Still no cease-fire in Ukraine. While the conflict between kyiv and Moscow continues to rage, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky annoyed Vladimir Putin’s announcement on Friday on the establishment of a short truce from May 8 to 10. One way, according to the Kremlin, to “test” the arrangement of kyiv to peace. “It is impossible to find a plan to establish the next steps to finish the war in three, five or seven days. Let’s be honest. It does not seem serious,” castigated the Ukrainian leader on Friday, May 4, in front of journalists. The separate negotiations led by Washington to find a way out of the conflict trampled at the moment. The Russian president intends to increase his power on the international scene by receiving Chinese President Xi Jinping from May 7 to 10 in Russia. He will attend the military parade of the 80th anniversary of the Second World War organized in the capital Moscow.
Info to remember
⇒ Xi Jinping will go to Russia for an official visit from May 7 to 10
⇒ A pro-Russian event is organized this Sunday, May 4 in Washington
⇒ A Russian fighter plane shot down by Ukraine over the Black Sea
Xi Jinping on an official visit in Russia from May 7 to 10
Russia announced on Sunday the arrival of Chinese president Xi Jinping from May 7 to 10 for an official visit to the country. This trip will allow him to attend the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of victory against Nazi Germany organized on May 9 in the capital Moscow by Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a press release, the Kremlin indicates that the Chinese leader will also participate in bilateral discussions on the “development of global partnership and strategic interaction relations” and on “current problems on the international and regional agenda”. “It is planned that a series of bilateral documents, between governments and ministries (Russians and Chinese, editor’s note), is signed,” added the Russian presidency. The arrival of Xi Jinping in Russia was also confirmed by Beijing this Sunday, May 4. According to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the latter should also meet with Vladimir Putin during his stay.
-Read also: Robert Person: “Any diplomatic solution between Russia and Ukraine is today illusory”
This trip to Russia takes place while Beijing’s position in relation to the Ukrainian conflict is the subject of debate. China presents itself as a neutral part and a potential mediator of the conflict in Ukraine, but it remains a key political and economic ally of Russia, to the point that Westerners have described it as “decisive facilitator” of the Russian assault – which Beijing has never condemned. “I hope for my part that China can play an active role” at the diplomatic level, Emmanuel Macron had launched last March about the Ukrainian conflict.
A pro-Russian parade of the “immortal regiment” organized in Washington
A first in six years. A pro-Russian parade was organized this Sunday, May 4 in the streets of Washington, in the United States. The objective? Commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of the “Great Patriotic War”, the name given to Moscow to evoke the Second World War. This rally is the work of the “immortal regiment”, a movement which brings together Russians around the world to pay tribute to their ancestors who died in combat during the conflict between 1939 and 1945. 26 million Russians perished during this period. Problem: the “immortal regiment”, initially a simple celebration in Russia of warflanged by war, has been instrumentalized by the Kremlin for more than a decade to make it a propaganda tool.
Read also: Claude Blanchemaison, ex-ambassador to Moscow: “Putin will also have to make territorial concessions”
In the 2010s, the idea of organizing steps from the “immortal regiment” was encouraged by the Russian authorities. The Kremlin sees it as a way of exacerbating the patriotic fiber of many Russians, by cultivating the idea of magnitude of a Russia with brilliant victories. In 2015, the Russian president himself participated in one of his processions, by bringing a photograph of his father, an ex-soldier of the Red Army. The concept is exported to the international and demonstrations of the “immortal regiment” are organized in many countries. The war in Ukraine, however, led certain states to prohibit these tributes. This Sunday, a pro-Ukrainian counter -ion-likely was organized in the American capital in response to this controversial meeting.
A Russian fighter shot down by a Ukrainian drone
The Ukrainian army announced on Saturday May 3 having shot down a Russian fighter plane thanks to a naval drone for the first time since the start of the conflict. “The historic strike was carried out by the warriors of the special unity of group 13 of Hur using an R-73 missile launched from the naval platform without pilot Magura […] This is the very first destruction of a fighting aircraft by a naval drone, “said the Ministry of Defense, in a message published on social networks. This operation was carried out in the Russian base of Novorossiysk. The plane shot down by the Ukrainian machine is a sukhoï su-30, a model created in the Soviet era, but always widely used by Russia.” About $ 50 million, caught fire in the air and finally fell into the sea, “added the press release. The pilot would have managed to eject before the strike against his device.
