Ukraine war: Russian ambassador in Paris, offensive in preparation in Koupiansk, American aid… update on the situation

La région de Belgorod le 25 janvier 2024. (illustration) MAXPPP – RUSSIAN INVESTIGATIVE COMMITEE HANDOUT

Tous les jours, Midi Libre fait le point sur la situation en Ukraine. Ce lundi 5 février 2024, découvrez les dernières actualités autour de ce conflit.

The Russian ambassador to France summoned to the Quai d'Orsay

The Russian ambassador to France, Alexeï Mechkov, was summoned to the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs this Monday following the death of two French humanitarian workers in Russian strikes in Ukraine on the 2 February, confirmed the Quai d'Orsay.

"On this occasion, France will reiterate its strong condemnation of the Russian strikes which killed two French nationals working for a non-governmental humanitarian organization in Ukraine and injured three others. our nationals", specified the deputy spokesperson of the ministry during a press briefing. "She will also denounce the resurgence of disinformation targeting France", he added.

The Russian attack last Thursday on the town of Berislav, in southern Ukraine, killed two French people and injured three others. The two victims were members of Swiss Protestant Entraide (EPER), the NGO said on Friday. French President Emmanuel Macron, who is expected in Ukraine at the end of the month, then denounced "a cowardly and unworthy act". Already icy as the war in Ukraine approaches its second anniversary, relations between Paris and Moscow have deteriorated further in recent weeks, with France having stepped up its support for Ukraine, notably by promising to support the war. send additional long-range cruise missiles to kyiv. France accuses Russia of regularly spreading false information.

At the end of January, Paris denied the alleged presence of French mercenaries in Ukraine. Paris also criticizes Russian President Vladimir Putin for spreading disinformation by suggesting that missiles that shot down a Russian plane carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war could have come from a French air defense system.

What is Russia preparing for Kupiansk ?

While the war between Ukraine and Russia began almost two years ago, Vladimir Putin's army is reportedly preparing to carry out a large-scale offensive near of Kupiansk, assures the Ukrainian authorities.

A victory in the Kharkiv oblast would be welcome for the master of the Kremlin, which would allow him to justify his "military operation special" in Ukraine a few weeks before the Russian presidential election, explains the magazine Géo.

Thus, no less than 500 heavy tanks, 600 armored vehicles, hundreds of cannons and missile launchers and nearly 40,000 soldiers would be gathered in the Koupiansk region in order to carry out a massive offensive. scale very soon, reports the Ukrainian military command.

The Russian army would therefore be instructed to retake several cities or regions from which it has already been driven out by March 2024, explains  Center for Strategic Studies.

Agreement in the Senate on border measures, aid to Ukraine and Israel

The US Senate on Sunday unveiled a bipartisan $118 billion bill providing funding for border security measures as well as aid to Ukraine and Israel, an agreement obtained after months of negotiations but which remains fragile, with some of the Republican elected officials opposing it.

Chuck Schumer, leader of the Democratic majority in the Senate, indicated that he would take steps to ensure that an initial vote on the text takes place on Wednesday. If the bill were to pass, it would trigger the most significant changes to U.S. migration policy and border security in decades.

According to independent Senator Kyrsten Sinema, the text will force the Department of Homeland Security to "close" the southern border of the States -United with most migrants if the average of daily crossing attempts exceeds the threshold of 5,000 over a period of seven days.

In addition to $20.23 billion dedicated to border security, the bipartisan text also provides $60 billion in additional aid to Ukraine, including the war against Russia approaches its second anniversary, and 14.1 billion in security aid to Israel. $10 billion will also be earmarked for humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza, the West Bank and Ukraine.

This bill broadly meets President Joe Biden's expectations regarding foreign aid. The Democratic tenant of the White House called on Congress in October to approve additional funds for Ukraine and Israel.

But the Republicans in the House of Representatives – where they are in the majority – are blocking any progress, seeking to obtain a change in American immigration policy to approve immigration aid. Ukraine and Israel. Reacting to the agreement announced by the Senate, the leader of the Republican majority in the House of Representatives declared that the senators' bill would not give rise to a vote in the House.

"This is what the people pushing for this 'deal' don't tell you: it accepts 5,000 illegal migrants per day", wrote Steve Scalise on the social network X, a position shared by the most right-wing elected officials in the Senate and the House .

In favor of negotiations between the two parties, Mitch McConnell, leader of the Republicans in the Senate, declared for his part that his party could not obtain a better agreement even if the White House was occupied by a republican. In a statement, he called on the Senate to "take careful consideration of the opportunity that presents itself and prepare to act" .