Ukraine: realities | «The Weekly Five»: 22.05 – 28.05

Lukashenko hospitalized in critical condition after meeting with Putin

Belarusian oppositionist Valery Tsepkalo said  that self-proclaimed President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko was taken to the Central Clinical Hospital in Moscow in critical condition after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

«According to the information we have, which requires additional confirmation, Lukashenko was urgently taken to the Central Clinical Hospital in Moscow after a closed-door meeting with Putin, where he is now staying. The best specialists were sent to bring him back from what doctors assessed as a critical condition. Blood was washed, and Lukashenko's condition was recognized as non-transportable.

The organized measures to save the Belarusian dictator were intended to deflect speculation about the Kremlin's possible involvement in his poisoning. It does not matter whether he returns to working condition or not, doctors warn of a possible recurrence of relapses.»

Ukrainian troops begin training in Germany on Abrams tanks – Pentagon

The first group of about 400 Ukrainian military personnel has begun training in Germany to operate and maintain American M1 Abrams tanks.

This was stated by Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Garron Garn.

About 200 servicemen – approximately one armored battalion – began training on Friday at training ranges in Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels, Germany.

The training covers basic soldiering tasks such as marksmanship and medical skills, as well as platoon and company level training, and eventually larger exercises involving battalion-sized units facing off against each other.

According to Colonel Garn, the remaining 200 Ukrainian soldiers have begun training on how to refuel and maintain tanks.

France: Russian attack on a hospital in Dnipro is a war crime

The French Foreign Ministry has condemned Russia's latest missile and drone attacks against civilian infrastructure in Ukraine.

In a statement  released on Friday, the French Foreign Ministry condemned the strikes targeting Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Dnipro regions in the «strongest terms», emphasizing that this was the thirteenth attack on the Ukrainian capital in May.

«These strikes again deliberately targeted civilian objects, including a hospital in Dnipro, in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law,» it said.

We wrote about the missile attack on the hospital in this article.

«Ramstein» countries pledge $65 billion in military aid to Ukraine – Austin

The United States and the countries of the Contact Group for Support of Ukraine have pledged to provide Ukraine with military assistance totaling $65 billion.

This was announced on Thursday by U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in his speech at the online meeting in the Ramstein format.

«In total, the Contact Group promised to provide Ukraine with $65 billion in security assistance,» Austin said.

According to the Pentagon chief, Russian President Vladimir Putin hoped that the resolve of Ukraine's allies would wane.

The Prime Minister of Latvia: If Ukraine is not in NATO after the war, there will be no real peace in Europe

Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karinš believes that Ukraine must join the North Atlantic Alliance after the war, as otherwise, it will not be possible to guarantee peace and security on the continent.

Karinsh said this at a press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels.

The Latvian prime minister emphasized the need for further military assistance to Ukraine «for as long as necessary until it finally wins its war against the completely unjustified aggression that Russia is carrying out against a sovereign country.»

«In the end, it seems quite clear that at the end of the war, for peace and security in Europe to be a reality, Ukraine must be a NATO member state,» he said.

«After all, if Ukraine wins the war, liberates its territories from Russian occupiers, and is not a NATO member, Russia's rearmament, regrouping, and possible repetition of all this (war - ed.) is only a matter of time,» Karins said.

The project «Ukraine: realities» is implemented by the News agency «Konkurent» together with the Civic Movement «SVIDOMI» and the charity organization Global Empowerment Mission in English for readers from other countries to tell the stories of people who survived the horrors of the Russian occupation.

Проєкт «Ukraine: realities» реалізовується Інформаційним агентством «Конкурент» спільно з Громадянським Рухом «СВІДОМІ» та благодійною організацією Global Empowerment Mission на англійській мові для читачів з інших країн аби розповісти історії людей, які пережили жахи російської окупації.