For Volodymyr Zelensky, it is a “a symbol that shows that Ukraine will be able to win this war”. Friday, March 31, Ukraine commemorates the Russian withdrawal from the martyred city of Boutcha, a year earlier, which has become the most glaring symbol of the atrocities committed by Russian forces in the country. On March 31, 2022, the Russian army withdrew from this city and all of northern Kiev, just over a month after the start of the Russian invasion of the country. Two days later, journalists discovered charred carcasses of vehicles, destroyed houses and above all, the corpses of people in civilian clothes scattered over several hundred meters. On Friday, the mayor of Boutcha, Anatoliy Fedoruk, said that this massacre remained “in the heart, soul and mind of every inhabitant”. Follow our live.
Russia will chair the UN Security Council. From Saturday, Russia will take over the rotating presidency, for a month, of this key body of the United Nations. A “bad joke”castigated the head of Ukrainian diplomacy, Dmytro Kouleba, on Twitter. US ambassador to UN fears Russia will take advantage “to advance their disinformation campaign against Ukraine”.
Finland is getting closer to joining NATO. After Hungary gave the go-ahead, Turkey finally approved Finland’s membership of the military alliance on Thursday. PTo become a member of NATO, Finland only has to wait for an official invitation from Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and then send its “instruments of ratification” in Washington. Sweden is still awaiting approval from Ankara and Budapest.