UKRAINE WRAP | Ukrainian children play soccer again in bombed-out stadium

July 6 2022 — 21:26

Russian-born Rybakina calls for peace and an end to war in Ukraine

Russian-born Elena Rybakina said she wanted the war in Ukraine to end "as soon as possible" after reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals on Wednesday.

Now representing Kazakhstan, and the first player from that country to reach the last four of a Grand Slam, Rybakina beat Australian Ajla Tomljanovic 4-6 6-2 6-3 on Court One to set up a semi-final with Romanian 2019 champion Simona Halep.

She was asked afterwards whether she felt Kazakh or Russian, a sensitive subject at a tournament that this year barred players from Russia and Belarus due to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

The 23-year-old, who was born in Moscow and switched allegiance from Russia four years ago, said it was a tough question.

"I was born in Russia but of course I am representing Kazakhstan. It's already a long journey for me," she said. "I was playing Olympics, Fed Cup before. I got so much help and support."For me it's tough question just to say exactly what I feel."

The 17th seed is now the only player of Russian origin remaining in the men's or women's singles draw.

She said she felt for those who had not been able to play in a tournament that was stripped of ranking points after its decision.

"I mean, when I heard this, this is not something you want to hear because we are playing sport. Everybody wants to compete. They were not choosing where they born," she said.

"Of course, I feel it for them (the Russian and Belarusian players) because everybody wants to compete at the biggest tournament, at Wimbledon. (I) just hope that next year is going to be back to normal."

Asked about the war in Ukraine, she added: "I just want the war to end as soon as possible. Peace, yeah."

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 19:06

Ukrainians hope embattled UK PM “Johnsoniuk” can cling on

As Boris Johnson's tenure as British Prime Minister hangs by a thread, Ukrainians are hoping the man who some have affectionately taken to calling “Borys Johnsoniuk” can cling on.

Johnson is facing a growing rebellion within his own Conservative Party after a slew of ministerial resignations, but Ukrainians fete him as one of their most vocal supporters for overseeing vital supplies of arms and anti-tank weapons to fend off Russia's invasion.

In Kyiv, he has been depicted in street art and is the subject of a portrait exhibition, while a creamy cake with an ice cream topping that resembles his unruly blond hair bears his name — as do several Ukrainian streets.

“It's a shame because we need as much support for (Ukraine) as possible,” said 22-year-old actress Kateryna Chikina, one of several Kyiv residents who told Reuters they did not want him to go.”

If there are influential politicians abroad, we need them. We don't want to lose him because he really helps us. He is a cutie.

“Artist Tetiana Kropyva, 24, busied herself on Wednesday painting a likeness of Johnson onto a barrel serving as an outdoor table at a bar in the capital's hipster hub of Podil.”

As a painter, I can say that he has very distinctive facial features. He is interesting to paint because he has many quirks,” she told Reuters.

At Kyiv's History Museum, two portraits of Johnson behind glass frontage help bring in the punters, said museum employee Mykola Petrychenko.

“It's a marketing magnet of sorts because Boris Johnson is extremely popular among Ukrainian people... Passers-by, when they see his portrait in the window, they recognise him and they come inside and ask about the exhibition.”

Inside, more portraits of Johnson — as well as one of Queen Elizabeth and another of U.S. President Joe Biden — hang side-by-side with Ukrainian soldiers and well-known commanders in a series depicting Ukrainian heroes.Dmytro Usikov, 27, said Johnson would have free drinks in his bar even if he was forced from power.

“We will serve him everything for free... because he really helped our country, and is still helping us. The soul of Ukraine, one could say.”

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 18:47

Lithuania to transfer a crowdfunded Bayraktar drone to Ukraine on Wednesday

The Lithuanian government is set to transfer a Bayraktar TB2 combat drone, which was originally paid for by Lithuanian citizens via crowdfunding, to Ukraine on Wednesday evening, Lithuanian Defence Minister Arvydas Anusauskas said.

Lithuanians raised almost 6 million euros for the drone in May, largely in small donations, following which its Turkish maker, Baykar, decided to donate it instead.

Baykar and Lithuania agreed that 1.5 million euros would be spent to arm the drone with the rest of the crowdfunded money going towards humanitarian help for Ukraine. Baykar delivered the drone to Lithuania with more armaments, said Anusauskas.

