German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock says Germany has seen massive indications of war crimes in Ukraine.
“We have massive indications of war crimes,” Reuters report she told reporters before a meeting with fellow European ministers in Luxembourg. “In the end, the courts will have to decide, but for us, it is central to secure all evidence.”
“As the German federal government, we have already made it clear that there will be a complete phase-out of fossil fuels, starting with coal, then oil and gas, and so that this can be implemented jointly in the European Union, we need a joint, coordinated plan to completely phase out fossil fuels to be able to withdraw as a European Union,” she added.
Norway is to extend its deployment of 200 troops in Lithuania until August, according to a statement from the Norway defence ministry, Reuters reports.
France’s ambassador to Ukraine, Etienne de Poncins, has posted a picture from Lviv showing teams that have arrived from France to assist local authorities in investigating war crimes. He tweeted:
Proud to welcome to Lviv the detachment of technical and scientific gendarmes who came to assist their Ukrainian comrades in the investigations of war crimes committed around Kiev. France the first to provide such help. They will be at work tomorrow. Solidarity.
Ireland’s foreign minister, Simon Coveney, has said the European Commission was working on details of an oil embargo on Russia as part of a possible next sanctions package, but that nothing has been decided.
He said he hoped it could be agreed upon by the EU’s 27 states as soon as possible but Reuters reports he gave no further details.
Sean Ingle writes for us this morning on the impact that the war is having on sport, and the conundrum facing sporting authorities over how to handle Russian and Ukrainian athletes:
Last week it emerged that Wimbledon was ready to ban the world No 2 Daniil Medvedev over fears that his victory “could boost the Putin regime”. Previously the UK sports minister Nigel Huddleston had also suggested Medvedev and other Russians would have to give assurances they are not supporters of Putin to play.
But if you are a classical liberal, this demand might also make you a little queasy. Why, after all, should the sins of a country’s dictator lead to a sports star being punished? It feels like a violation of the laws of natural justice, especially when that player deliberately stays out of politics.
I was making this point to a chess insider when he interjected. Sport is torn down the middle on this, he said. But when you talk about natural justice, start by thinking about it from Ukraine’s side.
Why, he asked, should any Ukrainian – who is very likely to have been personally affected by the war, with perhaps family or friends dying – be asked, potentially, to play someone from Russia when their country remains under attack? Even if you strip the personal and emotive arguments from the debate, there is also a practical question: how ready will Ukrainian athletes be for competition when so many have had to flee or fight?
