USA TODAY International Edition
Ukraine will lose war, Hungarian leader says
Kyiv is doomed to defeat against Russia in a war that has killed thousands of Ukrainians, left Ukraine’s cities battered and its economy in shambles, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Tuesday.
Orban, speaking at the Qatar Economic Forum, said sending further military aid will lead to more deaths. Hungary is a member of the European Union but retains close ties to Moscow.
“Emotionally it’s tragic, all of our hearts are with the Ukrainians,” Orban said at the Bloomberg- sponsored event. “There’s no chance to win this war.”
Ukraine Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Oleg Nikolenko dismissed Orban’s view, saying that before the war began some European politicians argued that Ukraine had no chance to hold out for more than 72 hours.
“They were wrong then, and they are wrong now,” Nikolenko said. “Unlike the supporters of capitulation to the enemy without resistance, the Ukrainians will continue to fight until the complete liberation of their territories from Russian occupation.”
Developments:
The Kremlin is considering an export ban on gas to prevent domestic fuel shortages and ease domestic gas prices that have been rising since April, Reuters reports. The Russian finance ministry plans to halve subsidies to oil refiners to replenish coffers are expected to add to the Russian gas price crunch.
Julius Baer, one of the largest Swiss banks, began freezing investment accounts of its Russian and Belarusian clients at the request of the central securities depository Euroclear, Forbes Russia reported. Euroclear submitted the request to comply with international sanctions.
Several countries, including Poland, have already started training Ukrainian pilots to use U. S.- built F- 16 fighter jets, said the E U’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell. President Joe Biden said last week the U. S. will train Ukrainian pilots.
Anti- Kremlin Russians attack Russian border villages
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed Tuesday to have killed more than 70 “terrorist saboteurs” amid conflicting reports about the fate of antiKremlin, Russian militia volunteers who in recent days seized several villages on the Russian side of the border. The deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, described the volunteers as “scumbags,” adding that “you just have to exterminate them like the rats they are...”