Ukraine-Russia war, explosions in the Kiev area. Cia: nuclear threat possible

Ukraine-Russia war, explosions were reported overnight in the area of ​​the Ukrainian capital Kiev. The Kyiv Indepedent reported it, with no victims reported for now. And while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, 50 days after the start of the conflict, thanked the Ukrainian armed forces and his people for defending most of the country, US President Joe Biden said he was ready to go to Ukraine. Asked if he will send senior US officials to the country, he said his administration “is making this decision now.” Read also The US State Department aims to restore the diplomatic presence in Ukraine “as soon as it is safe and practical to have American diplomats there,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said during the press briefing, without however giving any indications on times. “We are constantly evaluating and re-evaluating the situation from a safety point of view,” he added. As for the hypothesis that Secretary of State Antony Blinken could travel to Ukraine, Price replied that there are no trips to announce now. Blinken and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held an interview yesterday in which they “noted that the continued supply of” war material “by the US, its allies and partners has been beneficial to Ukraine’s successes in battle against the Russian forces, “Ned Price said. The United States of America does not take” lightly “the possibility of Russia using tactical nuclear weapons, given the difficulties it faces on the battlefield, CIA director Bill Burns said. “Given the potential desperation of President Vladimir Putin and the Russian leadership – said Burns – given the setbacks they have had so far on the military level, none of us can take lightly the threat posed by a potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or weapons. low-potential nuclear weapons “. The Agency looks at this possibility” very carefully, “added Burns, stressing, however, that so far there has been no sign that the Kremlin is preparing to take a similar step. “While we have seen some rhetoric from the Kremlin about moving to a higher level of nuclear alert, so far we have not seen much practical evidence of the kind of military movements or arrangements that reinforce this concern, but we look at it very carefully.” In the meantime, the EU is working to approve an embargo on the import of oil from Russia, probably as gradual as the one decided on coal, which will only come into effect definitively in August. The New York Times reports it. According to the daily, which cites various EU sources, it is unlikely that a decision will be taken before April 24, when the French presidential ballot will take place, to prevent a flare-up in oil prices to the advantage of challenger Marine Le Pen. Gasoline prices are a very sensitive issue in France. There is still no unanimity among the 27 member states on such a measure: Germany and Hungary are among the countries that most openly resist adopting energy measures that also affect oil (and, even more, gas).