Ukraine Briefly

April 21, 2023

Ukraine, Briefly

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This week, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg visited Ukraine for the first time since Russia invaded the nation more than a year ago, assuring the country that the military alliance would continue to stand by it, The Hill reported. His trip comes days after Russian President Vladimir Putin paid a secret visit to the headquarters of his troops in the partially occupied Kherson region of southern Ukraine: That is where the Russian military was forced to withdraw from the regional capital in November, despite Putin’s illegal claim that the territory and its people had been annexed by Russia “forever,” the Washington Post added.

Also this week:

• Bulgaria approved a temporary ban on imports of Ukrainian grain and other food products, the latest European Union country to do so amid protests from local farmers, Agence France-Presse wrote. Slovakia had also joined Poland and Hungary in introducing bans following complaints from farmers claiming that a glut of Ukrainian grain is causing them economic hardship, according to the Associated Press.

• The foreign ministers of the Group of Seven industrialized nations threatened “severe consequences” if Russia uses chemical, biological or nuclear weapons in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine – those consequences also apply to those who back the Kremlin’s war effort and include “severe costs,” CNN noted. They specifically mentioned Russia’s threat to install nuclear weapons in neighboring Belarus. At the same time, Russia and India are discussing a potential free trade agreement (FTA) to deepen bilateral commercial ties, Reuters added. Despite Western calls for India to distance itself from Russia over the latter’s invasion of Ukraine, Indian imports from Moscow more than quadrupled to $46.33 billion in the last fiscal year, mainly because of oil. Russian Trade Minister Denis Manturov said the two countries would intensify negotiations on an FTA, with road construction material and equipment, chemicals, and pharmaceutical products in high demand in Russia.

• A Moscow court denied an appeal for release by American journalist Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested on espionage charges on March 29, NPR reported. Tuesday’s hearing was the first time the 31-year-old Wall Street Journal reporter has been seen in public since his detention by Russian security officials while on a reporting trip in the Ural mountains city of Yekaterinburg.

• A bright flash of light was seen in the Kyiv skyline on Wednesday night, prompting speculation on social media about its cause, Newsweek wrote. Some, such as Ukrainian officials have suggested it was a meteor or a NASA satellite, while others have suggested it could be extraterrestrial in origin. NASA’s Rob Margetta said the satellite was still in orbit at the time the flash was observed.

This story originally appeared in the April 21, 2023 newsletter, Paradise, Imperfect.