Thursday, April 20, 2023

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg visited Ukraine on Thursday for the first time since Russia's military operation more than a year ago, a highly symbolic trip that underscores the alliance's commitment to help ing Kyiv defend itself.

The Kremlin quickly warned that Ukraine must not be allowed to join NATO.

Russia has given various and shifting justifications for going to war, but it has repeatedly pointed to the expansion of the military alliance toward its borders in recent years, including citing fears that Kyiv would be admitted.

Images published in local media showed Stoltenberg apparently paying tribute to fallen Ukrainian soldiers in Kiev’s St. Michael’s Square.

The visit, just two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin himself went to Ukraine, holds important symbolism, but its exact purpose was not immediately clear.

NATO has no official presence in Ukraine, but Stoltenberg has been the strong voice of the alliance throughout the war. He has been instrumental in garnering and coordinating support — including weapons, ammunition and training for Ukraine’s embattled troops — from the 31 countries that make up the organization.

Stoltenberg had been to Kyiv before the war, but this is his first visit during the hostilities.

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0943 GMT — Danes, Dutch to donate Leopard tanks to Ukraine

Denmark and the Netherlands have announced that they plan to provide Ukraine with at least 14 refurbished German-made Leopard 2 battle tanks, to be supplied from early 2024.

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen called it “a significant donation” which came on top of a contribution by Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany, announced in February, to supply at least 100 Leopard 1 A5 tanks.

In a joint statement, the Danish and Dutch defense ministers said the estimated cost of 165 million euros "to jointly acquire, refurbish and donate" will be equally divided between the two NATO members.

“In this way, we will jointly take part in the ‘Leopard 2 coalition’, supported by many partners and allies," they said.

Acting Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen stressed that the tanks were not Danish but are “bought in collaboration with the Netherlands.”

0526 GMT — Seoul says military aid for Ukraine 'depends on Russia'

South Korea's decision on whether to send military aid to Kiev depends on Russia's actions, Seoul's presidential office said Thursday, adding that a possible large-scale civilian attack could tip the balance.

Seoul has a long-standing policy against providing weapons to countries in active conflict, which it has repeatedly said makes it difficult to supply arms directly to Ukraine.

South Korea has supported the US-led sanctions on Moscow and has sent humanitarian aid to Kiev, while signing major arms deals — including for tanks and howitzers — with Poland.

On Thursday, President Yoon Suk-yeol's office said "South Korea could not just idly stand by and watch should there be killings that the international community takes seriously".

"What happens next depends on Russia," a presidential official told reporters on the condition of anonymity.

0451 GMT — Zelenskyy to address Mexico Congress

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is due to address Mexico's Congress by video, according to two people familiar with the matter, as he seeks support in his country's ongoing conflict with Russia.

The speech was due to take place around midday on Thursday, the sources said.

Zelenskyy's address to the lower house of Congress came at the invitation of a congressional friendship group between Mexico and Ukraine, according to the sources.

The German president and the US ambassador to Mexico have been among diplomatic allies that have sought to persuade the Mexican government to side with Ukraine against Russia.

Mexico's government has said it wants to remain neutral in the conflict, and some supporters of Ukraine have criticised the country's leftist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador for taking issue with European arms shipments to Kiev.

0130 GMT — Russia, Nicaragua downplay US sanctions

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega have played down the impact of US sanctions on officials of their two nations.

During a four-hour stopover in Managua, Lavrov met with Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo, who is also vice president.

"Today, the United States sanctioned three judges because they have applied justice against terrorists. We already have hundreds of fellow state officials sanctioned, but we are no longer afraid of that," Ortega said in a dialogue with Lavrov broadcast on state television.

Lavrov pointed out that people "who are under sanctions in Russia say that it is a recognition of their progress in the protection of Russia's rights."

"Westerners, under the auspices of such countries as the United States, try to unite as exclusive countries, try to proliferate their hegemony in conflicts such as, for example, in Ukraine," Lavrov said, according to an official translation.

"We, with our Nicaraguan supporters, are going to fight against such tendencies and prevent such acts."

0045 GMT — Two charged in $150M scheme with sanctioned Ukrainian oligarch

A US businessman and a Belarus national have been arrested in Florida and charged with violating US sanctions in a scheme that involved purchasing over $150 million in steelmaking materials from an exiled Ukrainian oligarch accused of funding Russian-backed separatist groups in eastern Ukraine.

John Unsalan, 41, of Orlando, was arrested last Friday, and Belarus national Sergey Karpushkin, 46, on Tuesday, according to court records.

“The arrest of John Can Unsalan should serve as a warning to those who seek to do business with sanctioned individuals or entities that endanger the security of the United States and our allies," US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

“The Justice Department is relentlessly pursuing those who seek to evade sanctions imposed against the Russian regime and whose crimes enable the regime to continue its unjust, illegal war in Ukraine," Garland said.

2347 GMT — Everything is being done to defend against Russia: Zelenskyy

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has commended the country's border guards after a visit to Volyn, near borders with Poland and Belarus.

"Together with all our defence and security forces, border guards are fighting on the frontline, particularly in the most difficult areas. Bakhmut, Donetsk region in general... True heroes who successfully completed hundreds and hundreds of combat missions," Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian leader said everything is being done to defend against Russian strikes.

"At the state level, everything is being done to increase the ability to defend against Russian strikes. Air defence systems and other weapons to protect the sky are already here in Ukraine, they are really powerful. But they should be — and, I am sure, will be — even more powerful."

For our live updates from Wednesday (April 19), click here.