neighboring ex-Soviet republic of Belarus. He justified the stationing by saying that the USA had been doing something similar in Europe for years.
UN warn of nuclear escalation
After the Russian announcement to station nuclear weapons in Belarus, the United Nations warned of an escalation. "All states must avoid measures that could lead to escalations, mistakes or misjudgments," said the UN representative for disarmament issues, Izumi Nakamitsu, on Friday before the UN Security Council in New York. The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons must also be observed.
Kiev: Russia attacks civilian targets again
The Ukrainian military leadership accused the Russian armed forces of again focusing on civilian targets. "Having failed to achieve the desired results on the battlefield, the enemy continues to cynically terrorize the civilian population of our country," the Ukrainian general staff's evening situation report said on Friday. Among other things, the city of Zaporizhia and other places were attacked with ballistic missiles. At least six so-called kamikaze drones were shot down by the Ukrainian air defense. The information could not be independently verified.
According to the generals in Kiev, the Russian ground troops continued their attacks at Avdiivka, Marjinka and Bakhmut in the east of the country. Russian troops continued to try to take full control of the city of Bakhmut, which had been heavily fought over for months.
Ukraine uses "smart" bombs
As part of military aid from the West, so-called smart bombs are now available to the Ukrainian Air Force. "We now have bombs called JDAM," Air Force spokesman Yuri Ihnat said on television on Friday. In principle, JDAM (Joint Direct Attack Munition) are conversion kits developed in the USA for conventional bombs which, thanks to a navigation system, become highly precise weapons. "These bombs are a little less powerful, but they are extremely accurate," said Ihnat. "We would like to have more of these bombs to be successful at the front."
That will be important on Saturday
New fighting is expected in eastern Ukraine.
