War in Ukraine. Defense of Bakhmut is “key” for “frontline stability”, according to Kiev.

Protection of Bakhmutkey“It is not in Ukraine’s interest for Kyiv.”vitalFor Trump, Russia will suppress criticism of armed groups like Wagner… Le Figaro This Tuesday, March 14, summarizes the latest information related to the war in Ukraine.

Kiev notes that the defense of Bakhmut is “the key to the stability of the frontline”.

Protection of Bakhmutkey” save “stability of the foreheadin eastern Ukraine, the commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces said Tuesday, as fierce fighting continues for the iconic city. “Defensive action in this direction is of primary strategic importance to deter the enemy“, Valery Zaluzhny noted in Telegram, which is quoted by his press service.

“This is the key to the stability of the entire frontal defenseHe argued, echoing similar recent remarks by President Vladimir Zelensky, who believed the loss of Bakhmut could allow the Russians to attack and capture other major nearby cities.

Phosphorus ammunition fired at Chasiv Iar

On Tuesday, the Russians fired incendiary ammunition with white phosphorus on the uninhabited area of ​​the town of Chasiv Iar, near Bakhmut in the east of Ukraine, AFP journalists noted. Around 4:45 p.m., two shells were fired five minutes apart at the southern exit of the city and on the road leading to the nearby town of Bakhmut, where the longest and bloodiest battle since the war began. The Russian invasion.

The hiss of two shells in the sky was followed each time by the explosions of the sub-ramps, which released many small white-hot balls of phosphorous that slowly fell vertically. After hitting the ground, the incendiary balls ignited the vegetation on each side of the road, covering an area roughly the size of a football field. Phosphorus munitions are incendiary weapons that are prohibited for use against civilians but not against military targets under the 1980 Geneva Convention.

A Russian plane shot down an American drone in the Black Sea

A Russian Su-27 fighter jet shot down a US Reaper drone on Tuesday over the Black Sea, an area closely monitored by NATO since the start of the war in Ukraine, the US military said. “Our MQ-9 drone was conducting routine operations in international airspace when it was intercepted and shot down by a Russian aircraft, causing the MQ-9 to crash and be lost.General James Hacker, commander of the American armed forces in Europe and Africa, said: The White House condemned the act.thoughtless“.

Protecting Ukraine, not a “vital” US interest for Trump and his Republican rival

Donald Trump and his potential challenger for the Republican nomination, Ron DeSantis, both insisted that the defense of Ukraine was not part of the “vital interestsfrom the USA, according to the questionnaire published on Monday evening. “We cannot prioritize our commitment to a sunken foreign war over the defense of our own homeland.” judged Ron DeSantis, 44, a rising star of American hard-right, on the Fox News network.

This is the first time that the governor of Florida, whose 2024 presidential candidacy is eagerly awaited by Republicans, has also taken a concrete position on the conflict. “The United States has many vital interests, such as securing our borders (…), but then getting involved in a territorial dispute between Ukraine; and Russia is not among them“, he judged.

Russia should suppress criticism of armed groups like Wagner

Russian MPs on Tuesday voted on a text that punishes “hard prison sentences”discredit“Armed groups like Wagner already operate against the Russian military and serve to suppress critics of the attack in Ukraine. Criminal sanctions are overwhelmingThe discrediting of the Russian armed forces extends to volunteer organizations, organizations and individuals who assist the armed forces in carrying out their mission;“said the Duma, the lower house of parliament, on its website.

“All those who risk their lives today to ensure the safety of the country and its citizens are protected from provocations and liesthis law was assessed by Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin, noting that “the penalties will be severe, up to 15 years in prison“. Russia’s military position in Ukraine is based on private armed groups. The “Wagner” group, which has recruited particularly massively in Russian prisons, thus leads the way in Bakhmut, the epicenter of the fighting in eastern Ukraine.

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Tensions in Ukraine Around the famous Orthodox monastery of Kiev

Ukraine’s main Orthodox monastery, the Lavra of the Caves in Kiev, is at the center of renewed tensions amid the Russian invasion, with Ukrainian authorities claiming a branch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church that until recently laid claim to the Moscow Patriarchate. “We have no intention of moving and we are not goingto do so, the head of the monastery, Metropolitan Pavlo Lebid, said in a video released on Monday.

This church, which is historically linked to the Moscow Patriarchate while another branch of Ukrainian Orthodoxy is attached to the Constantinople Patriarchate, announced in May that it was severing its ties with Russia. However, the Ukrainian government did not recognize this decision, considering that it de facto depends on the Russian Church. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also expressed his support for him on Monday, saying “not allowedThe decision of the authorities of Ukraine. As for Russian Patriarch Kirill, he condemned on Saturday “state pressureIts press service informs about this branch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.