Russian bombing destroyed all vital infrastructure in the Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zhelensky said yesterday, describing the seizure of the city as Russia's main target at the moment.
"As a result of Russian strikes in Severodonetsk, all vital infrastructure was destroyed. More than two-thirds of the city's residential buildings have been destroyed," Zelensky said in a televised speech, adding that the occupation of Severodonetsk is the main goal of the occupation forces.
On the other hand, for Russia the liberation of Donbass in Ukraine is "non-negotiable priority", while other Ukrainian territories will have to decide their own future. This was reported by the RIA news agency citing a statement by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
[/P]"The liberation of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which the Russian Federation recognized as independent states, is a non-negotiable priority," Lavrov said in an interview with French TV network TF1, according to RIA.
Meanwhile, NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Joanna ruled yesterday Sunday that following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, NATO is no longer bound by promises it had made in the past not to deploy its troops in eastern Europe.
The Founding Act of Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security between NATO and the Russian Federation, signed 25 years ago, provided, among other things, for measures to "prevent any concentration of conventional forces" in central and eastern Europe. But by moving to invade the territory of Ukraine and cutting off all dialogue with the Atlantic Alliance, Russia "annulled the content of the Founding Act," he said during an interview with the French News Agency in Vilnius.
However, the Czech Republic will supply Ukraine with weapons worth 24 to 28 million euros directly, the country's defence minister, Jana Chernohova, told public television network ČT yesterday (Sunday).
[BR][BR][BR]"It is crucial that (military) aid is given at a steady pace," Ms Chernohova said, clarifying that Prague has already sent Kiev military equipment worth 140 million euros. 140 euros since Russia's invasion began on 24 February.
The minister confirmed that heavy weapons would be sent, but avoided going into details about their types and quantities "for security reasons".
Meanwhile, Poland sent 18 AHS Krab self-propelled guns[/B] to Ukraine, Polish state radio reported yesterday, Sunday, citing a government source, as Kiev tries to repel the ongoing offensive by Russia's armed forces in Donbass.
The AHS Krab self-propelled guns have a maximum effective range of 40 kilometers. According to Polish media, Poland has trained about 100 members of Ukraine's artillery in their handling.
Source: CNA
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