“This will not change the course of the war. It's a symbolic gesture from the Lithuanian nation to Ukrainians,” Anusauskas told Reuters.

On Wednesday, thousands gathered at the military airfield near Siauliai to see the TB2, adorned with the logo of hawk and Lithuanian and Ukrainian colours.”

I donated myself, so I came to see the result,” said Ieva Skeryte, after taking a selfie. “I feel pity for the Ukrainians and would not want to be in their situation.”

Ukraine has bought more than 20 Bayraktar TB2 armed drones from Baykar in recent years and ordered a further 16 on Jan. 27. That batch was delivered in early March.

“We as Baykar decided we cannot accept people's money to sell our plane, but we made a decision to contribute to the solidarity by donating the best that we have, and this is,” Baykar's COO, Haluk Bayraktar, told Reuters at the sidelines of the event.

“We are developing our technology ... to be self-sufficient, and to support our brotherly nations. Ukraine is fighting for its freedom right now, it's a duty for us to support Ukraine”, he added. “Our target is not to maximise our revenues or profits.”

Baykar said last week it would donate three TB2s to Ukraine, after a crowdfunding campaign there raised enough funds to buy “several.

“Haluk's father established the Istanbul firm in 1980s. He runs it with his brother Selcuk, who is married to the daughter of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.

Bayraktar said the TB2 has by now been exported to more than 22 countries. In November, his brother stated deliveries as of then went to 13 countries.

“We as Baykar are manufacturing more than 200 (TB2) units for the year. Capacity will increase by multiples soon. We are ramping up”, said Bayraktar. “It's reliable, it's proven, and its cost to performance ratio, compared to other assets, is very attractive.”

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 18:30

Russia says it destroyed two US HIMARS in east Ukraine, Kyiv rejects claim

Russia's defence ministry said on Wednesday its armed forces had destroyed two advanced US-made HIMARS rocket systems and their ammunition depots in eastern Ukraine, an assertion later rejected by Kyiv.

Moscow said it had destroyed two launchers for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) that the US and its allies have been supplying to Kyiv.

It also said Russian forces destroyed two ammunition depots storing rockets for the HIMARS near the front line in a village south of Kramatorsk in Ukraine's Donetsk region — the main focus for Russian troops after the capture of Luhansk on Sunday.

The ministry released video footage which it said showed the strike. Reuters could not independently verify the strike.

Ukraine's general staff rejected Russia's account later on Wednesday. In a post on Twitter, it said the claims were “fake” and that it was using the US-supplied HIMARS to inflict “devastating blows” on Russian forces.

Ukraine had received only four HIMARS systems as of early July, the European Council on Foreign Relations said in a report. The US has pledged to deliver eight by mid-July.

Western weapon supplies have been crucial to Ukraine's efforts to push back the tens of thousands of Russian troops that Moscow sent into its pro-Western neighbour on Feb. 24 in what it calls a “special military operation.”

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 18:12

Mariupol port operating at full capacity, TASS quotes officials

The port of Mariupol in Russian-controlled territory of Ukraine is operating at full capacity, the TASS news agency reported on Wednesday, citing port officials.

Russia captured Mariupol on Ukraine's southern coast in May after months of fierce fighting for control of the city. 

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 16:44

Ukrainian children play soccer again in bombed-out stadium

Ukrainian children have started playing soccer again in a bombed-out stadium outside Kyiv, a much-needed distraction after more than four months of war.

The Champion stadium was heavily damaged in the weeks that followed Russia's invasion, when Russian forces reached the outskirts of Ukraine's capital and occupied parts of the city of Irpin.

The stadium's walls are still pockmarked with bullet holes, but much of the shrapnel has been cleared away and holes in the pitch from mortar bombs have been plugged.

Danylo Kysil, 26, a coach at the stadium and director of the Olymp Irpin team, took part in the cleanup.

“When we saw the stadium with the first people who came after the liberation, it was very grim. There was shrapnel and rubbish everywhere,” Kysil told Reuters after leading a group of around a dozen boys in soccer drills.

