A week after the start of the Russian invasion, the end of the war in Ukraine has never seemed so far away. On the ground, bombardments caused numerous civilian casualties. On the diplomatic front, the negotiations between the parties organized in Belarus only succeeded in reaching an agreement on the principle of “humanitarian corridors”. Franceinfo looks back on the highlights of Thursday March 3.
Kherson, the first major city to fall into Russian hands
Ukrainian officials confirmed overnight from Wednesday to Thursday the omnipresence of the Russian army in Kherson. Moscow announced on Wednesday that it had captured this metropolis of 290,000 inhabitants near the Crimean peninsula on Wednesday morning.
Eyes are now turned further east, to Mariupol. This major Ukrainian port on the Sea of Azov, a key site to allow Russian forces arriving from Donbass, in the northeast, and Crimea, in the southwest, to meet, “resist” for now, according to the Ukrainian military.
Thirty-three people were killed in a Russian strike on two schools and homes in the Ukrainian town of Chernihiv, north of Kiev. Footage from the Ministry of Emergencies shows smoke rising from a crumbling residential building, debris littering the ground and rescuers carrying bodies.
An agreement on the principle of “humanitarian corridors”
On the diplomatic field, the second session of talks organized in Belarus, near the border with Poland, did not lead to a ceasefire. However, the Ukrainian and Russian delegations agreed on the principle of “humanitarian corridors (…) with a possible temporary ceasefire in these corridors during evacuations”said Vladimir Medinski, the Russian negotiator.
A third round of talks is to be held again in Belarus next week, announced Mikhaïlo Podoliak, adviser to the Ukrainian presidency and member of his country’s delegation.
Macron thinks ‘the worst is yet to come’ after his exchange with Putin
The day was also marked by a new tense exchange between Vladimir Poutine and Emmanuel Macron. During a one-and-a-half-hour telephone discussion this morning, the Russian president told his French counterpart that the Russian army operation was developing “according to plan” planned by Moscow and that it was going “to worsen” if the Ukrainians do not accept its conditions, the presidency said.
“The President’s Anticipation [Macron] is that the worst is yet to come given what President Putin told him”reacted the Elysée at the end of the interview, adding that Russia’s objective was “to take control” from all over the country.
Moldova officially applies for EU integration
Fearing to be Moscow’s next target, Moldova has officially applied to join the European Union. “Some decisions have to be made quickly and determinedly”justified to the press President Maia Sandu, elected in 2020 on a pro-Western program.
Moldova, a former Soviet republic, signed an association agreement with Brussels in 2014, which does not, however, offer any guarantee of subsequent integration. The country is following in the footsteps of Georgia, which also applied for EU membership on Thursday amid concerns about Russian aggression. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for his part urged Brussels on Tuesday to integrate his country “without delay”.
Two Russian opposition media cease operations
Moscow, for its part, is stepping up measures to defend its economy, but also to stifle any voice opposed to the war: the independent radio station Echo of Moscow had to close on Thursday after being banned from the air, and the Internet television channel opposition party Dojd, also banned, has announced that it is suspending its work.
The European Union agrees to protect refugees
The European Ministers of the Interior, meeting in Brussels, have agreed to grant a “temporary protection” in the European Union to refugees “fleeing the war” in Ukraine. European officials have decided to activate for the first time the 2001 Displaced Persons Directive, which will allow refugees from Ukraine to stay in the EU, work there, access social benefits and housing , the school system and medical care.
It is not currently known whether this measure will also apply to refugees fleeing Ukraine but who do not have Ukrainian nationality. This question divides the Member States: some, like Poland and Austria, are opposed to it.