The east is fragmented as on a chessboard
The Russian army advances in eastern Ukraine, destroying one by one the pockets of resistance.
Places like Izium and Kreminna have fallen in the past two weeks and more could soon follow, such as the cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk, according to the British Ministry of Defence.
In the Donbass region, “the enemy is carrying out strikes on the positions of Ukrainian troops along the entire length of the front line with mortars, artillery and multiple rocket launchers, a spokesman for the Ukrainian ministry of security detailed on Tuesday. Defense on Telegram. We have a very fragmented front line, which does not follow a river, a road or a highway. Now it’s a village for us, one for them, one for us, like on a chessboard. »
Russia shuts off the gas
The Russian group Gazprom is suspending its gas deliveries to Bulgaria and Poland from Wednesday because they refuse to settle the bill in rubles, the two countries announced on Tuesday. These two NATO and European Union countries, however, say they are prepared to obtain the missing gas from other sources.
“There will be no shortage of gas in Polish homes,” Polish Climate Minister Anna Moskwa wrote on Twitter. “From the first day of the war, we declared that we were ready for complete independence from Russian raw materials,” she added.
The Bulgarian government assures that it does not “currently” plan any measure to restrict consumption.
Tensions in Moldova
A series of explosions shook the pro-Russian region of Transnistria on Tuesday, raising fears of a spillover from the current conflict in Ukraine.
This small region of 500,000 inhabitants, wedged between Moldova and Ukraine, is not recognized as independent by the international community, nor even by Russia. Moscow nevertheless considers it a vassal not far from the borders of the European Union.
Explosions of unknown origins damaged a radio tower relaying Russian frequencies. “This is an attempt to increase tensions, denounced the Moldovan President, Maia Sandu, at the end of a meeting of the National Security Council. We strongly condemn such actions. The Moldovan authorities will take care to prevent the republic from being drawn into a conflict. »
millions of refugees
As many as 8.3 million people could flee Ukraine this year, the UN estimated on Tuesday.
“This is a planning figure,” based on a review of population movements and various possible scenarios in Ukraine, UNHCR spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo said during a briefing. press in Geneva. “It is important to remember that the situation is very dynamic,” she said, adding that the bill to alleviate this humanitarian crisis will amount to 1.85 billion dollars.
At the start of the war, the UN predicted four million refugees. Just over 5.2 million Ukrainians have fled their country so far, according to the international organization.