Asked how he felt when he welcomed the children back to training, Kysil said: “I needed to show everything was fine on the outside, so the children wouldn't feel my emotional exhaustion.

“Eleven-year-old Denys Voitovych, who plays in midfield for Olymp Irpin, said he was relieved to be back on the pitch.”

I'm very happy that we can play soccer now instead of staying home, playing games and watching stupid videos on the tablet,” he said.

Danyilo Rohalskyi, also 11, said he was enjoying being back among friends and having the chance to work on his soccer skills.

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 16:09

More than 8.79 million people crossed border from Ukraine since Feb. 24 — UN agency

More than 8.79 million people have crossed the border from Ukraine since Russia's invasion in late February, the UN refugee agency said on Wednesday.

On its website, the agency said 8.793 million people had made the crossing since Feb. 24. 

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 15:50

France's PM Borne: We must prepare for Russian gas cuts

France must be prepared for possible cuts in Russian gas deliveries linked to the context of the Ukraine war, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said on Wednesday.

“If Russia ended up cutting its gas exports, we too would be hit. We must consider all concrete scenarios, even the most difficult ones”, Borne said in her policy speech in the lower house of parliament as she set out her government's priorities.

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 15:30

Russia's parliament passes sweeping wartime economic controls

Russia's parliament on Wednesday rushed through two bills imposing strict controls on the economy, requiring businesses to supply goods to the armed forces and obliging employees at some firms to work overtime.

Once signed into law by President Vladimir Putin, the bills will allow the government to introduce “special economic measures” during what the Kremlin calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine.”

In the context of operations carried out by the armed forces of the Russian Federation outside Russia, including on the territory of Ukraine, there is a need to repair weapons, military equipment and provide the armed forces with material and technical means,” says an explanatory note to one of the bills.

The bills were submitted to the lower house State Duma by the Kremlin on June 30. After being passed on their first reading, Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said further discussion would be held behind closed doors due to national security.

According to one of the drafts, the state will be able to purchase goods and services necessary for conducting military special operations from a single supplier without the need for a competitive tender.

In addition, businesses will be required by law to supply goods and services necessary for conducting the “special military operation” to the armed forces.

A second bill mandates the government to require employees of certain enterprises producing goods and services needed by the Russian military to work overtime.

The government may also oblige some employees to work at night, on weekends or during holidays, in return for increased wages.

Reuters 

July 6 2022 — 14:12

Russia says it destroyed two US HIMARS in eastern Ukraine

Russia's armed forces have destroyed two advanced US-made HIMARS rocket systems and their ammo depots in eastern Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry said on Wednesday.

The ministry said Russia had destroyed two launchers for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) that the US and its allies have been supplying to Kyiv. It also said Russian forces destroyed two ammunition depots storing rockets for the HIMARS near the front line in a village south of Kramatorsk in Ukraine's Donetsk region — the main focus for Russian troops following the capture of Luhansk over the weekend.

The ministry released video footage which it said showed the strike. Reuters could not independently verify the strike.

Ukraine had received only four HIMARS systems as of early July, the European Council on Foreign Relations said in a report. The US has pledged to deliver eight by mid-July.

Reuters

July 6 2022 — 14:10

Bulgaria blocks bank transfer to Russian embassy, citing EU sanctions

Bulgaria has blocked a bank transfer worth some $890,000 (R14.9m) to the Russian embassy because of EU sanctions, finance minister Assen Vassilev said on Wednesday, several days after Sofia expelled 70 Russian diplomatic staff from the Balkan country.

“There is a bank transfer to the Russian embassy which falls directly under the European Commission sanctions. There are no frozen bank accounts,” Vassilev told reporters.

Vassilev said the Russian embassy had sought a derogation because the funds were needed to pay staff salaries. He said the Bulgarian government was currently holding talks with Brussels on whether to waive the sanctions to allow the transfer.

Bulgaria, an EU and Nato member state and once a close ally of Russia, has been roiled by diplomatic tensions after outgoing Prime Minister Kiril Petkov announced the expulsion of 70 Russian diplomatic staff on espionage concerns. Moscow has said it would retaliate in kind, while the Russian ambassador to Sofia has said she would ask the Russian government to close the embassy. The EU and other Western countries have slapped sweeping economic sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. 

