Ukraine regained the vital area, Russian soldiers suspected of being contaminated with radiation

“Ukrainian forces have recaptured the villages of Sloboda and Lukashivka south of Chernihiv, located along one of the main supply routes between this city and the capital Kiev,” the British Ministry of Defense, citing information from the force, said in a statement. intelligence agency of the country, said in a statement issued today (April 1).

Also according to the announcement, the Ukrainian army has continued to successfully carry out a number of counter-attacks with a limited scale in the east and northeast of Kiev. Even so, both the capital and Chernihiv are still subjected to continuous air strikes and rocket fire, despite Russia’s announced reduction of military activities in these areas.

Ukrainian soldiers walk next to the burned bodies of Russian weapons near Kiev. Photo: AP

The British Ministry of Defense also said that the Russian military is deploying forces from Georgia to Ukraine to compensate for the loss of troops after more than a month of fighting. “About 1,200 to 2,000 Russian troops are being reorganized into three battalion-level tactical groups,” the agency said.

Ukraine is about to have more long-range weapons

Speaking to the press after the Ukraine defense funding conference on March 31, British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said the West had agreed to send armored vehicles and long-range artillery to Ukraine, so that the country could defend. effective against the incessant Russian shelling of cities.

“The best way to deal with these attacks is with long-range cannons. So they (Ukraine) will mainly need and want to find artillery and ammunition with a longer range,” Mr. Wallace confirmed, according to the Guardian newspaper.

A 2S7 artillery battery of the Ukrainian army. Photo: Ministry of Defense of Ukraine

The British Defense Minister also said, Ukraine is “looking for some kind of armored vehicle, not necessarily a tank, but definitely a vehicle with protection, plus more air defense systems,” and “these are all coming soon.” thanks to the last conference”.

Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that he would send Bushmaster armored vehicles to Ukraine, at the request of President Volodymyr Zelensky. Mr. Morrison said the vehicles will be transported on a Boeing C-17 Globemaster transport plane, but did not specify the number and time of transportation.

Russian soldiers are suspected of being contaminated with radiation from the Chernobyl plant

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) today (April 1) said it was opening an investigation into claims from Ukraine that the Russian soldiers occupying the Chernobyl nuclear power plant had left after leaving the country. exposure to a “significant dose” of radiation.

The agency also said that it has not been able to verify claims from Ukraine’s state electricity company Energoatom and is seeking an independent review.

An aerial view of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant on March 7. Photo: Russian Ministry of Defense

Earlier, Energoatom, the unit that manages the “restricted access areas” around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, announced on the evening of March 31 that the Russian military had withdrawn from this site.

The announcement said that Russian soldiers had dug trenches and fortifications in the Red Forest area – the highest radioactive contamination of the “restricted access area” around the Chernobyl power plant, leaving many of them infected. significant dose of radiation.

Russia accuses Ukraine of air strikes on oil depot in Belgorod

Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of Belgorod province in western Russia, accused Ukrainian helicopters of attacking a petroleum depot in the territory of this province.

“The fire at the oil depot is the result of an airstrike by an armed helicopter of the Ukrainian army. The planes entered Russian airspace at low altitude. Two workers were injured in the incident, no one was injured. people died,” Mr. Gladkov wrote on social networks today (April 1).

The scene of a petrol depot fire in Belgorod (Russia). Video: RIA Novosti

Earlier, a large fire broke out in a Russian petroleum depot in Belgorod, a city located near the border with Ukraine, on April 1. Some videos shared on social media show Mi-24 armed helicopters, believed to be from Ukrainian forces, flying low and launching missiles into the depot, causing huge explosions.

Local officials said they were mobilizing all resources to control the fire and evacuate nearby residents, stressing that there was no threat to the community.

The Defense Ministry of Russia and Ukraine have not commented on this information.

The Ukraine issue will ‘take over’ the EU-China summit

Leaders from the European Union (EU) and China will hold their first summit in two years today (April 1), and war situation in Ukraine expected to be the main theme.

As revealed by an EU official to Reuters news agency, China’s stance towards Russia will be “a million dollar question”. “Are we going to prolong this war or work together to end it? That is a very important question for this summit,” the official said.

China remains neutral in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and has called for peace talks to be held to meet “all parties’ legitimate concerns”.

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