May 18, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said it is “unacceptable” for countries that want to become NATO members to impose defense export restrictions and support organizations that threaten Turkey.

“There are security threats today, coming from different sources,” he said on Wednesday.

Some context: Turkey has said it would not support Finland and Sweden's bids to become NATO members if they sanction the country. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused the two countries of harboring members of the separatist militant Kurdistan’s Workers Party, or PKK, and supporters of US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who Turkey accuses of masterminding a 2016 coup attempt, which Gulen denies.

After meeting US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken at UN Headquarters in New York on Wednesday, Cavusoglu said Turkey’s concerns should be met, “not in words, but in practice.”

The PKK has been designated a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

On Monday, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance must consider Turkey's security concerns.

Russian forces killed 10 civilians in the Donetsk region, according to regional governor Pavlo Kirilenko in a Facebook post on Wednesday.

Kirilenko said seven more civilians were injured on Wednesday.

"It is still impossible to determine the exact number of victims in Mariupol and Volnovakha. All Russians will be held accountable for these crimes!" he added. 

Some context: Ukrainian officials in Donetsk said the whole front line is being "shelled day and night" by Russian forces. Kirilenko said that settlements — namely Bakhmut, Kostiantynivka and Soledar — more than 20 kilometers (about 12 miles) from the front line were also being attacked with airstrikes.

Retired Russian colonel Mikhail Khodarenok said any talk about Ukraine being able to counterattack is a "big exaggeration," just a day after he criticized Russia's military operations in Ukraine saying the situation for Russia could "get worse."

Speaking to a Russian state TV channel on Wednesday, Khodarenok said, "When people talk about Ukraine acquiring the ability to counterattack, well it's a big exaggeration. And as concerns the actions of our supreme command, there is every reason to believe that the implementation of these plans will in the very near future give Ukraine an unpleasant surprise."

He also said it would be impossible for the Ukrainian armed forces to gain aerial supremacy in the next few months, and in terms of gaining naval supremacy, he said, "while our Black Sea Fleet is in the Black Sea, Ukraine's Black Sea Fleet having supremacy is out of the question."

On Tuesday however, Khodarenok said information being spread about a "moral or psychological breakdown" of Ukrainian armed forces is not even "close to reality." He also said Ukraine could arm one million people, and that Russia needs to consider that in its operational and strategic calculations.

"The situation for us, will frankly get worse," he said on Tuesday. He also criticized Russia's geopolitical isolation from the world, and prior to the invasion he warned that it would be more difficult than many anticipated to wage war in Ukraine.

Earlier reporting from CNN's Tim Lister, Anastasia Graham Yooll and Taras Zadorozhnyy.

In his nightly address on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Zelensky announced an initiative called UNITED24. 

UNITED24 was launched as the main venue for collecting charitable donations in support of Ukraine, according to its website and Zelensky. Funds will be transferred to the official accounts of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) and allocated by assigned ministries to cover the most pressing needs, the website says. 

The first ambassador of the brand is Andriy Shevchenko, a prominent Ukrainian soccer player and coach. 

The first event in support of UNITED24 will take place on June 8, he said. It will be a charity evening auction in London. 

Secretary of State Tony Blinken said it is “false” that the sanctions imposed on Russia by the US and its allies have deepened the food crisis resulting from the Ukraine War.

“Some have tried to blame the sanctions imposed on the Russian Federation by the United States and many other countries for worsening this crisis. This is false. When we imposed sanctions on Russia in order to end the war as quickly as possible, we deliberately and carefully created exceptions for agricultural goods and fertilizer. We’re working every day to get countries any information or assistance they need to ensure that sanctions are not preventing food or fertilizer from leaving Russia or anywhere else,” Blinken said.

Instead, he said that only Russia is at fault for the food security challenges.  

“As with its decision to start this unjustified war, responsibility for the disruption of these supplies and the suffering that its causing around the world lies squarely and solely with the Russian government,” Blinken said.

US Secretary of State Tony Blinken announced that the US would be giving an additional $215 million in new emergency food assistance to the crisis in Ukraine and called on other countries to swiftly aid the growing global food crisis due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Blinken also said that the US would be committing $500 million to boost US production of fertilizer. This comes as there is an increased need for fertilizer in countries that traditionally got it from Russia which is the world’s largest exporter of fertilizer. And the cost of fertilizer, essential for farmers to hit their production targets for crops, has also risen in cost as output in Europe has also plunged thanks to the surging price of natural gas -- a key ingredient in nitrogen-based fertilizers like urea.

Blinken called on other countries that have fertilizer and grain, which is also facing global shortages because of the Ukraine War, to rapidly help with this growing crisis. 

