French authorities have the necessary resources to accommodate up to 100,000 refugees from Ukraine on their territory, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Monday.
“Today, we can host up to 100,000 refugees. This has become possible thanks to the considerable efforts of the state and local authorities,” Le Figaro quoted him as saying.
“We continue to work on scenarios under which we can accept even more people,” the minister said.
The newspaper notes that about 13,500 Ukrainian refugees are currently registered in France.
On March 14, the third batch of humanitarian aid to Ukraine from the Chinese Red Cross Society will be shipped from Poland, and on March 15 it will be delivered to Lviv, the Chinese Embassy in Ukraine told Interfax-Ukraine.
Earlier, the first and second batches of humanitarian aid from China were transferred to Ukraine in transit through Romania and Hungary, respectively.
In addition, given the lack of food for residents of some regions of Ukraine, recently Chinese enterprises that have been operating in Ukraine for many years began to use their canteens and equipment for making bread and processing buckwheat. Food products are sold at cost to local residents who come and go shopping in droves, the embassy said.
Ambassador of Ukraine to Israel Yevhen Korniychuk has filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court of Israel against the actions of the Israeli government and personally Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked on the issue of accepting refugees from Ukraine.
The suit, according to ITV channel 12, alleges that Minister Shaked violates the agreements reached earlier by Jerusalem and Kyiv on a visa-free regime, using “vague language” for this. The ambassador noted that he decided to resort to filing a lawsuit after all diplomatic options had been exhausted to protect Ukrainian citizens seeking asylum from the war.
The lawsuit focuses on the fact that the Interior Minister of Israel does not have the authority to make a sole decision on the issue of accepting refugees from Ukraine; the plaintiffs believe that this issue should be decided by the government of the Jewish state in close cooperation with the Knesset commission on international affairs.
Earlier, the Interior Ministry extended the period of stay in Israel for Ukrainian tourists legally staying in the country by two months.
Ukrainian athletes have earned record 29 medals at the Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing.
“The national team of Ukraine has put a golden end to its performance at the Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing. On the final day of the competition, our athletes won the victory in cross-country skiing in the 4×2.5 km open relay,” the press service of the National Olympic Committee said.
In particular, Dmytro Suyarko (guide Oleksandr Nikonovych), Hryhoriy Vovchynsky, Vasyl Kravchuk and Anatoliy Kovalevsky (guide Oleksandr Mukshyn) brought Ukraine 11th gold and a total of 29th medal in Beijing 2022. “This is an absolute record for Ukraine at the Winter Paralympics,” the Committee stressed.
Thus, Ukraine takes the second place at the Paralympics with 11 gold, ten silver and eight bronze medals.
The Kusum Charitable Trust (India, part of the Kusum Group) donated 20 tonnes of medicines to Ukraine as humanitarian aid.
The Kusum group told Interfax-Ukraine that humanitarian aid will be sent to help the wounded and injured as a result of the war on the territory of Ukraine.
The list of drugs also included the necessary antibiotics for antipyretics.
“The first part of the aid, which is more than 20 tonnes of vital medicines for a total amount of more than UAH 6 million, was delivered by an Indian Air Force aircraft to a safe area and is on its way to Ukraine,” the Kusum group said.
“Kusum recognizes and appreciates the efforts of the Ukrainian Embassy in India, the Indian Foreign Ministry and the Indian Air Force for their support in delivering this humanitarian aid on time and with the utmost care,” the group said.
The Kusum group of pharmaceutical companies includes four modern plants: three in India and one in Ukraine, as well as two own research centers.
The Swiss Federal Council has decided to increase humanitarian aid to Ukraine and other countries of the region to CHF 80 million.
“In response to the refugee crisis, the Federal Council, at its meeting on March 11, decided to increase humanitarian assistance to Ukraine to CHF 80 million. With this contribution, Switzerland expresses its solidarity with the people of Ukraine in difficult times,” the Federal Council said in a statement on Friday.
A quarter of this amount will go to help Ukrainian refugees in neighboring countries. Three quarters are intended to help those who remained in Ukraine. The funds will benefit the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, UN agencies, international and local NGO and projects implemented by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) in Ukraine.
About 12 million people are currently dependent on emergency assistance as a result of Russia’s attack on Ukraine.
