Page 30 - bon-dia-aruba-20220705

A30 world news
Diamars 5 Juli 2022

Japan sights China, Russia warships near disputed islands

ate had entered the waters for
more than an hour, the min- In Beijing, China justified the
istry said. frigate's entry and criticized
Tokyo's protest. Chinese For-
It was not immediately clear eign Ministry spokesperson
what was behind the latest Zhao Lijian said the islands
Chinese-Russian military are Chinese territory.
activity in the area. Japanese "The activities of Chinese
defense officials mentioned a vessels in waters nearby are
possibility that the ships may lawful and justified," he said
have been there to avoid a ty- at a regular news conference.
phoon. "Japan has no right to make
such irresponsible remarks."
Deputy Chief Cabinet Sec- Japan sees China's increas-
retary Seiji Kihara said Japan ingly assertive military activ-
lodged a protest expressing ity in the East and South Chi-
"grave concern" to Beijing na seas as a threat to regional
over the incident. stability. Toyo is especially
sensitive to Chinese activities
"The Senkaku islands are an near the disputed islands.
inherent part of Japan's ter-
ritory historically and under Kihara said that Monday's in-
international law. The gov- cursion into the contiguous
(AP) — Japan protested to claims and calls the Diaoyu, ernment will deal with the zone, which is between the
Beijing after spotting Chi- Japan's Defense Ministry said for several minutes Monday matter calmly but firmly to territorial sea and the wider
nese and Russian warships a Chinese frigate sailed in- morning. protect the Japanese land, ter- exclusive economic zone, by
just outside its territorial side the "contiguous zone," ritorial waters and air space," the Chinese warship was a
waters around the disput- just outside Japanese territo- The Chinese warship's pres- Kihara said. fourth such event since June
ed East China Sea islands rial waters around Senkaku ence was confirmed about 40 There was no violation of the 2016.
on Monday. Islands, which Beijing also minutes after a Russian frig- territorial waters, he said.

Putin declares victory in eastern Ukraine region of Luhansk

(AP) — Russian Presi- ernor Serhii Haidai said on Monday from the British bas, unleashing fierce shell- with our partners, with the
dent Vladimir Putin on Monday that Ukrainian forc- Defense Ministry supported ing and engaging in house- entire democratic world," he
Monday declared victory es had retreated from the city the Ukrainian military's as- to-house combat that devas- said.
in the eastern Ukrainian to avoid being surrounded. sessment, noting that Rus- tated cities in the region.
region of Luhansk, one sian forces will "now almost "A significant part of the
day after Ukrainian forces "There was a risk of Ly- certainly" switch to capturing Russia's invasion has also economy has been destroyed
withdrew from their last sychansk encirclement," Hai- Donetsk. The briefing said devastated Ukraine's agricul- by hostilities and Russian
remaining bulwark of re- dai told the Associated Press, the conflict in Donbas has tural sector, disrupting sup- strikes. Thousands of enter-
sistance in the province. adding that Ukrainian troops been "grinding and attrition- ply chains of seed and fer- prises do not work. And this
could have held on for a few al," and is unlikely to change tilizer needed by Ukrainian means a high need for jobs,
Russia's Defense Minister more weeks but would have in the coming weeks. farmers and blocking the ex- to provide social benefits, de-
Sergei Shoigu reported to potentially paid too high a port of grain, a key source of spite the decrease in tax rev-
Putin in a televised meeting price. While the Russian army has revenue for the country. enues," Zelenskyy said.
Monday that Russian forces a massive advantage in fire-
had taken control of Lu- "We managed to do central- power, military analysts say Ukrainian President Volody- In its Monday intelligence
hansk, which together with ized withdrawal and evacuate that it doesn't have any signif- myr Zelenskyy, in his nightly report, Britain's defense min-
the neighboring Donetsk all injured," Haidai said. "We icant superiority in the num- video address, called for im- istry pointed to the Russian
province makes up Ukraine's took back all the equipment, ber of troops. That means mediate economic aid to help blockade of the key Ukrai-
industrial heartland of Don- so from this point withdrawal Moscow lacks resources for the country rebuild even as nian port of Odesa, which
bas. was organized well." quick land gains and can fighting continues. has severely restricted grain
The Ukrainian General Staff only advance slowly, relying "The restoration of Ukraine exports. They predicted that
Shoigu told Putin that "the said Russian forces were on heavy artillery and rocket is not only about what needs Ukraine's agricultural ex-
operation" was completed now focusing their efforts barrages to soften Ukrainian to be done later after our ports would reach only 35%
on Sunday after Russian on pushing toward the line defenses. victory, but also about what of the 2021 total this year as
troops overran the city of Ly- of Siversk, Fedorivka and needs to be done right now. a result.
sychansk, the last stronghold Bakhmut in the Donetsk re- Putin has made capturing And we must do this together
of Ukrainian forces in Lu- gion, about half of which is the entire Donbas a key goal
hansk. controlled by Russia. The in his war in Ukraine, now
Putin, in turn, said that the Russian army has also inten- in its fifth month. Moscow-
military units "that took sified its shelling of the key backed separatists in Don-
part in active hostilities and Ukrainian strongholds of bas have battled Ukrainian
achieved success, victory" in Sloviansk and Kramatorsk, forces since 2014 when they
Luhansk, "should rest, in- deeper in Donetsk. declared independence from
crease their combat capabili- Kyiv after the Russian annex-
ties." On Sunday, six people, in- ation of Ukraine's Crimea.
cluding a 9-year-old girl, were Russia formally recognized
Putin's declaration came killed in the Russian shelling the self-proclaimed republics
as Russian forces tried to of Sloviansk and another 19 days before its Feb. 24 inva-
press their offensive deeper people were wounded, ac- sion of Ukraine.
into eastern Ukraine after cording to local authorities.
the Ukrainian military con- Kramatorsk also came under Since failing to take Kyiv
firmed that its forces had fire on Sunday. and other areas in Ukraine's
withdrawn from Lysychansk northeast early in the war,
on Sunday. Luhansk gov- An intelligence briefing Russia has focused on Don-