Day 620 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Europe owes the Ukrainians a Great Debt of Gratitude says Von der Leyen in Kyiv

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Day 620 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

• The Armed Forces of Ukraine hit the Zalyv shipyard in Kerch, the Askold missile carrier was destroyed
• Von der Leyen visited Kyiv
• All of Europe owes you a great debt of gratitude, Von der Leyen told the Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv
• The Security Service of Ukraine suspects Sergey Bubka's brother of cooperation with Russia
• The Russian Church demanded that Alla Pugacheva apologize for criticizing the war

The Armed Forces of Ukraine hit the Zalyv shipyard in Kerch, the Askold missile carrier was destroyed

The Ukrainian armed forces officially confirmed that they struck the "Zalyv" shipyard in Kerch. The relevant information was published by the Department of Strategic Communications of the Office of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Yesterday, videos emerged from the occupied Ukrainian city of how the large shipyard was smoking heavily and how the Russian air defense system was operating in the area.

"On the evening of November 4, the Armed Forces of Ukraine carried out successful strikes on the maritime and port infrastructure of the Zalyv shipyard in the temporarily occupied Kerch," Kyiv announced.

There is no official information on what specific targets were hit, but Ukrainian Telegram channels reported from local residents that the small Askold missile ship had been hit.

This vessel is a carrier of Kalibr cruise missiles and is one of the newest and most advanced ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. It was ordered in 2016 at the Kerch Shipyard "Zalyv" and launched only in 2021.

An air alert was declared in Crimea yesterday, after which there were explosions.

Later it became known about smoke in the area of the "Zalyv" shipyard in Kerch, as well as in the area of the Crimean bridge. Subsequently, Crimean governor Sergei Aksenov reported that debris from missiles had fallen in the area of the Kerch shipyard.

Von der Leyen visited Kyiv

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived on an unannounced visit to Kyiv and noted Ukraine's progress on the road to EU membership.

President Volodymyr Zelensky disagreed with the words of a military commander about the stalemate on the front with Russia.

Ukraine has also been in more difficult situations - noted President Volodymyr Zelensky on the occasion of the finding of Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi in the British magazine "The Economist" that the conflict with Russia is entering a new stage of a positional war, including static and exhausting battles.

At the joint press conference with Ursula von der Leyen, Zelensky emphasized that even in the midst of the war, Ukraine does not stop with the reforms necessary for EU membership and promised to implement all the recommendations of the EC, including in the sphere of the rule of law, the protection of human rights, more transparency of state institutions and strengthening of the anti-corruption system.

Von der Leyen said that EU support for Ukraine so far amounts to almost 83 billion euros. She added that Ukraine needs more funding to address current needs. That is why the EC has offered the member states additional aid in the amount of 50 billion euros until 2027.

Von der Leyen promised to continue to make "Russia pay for its military aggression":

"Our current sanctions have deeply affected the Russian economy and very soon we will offer our 12th package of sanctions to the member states," said the EC president.

All of Europe owes you a great debt of gratitude, Von der Leyen told the Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv

“All of Europe owes you a great debt of gratitude for everything you have done since the beginning of this cruel war”, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said yesterday in a speech to the Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv. "You are fighting not only for your freedom, democracy and future, but also for ours. You are fighting for Europe," she said, then thanked the Ukrainian people.

A video of von der Leyen's speech was distributed by a special envoy of the European Newsroom to its member news agencies.

I’m honoured to address the house of Ukrainian democracy.

You are fighting not only for your freedom, your democracy and your future, but for ours too. You are fighting for Europe. https://t.co/erXMietZXb

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) November 4, 2023

The President of the EC expressed recognition of the "incredible legislative work" that the Ukrainian parliament has done while Ukraine is "waging an existential war".

She said the punitive measures in the 12th sanctions package against Russia, to be announced next week, would include a list of up to 100 individuals, new import and export bans, a tightening of the ceiling on oil prices and tough measures against companies from third parties that circumvent sanctions.

"For too long, many in Europe thought we could trade with Russia and integrate it into European security, but that hasn't worked. And it won't work as long as Russia's actions are driven by delusional dreams of empire," she said.

"The people of Ukraine do not need to learn to be European. You are Europeans," Von der Leyen said to the thunderous applause of the Rada deputies. She congratulated the Ukrainian institutions for their work on the EC's recommendations for Ukraine's candidacy for membership in the European Union. Von der Leyen called Ukraine's reforms "incredible and amazing" and gave examples of the constitutional reform of justice, the anti-corruption program, progress in the fight against money laundering and progress on the issue of minority rights.

The Security Service of Ukraine suspects Sergey Bubka's brother of cooperation with Russia

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced that it suspects Vasiliy Bubka, the brother of the famous former athlete Sergey Bubka, of cooperating with and supporting a terrorist organization (that's how the Ukrainian authorities call the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic).

At the beginning of July, journalists from the Ukrainian publication Bihus.Info reported that the Russian company Montblanc, which belongs to Sergey Bubka and his brother Vasiliy, operates in the temporarily occupied territories, in particular in Donetsk, and sells fuel there.

Journalists have found that in May 2023, the company signed official contracts with Russian representatives for the supply of fuel for more than 800,000 rubles.

After the publication of the report, the SBU opened a criminal case. At that time, Sergey Bubka himself did not comment on the discovered documents.

Sergey Bubka continues to be a member of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine. He is a 35-time world record holder in the long jump, was an Olympic and world champion.

He heads the National Olympic Committee from 2005 to 2022 and is a member of the pro-Russian Party of Regions, whose leader was Viktor Yanukovych, reminds the BBC.

The Russian Church demanded that Alla Pugacheva apologize for criticizing the war

Singer Alla Pugacheva returned to her homeland this week and the Russian Orthodox Church called on her to apologize for criticizing the war in Ukraine, the Associated Press reported.

Pugacheva, who has enjoyed superstar status in Russia and other parts of the former USSR for decades, left the country and went to Israel with her husband. She did so a few weeks after Russia sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

In September of the same year, Pugacheva caused a lot of controversy in Russia when she wrote that Russian soldiers were dying for "illusory purposes" and that the country had become a "pariah", AP recalls.

Then she provocatively suggested that the authorities declare her a "foreign agent" - a status that her husband Maxim Galkin, an actor and comedian, had already received.

Although after the start of the war in Ukraine, Russia passed a law that provides for imprisonment or fines for insulting the armed forces, Pugacheva has not been charged.

She returned to Russia in May to attend the funeral of fashion designer Valentin Yudashkin, where Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was seen kissing her hand.

Alla Pugacheva later left her homeland, but returned this week, Russian news agencies reported yesterday.

Church spokesman Vakhtang Kipshidze, quoted by the state news agency RIA Novosti, said that the Russians "who accompanied their departure with insults to their people or made contradictory statements should apologize. This also applies to Alla Borisovna" - Pugachova's patronymic.

The church is a staunch supporter of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Associated Press recalls.

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