Zelensky says his legitimacy is determined by the Ukrainian people, not by Putin
From CNN’s Mariya Knight
President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed recent claims byRussian President Vladimir Putin that he is no longer Ukraine's legitimate president in a joint news conference with France's President Emmanuel Macronin Paris on Friday.
"President Zelensky’s legitimacy is recognized by the people of Ukraine only, he is elected by the people of Ukraine. I am very grateful for the support," he said, referring to himself in the third person.
"Our people are free. To be honest, that's what we are fighting for (freedom). I am grateful for the support. Comrade Putin's legitimacy is recognized only by comrade Putin himself. Putin elects himself. Russian people are just a decoration, they only have one actor,” Zelensky said, pointing to Putin’s recent win by an overwhelming majority in Russia’s presidential election, the result of which was aforegone conclusion.
If martial law had not been imposed, the next presidential election in Ukraine would have been held in March of 2024 and Zelensky’s firstterm would have ended in May. Putin's comments dismissed Ukraine’s Martial Law Actintroduced after Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 which remains in place and which explicitly bans electionsduring wartime.
Zelensky also commented on the upcoming Summiton Peacein Ukraine scheduled for June 15-16 in Switzerland. He called on the world’s leaders to participate in person and show that they “are not afraid” of Russia.
“It is definitely a step toward the end of the war – to show that the whole world is on the side of ending of the war, that the whole world wants it and helps Ukraine as much as possible to bring peace closer. A just peace, it is very important that it must be a just and stable peace, not for an hour, a month or a year, but ideally forever,” the Ukrainian leader said.
France will begin training Ukrainian pilots on fighter jets in the coming days, French president says
From CNN’s Joseph Ataman
France will begin training Ukrainian pilots and mechanics on the Mirage 2000-5 fighter jet “in the coming days," French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday.
Macron would not give additional details on the number and source of the jets that France plans to send to Ukraine as part of a coalition of partners “out of a concern for efficiency,” he said. The training will take place in France, according to Macron.
“We have always had a way of doing things, giving numbers once the arms are delivered and used, it’s more effective and gives less notice to our enemies,” he added, speaking alongside Ukraine’s president in Paris
Pressed for details on whether France will deploy military instructors to Ukraine, he said there were still “no taboos” about doing so.
“Who would we be to cede to the threats of Russia that will de facto decide that Ukraine has no sovereignty to invite companies or instructors (onto its territory)?” Macron said.
However, he added that France would send about 20 technical experts from different ministries to Ukraine to help Kyiv’s integration with European Union standards.
Separately, French-German defense firm KNDS signed two contracts Friday with the Ukrainian government to launch the production of spare parts for French-made CAESAR howitzers and 155mm artillery shells in Ukraine.
Biden presents case for democracy in the face of Russia's war in Ukraine. Here's what you need to know
From CNN staff
US President Joe Biden made a sweeping pledge for democracy on Friday, against the backdrop of Ukraine's grinding fight in the face of Russia's full-scale invasion.
His speech came as Western leaders commemorated the largest operation by Allied forces against Nazi Germany during World War II, drawing parallels between the actions of veterans and Kyiv's forces on the ground today.
Here are the latest developments:
- Biden invokes American democracy: Biden spoke about democracy in a symbolic address marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day at Pointe du Hoc in Normandy, France. "American democracy asks the hardest of things: to believe that we are part of something bigger than ourselves,” he said, adding that US World War II veterans would want their country to oppose Russian President Vladimir Putin.
- Zelensky makes plea to Europe: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, also in France, warned of the return of fascism in Europe, telling lawmakers, "Unfortunately, we live in a time when Europe is no longer a continent of peace." Earlier, Biden apologized to his Ukrainian counterpart for aid delays from Washington.
- High civilian deaths in Ukraine: A UN body recorded the highest monthly number of civilian casualties in almost one year in Ukraine, attributing the 31% rise to Russia's use of "air-dropped bombs and missiles" in Kharkiv. Such attacks "highlight the stark vulnerability of civilians engaged in everyday activities," a press release said.
- "Unprecedented scale of destruction": Civilians in the war-ravaged country face rolling emergency blackouts amid a historic low energy capability, caused by Russian strikes on critical systems. The CEO of Ukrenergo said the power grid operator is "dealing with an absolutely unprecedented scale of destruction." The United Nations recorded 24 Russian attacks on energy facilities in May.
- Putin lauds Russian troops: Even though Russia has "many more" nuclear bombs than the US and Europe, Putin claimed, discussions about a possible nuclear war are not necessary, he said at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum on Friday. He added that Moscow's forces are "increasing their effectiveness," with the country's defense industry increasing shell production by 20%. In referring to peace talks, Putin also said that Russia “must seek conditions that would correspond to our interests and would be reliable,” but he did not elaborate on what the conditions would be and accused the West of being deceptive in its approach to talks.
Putin says Russia is not supplying weapons to other countries — but doesn't rule it out in the future
From CNN’s Anna Chernova
Russia is not currently supplying weapons to other countries as a retaliatory move to Western weapon deliveries to Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday. But he didn't rule out sending weapons in the future.
"We are not supplying (weapons) yet, but we reserve the right to do this to those states or even some structures that are experiencing pressure on themselves, including of a military nature, from those countries who supply weapons to Ukraine and call for them to be used against us, against Russian territory," Putin said.
Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin further justified this stance, questioning, "If they (Western countries) deliver them to a combat zone and call for the use of these weapons, why don’t we have the right to do the same, to respond in a mirror way?"
