First trip to Kherson since the start of the conflict for Vladimir Putin. The Russian president paid a whirlwind visit in the Kherson and Luhansk regions on the occasion of the Orthodox Easter holiday, which was celebrated on Sunday, the Kremlin announced in a statement on Tuesday April 18. However, it is not known exactly when this visit took place during which the Russian President congratulated the military and offered them “copies of the icons”, the statement said.
He met there with the commander of the Russian airborne forces, General Mikhail Teplinsky and other senior military officials to discuss the situation in the regions of Kherson and Zaporizhya, which Russia claimed for annexation last September. “It is important for me to hear your opinion on the situation, to listen to you, to exchange information”, said the Russian president, according to a video released by the Kremlin. Follow our live.
Ukraine denounces this visit. kyiv accused the Russian president of visiting the scene of his “crimes” after the Kremlin announced a surprise visit by Vladimir Putin to the occupied regions. This trip “is a ‘special tour’ of the perpetrator of mass murder in the occupied and ravaged territories to take pleasure in the crimes” committed by Russian forces, Mykhaïlo Podoliak, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, said on Twitter.
The G7 warns countries that help Russia. The heads of G7 diplomacy on Tuesday warned countries providing assistance to Russia in Ukraine that they would pay “high price”. Meeting since Sunday in Japan, the foreign ministers of the main industrialized countries have pledged to continue to “intensify” sanctions against Russia and to step up efforts to prevent their circumvention by third countries.
Vladimir Putin visits Ukraine. Russian President visited in the Kherson and Luhansk regions, respectively in the south and east of the country, to meet the soldiers deployed there as part of the Russian operation launched more than a year ago, the Kremlin announced on Tuesday. This is the first time that Vladimir Putin has traveled to these areas controlled by the Russian army.
The United States criticizes the position of Brazil. Brazilian President Lula received Sergei Lavrov, the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, to promote international mediation on the war in Ukraine. For Washington, the leader becomes “the echo of Russian and Chinese propaganda without taking into account the facts”.