The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, in his speech on Friday evening, broke up the controversy that has arisen in recent days regarding Crimea and the possible flexibility of Kyiv’s position on peace negotiations, clearly stating that Ukraine will not abandon the goal of restoring all occupied Russian territory, including the peninsula. illegally annexed by Moscow in 2014. Russian lawmakers on Friday proposed increasing punishment for people convicted of terrorism and sabotage, domestic news agencies reported.

The latest on the war in Ukraine, day 409, LIVETEXT:

09:33 ISW: Alleged leak of classified military documents shows Russia’s fears of a future counteroffensive against Ukraine

Russian military bloggers have expressed concern over allegedly secret documents about Ukraine’s military actions that recently leaked online, underscoring fears of a future counteroffensive, the Institute for the Study of War said in its latest update.

“While several prominent Russian military bloggers immediately dismissed the authenticity of the documents and suggested they were forged, they focused on the possibility that the published documents were disinformation designed to mislead the Russian military command,” he wrote to ISW.

02:00Volodymyr Zelenskyy explains: “The world should know that respect and order in international relations will return only when the Ukrainian flag returns to Crimea!”

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, in his speech on Friday evening, broke up the controversy that has arisen in recent days regarding Crimea and the possible flexibility of Kyiv’s position on peace negotiations, clearly stating that Ukraine will not abandon the goal of restoring all Russian-occupied territories, including the peninsula. illegally annexed by Moscow in 2014.

01:19Russian lawmakers are also proposing tougher penalties for terrorism

On Friday, Russian lawmakers proposed to increase the punishment for people convicted of terrorism and sabotage, domestic news agencies reported. According to officials, this step was caused by the war in Ukraine.

00:57 31 Ukrainian children, illegally taken to Russia, returned home on Friday, reported the humanitarian organization Save Ukraine, with the help of which the children were returned to the country.

00:32Zelensky accuses Russia of repression against Muslims in Crimea: “We will return to the peninsula”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi on Friday accused Russia of repression against the Crimean Tatar community, promising to restore control over the annexed peninsula during the Ramadan Iftar.

00:09 Moscow is preparing to punish treason with life imprisonment

The project to change the criminal legislation, according to which treason will be punishable by life imprisonment, has been submitted to the State Duma of Russia, the lower house of the Russian parliament, reports the state news agency TASS with reference to the chairman of the parliamentary committee on defense Vasyl Piskaryev. Security and fight against corruption.

DAILY SUMMARY from Friday

• Zelensky accuses Russia of repression against Muslims in Crimea: “We will return to the peninsula.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi on Friday accused Russia of repression against the Crimean Tatar community, promising to restore control over the annexed peninsula during the Ramadan Iftar.
• Russia appears to be behind the leak of Pentagon documents about the war in Ukraine, US officials say. Russia or pro-Russian elements are likely behind the social media leak of several classified U.S. military documents about the war in Ukraine, Western military aid to the country and preparations for an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive, U.S. officials who requested the release told Reuters on Friday. anonymity.
• Russia: the ruble fell to a yearly low. The Russian currency fell to its lowest level in a year on Friday, ending the day at 81 rubles to the dollar and 88.9 to the euro, as Moscow’s foreign exchange earnings fell amid sanctions, AFP reported.
• Moscow is preparing to punish treason with life imprisonment. The project to change the criminal legislation, according to which treason will be punishable by life imprisonment, has been submitted to the State Duma of Russia, the lower house of the Russian parliament, reports the state news agency TASS with reference to the chairman of the parliamentary committee on defense Vasyl Piskaryev. Security and fight against corruption.
• Financial Times: British firm exported $1.2 billion worth of electronics to Russia despite sanctions / Involved Ukrainian. British company Mykines Corporation has allegedly exported $1.2 billion worth of tech equipment to Russia since the start of the invasion of Ukraine, including high-performance microchips, telecommunications equipment and servers, potentially in violation of export sanctions, the Financial Times reported.
• Ukraine says Russia is refusing a full Muslim prisoner of war exchange for Ramadan. The Russian authorities rejected Ukraine’s offer to exchange all Muslim prisoners of war from both camps at the beginning of Ramadan on March 22, Daria Zarivna, communications adviser to the head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine, told Voice of America, Kyiv Independent writes.
• US official: Coalition communicates well with Beijing on compliance with sanctions imposed on Moscow. According to Reuters, a senior official of the US Treasury Department said that the coalition of partners that imposed sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine has found an effective way to convey to China that it should not provide material support to Russia.
• China’s ambassador in Moscow, in the West: “Don’t tell us what to do with Russia!”. Western countries cannot tell Beijing what to do with Russia in connection with the war in Ukraine, Chinese Ambassador to Moscow Zhang Hanhui said on Friday in an interview with the Russian newspaper “Izvestia”, writes Politico.eu.