Russia can hold a referendum in Mariupol, relatives of Ukrainian soldiers ask China for help

Petro Andryushchenko, an adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, said on May 14 that some sources in the group that have not yet evacuated believe that Russia is preparing a referendum on the future of the city.

According to Andryushchenko, the announcement of a referendum could be made as early as today (May 15), although there is no evidence of the establishment of polling stations.

“We have information that the Russian authorities are preparing a referendum and may even call it tomorrow (May 15), but we still do not know if this is true or not. no,” the mayor’s adviser Mariupol said, according to the Guardian.

“However, we see a lot of integration of Mariupol into Russian systems, such as education and banking,” added Andryushchenko.

Moscow has not yet responded to this information.

Meanwhile, 5 wives and 1 father of Ukrainian soldiers entrenched inside the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol have sent a request to Chinese President Xi Jinping to “rescue him”, claiming that Mr. The last leader in the world that Moscow can listen to.

Speaking at a press conference in Kiev on May 14, Stavr Vychniak, the father of one of the Ukrainian soldiers who remained at the Azovstal factory, said: “There is only one person left in the world that we have. One can count on, it’s Chinese President Xi Jinping. China has great influence over Russia and President Vladimir Putin personally, and we would like to ask for his intervention (President Xi Jinping).”

Natalia Zarytska, the wife of one of the Ukrainian soldiers in Azovstal, also said that “there is only one person left in the world who can make it difficult for Mr. Putin to say no”, and called on Mr. Xi to “get involved” the rescue” of his relatives. “We believe that China, with its strength and nobility, can make decisions in the name of good for this difficult issue,” Zarytska said.

Russia accuses US security of threatening diplomats

TASS news agency quoted Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov as saying that Russian diplomats in Washington DC are being threatened with violence and harassed by US security and intelligence services.

Antonov likened the current state of the Russian Embassy in the US to “a besieged fortress”. “Basically, our embassy is operating in a hostile environment… Embassy staff are receiving threats, including threats of physical violence,” said the ambassador. Ambassador revealed to TASS on May 14.

Agents from US security agencies are always standing outside the Russian Embassy, ​​exchanging phone numbers of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). to establish contacts,” Antonov said, adding that since Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine on February 24, direct contact with US officials has stopped altogether. .

The CIA, FBI, Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the US State Department were not immediately available for comment.

Earlier, the RIA Novosti news agency, citing Ambassador Antonov, said that the activities of the Russian Embassy in Washington DC were “frozen”, while their bank accounts were closed and staff there. threatened.

Ukraine warns of mines near the coast of Odessa

The city council of Odessa (Ukraine) has issued a warning to residents about the appearance of floating mines near one of the city’s shores.

In a statement issued on May 14, the Odessa City Council said: “Located a few dozen meters from shore, the mines do not pose a direct threat. However, they are once again a reminder. about the dangers of swimming and other nearshore maritime activities.”

Officials in the southwestern Ukrainian port city also said the mines would be cleared by special forces, but warned residents: “For your own safety, you should not go near the the beach and the coast, using the watercraft or even swimming”.

In addition, the Odessa City Council stressed that the threat of missile attacks still exists.

Eurovision champion ready to return to Ukraine to fight

Speaking at a press conference in the city of Turin (Italy) on the morning of May 15, the main vocalist Oleh Psiuk of Kalush Orchestra – the Ukrainian group has just won the Champion at Europe’s leading music competition Eurovision. knew he and his band members were “ready to fight” again after returning home.

“Our right to temporary stay has two days left to expire, and exactly in those two days we will return to Ukraine,” Psiuk said. “It is difficult to say exactly what I will do, because this is the first time I have won the Eurovision music competition. But like all Ukrainians, we are always ready to fight as hard as we can and will continue to fight to the end.”

Kalush Orchestra won the top spot of Eurovision 2022, after the song “Stefania” performed by the group achieved a total score of 631 from the judges and the audience, far ahead of the score of runner-up Sam Ryder from the UK (466) point). On the final night of the competition, Kalush Orchestra sang in Ukrainian in front of about 7,500 people.

Currently, the Ukrainian government prohibits men between the ages of 18 and 60 from leaving the country. However, all 6 male members of Kalush Orchestra were given special permission to go abroad to “represent Ukraine’s country and culture” to participate in this leading European music competition.

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