War in Ukraine: threat of “hot war”, Georgian officials sanctioned… update on the situation

Every day, Midi Libre takes stock of the situation in Ukraine. This Thursday, December 5, 2024, discover the latest news around this conflict.

U.S., Russian Joint Chiefs of Staff Hold Phone Call

The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force Gen. Charles Quinton Brown, spoke by phone with the chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, last week, the U.S. military said Wednesday. Brown had never spoken to his Russian counterpart before.

“(They) discussed a number of issues related to regional and international security, including the ongoing conflict in Ukraine”, a spokesperson for Charles Quinton Brown said in a statement. The call, which took place on November 27, was organized at the request of the Russian Defense Ministry, the spokesman said.

Ukraine denies providing military support to rebels, Moscow accuses it

Ukraine on Wednesday denied providing military support to militants of the radical Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is waging an offensive against Bashar al-Assad's forces in northwestern Syria, as Moscow has accused it of doing.

kyiv “categorically rejects Russia's unfounded accusations against Ukraine over its alleged involvement in the worsening security situation in Syria”, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The head of Ukrainian diplomacy will go to the OSCE meeting in Malta, where Lavrov is expected

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiga will be in Malta on Thursday for an OSCE meeting, where his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, is also due to travel for his first trip to the EU since the start of the invasion of Ukraine.

M. Sybiga will travel to Malta on “December 4 and 5” (Wednesday and Thursday) where he will speak at the plenary secession and hold bilateral meetings with representatives of “partner countries”, kyiv's diplomacy said in a statement.

Ukraine sanctions Georgian officials, including Prime Minister (Zelensky)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced sanctions on Thursday against 19 Georgian officials, including Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, a strongman in Georgia, a country rocked by pro-European protests.

“These are sanctions against the part of the Georgian government that is handing over Georgia to (Vladimir) Putin,”, Zelensky said in a video address. Georgia has been in turmoil since the October 26 legislative elections, won by the ruling party but denounced as rigged by the opposition.

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Lavrov came to the OSCE “to lie”

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov came to Malta, his first visit to a European Union (EU) country since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, to “lie about the Russian invasion”, his Polish counterpart Radoslaw Sikorski said on Thursday.

“Mr. Lavrov comes here to lie about the Russian invasion and what Russia is doing in Ukraine. And I am not going to listen to those lies. I am not going to sit at the same table with Mr. Lavrov,” Sikorski said as he arrived at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) ministerial meeting in Ta'Qali, Malta.

Russia poses “the greatest threat” to security

Russia poses “the greatest threat” to security in Europe, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said on Thursday, calling his Russian counterpart, who was also present, a “war criminal”.

“Russia is not a partner, it is the greatest threat to our common security. Russia's participation in the OSCE is a threat to cooperation in Europe”, he said at a meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Malta, asserting that Moscow “lies” when it talks about peace.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Calls Lavrov a “War Criminal”

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga on Thursday called his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, who was also present, a “war criminal” at a meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Malta.

“Ukraine continues to fight for its right to exist. And the Russian war criminal at this table must know: Ukraine will win this right and justice will prevail”, Mr. Sybiga said.

Lavrov says new “Cold War” threatens to become “hot”

The head of Russian diplomacy accused the West on Thursday, at an OSCE meeting in Malta, of orchestrating a “new Cold War”, judging that it now threatens to become “hot”, the state agency Ria Novosti reported.

“In order to put NATO back on the political scene, after the Afghan debacle (the Western military withdrawal of 2021, editor's note), a unifying enemy was needed. The solution was a reincarnation of the Cold War, except that now the risk is much bigger to move to a hot phase”, accused Sergei Lavrov before the representatives of the 57 OSCE participating states, most of them countries denouncing the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Warsaw advocates Russia's suspension from OSCE

The Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs advocated on Thursday the suspension of Russia from the OSCE as long as it continues to wage war against Ukraine.

“As long as it (Russia, editor's note) has not put an end to this brutal war, its membership in the OSCE should be suspended”, a Mr Radoslaw Sikorski told reporters in Malta, shortly after boycotting his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov's speech at the organisation's meeting.