Challenger 2 tanks in Ukraine, OCU organization in Pochayiv Lavra: highlights of the day
British Challenger 2 tanks have already arrived in Ukraine. The OCU has set up its organization in the Pochayiv Lavra, which is still leased by the Moscow Patriarchate. Ukrenergo predicts that there will be no electricity shortage in Ukraine over the next six months. We have collected the main news for the day.
Challenger 2 tanks already in Ukraine
Ukraine has recently received Challenger 2 battle tanks from the United Kingdom. Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said that he has already "tested" them.
OCU expands its presence
The Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine has decided to create a religious organization, the Pochayiv Holy Dormition Lavra of the Ternopil Diocese of the OCU. Currently, the Pochayiv Lavra is rented by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Moscow Patriarchate.
The OCU held its first service in the church on Dovzhenko Street in Ivano-Frankivsk. Mayor Ruslan Martsinkiv says that this was the last church in the region that belonged to the UOC-MP. The church was transferred to the OCU with resistance: the day before, unknown persons welded the gates to the church, a clash occurred between the UOC-MP and OCU believers, and gas was sprayed in the building. The UOC-MP said that priests and believers were gassed out of the church by "raiders in balaclavas."
IOC to decide whether to allow Russians to participate in Olympics
The International Olympic Committee recommends that sports federations allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate in international competitions as neutral athletes, provided they are not active supporters of the war against Ukraine and do not have a contract with the Russian or Belarusian army.
However, the IOC meeting did not address the issue of Russian and Belarusian athletes participating in the 2024 and 2026 Olympic Games.
Electricity shortages are not expected in the near future
Ukrenergo CEO Volodymyr Kudrytskyi believes that over the next six months, Ukraine's power system will have enough electricity to cover consumer demand. However, power engineers should be well prepared for the next winter.
Other news
- Former Motor Sich president Vyacheslav Boguslayev has received another notice of suspicion — for ordering the removal of blades from helicopters after February 24.
- Two organizers of parties where girls were abused were left in custody until May.
- The prosecutor's office appealed the verdict on the rape of a minor in Zakarpattya Oblast.
- The government was able to recover more than UAH 38 million ($1 million) from the Russian Defense Ministry to the budget thanks to a decision of the Kyiv Commercial Court.
- A bus with 25 passengers overturned in Khmelnytskyi Oblast. Among them were five minors, three of whom were hospitalized.
- Ukraine formed and manned the first three companies of the new generation of infantry — UAV strike companies.
- The French Parliament recognizes the Holodomor as a genocide of the Ukrainian people.
- Ukrainian intelligence called a video from social media showing an unidentified man in Ukrainian military uniform allegedly shooting at a civilian car of a woman with a small child a primitive fake.