February 28, 2023 UPDATE

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Newsroom, 28.02.2023, 20:09

HUMAN RIGHTS In his speech before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on
Tuesday, Romania’s Foreign Minister, Bogdan Aurescu, reiterated Romania’s firm
and unflinching support for the independence, sovereignty and territorial
integrity of Ukraine. The Romanian official underlined the fact that ‘tireless
efforts must be made to hold the Russian Federation accountable for the war
crimes in Ukraine and offer compensations to the large number of victims.’ Aurescu
also spoke about the latest earthquakes that severely affected Turkey and Syria
and recalled that Romania was among the first countries to offer humanitarian
assistance.

DECORATIONS On the Civil Protection Day on Tuesday, Romanian president Klaus
Iohannis awarded decorations to the servicemen, firefighters, paramedics and
volunteers who participated in the international humanitarian mission in Turkey.
According to Iohannis, Civil Protection represents a major component of the
national security and in the past decade the Romanian state has made
significant efforts to buy state-of-the-art equipment and provide professional
training to those who work in this field. The results obtained were also
superior and the professionalism of the Romanian rescuers was also acknowledged
and appreciated at international level whenever they got involved in rescue
operations abroad, president Iohannis went on to say.

WAR
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has admitted that the situation in
Bakhmut, a city besieged by Russian invasion forces, is getting more difficult
by the day. The enemy is systematically destroying anything that can be
used to reinforce our defenses, Zelensky said, who labeled Ukrainian
servicemen involved in this battle true heroes. As early as last
summer, Moscow’s troops have been trying to take Bakhmut, a key strategic
settlement that has become a symbol of the battle for the entire Donbas region.
In a statement to the Russian television, the head of pro-Russian separatists
in Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, claims that all access routes to the Ukrainian
fortress in Bakhmut are in firing range. Previously, the owner of
the Wagner PMC, Yevgeny Prigozhin, announced his mercenaries had captured the
village of Yahidne, just north of the city.

(bill)