EXTRAORDINARY ONLINE Russia is only trying to delay its defeat, Zelensky claims: Putin will probably announce the annexation of the occupied territories – Topky.sk

Live from Ukraine, the 215th day of the war in Ukraine ONLINE 09:14 After the annexation of the pro-Russian regions from the east of Ukraine and the Russian-occupied parts of the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, a new administrative district will probably be created in the Russian Federation. According to the status of Rádio Sloboda (RFE/RL) on the Telegram platform, the Russian daily Vedomosti reported this with reference to its sources. The Crimean peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, is to be part of the new entity of the Russian Federation – the Crimean Federal District – which was annexed by Russia in 2014. This is a step that the international community has not yet recognized, and Ukraine considers this peninsula as its temporarily occupied territory. According to Vedomosti, the Crimean Federal District could be headed by former Russian Deputy Prime Minister and former Director General of the Russian space agency Roskosmos, Dmitry Rogozin. 09:09 Approximately 6.59 million people have crossed the Polish border from Ukraine since the start of the Russian military invasion on February 24. Referring to the Polish border guard, the PAP agency reported on this on Tuesday. During Monday, according to its statement on the Twitter social network, the Polish border guard carried out approximately 24,000 border checks of persons entering the territory of Poland from Ukraine. The Polish border guard also reported that since the beginning of the Russian military offensive in Ukraine, more than 4.81 million people have left the territory of Poland for Ukraine. On Monday, the number of such departures was 23,600, PAP reports. 09:07 The British Ministry of Defense said in its Tuesday report on the situation in Ukraine that Russian President Vladimir Putin is likely to announce the annexation of the occupied territories of Ukraine to the Russian Federation during his Friday speech in parliament. Reuters informs about it. Kremlin chief Putin is scheduled to give a speech in both chambers of the Russian parliament on Friday. “There is a real possibility that he will use his speech to officially announce the annexation of the occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation,” says the Department of Defense in London. “Russian leaders almost certainly hope that a possible declaration of annexation (of Ukrainian territories) will be seen as a justification for a (so-called) special military operation and will contribute to the strengthening of patriotic sentiments in support of the conflict,” the ministry said. 08:50 In the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, voting ends on Tuesday in the so-called referendums, after which the Kremlin will probably announce the annexation of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions to Russia, within their administrative borders, summarizes the British station BBC. Russian and pro-Russian authorities organized these plebiscites despite not fully controlling any of these regions. Even this fact, however, does not prevent the occupation authorities from reporting a record turnout and people’s desire to quickly become part of Russia, states the BBC. He points out that although the occupation authorities report high voter turnout, they do not have data on how many residents remain in the territories occupied by the Russian army and pro-Russian separatists. 08:28 The independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta reported on the case of a man who tried to set himself on fire because he was threatened with being drafted into the war in Ukraine. On Monday, Novaya Gazeta published a video from a security camera capturing the course of the incident. The video shows a person doused with an unknown liquid and subsequently burst into flames. According to eyewitnesses, a man tried to set himself on fire at a bus station in the city of Ryazan, located approximately 200 kilometers southeast of Moscow, shouting that he did not want to go to the front. The police extinguished the flames and the injured man was taken to the hospital. There are conflicting reports about his health. Official information about the event, which took place on Sunday, has not yet been published by the Russian authorities, writes DPA. 08:09 Japan on Tuesday expressed its disapproval of Russia’s actions, which detained an employee of the Japanese consulate on espionage charges. Japan rejected these accusations and accused the Russian authorities of violent interrogation methods in connection with the case. The AP agency informs about it. The Japanese diplomat was detained on September 22. During the interrogation, according to the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, his eyes were covered and he could not move. The Japanese Department of Diplomacy subsequently summoned the Russian ambassador to file an official protest and demand an official apology and measures against the repetition of similar procedures. 08:01 Satellite images from the US company Maxar Technologies capture a long line of trucks and cars waiting to cross the border from Russia to neighboring Georgia through the Verchnyi Lars checkpoint. On Monday, the portal of the British channel Sky News published these images. Reports that Russia may close its borders have been circulating since Wednesday, September 21, when Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the call-up of 300,000 reservists to support the military operation in Ukraine. Putin’s announcement of “partial mobilization” last week triggered protests, a mass exodus of men from Russia and a wave of violence across the country. The Kremlin has denied reports that a secret clause in Putin’s order allows up to a million reservists to be called up to fight in Ukraine. Photo gallery (2) Source: TASR/Satellite image ©2022 Maxar Technologies via AP 06:18 Hungary announced on Monday that it is steadfastly against European Union sanctions imposed on the Russian nuclear industry. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó called the sanctions on investments in the nuclear industry a “red line” for Hungary and a “violation of European directives”. “We would never support any sanctions that would threaten the security of our energy supplies,” Szijjártó said at the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) general conference, which began in Vienna on Monday. 06:11 The US Coast Guard announced on Monday that its vessel unexpectedly collided with Chinese and Russian warships in the Bering Sea near Alaska last week. A Coast Guard vessel named Kimbal first spotted only one Chinese cruiser on September 19 at a distance of about 138 kilometers north of the Aleutian Islands. However, Kimbal later discovered two more Chinese and four Russian ships, including a destroyer. According to the coast guard, the formation of Russian and Chinese ships “operated in accordance with international rules and standards”. However, the Kimbal ship will continue to monitor the area. The Coast Guard did not immediately respond to AP questions about the ship encounter. 06:02 Russia is trying to delay the moment of its defeat through the ongoing partial mobilization of the armed forces. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this on Tuesday night. This is reported by the DPA agency and the official website of the Office of the President of Ukraine. According to Zelensky, the Russians “felt” that they would lose. “They are simply trying to delay this moment in order to ensure at least some activity on the front,” Zelenskyy said in a video interview. According to Zelensky, the situation is particularly difficult in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. “We are doing everything to limit the activity of the enemy,” the president said, adding that Donetsk is still the number one target for the occupiers. “Unfortunately, Russian society is not yet aware of all the brutality of the Russian government against its own people,” Zelensky said. “However, we must do everything so that every resident of Russia finds out that his own country is depriving him of the most important thing – the right to life,” said the Ukrainian president. Von der Leyen and Stoltenberg talked about Ukraine and EU-NATO cooperation The European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization should sign a new joint declaration to strengthen their mutual partnership. European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg agreed on this on Monday. The two politicians held talks in Brussels on cooperation between the EU and NATO and solutions to common challenges. In a message posted on Twitter, they said they also talked about Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and more intensive support for Ukraine. “NATO and EU cooperation contributes to security and stability, so we believe the time has come to agree on a new joint statement to move this partnership forward,” Stoltenberg and von der Leyen wrote. The EU and NATO signed the so-called joint statement in July 2018. The document focuses on cooperation in the areas of military mobility, the fight against terrorism and strengthening resistance to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear risks. Both organizations also agreed to support the agenda of women, peace and security. Increasing the security and defense capabilities of the European Union, especially in partnership with NATO, is one of the priorities of the current Czech Presidency of the Council of the EU.