WAR IN UKRAINE – Russian forces on Saturday mounted a new coordinated and artillery
attack on several Ukrainian cities, including the capital-city Kyiv, where
gunfire and explosions were reported in the proximity of Government buildings,
according to eye-witness reports and Ukrainian army officials. Heavy fighting
is also ongoing in southern Ukraine, in Mariupol, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Odessa,
an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency has announced. According to Russian sources, the Russian
army has taken full control of Melitopol and the hydroelectric power plant
north of the capital city. Volodymyr Zelensky said his allies continue to
deliver weapons and has dismissed false information according to which he had
called on the army to surrender. Ukraine’s ambassador in Israel told CNN that
the Ukrainian president has called on the Israeli Prime Minister, Naftali
Bennett, to host and help mediate negotiations with Russia. According to
official data published by Kyiv authorities, nearly 200 Ukrainians have been killed
in the attacks, including three children. Over 1,200 people were injured, of
whom 33 are underage. The USA and the EU on Friday imposed sanctions on the
Russian president and the Russian Foreign Minister. Additionally, NATO
announced it will continue to provide weapons to Kyiv and has mobilized its
rapid response force on the Alliance’s eastern flank.
NATO – France will relocate 500 of its NATO military to Romania in response
to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the French chief of general staff, Thierry
Burkhard has announced. NATO has decided to consolidate its presence on the eastern flank and send a strong
message of strategic solidarity by deploying forces to Romania, General
Burkhard argued, adding that France’s NATO personnel in Estonia will also be
reinforced ahead of schedule. At the same time, Portugal will also accelerate
the deploying of its infantry to Romania as part of NATO operations originally
slated for the second half of the year. Portugal will also help receive
Ukrainian refugees by granting emergency visas, EFE news agency reports. Prime
Minister Antonio Costa told a press briefing at the end of the NATO summit that
this infantry battalion comprises 174 military and is due to head out to
Romania within the next few weeks.
REFUGEES – In Romania, authorities and civil society are coordinating in order to
assist people fleeing the war in Ukraine. A task force has been set up that is
working with the Department for Emergency Situations and NGOs involved on the
ground, Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă has said. Some 20,000 refugees from Ukraine have crossed into
Romania since the start of the Russian invasion, mostly women and children. As
hotels and guesthouses are getting overcrowed real fast in the north and
northeast, association of volunteers have offered to put up people, including
in their own homes. People and NGOs have mobilized from the start of the war
and have prepared food, water and hot coffee adn tea for refugees crossing the
border. The Red Cross is on the ground, distributing food and personal hygiene
products together with a large retailer. Lists with essential phone numbers are
distributed to the refugees, whereas volunteers have set up phone-charging
systems and local Wi-Fi networks close to the border.
COVID-19 – Nearly 7,200
new cases of COVID-19 infection and 101 related deaths were reported on
Saturday, the Group for Strategic Communication has announced. Most of these
cases were reported in Bucharest, where the incidence rate is going down. The
vaccination campaign has slowed down, which prompted the authorities to close
down several centers across the country while reducing the working hours of
others. The hightest number of daily Covid infections was reported on February
1 – 40,018. (VP)