L’The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced Monday, October 3 the release of the director general of the Zaporijjia nuclear power plant, after his arrest on Friday by Russia. At the same time, the Russian Parliament unanimously ratified the law on the annexation of four Ukrainian regions. Franceinfo looks back on what to remember from this day, on the front of the war in Ukraine.
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Zaporizhia plant director freed
The general manager of Ukraine’s Zaporizhia nuclear power plant was released on Monday, the IAEA, which has experts on site. Igor Murachov had been arrested Friday, September 30 by Russia, which controls the site. He had been arrested by a “Russian Patrol” on his way from the plant to the Russian-held town of Enerhodar, according to Ukrainian operator Energoadom. “I have received confirmation that he has returned home safe and sound,” tweeted IAEA boss Rafael Grossi.
The Zaporijjia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, has been occupied since the beginning of March by Russian troops, but is not far from the demarcation line between the territories controlled by kyiv and those occupied by Moscow. It is located in the Zaporizhia region, one of the Ukrainian territories officially annexed by Russia on Friday.
Russian parliament ratifies law on annexation of four Ukrainian regions
Unsurprisingly, Russian MPs on Monday unanimously approved the law on the annexation of four Ukrainian regions, a decision that had already been approved by President Vladimir Putin and had drawn a shower of international condemnation.
The deputies of the Duma, the lower house of Parliament, all voted in favor of the annexation of the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk (eastern Ukraine), as well as those of Kherson and Zaporizhya (south), according to the live broadcast of the voting ceremony on Russian television. Neither abstention nor vote against were registered. Ukraine responded by requesting a “accelerated membership” to NATO and declaring that it would not negotiate with Moscow as long as Vladimir Putin is president.
Elisabeth Borne reaffirms France’s support for Ukraine
“We have no right to weaken (…) We must be united”, declared the Prime Minister to the National Assembly, as part of the return to parliament, Monday. The war in Ukraine “is not just a conflict between two countries. (…) This war is a fight for our values”, said Elisabeth Borne to parliamentarians, calling for continued sanctions against Russia.
These last “work”she pointed out, “No offense to those who hide their fascination for Russian imperialism with a so-called patriotism”. “Our goal has been the same from the start: to make the cost of war unbearable for Russia”she hammered. The Head of Government thus reaffirmed the importance of “multilateralism” to advance in the conflict: “We are strong when we move forward together, she said. Russia thought it found NATO weak and divided, it reunited it.”
Dissident journalist Marina Ovsiannikova placed on wanted list
Journalist Marina Ovsiannikova has been placed on the wanted list in Russia, according to a notice seen on Monday by AFP concerning this voice critical of the conflict in Ukraine, known for having brandished a pacifist sign on television. The website of the Russian Interior Ministry specifies that Marina Ovsiannikova, 44, is wanted in connection with a criminal case, without further details.
The journalist was charged in August for “dissemination of false information” on the Russian army, a crime punishable by 10 years in prison. She had since been under house arrest. Igor Ovsyannikov, her ex-husband, told RT on Saturday that she had violated her house arrest and left with their 11-year-old daughter. Franceinfo could not reach his lawyer immediately.
An advance of the Ukrainian forces in the east of the country
Ukrainian forces retained the initiative on Monday and continued their advance in eastern Ukraine after seizing the strategic town of Lyman on Sunday, while maintaining pressure on the Russian army in the Kherson region (south ).
In the Donbass basin, the loss of Lyman, in the Donetsk region annexed by Moscow, is a major setback for the Russian army, unable at this stage to control all of the territories it occupies. “The announcement of the annexations contrasts sharply with the military reality on the ground”observes Michael Kofman, of the think tank Center for a New American Security (CNAS).