Ukrainian president Volodomyr Zelensky said this morning that talks between his country and Russia are confrontational but moving forward, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine goes on.

The city council of the besieged port city of Mariupol said that intense Russian airstrikes are turning the city into the „ashes of a dead land”. Hundreds of thousands of civilians are believed to be trapped inside buildings in the city, with no access to food, water, power or heat. The Ukrainian military has warned civilians nationwide of indiscriminate Russian shelling. More than 3.5 million people have now fled the country, according to United Nations figures, piling pressure on Poland and other neighbouring countries to provide them with care, schools and jobs.

The European Union will set out plans today on how it will respond to the needs of refugees across the continent.

Source: Reuters

Biden en route to Europe for NATO summit

US president Joe Biden travels to Europe today ahead of a NATO summit tomorrow, where the Ukraine conflict will be top of the agenda. He is expected to propose further economic sanctions against the Russian regime, intended to pressure President Putin into changing direction.

The US and its Western allies are also reconsidering Russia’s membership of the influential G20 group of major world economies.

On a visit to Bucharest yesterday, the Polish president Andrzej Duda said that a new concept of NATO is needed in light of the Russian aggression in Ukraine. This would include the permanent presence of NATO forces in Poland, he said.

Source: Reuters, radiogdansk.pl

British amateur pilots fly Ukraine relief supplies to Poland

Two amateur pilots from the UK are flying to Poland today in a small private plane loaded with supplies for Ukrainians. Dick Beath and Georg Gruber are travelling from Wiltshire in a six-seater Piper aircraft, carrying military fatigues and dried food for front-line troops, and medical and sanitary supplies for refugees. The flight will take the men around seven hours.

In another story of ordinary people offering help for Ukrainians, a Polish couple living in the UK have rented out an entire hotel near Bydgoszcz to house refugees. Jakub and Gosia Gołata used their own money to reopen the Park Hotel, which had closed because of the Covid pandemic. With support from Jakub’s employers and the Sue Ryder charity, the hotel is now a temporary home for 149 Ukrainian women and children. The couple are hoping that the Polish government will take over the operation, and replicate the model across the country.

Source: BBC News, thefirstnews.com

New Polish ambassador in London makes ceremonial introduction to the Queen

Poland’s new ambassador to the UK yesterday went through the ceremony of presenting his credentials to the Queen at Buckingham Palace. Professor Piotr Wilczek rode in a horse-drawn carriage to the palace, where he was presented to Her Majesty Elizabeth II—although the meeting took place over a video link because of the pandemic.

After returning to the Polish embassy by carriage, Professor Wilczek obeyed the custom of offering a glass of quince to the coachman, and carrots to the horses.

Source: PAP

Weather

After sunshine this morning in Gdańsk some clouds will gather by this afternoon, with the temperature reaching 12°C / 53°F. It’ll be a chilly night, around 3°C / 37°F, turning into a clear and sunny day tomorrow.

Andrew Carter/MarWer