— Reuters

July 6 2022 — 13:17

Russian foreign ministry says Turkey hasn't detained grain ship

Russia's foreign ministry said on Wednesday that reports the Russian-flagged cargo ship Zhibek Zholy was detained in the Turkish port of Karasu on suspicion of carrying stolen Ukrainian grain are false. Foreign ministry spokesperson Alexei Zaitsev said the 7,146 dwt Zhibek Zholy, which Ukrainian authorities have said is carrying grain from the occupied port of Berdyansk, was “undergoing standard procedures”. Ukraine's ambassador to Turkey said on Sunday that Turkish authorities had detained the Zhibek Zholy. Reuters previously reported that Ukraine had asked Turkey to arrest the ship. — Reuters

July 6 2022 — 13:15

Detained US basketball player Griner may appeal, ask for clemency

Russia's foreign ministry said on Wednesday that US basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained in Russia on drugs charges, may appeal her sentence or apply for clemency once a verdict has been delivered.

Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Alexei Zaitsev said in a briefing: “The court must first deliver its verdict, but no-one is stopping Brittney Griner from making use of the appeal procedure, and likewise asking for clemency ... Attempts to present the case as though the American woman was illegally detained do not stand up to criticism.”

In May, the US state department designated Griner as “wrongfully detained”.

Griner, who had been playing for a Yekaterinburg-based club during the off-season, was arrested at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport on February 17 on drugs charges that carry up to 10 years in prison. Russian officials said cannabis-infused vaporiser cartridges, which are illegal in Russia, had been found in Griner's baggage. Her trial began on Friday. 

— Reuters

July 6 2022 — 12:26

China and India funnel $24bn to Putin in energy spree

Russia has pocketed $24bn (R401.4bn) from selling energy to China and India in just three months after its invasion of Ukraine, showing how higher global prices are limiting efforts by the US and Europe to punish President Vladimir Putin.

China spent $18.9bn (about R316bn) on Russian oil, gas and coal in the three months to the end of May, almost double the amount a year earlier, latest customs data show.

Meanwhile, India shelled out $5.1bn (about R85.3bn) in the same period, more than five times the value of a year ago. That’s an extra $13bn (R217.45bn) in revenue from both countries compared to the same months in 2021.

July 6 2022 — 11:51

Ukraine says its gas storage is at roughly half government target

Ukraine has 11-billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas in underground storage vs a government target of 19 bcm, the head of its gas transmission system operator said on Wednesday.

“This winter will probably be the most difficult in our history,” Sergiy Makogon, CEO of the transmission system operator, told a news briefing. “At the moment in underground storage sites there is around 11 bcm of the 19 the cabinet wants.”

Makogon said before Russia's invasion Ukraine used around 30 bcm a year of gas but that he expected consumption would shrink to around 21-22 bcm a year. Ukraine's economy is expected to contract sharply as a result of the war, with the central bank predicting in April a GDP fall of at least one-third in 2022.

Makogon said Ukraine needed to prepare itself for a future scenario where Europe stops buying gas from Russia. “Our (transmission) system will no longer be necessary. We expect there will be no transit, we will look for other opportunities to use the system,” he said.

— Reuters

July 6 2022 — 11:31

Kremlin: No substantive contacts with Vatican regarding Pope's visit to Moscow

The Kremlin said on Wednesday it had not had substantive contact with the Vatican regarding a potential visit by Pope Francis to Russia. Francis told Reuters there had been contact between Vatican secretary of state Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov about a possible trip to Moscow. — Reuters

July 6 2022 — 10:28

Russian court orders Caspian Pipeline Consortium to suspend operations

A Russian court ordered the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), one of the world's largest pipelines which brings oil from Kazakhstan to the Black Sea, to suspend activity for 30 days, adding to global worries over oil supplies.CPC, which handles about 1% of global oil and includes US majors Chevron and Exxon, said the ruling to suspend its operations concerned issues related to the handling oil spills and that the consortium had to abide by the ruling. It declined further comment on its activity and operations.

The CPC pipeline has been in the spotlight since what Russia calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine, which has restricted Russian exports and led to an oil price spike.

