Putin returns to speak in the Russian parliament after a year’s break
03:30 | President Vladimir Putin delivers his nearly annual speech to parliament, the State Duma and the Federation Council. Under Russian law, it is the only session in which both chambers meet. Putin last delivered his “throne speech” in April 2021. Last year he skipped the war in Ukraine, where he decided to end it with an invasion. But it only escalated with the Russian invasion in February of last year.
Addressing full parliament is a tradition that began on February 24, 1994 with a speech by then leader Boris Yeltsin. Putin addressed parliament every year during his presidency except 2017 and last year. In 2018 he spoke for almost two hours, but on average the speech lasts just over an hour.
The main point should be the ongoing war in Ukraine, which has actually been going on for nine years. After the Russian invasion in February 2022, the conflict turned into a war of attrition between the Kiev regime, generously supported by the West, and the Kremlin. Russia invaded nearly 30% of Ukraine’s territory a month after the invasion, but almost a year later, 18% remain.
China is “very concerned” about the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine
03:05 | Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang is “deeply concerned” that the conflict in Ukraine could escalate “out of control”. “We are calling on some countries to immediately stop adding fuel to the fire,” Qin said in a speech.
The foreign minister also said he was “strongly against any form of foreign interference in Chinese affairs”. It’s not clear exactly what he means, but last weekend US Secretary of State Antony Blinken publicly expressed concern about the possibility of China supplying weapons to Russia. EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell later called a possible supply of Chinese weapons to Russia “a red line”. Such a step would ‘obviously’ have consequences, also warned Sweden, which presides over the EU this semester.
Qin of China said in his speech that he would “work with the international community to build dialogue, address concerns and fight for common security.”
Qin’s statements come the same week that senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi, who until recently served as foreign minister, is in Moscow. According to the Kremlin, there is much to discuss with the Chinese guest. The top Chinese diplomat would speak of the possibility of ending the war with Ukraine through negotiations and a peace agreement.
Monday 20 February
Google: Russian hackers disabled Ukrainian drones
21:45 | Russian state hackers managed to attack the systems of a Turkish drone manufacturer some time ago. Google and its cybersecurity firm Mandiant are reporting this.
Google doesn’t name the company, but early in the war, Ukraine made extensive use of Bayraktar drones to attack Russian military personnel. However, due to the cyber attack, the unmanned devices are now said to be inoperable. The hackers also allegedly attacked the communication systems of the Ukrainian military.
Google and Mandiant write that the digital attacks are the work of a group of hackers they call FrozenBarents. The group is also known as Sandworm and Voodoo Bear. The hackers are said to work for the Russian military intelligence service GRU.
FrozenBarents is also held responsible for the NotPetya ransomware. It affected Ukrainian companies in 2017, but the infection has spread to other countries. As a result, two container terminals in the port of Rotterdam were also flat. In 2018, hackers reportedly disrupted the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics because Russia was suspended from those Games.
Biden arrived in Poland after a lightning visit to Ukraine
21:00 | US President Joe Biden has returned to Poland, reports the Polish foreign minister. Biden was in Kiev on Monday for a surprise visit and returned to Poland by train, where he has an appointment with President Andrzej Duda. Biden is visiting Poland and Ukraine as this week marks one year since Russia invaded Ukraine. He spoke in Kiev with President Volodimir Zelensky about a new US arms package and the supply of long-range weapons.
Today the President of the United States addresses the Polish people.
EU Foreign Leader: You now send the remaining ammunition to Ukraine first
20:45 | EU countries must now quickly use their remaining ammunition stockpiles to help Ukraine, says EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. The joint procurement of munitions, which the EU is currently working on, is also important, he says, but raises concerns later.
Ukraine desperately needs new munitions to keep Russia at bay now that it appears to have launched the attack again. The Ukrainian military is not firing nearly as many shells and shells as its opponent, but far more than its allies can supply from their dwindling arsenals. They are frantically looking for ways to keep Ukraine from burning out.
The next few weeks will be tense, and in that time frame new orders from the arms industry are useless, says Borrell. ‘A timescale of weeks means: use what we have already produced. It is clear that the best way to supply Ukraine with ammunition in the coming weeks is to share the already existing stockpiles of European armies. It is necessary for member states to give priority to Ukraine when it comes to their reserves’ and he will also tell EU defense ministers in the coming days.
Some of Ukraine’s allies not only have little left, but sometimes prefer to keep what they have left. Otherwise they fear that they themselves are helpless.
Borrell declined to say anything about plans for joint procurement and whether EU countries are up for it. He makes concrete proposals to their defense ministers that they can discuss in two weeks, he says.