Great Britain: Russian nationalist Girkin arrested – Putin threatens Poland

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Girkin is seen as a clear supporter of Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine, but he has increasingly criticized Russia’s conduct of the war, going beyond even President Vladimir Putin.

Meanwhile, the Russian head of state threatened Poland over the deployment of troops in the direction of neighboring Belarus. Warsaw had previously announced that it wanted to move an unknown number of its own soldiers to the east of the country because of the presence of Russian Wagner mercenaries in neighboring Belarus.

According to estimates by British military experts, Wagner’s forces are likely to release the last of their prisoner recruited fighters in the coming days. According to the British, up to 20,000 of the approximately 40,000 ex-convicts recruited in prisons for the mercenaries in Ukraine died.

The ultra-nationalist Girkin is accused of extremism

Russian ultra-nationalist Girkin, also known by the pseudonym Igor Strelkov, has been accused of extremism, his wife Miroslava Reginskaya said on Girkin’s Telegram channel on Friday. Officials of the Commission of Inquiry took him away. Nothing is known about his whereabouts.

Girkin led the Kremlin-led separatist insurgency in Ukraine’s Donbass region in 2014. He has an international arrest warrant for his part in the 2014 downing of passenger jet MH17 over Donbass.

He accused the military leadership in Moscow of incompetence and corruption and called for even tougher and more ruthless action in Ukraine. He initially criticized Chief of Staff Valeri Gerasimov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, but recently his accusations have increasingly focused on Putin, whom he accused of inaction.

Putin threatens Warsaw for troop deployment

Meanwhile, the Russian head of state issued threats against Warsaw over the troop movement towards the border with neighboring Belarus. “Belarus is part of the Union state. And unleashing aggression against Belarus would mean aggression against the Russian Federation. We will respond to this with all the means at our disposal,” Putin said at a meeting of the National Security Council on Friday.

The government of NATO and the EU state of Poland had previously announced that it wanted to move an as yet unknown number of its own soldiers to the east of the country because of the presence of Russian Wagner mercenaries in neighboring Belarus.

Russia wants to make conscripts conscript up to 30 years in the future

In the middle of the war against Ukraine, Russia wants to increase the maximum conscription age by three years. In the future, men up to the age of 30 should be able to be drafted into the army, the chairman of the State Duma’s defense committee Andrei Kartapolov announced in Moscow on Friday. Until now, the maximum age is 27 years.

However, the minimum age should remain at 18, the state agency Interfax reported, citing Kartapolov. In the meantime it had been announced that this would be increased to 21 years. According to media reports, the new scheme will come into effect from next spring. Parliament has yet to approve.

Defense Minister Shoigu announced changes at the end of last year. Observers explained this with the planned expansion of the armed forces from the current 1.15 to 1.5 million soldiers. At the same time, independent media pointed out that the new army rules could bring in hundreds of thousands of additional conscripts. The maximum age for calling up reservists has recently been raised from 50 to 55 years.

Selenskyj recalls ambassador to London after critical remarks

Shortly after a critical statement about President Volodymr Zelenskyj, the Ukrainian ambassador to Britain, Vadym Prystayko, was recalled from his post. Selenskyj had the corresponding decree published on his website in Kiev on Friday without further explanation. Just under a week ago, the ambassador accused his head of state of “unhealthy sarcasm” on British television. Prystayko spent three years in London. Before that, he was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace had previously urged Kiev to be more grateful for the help it has provided in the war against Russia. Selenskyj then asked at a press conference what exactly the British minister wanted. ‘Should he write to me? We can personally thank the minister every morning after waking up,” he said. Prystayko had criticized this exchange of blows as counterproductive. Britain is one of Ukraine’s main partner countries.

(SDA)

Source:Blick