Von der Leyen in kyiv to discuss Ukraine’s European ‘path’

I returned to Kyiv to meet with President Zelensky and Prime Minister “Dynys” ChmygalUrsula von der Leyen told reporters, includingAFPaccompanying him on his visit.

” We will review the joint work needed for reconstruction and the development of Ukraine on the road to Europe. “

Those responsible forEU should decide on the question of Ukraine’s European ambitions next week, before a summit on June 23 and 24 that should also address this issue.

Ukraine demands a legal commitment concrete at the end of June on the part of Europeans to obtain official candidate status for admission toEUbut 27 is very divisive in question.

Fight multiplication

Ms van der Leyen arrived in Ukraine amid intensifying fighting in the east.

In its morning update on the situation, President Zelensky’s office reported on Saturday bombing nocturnal by the occupants in some towns or villages in this region, among the goals of Moscow: in the regions of Kharkiv, Lugansk and Donetsk, in particular.

Russia wants to destroy every city in the Donbass, every one, without exaggerationconfirmed Mr. Zelensky on Friday night.

The Ukrainian military is doing everything to prevent the invaders ’attacks, as much as possible using the most heavy weapons and modern artillery. that Ukraine has, everything we ask for and continue to ask of our partnershe launched as the battle for the main city of Sievierodonetsk and its twin Lysytchansk appears increasingly deadly.

The enemy continues to conduct attacks on the city of Sievierodonetsksaid this Saturday morning the Chief of Staff of the Ukrainian armies, stating that fourteen attacks were repelled in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions within 24 hours, but Russian troops encountered a partial success outside the village of Orikhovo.

The passage through Sievierodonetsk will open Moscow’s route to another major city, Kramatorsk, an important step in conquering the entire Donbass basin, a predominantly Russian-speaking region in eastern Ukraine, partially held by pro-Russian separatist since 2014.

In Lysytchansk, residents saidAFP the difficult choice they face: stay despite the bombings, or flee and leave their homes.

Yevhen Jyryada, 39, said the only access to water now is through the distribution center in town.

We have to go there under bombing and under firehe said, this is how we live

On another front, in the Kherson region (south) – almost entirely occupied since the first days of the invasion and where kyiv fears a rapid annexation of Moscow – Ukrainian forces indicated on Friday that they had bombed the positions of Russia.

The Ukrainian operational command determined that a reconnaissance group that infiltrated this occupied territory had defeated Russian troops, seizing their weapons and means of communication.

In addition, the head of the Ukrainian presidential administration Andriï Yermak announced on Saturday the death of a military journalist, Oleksiy Chubashev, without providing details on the circumstances of the death of one responsible for a program of recruitment and television of the Ukrainian military.

Fighting was also intense in the Mykolaiv region, near Odessa.

The Russians aimed at us with heavy artillery, either in town or in the villagessaid toAFP Vitali Kim, governor of this region.

The Russian army is stronger, they have a lot of artillery and ammunition. Right now, it’s an artillery war … and we don’t have ammunitionHe added. Help from Europe and the United States is very, very important because we need ammunition to defend our country.

Kyiv wants new weapons

Ukrainians continue to ask their Western allies for new, more powerful weapons.

The delivery of multiple rocket launcher systems, including Himars with a range of approximately 80 km, slightly larger than Russia’s systems, has been announced by Washington and London.

In this context, British Defense Minister Ben Wallace made an unannounced visit to Kyiv, where President Zelensky thanked him for London’s leading role in Western support for Ukraine.

The visit of Mr. Wallace arrived a day after the authorities announced the Republic pro-Russian separatist in Donetsk of death sentence for mercenaryism of two Britons and a Moroccan who fought on the Ukrainian side.

France, for its part, has said it is ready to help lift the blockade on the Ukrainian port of Odessa, in order to release cereals to Ukraine, whose blockade is causing a food crisis in the world.

The announcement was made by an adviser to French President Emmanuel Macron, who received Senegalese President Macky Sall, who is also President of the African Union, on Friday.

Mr. called. Sall on Thursday for the demolition of the port of Odessa, and indicated that he had received assurances from President Vladimir Putin that the Russians would not take advantage of the attack, as the Ukrainians feared.

Black Sea navigation was blocked and enemy ships held almost all Ukrainian territory under the threat of missile strikesexplained the Ukrainian operational command of the southern region, on the evening of Friday to Saturday.

The Russian invasion launched on February 24 paralyzed cereal exports from Ukraine-a major player in this sector-and caused a rise in cereal and fertilizer prices, threatening a food crisis in many countries. , especially in Africa and the Middle East. orientals.