Photo : en.kremlin.ru
War in Ukraine: Day 20
By Padmashree Anandhan and Ashwin Dhanabalan
War on the ground:
On 14 March, Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal urged the Council of Europe to act against Russia and expel them from the human rights body. He said: "The right to life is one of the key fundamental rights, and today at the centre of Europe this right is being violated every minute and every second." Russia had already announced its withdrawal as the council had stripped its voting rights.
Also, on 14 March, Ukraine's parliament mentioned how the Russian forces were blowing up explosives near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. They said the troops were disposing of their ammunition in front of the nuclear plant. PM Shmyhal also claimed that Russia was forcefully enlisting people from Crimea to serve among the Russian armed forces. He said: "Today the Russian government is mobilising the residents of Crimea to the armed forces of Russia, forcing people who are to be protected by the Fourth Geneva Convention to serve in the armed forces of the enemy state."
On 15 March, a series of Russian missile strikes hit residential buildings in Kyiv. The attacks caused a massive fire, and emergency services were called to rescue the people occupying the building. Two people were killed in the attacks. The shock waves of the attacks had also damaged the metro station's entry gate, which was used as a bomb shelter.
On 15 March, Generals of the Ukrainian army defending Kyiv talked about the topography and the terrain and how it could slow Russia's advancing troops. The generals mentioned how the rivers and peat bogs acted as natural defence systems. However, they mentioned that the capital was still vulnerable to missiles. Gen Andriy Kryschenko said: "Around the city, there are many small rivers that flow into the Dnieper and there are many peat bogs, so that means the area is not suitable for large-scale movement of troops."
The Generals further talked about the advantages of Kyiv being an industrial city. They mentioned that they could produce items of fortification such as sandbags, concrete blocks, and anti-tank obstacles. The destruction of strategic bridges had also slowed down the advancing Russian armies.
Also, on 15 March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the Russian soldiers to surrender as Moscow faced massive losses in its invasion. He further said: "I know that you want to survive," and offered soldiers surrendering to be treated as people. Zelenskyy also said he was "grateful to those Russians who do not stop trying to convey the truth." He also paid his tribute to Marina Ovsyannikova, the journalist who had bravely interrupted a Russian state TV news anchor holding an anti-war sign.
Later, on the same day, Zelenskyy spoke about NATO and said: "the strongest alliance in the world," but "some of the members of this alliance are hypnotised by Russian aggression." He further expressed his anguish on NATO's refusal to implement a no-fly zone. He further addressed the Russians, saying: "We hear your conversations in the intercepts, we hear what you really think about this senseless war, about this disgrace and about your state.
Concerning Mariupol, on 15 March, Deutsche Welle talked about how the situation in Mariupol was after the city was besieged. The article stated: "As of 13:00 pm (1100 GMT), more than 160 private cars have managed to leave Mariupol on the road to Berdyansk." According to Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk, authorities were trying to open nine humanitarian corridors to evacuate citizens and help them get aid. The city had experienced two weeks of shelling and blockages as more than 2,500 people have been killed in the city since the invasion began.
The Moscow view:
Claims by Russia
On 14 March, Russian Presidential Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov spoke about Russia's special military operations in Ukraine. He said: "Russia has a sufficient potential for conducting the special military operation in Ukraine. The operation is proceeding by the original plan and will be completed on time and in full." Peskov's comments came as Western countries claimed that Russia's invasion of Ukraine did not succeed as planned.
On 14 March, Concerning the return of Meta products of Facebook and Instagram, Dmitry Peskov said it was unlikely for now. His response was in reaction to how Meta had provisions for Ukrainians inciting violence against Russia, its citizens, and service members. Peskov stated that Instagram "indirectly admits that we are talking about such decisions when it says that on the territory of Ukraine such methods are allowed, yet somewhere else it is still inadmissible."
On 15 March, with Peskov's statements of an improbable return of Meta, small businesses in Russia are feeling the heat. Many small businesses and entrepreneurs who were dependent on the app to reach out to Moscow and worldwide now seemed to have found themselves in a fix after Russia banned Instagram. An avid user of Instagram, Golov said: "The other platforms all either charge money, or are not very good…he has tried with little success to migrate his business to Telegram."
Also, on 15 March, Peskov talked about the changes needed in the format of negotiations. He mentioned: "Of course, the negotiations may be desirable again because the situation has drastically changed. New details and emphasis emerged." Peskov's comment aligned with what Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on 12 March regarding the changes in the situation and how the previously proposed security guarantees were no longer valid.
On 14 March, President Vladimir Putin held a telephonic conversation with Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. The two leaders discussed the operations in Donbas. Putin mentioned how a missile attack by the Ukrainians at Donetsk central part had resulted in numerous civilian casualties. On the same day, Putin also held a telephonic conversation with Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel. The two leaders discussed Russia's special military operations to protect the Donbas region.
