War in Ukraine: Russian bombing of Kharkiv a few hours after the visit of the German foreign minister
The Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, in the north-east of Ukraine, was bombed on Tuesday evening, a few hours after the German foreign minister, Annalina Burbuk, made a surprise visit to the city with her Ukrainian counterpart, Dmitri Kuliba, who demanded that German provide heavily armored vehicles to her country. In turn, Burbuk stressed that Ukrainians can count on the solidarity and support of Berlin, which provided Kyiv with a new aid package.
A few hours after the surprise visit of German foreign minister Annalina Burbuk to the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, the latter was bombed by the Russians, while the regional authorities called on the inhabitants of the city to stay in shelters.
"The occupiers are bombing again, so stay safe," the governor of the Kharkiv region, Oleg Sinogubov, said in the Telegram application, addressing the residents of the city.
A correspondent for Agence France-Presse heard the sounds of several explosions in a city that has rarely been bombed by Russian troops lately.
It could not be determined whether the shootings had caused loss of life or property damage.
The German minister suddenly visited the city, accompanied by her Ukrainian counterpart Dmitry Kuliba, who called on Berlin to provide her country with heavily armored vehicles.
During his visit, Coulibaly lamented that "the longer the support decision is postponed, the more victims there will be and more civilians will be killed".
Germany's new aid package
For his part, Berbuk, whose visit took place at the invitation of his colleague and friend, said that Ukrainians can "count on our solidarity and support", noting that Berlin has provided Kyiv with a "new package" of aid, including 20 million euros for mine clearance and an equal amount for development. the possibility for Ukrainians
The minister also announced new deliveries of generators intended for the Ukrainian infrastructure, which has been systematically bombed by Russia.
But Ukraine is asking its Western allies to transfer heavy tanks, while Berlin has not yet responded to Kyiv's request to transfer Leopard-2 heavy armored vehicles equipped with advanced technologies.
For security reasons, Burbank's visit was not announced until she took the train home.
It should be noted that a number of Western leaders have visited Ukraine since the start of the Russian offensive on February 24, including Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron, but none have reached the Far East, where Russian troops have taken control of several areas.
At the beginning of the conflict, Kharkiv was repeatedly bombed, but the Ukrainian troops managed to defend the city. Since then, the front line has moved about 130 kilometers away from the city.
Deprivation of Ukrainian citizenship
On Tuesday evening, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky announced that he had deprived the Ukrainian citizenship of Viktor Medvedchuk, a wealthy businessman and close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin, accused by Kyiv of "treason".
It should be noted that Medvedchuk, a 68-year-old former deputy born in Siberia, was considered the Russian president's man in Ukraine and was detained by the Ukrainian authorities for more than five months before being extradited to Russia during a prisoner exchange that took place at the end of September 2022.
In his daily evening speech, Zelensky justified his decision to deprive Medvedchuk of his citizenship, saying that he had "taken appropriate measures against those who serve the assassins who attack Ukraine instead of serving the Ukrainian people".
