All information related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine this Friday, April 15, which marks the 52nd day of the conflict.
Sinking of the Moskva, a hard blow
The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed Thursday that the cruiser Moskva (Moscow), pride of the Russian fleet, sank while being towed after being damaged, according to it, by explosions of ammunition caused by a fire. The Ukrainian military said it hit the vessel that was patrolling off the Ukrainian port of Odessa with missiles fired from the shore.
On the Russian television side, there is now talk of a “third world war” on the Rossiya-1 channel, reports BFM TV. “The special military operation ended last night when our homeland was hit, it is an absolute cause of war”, even details a journalist on the air in Russia. Proof that the conflict has just taken a new turn.
What reactions?
The presenter herself called for “bomb and destroy kyiv” in retaliation, reports BFM, which also questioned Sylvie Bermann, a former French ambassador to Russia, about Moscow’s possible intentions after this setback.
“It’s very difficult to say what the Kremlin’s intentions are, there are constant threats and intimidation, and at the same time we saw that they were able to take action”she analyzes.
As for the question of escalation and a possible recourse to nuclear weapons, Mathieu Boulègue, of the British think tank Chatham House, estimates with AFP that the use of tactical nuclear weapons, a weapon nuclear smaller in explosive charge is “unlikely, but not impossible”.
Explosions heard in kyiv
This Saturday, April 16, explosions were heard in the early hours of the day in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, and in Lviv, in the west of the country, local media reported.
Warning sirens sounded across much of Ukraine on Saturday. The explosions have not been officially confirmed.