On the same day, Russia accused the West of pushing it into an "artificial default" using sanctions. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said: "The freezing of foreign currency accounts of the Bank of Russia and of the Russian government can be regarded as the desire of a number of foreign countries to organise an artificial default that has no real economic grounds." His statements come as Russia was likely to default on its loans from the IMF. He further asked if Russia could make its payments in rubles.
The West view:
Responses from the US and Europe
Upcoming Meets
On 15 March, three Prime Ministers from European Union have been scheduled to meet President Zelensky in Kyiv. The meet’s significance is to show the EU’s united stand and provide support for Ukraine. The US announced the meeting of President Joe Biden, NATO, and EU leaders, which is planned to take place on 24 March in Brussels. The meeting will focus on security, defence, and external relations aspects.
The US
On 15 March, a meeting was held between the US and China’s top officials. The meeting was aimed to “exercise restraint.” According to Yang Jiechi, “All parties should exercise maximum restraint, protect civilians and prevent a large-scale humanitarian crisis.” The US was blamed for China for showing a positive sign to Russia on the supply of military weapons. China, in turn, denied the allegations, and the representative said China prioritises its “Security concerns.”
NATO
On 15 March, the US had previously raised concerns about Russia carrying out a “false flag” operation by using chemicals. On similar terms, in a press conference, NATO Chief Jens Stoltenberg said that Russia’s claims on Ukraine’s involvement in chemical weapons were illogical, at the same time concerning as it provides the possibility of Russia to use such weapons. He said: “We are concerned that Moscow could stage a 'false flag' operation, possibly including chemical weapons.” On the question raised by a Ukrainian journalist on the absence of NATO’s direct military involvement in Ukraine, Stoltenberg answered staunchly that NATO would step against Russia only when one of its 30 members are under attack. Ukraine being a non-member, NATO will not directly engage but has assured help through the supply of military additional installation of naval, air and cyber forces.
The UK
On 15 March, the UK announced a new refugee scheme, where its citizens, upon hosting the Ukrainian refugees, will get GBP 350 per month as allowance. After the announcement, more than 100,000 people have come forward to register. The UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his trip to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, aiming to boost oil and gas production. The move comes as Europe aims to reduce its oil dependency with Russia. He said: “Vladimir Putin over the last years has been like a pusher feeding an addiction in Western countries to his hydrocarbons, to his oil and gas, we need to get ourselves off that addiction.”
On 15 March, the UK imposed a new set of sanctions on 370 individuals in Russia, including the former President. The sanctions target Putin’s spokespersons, Minister of Defense, Editor-in-Chief of RT channel, and others. Apart from the individual sanctions, trade restrictions were mandated on goods worth GBP 900 million and 35 per cent import tax on Vodka.
On 15 March, UK Foreign Minister James Cleverly pointed out that as Russia’s attacks are not proceeding as planned, civilians are being turned targets. He also mentioned that the defence of Ukraine is stronger, which is disturbing Russia and Putin to the target public.
The EU
On 15 March, the EU revealed its fourth set of sanctions banning the export of luxury goods to Russia, including cars and jewellery. Apart from the export ban, it also levied import restrictions on Russia’s steel products and investment in its energy industry.
The Global Fallouts:
International implications of the Ukraine war
From West Asia
On 15 March, as part of Turkey’s mediatory steps, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan announced to send Foreign Minister to Russia and Ukraine to bring back negotiations on ceasefire. Apart from Turkey, Russia has warned the West on imposing sanctions. It said that counter threatened the West saying the sanction might affect its interest in Iran’s nuclear deal. Russia’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “..the sanctions must be taken into account, this is a new aspect that cannot be ignored, that must be taken into account.”
From India
On 14 March, India was the top importer of agriculture fertiliser and major imports of four to five million came from Russia and Belarus. With the ongoing war, sanctions from the West and blockade in shipping routes, the imports have shifted from Russia to Canada, Israel and Jordan. From the given places, majorly potash will be imported, for other forms of fertilizers such as nitrogen and phosphate, Saudi Arabia and Morocco have been set as targets by India.
From Canada
On 15 March, Canada announced 15 sanctions on Russian individuals who were close to Putin. The sanctioning came ahead of President Zelensky’s address in Canada. According to the Foreign Minister: “President Putin made the choice to further his illegal and unjustifiable invasion, and he can also make the choice to end it by immediately ending the senseless violence and withdrawing his forces.” Apart from this, Russia has also banned Canada’s Trudeau and Biden to enter the country.
From Africa
On 15 March, the statistics office reported that inflation in Nigeria had increased by 0.1 per cent in February due to an upsurge in transport and other costs due to fuel deficiency. In the list of global effects due to the Ukraine war on financial markets, trade and commodity prices, the African continent is at a vulnerable point. The disruption in grain imports from Ukraine's rising crude oil prices are expected to down African economies. According to the Head of the National Bureau of Statistics, “There are so many dimensions that the (Ukraine) crisis would be affecting the economy ... so that even the projections made for growth for 2022 may remain a mirage.”