"I’m also not ready to say that we will do this tomorrow, because any such delivery is associated with a number of circ*mstances that in one way or another affect certain regions of the world and we must, of course, think about it," he added.
This statement follows Putin's earlier warning to Western countries, highlighting the risks of supplying weapons to Ukraine and suggesting such actions could provoke Russia to arm its adversaries.
Ukrainian government stops using air conditioning as country faces power shortage from Russian attacks
From CNN's Radina Gigovaand Svitlana Vlasova
Ukrainian authorities implemented several measures to reduce electricity consumption, as the country grapples with historic low energy capacity caused by Russian strikes oncritical infrastructure.
"To improve the situation in the power system, we are working from two angles at the same time. We are restoring and expanding generation while reducing consumption," Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
Limited use of electric trains and air conditioning: Across the country, government and regional administrative offices will halt their use of air conditioning and outdoor lighting at buildings and surrounding areas, according to Shmyhal.
Law enforcement agencies, the judiciary and other government agencies are also encouraged to take similar steps.Local authorities will limit street lighting at night.
The Ukrainian national railway company Ukrzaliznytsia announced on Thursday it is temporarily changing the schedule of suburban electric trains to save power. Some trains will stop running while others will run less frequently.
By the numbers: Nearly half of Ukraine’s available energy capacity has been damaged or destroyed as a result of Russian attacks, according to the CEO of Ukraine's power grid operator, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi. The United Nations recorded 24 attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities in May, it said Friday.
Putin says "all armed conflicts end with certain peace agreements" while accusing West of deception in talks
From CNN's Sebastian Shukla and Anna Chernova
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that “all armed conflicts end with certain peace agreements” while speaking at a panel during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
The Russian president added that Russia “must seek conditions that would correspond to our interests and would be reliable,” but he did not elaborate on what said condition would be.
However, he went on to accuse the West of being deceptive in its approach to talks, saying, "they deceive you at every step; they say one thing, do another."
Putin added that “either on the basis of military defeat, or on the basis of victory, we certainly strive and will achieve victory.”
For context: An international peace summit on Ukraine is scheduled to be held in Switzerland next weekend. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia — with China’s help — last week of attempting to pressure countries not to join the upcoming summit.
Reuters reported in late May that Moscow was willing to consider peace talks that would freeze the current Russian occupation of about a fifth of Ukraine. Putin respondedto that reportbysuggesting Russia was willing to talk peace, based on earlier agreements. He hinted at an aborted deal in Istanbul, just after the war began in 2022, which fell apart, mostly because Moscow’s forces were still rampaging across Ukrainian territory and massacres around Kyiv had come to light. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh outlines two reasons why Putin may be talking about peace again.
Putin says Russia has "many more" nuclear bombs than US and Europe but no need to talk about nuclear war
From CNN's Radina Gigova
Even though Russia has "many more" nuclear bombs than the US and Europe, discussions about a possible nuclear war are not necessary, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Friday.
"There is no need to think about it [nuclear war]. And I would ask anyone to not mention anything like that," he said at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum.
Putin added that Russian forces are "increasing their effectiveness," about 27 months into Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Russia's defense industry has increased shell production by 20%, and its forces are "surpassing the capabilities of our enemies" when it comes to aircraft and tanks, he said.
Veiled threats: Putin has repeatedly made remarks on the possibility of using nuclear weapons. On Friday, the Russian leader said his country has nuclear weapons that are more powerful than the bombs the Americans dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II, "but it won't come to this." Russia’s total nuclear stockpile is larger than the United States’, at around 6,250 total nuclear warheads, according to the Arms Control Association. The US has more than 5,500.
Legacy of nuclear war: Washington unleashed atomic bombs on both Japanese cities in August 1945, leaving years of destruction and psychological trauma on communities there.
At least 70,000 people were killed in the initial blast in Hiroshima, while approximately 70,000 more died from radiation exposure. The US dropped another bomb on Nagasaki three days later killing up to 80,000 people.
The US remains the only country to ever use an atomic bomb in war.
Here's what to know about Biden's speech on democracy at Pointe du Hoc
From CNN's Shania Shelton
During a speech commemorating the 80th anniversary of D-Day at Pointe du Hoc in Normandy, France, US President Joe Biden honored and thanked veterans for their service, while stressing the importance of democracy and issuing a warning against a rising tide of isolationism.
"When we talk about democracy— American democracy — we often talk about the ideals of life, liberty, pursuit of happiness.What we don't talk aboutis how hard it is,” Biden said.
Here are highlights from his speech:
- He described the importance of the site at Pointe du Hoc, where some of the most heroic actions of D-Day took place on June 6, 1944, as Army Rangers scaled 100-foot cliffs to attack Nazi positions.
- Biden suggested that American World War II veterans would want their country to stand up to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression today, just as they opposed Nazi leader Adolf Hitler’s aggression.
- He honored and thanked veterans in attendance, while detailing the actions and comments from some of the Rangers.
- Biden also stressed the hardships of supporting democracy, saying "American democracy asks the hardest of things: to believe that we are part of something bigger than ourselves."
Biden pays tribute to WW2 veteran Private First Class John Wardell
From CNN's Christian Edwards
Private First Class John Wardell, born July 1925, came ashore in Normandy on June 16, 1944, shortly after the D-Day invasion. He was just 18.
Wardell served with rangers in the Battle of Brest and was wounded in Germany during the latter stages of the war, the White House said.
In his speech at Pointe du Hoc, US President Joe Biden paid tribute to Wardell, from New Jersey, who was sat in the audience next to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
“John, we love you, man. Thank you for all you’ve done,” Biden said, as the audience applauded. “You deserve that and a lot more, John.”