The US has imposed sanctions on Russian oil but has said flows from Kazakhstan through Russia should run uninterrupted.

According to a report seen by Reuters, oil loadings from CPC terminal were continuing as of midday on July 5, but it was not clear if operations were continuing on July 6.

CPC said on Wednesday that Russian Deputy Prime Minister Viktoria Abramchenko ordered regulators, including industrial safety regulator Rostekhnadzor, to inspect the facilities of the Russian part of the consortium. It said that the inspection has found some “documentary” irregularities on plans how to tackle oil spills. An oil spill occurred at the terminal last year. The pipeline exported up to 54-million tonnes, or some 1.2-million barrels per day, of Kazakhstan's main crude grade, light sour CPC Blend, last year from the Black Sea.

The pipeline's operations have already been interrupted by damage to the Black Sea's terminal equipment this year. Any major disruption to its flows would put further strain on the global oil market just as it faces one of the worst supply crunches since the Arab oil embargo in the 1970s.

— Reuters

July 6 2022 — 08:30

Mitsui, Mitsubishi shares fall after Medvedev suggests loss of Russian oil, gas supply to Japan

Shares of Japanese trading firms Mitsui & Co and Mitsubishi Corp dropped more than 4% on Wednesday after former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev made comments threatening the loss of oil and gas supply to Japan.

Commenting on a reported proposal by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the weekend to cap the price of Russian oil at around half its current level, Medvedev said on social media that Japan “would have neither oil nor gas from Russia, as well as no participation in the Sakhalin-2 LNG project” as a result.

Mitsui and Mitsubishi hold stakes of 12.5% and 10%, respectively, in the Sakhalin-2 project. 

— Reuters

July 6 2022 — 06:30

Ruined Lysychansk eerily silent, residents remain in bomb shelters, after fall to Russia

Lysychansk was once a city of a 100,000 people in Ukraine's eastern Luhansk region, but it now lies in ruins after its fall to Russian forces with many residents still living in bomb shelters and basements. The city was eerily quiet on Tuesday with scorched buildings, overturned vehicles and rubble a testament to the ferocity of the battle it has endured.

Tatiana Glushenko, a 45-year-old Lysychansk resident, told Reuters there were people still in basements and bomb shelters, including children and the elderly. Glushenko said she and her family had decided to stay in Lysychansk on worries about safety in other parts of Ukraine.

“All of Ukraine is being shelled: western Ukraine, central Ukraine, Dnipro, Kyiv, everywhere. So we decided not to risk our lives and stay here, at home at least,” she said.

Glushenko is hopeful that peace will return to her city and “that there will be some order”.

Since abandoning an assault on the capital Kyiv earlier in its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has concentrated its military operation on the industrial Donbas heartland that comprises the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, where Moscow-backed separatist proxies have been fighting Ukraine since 2014.

Russia said the capture of Lysychansk on Sunday, about a week after the fall of twin city Sievierdonetsk, gives it control of Luhansk — a major goal of the war.

Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine on February 24, calling it a “special military operation” to ensure Russian security and protect Russian-speaking people in Ukraine. Russia says it does not target civilians, but the near five-month war has killed thousands, displaced millions and flattened cities, particularly in Russian-speaking areas in the east and southeast.

For elderly Lysychansk resident Evgenia, who did not provide her last name, the prospect of rebuilding their home from the ruins left behind is a daunting task.

“The roof is broken. You have to fix it, but how and how do you pay for it? Where? From who? Winter is coming soon too, my dear,” said Evgenia, sitting in a dark shelter.

— Reuters

July 6 2022 — 04:30

US calls on G20 to press Russia to reopen sea lanes for grain delivery

Food and energy security will figure prominently in a meeting of G20 foreign minister in Bali this week and the group's members should insist that Russia support UN efforts to reopen sea lanes blocked by Moscow's war in Ukraine, a senior US official said on Tuesday.

Ramin Toloui, the US assistant secretary of state for economic and business affairs, told reporters that secretary of state Antony Blinken would raise energy security in the main G20 ministers' session on Friday and in bilateral meetings.

“G20 countries should hold Russia accountable and insist that it support ongoing UN efforts to reopen the sea lanes for grain delivery,” he said. 

— Reuters