References:
Jeremy Bowen, “Ukraine war: Kyiv terrain will slow Russian troops, say Ukraine generals,” BBC, 15 March 2022
“Talks on Russia's security guarantees with US, NATO unlikely in previous format — Kremlin,” TASS, 15 March 2022
“Russia Says West Trying to Push it Into Default,” The Moscow Times, 15 March 2022
Felix Light and Jake Cordell, “For Russia's Small Businesses, Instagram Ban Deals a Huge Blow,” The Moscow Times, 15 March 2022
“Ukraine war: Zelensky urges Russian troops to surrender,” BBC, 15 March 2022
Jon Henley, Martin Farrer, Isobel Koshiw and Lorenzo Tondo, “Russia-Ukraine war: early morning strikes hit Kyiv hours before peace talks,” The Guardian, 15 March 2022
“Russia’s operation in Ukraine proceeds according to plan — Kremlin spokesman,” TASS, 14 March 2022
“Despite ploy to duck hate speech scandal, Meta unlikely to return to Russia, Kremlin says,” TASS, 14 March 2022
“Telephone conversation with Prime Minister of Luxembourg Xavier Bettel,” Kremlin.ru, 14 March 2022
“Telephone conversation with Prime Minister of Israel Naftali Bennett,” Kremlin.ru, 14 March 2022
“Ukraine’s prime minister Denys Shmyhal has urged the Council of Europe to expel Russia from its ranks in what would be a historic first at the human-rights body,” The Guardian, 14 March 2022
Martin Farrer, Lois Beckett, Joanna Walters , Léonie Chao-Fong, Tom Ambrose , and Samantha Lock, “Biden considers travel to Europe – as it happened,” T The Guardian, 14 March 2022
Monir Ghaedi, “What do we know about the situation in Mariupol?,” Deutsche Welle, 15 March 2022.
“BBC Live” BBC, 15 March 2022
“Canada imposes sanctions on 15 Russian officials,” Reuters, 15 March 2022
“Russia bars entry to Biden and Canada's Trudeau,” Reuters, 15 March 2022
“India boosts fertiliser imports from Canada, Israel as Russian supply disrupted,” The Hindu, 15 March 2022
“Turkish foreign minister to travel to Russia, Ukraine for talks, says Erdogan,” Reuters, 15 March 2022
“Kremlin emphasizes anti-Russian sanctions must be considered when discussing Iran deal,” TASS, 15 March 2022
“Hard economic times in East Africa as commodity prices go through the roof,” The East African, 14 March 2022
IN BRIEF
By Emmanuel Royan
GERMANY
US-built F-35 jets set to replace Tornado fleet
On 13 March, German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht initiated the purchase of thirty-five F-35 fighter jets from the US to replace its Tornado fleet. The military upgrade was in response to Russia’s intervention in Ukraine. As a first step, the Ministry will submit a formal request to the US government to purchase the fighters to gain clarity on delivery timelines and options for cooperation in training and maintenance. The announcement comes after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stated that the country would increase military spending to more than two per cent of GDP in response to evolving security challenges in Europe. (“Germany to buy US F-35 stealth fighters,” Deutsche Welle, 14 March 2022)
Federal environment agency reports an increase in greenhouse gases
On 15 March, a report by the German environment agency UBA mentioned an increase of greenhouse gas emissions by five per cent in 2021. However, even though the report registered an increase from the 2020 levels. When compared to the 1990s, the levels were 39 per cent lower. As reported by Reuters: “Germany overshot its targets in 2020 to cut emissions by 40% compared with 1990 levels, reducing them by almost 41% as emissions fell because of a sharp reduction in economic activity during the pandemic.” The report also found that industry and agriculture met their targets on controlling CO2 emissions while transport and buildings exceeded theirs. (Markus Wacket, “EXCLUSIVE Germany’s greenhouse gas emissions rose in 2021 - environment agency,” Reuters, 15 March 2022
REGIONAL
The EU sets draft rules for sustainable cryptocurrencies
On 14 March, the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee of the European Parliament passed the legislation for regulating digital assets called the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework. The European Parliament declined a last-minute amendment to the bill, which was aimed to limit the use of cryptos powered by the energy-intensive process known as proof-of-work (PoW). The Members of the European Parliament (MEP) agreed on the draft rules for the supervision, consumer protection, and environmental sustainability of crypto-assets. The draft rules received 31 votes in favour, four against, and 23 abstentions. The European Commission Council and Parliament will begin formal negotiations on the framework. The MEP Stefan Berger of the European People’s Party stated: “With the adoption of the MiCA report, the European Parliament has paved the way for an innovation-friendly crypto-regulation that can set standards worldwide.” (Pascale Davies, “Europe rejects proposal limiting PoW cryptos such as Bitcoin but sets draft rules for sustainability,” Euronews, 14 March 2022)