“The cost of doing business for vital organizations like the World Food Programme, the Food and Agricultural Organization, UNICEF and others, the cost of doing business is going up. We have to help them continue to do their business,” Blinken said. “In particular as well, countries with significant grain and fertilizer reserves as well as those with financial resources need to step up and do it fast. The United States has announced more than $2.3 billion in new funding for emergency food assistance to meet global humanitarian needs since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.”

Canadian broadcaster CBC has announced Russia closed the company's Moscow bureau and stripped journalists of their visas and accreditation, the channel said on a statement on Wednesday. 

CBC said the decision is a "retaliatory move after Canada banned Russian state TV station Russia Today.”

"We have maintained a bureau in Moscow for more than 44 years and are currently the only Canadian news organization with a permanent presence in the country. Our journalism is completely independent of the Canadian government and we are saddened to see the Russian government conflate the two," Chuck Thompson, CBC's head of public affairs, said in a statement.

"This appears to be another step by Russia to stifle a free and independent press within its borders. We are tremendously proud of the journalism our correspondents have produced in Russia over the past many years and we will continue to tell the story of Russia as best we can from outside the country,” he added.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Russia's decision to expel Canadian media from the country was an "unacceptable....attempt to silence them from reporting the facts".

"Journalists must be able to work safely — free from censorship, intimidation, and interference. That is something Canada will always stand up for,” the prime minister said on Twitter.

Pablo Rodriguez, Canada’s Heritage Minister, said Russia's decision is an attempt to "cover the horrible reality going on in Ukraine.” 

Finland and Sweden’s applications to join NATO marks a “watershed moment in European security,” according to Jake Sullivan, US President Biden’s top national security adviser, who said the countries’ leaders would “compare notes” on the move when they visit the White House on Thursday.

Biden said on Wednesday, "I think we're going to be OK," when asked by reporters how he will convince Turkey to support Finland and Sweden's bids to join NATO. 

"The leaders of Finland and Sweden are coming to see me on Thursday. I think we’re gonna be okay," Biden said.

When reporters followed up again asking if he could convince Turkey, Biden said: "I’m not going to Turkey, but I think we’re gonna be okay.”

Meanwhile, the White House said it is “confident” that Finland and Sweden’s applications for membership to NATO will be approved, despite concerns from member country Turkey. All 30 NATO members must give unanimous approval for a country to be accepted into the alliance. 

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said this week that he would not approve Sweden and Finland's NATO membership if they sanction Turkey and that delegations from the nations should not bother coming to Turkey to try to convince that nation to approve their country's NATO membership.

But Sweden and Finland are both engaged with Turkey regarding its concerns, as well as top US officials, Sullivan said, and there is confidence that the expansion can progress. 

“We're confident that at the end of the day, Finland and Sweden will have an effective and efficient accession process, that Turkey’s concerns can be addressed,” Sullivan told reporters at the White House.  

Sullivan said he spoke with his Turkish counterpart Wednesday and that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken would also be meeting with his counterpart in New York, and that the administration feels “very good” about the process.

Pressed again, he later suggested that Turkey would eventually come around in a display of unity. 

“The great thing about the free world, about the Western alliance about NATO is that you've got a raucous collection of states that all have opinions, that all have perspectives that all have interests, but they also know how to and when to pull together and how to settle any differences. And I expect these differences will be settled. I expect that NATO will speak with one voice in support of Finland and Sweden at the end of the day,” the Biden adviser said.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the United States raised its flag over the US embassy in Kyiv on Wednesday in what he called a “momentous step,” marking the reopening of the embassy after it closed three months ago ahead of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Today we are officially resuming operations at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv. The Ukrainian people, with our security assistance, have defended their homeland in the face of Russia’s unconscionable invasion, and, as a result, the Stars and Stripes are flying over the Embassy once again. We stand proudly with, and continue to support, the government and people of Ukraine as they defend their country from the Kremlin’s brutal war of aggression,” Blinken said in a statement. 

Blinken reflected on the US commitment to the Ukrainian government and Ukrainian people, even when the embassy was closed in recent months. 

Blinken noted how this has been a goal the Biden administration began working toward the minute that the diplomats left. 

“We underscored our commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, pledged to continue our assistance, and started working toward the day we could return to Kyiv. Now, that day has come," he added. 

Blinken did not specify how many US diplomats would be operating out of the embassy. He noted that there are additional safety measures in place — with “enhanced our security measures and protocols” — to keep the returning US diplomats safe. 

“We are committed to confronting the challenges ahead. The war rages on. Russia's forces inflict death and destruction on Ukrainian soil every day. Millions of Ukrainians are displaced from their homes and mourn the loss of their loved ones. With strength of purpose, we reaffirm our commitment to the people and government of Ukraine, and we look forward to carrying out our mission from the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv,” Blinken said.