In truth, however, Putin has given clues about his intentions when it comes to Ukraine for years, frequently deploring the collapse of the Soviet union, extolling the unity of Russians and Ukrainians and dismissing the notion of Ukraine as an independent territory. "There are lots of rumors about President Putin's health and as far as we can tell, he's entirely too healthy," he said, although he added that was "not a formal intelligence judgment."įollowers of Russian geopolitics keep a close eye on Putin's public appearances for signs of ill health and for insight into his rationale for invading neighboring Ukraine. The claims have been denied by the Kremlin, and CIA Director William Burns also appeared to pour cold water on those rumors on Wednesday, telling the Aspen Security Forum that the CIA is aware of no evidence that Putin is debilitated mentally or physically. There has been speculation for months that Russian President Vladimir Putin could be suffering from poor physical or mental health, including unsubstantiated rumors that he may have undergone cancer treatment. "I'm asking for air defense systems in order for rockets not to kill," Zelenska said before a backdrop of graphic and disturbing images from devastated Ukrainian streets. As she spoke, a presentation showed graphic images of Ukrainian children killed by Russian missile strikes and shelling. First Lady Olena Zelenska, who has been in Washington this week, repeated those calls to America Wednesday when she addressed the U.S.
In the meantime, Ukraine has repeated its call for more air defense systems to it fend off Russian aircraft and missile attacks. "In Donetsk region, the invaders are seeking to advance to the Debaltseve-Sloviansk highway, while Ukraine's forces are holding them back," the armed forces said in its update.
Separately, Kharkiv to the north and Mykolaiv to the south are also coming under attack, with powerful explosions rocking the port city of Mykolaiv during the night.
Army approved eye pro update#
The latest update Thursday morning from the general staff of the Ukrainian armed forces said those cities and the settlements around them continued to be attacked by Russian artillery. Kyiv has called for more air defense systems as its forces fight on in eastern and southern Ukraine.įighting is concentrated around the cities of Kramatorsk, Sloviansk and Bakhmut, and Ukrainian forces are desperate to hold the line to prevent Russian advances in Donetsk.
It said there was an urgent need to liberate the Zaporizhzhia NPP as soon as possible and appealed to the international community for help "because only Ukraine will be able to guarantee the smooth and safe operation" of the nuclear power plant.Įnergoatom published an announcement yesterday, Wednesday, saying that the Russian military had demanded that the engine rooms at the 1st, 2nd and 3rd power units at the plant were opened in order to place their entire military arsenal there."
Russian forces seized the nuclear power plant - which is also among the largest in the world - that's located in southeastern Ukraine, back in March. "Therefore, the risk of fire increases many times, and its extinguishing becomes extremely problematic. If a fire occurs, for example, due to the accidental detonation of ammunition, then its scale can be equal to the one that occurred during the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant," the post said.Įnergoatom added that Russian forces "continue to violate all norms and requirements regarding fire, nuclear and radiation safety at nuclear power plants, keeping heavy military equipment, ammunition, weapons and explosives in the engine room of the power unit of the largest nuclear power plant in Europe." 1 and that there was the potential for a catastrophic accident. Energoatom said the military equipment had prevented the access of specialized fire engines and other vehicles to the control room of power unit No.