kyiv accused Moscow after the broadcast of a video showing, according to Volodymyr Zelensky, “the execution of a Ukrainian prisoner of war”.
Chilling images. An excruciating video showing the beheading of an alleged Ukrainian prisoner of war angered Ukraine on Wednesday April 12, prompting President Volodymyr Zelensky to denounce a new exaction of “monsters” Russians. Russia called to check the“authenticity” of the video, she who usually rejects the charges of crimes brought against her soldiers. Here are the main facts of this new day of conflict.
kyiv blames Moscow after shock video of beheading
“This video of the execution of a Ukrainian prisoner of war, the world must see it. This is a video of Russia as it is”, accused Volodymyr Zelensky, about a beheading video that has been circulating on social networks since Tuesday. Lasting one minute and forty seconds, it shows a man in camouflage, his face masked, slicing the neck of another man in uniform struggling on the ground, screaming. After a few seconds, the screams stop and a man behind the camera in Russian encourages the executioner to “cut the head” of the victim. The latter finishes his decapitation with a knife, and shows the severed head to the camera.
Ukrainian authorities have said they are trying to identify the victim. AFP was unable to immediately verify the authenticity of the video, or where and when it may have been filmed. The UN mission in kyiv declared itself “horrified” by these images, demanding an investigation. For its part, France denounced “a barbaric act” and an “unbearable attack on human dignity”. And the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, said to himself “mortified by the atrocious video”.
Moscow calls for verification of the “authenticity” of the video
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the footage a“horrible” but questioned their veracity. “In the world of ‘fakes’ in which we live, we must ensure the authenticity of this video”, he added. Usually, Russian officials limit themselves to denying any involvement of Russian soldiers in war crimes and accuse Ukraine of orchestrating the scenes.
Russia tests ‘advanced’ intercontinental ballistic missile
Russia said it had test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile on Tuesday. “advance”, a few weeks after announcing the suspension of its participation in the nuclear disarmament treaty which binds it to the Americans. A unit “fighter successfully launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)” from the Kapustin Yar test site, according to the Russian Defense Ministry, adding that “the missile’s training warhead hit a fictitious target at the Sary Shagan training ground (Republic of Kazakhstan)”. Since the start of the conflict, Vladimir Putin has repeatedly hinted that the use of nuclear weapons was not excluded if Russia were to be threatened.
$200 million for Ukraine’s power grid
The World Bank said it was going to grant Ukraine $200 million to help the country restore its electricity grid. The Russian campaign of destruction specifically targeting the electricity grid during the fall and winter brought down more than 50% of Ukrainian energy infrastructure, particularly in the east of the country, according to the institution. This new envelope brings to nearly 23 billion dollars the total amount of financing provided by the bank to Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict, whether in the form of loans or grants.
Paris denies the deployment of French soldiers in Ukraine
“There are no French forces engaged in operation in Ukraine. The documents cited do not come from the French armies and are subject to caution”warned the Ministry of the Armed Forces, alluding to an apparent leak of classified American documents. “We do not comment on documents whose source and veracity are uncertain”he added.
The United Kingdom has also questioned reports of the presence of members of its secret services in Ukraine. “The leak of what is presented as US classified information, which received wide publicity, demonstrated a serious level of inaccuracy”according to the British Ministry of Defence. “Readers should be careful before relying on claims that have the potential to spread misinformation”he added.
London and Washington sanction relatives of Russian oligarchs
The United Kingdom and the United States have announced sanctions against relatives of Russian oligarchs, including members of the entourage of Roman Abramovich and Alicher Usmanov, accused of having helped them to hide their assets. “There’s nowhere to hide”warned British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, saying the UK will cut “the Russian elite” assets that its members “thought they had succeeded in hiding”. “Ihe United States and its allies and partners will continue to attack circuits that support Putin on the battlefield.”said US Undersecretary of the Treasury Brian Nelson.