If you are following the latest developments in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, here is what you need to know: From Mariupol: Dennis Pushilin, the leader of the separatist People’s Republic of Donetsk, ordered the formation of a municipal administration for the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol, according to a decree published on the LDD leader’s website on Thursday. . Thursday. The city is located within the boundaries of the Donetsk region of Ukraine. The city was under the control of the Ukrainian government before the war, but the Russian government – which recognized the independence of the DRC at the end of February – considers the whole region to be an autonomous democracy. Meanwhile, the evacuation corridor in Mariupol agreed by Ukrainian and Russian officials, announced on Thursday, is “insufficient” to allow the rescue of civilians “under the right conditions”, France said. Rubles for Russian gas: According to a recently signed decree, buyers of gas from “unfriendly countries” will have to open and pay from ruble accounts in Russian banks, President Vladimir Putin announced. France, Germany and the United Kingdom have said they will not pay for Russian gas in rubles. Russia withdraws from Chernobyl: The site of the worst nuclear disaster in the world in 1986 and the surrounding area fell into the hands of Russian troops in the first week of the war in Ukraine. But in a Telegram post on Thursday, Energoatom, the state-owned company overseeing Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, said Russian troops had announced their intention to leave and hand over control to Ukrainian personnel. The U.S. also sees Russian forces “withdrawing” from Chernobyl and north and northwest of Kiev, a senior U.S. defense official told reporters Thursday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called on the Belgian government to help with “weapons, sanctions, accession to the European Union”, adding that “the future may soon pay off”. By the end of Thursday, Zelensky will have addressed 17 world parliaments in a bid to rally support during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. NATO Secretary-General Says NATO Troops “Not Withdrawing But Replacing”: Speaking at a press conference in Brussels on the Secretary-General’s Annual Report for 2021, units are not withdrawn but repositioned. Russia is trying to regroup, resupply and step up its offensive in the Donbas region. “At the same time, Russia is putting pressure on Kyiv and other cities … we can expect additional offensive actions that will bring even more suffering,” Stoltenberg said.
