- Russian President Vladimir Putin caveat Finland’s accession to NATO would be a “mistake” as Moscow cuts off power to the Nordic countries.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says “very complex negotiations” with Russia are underway to expel fighters from the besieged Azovstali plant in Mariupol.
- Mitch McConnell, the top Republican in the US Senate, suddenly visits Kieu to ensure Ukraine’s sustainable support.
- A convoy of hundreds of cars leaving Mariupol arrives safely in Zaporizhia, Ukraine.
- The Ukrainian Karsh Orchestra won the Eurovision for the folk hip-hop song “Stephania”.
The latest updates are all:
Zelenskyy welcomes Ukraine’s Eurovision victory and promises to host a contest in Mariupol someday
The President of Ukraine praised the Kalush Orchestra’s victory in the Eurovision Song Contest.
“Our courage impresses the world and our music conquers Europe!” Zelenskyy said in a telegram. Position..
As the winner of this year’s Eurovision, Ukraine will host next year’s contest. Zelenskyy said he hopes to someday welcome Eurovision participants and guests in “free, peaceful and reconstructed” Mariupol.
Blinken arrives in Germany for NATO conference
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Germany prior to the informal meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers in Berlin.
The rally will discuss Finland and Sweden’s move to join the military alliance and how NATO can help Ukraine without being involved in a conflict with Russia.
Arrived in Berlin to meet informally @NATO The Foreign Minister discusses our alliance and sustained action to deal with Russia’s unprovoked aggression against Ukraine.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) May 14, 2022
Mitch McConnell Guarantees “Sustainable Support” for Ukraine
Republican leaders in the US Senate reaffirmed Washington’s support for Ukraine during a sudden visit to Kieu.
In a statement, Mitch McConnell reassured Zelensky that the United States “stands directly behind Ukraine and will maintain our support until Ukraine wins the war.”
The Senate Republican delegation has just left Ukraine after visiting Kieu and meeting with President Zelensky. We have directly seen the courage, unity and determination of the Ukrainian people. My complete statement: pic.twitter.com/bsgCMLiZ6M
— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) May 14, 2022
Ukraine wins Eurovision Song Contest
Ukraine won the Eurovision Song Contest and was backed by an infectious folk-hip-hop melody, riding a wave of public support for embarrassed countries across Europe.
The Calche Orchestra’s song “Stephania” defeated 24 rivals at the finale of the world’s largest live music event on Saturday. Sung in Ukrainian, the song is a fusion of rap and traditional folk music, a homage to the band’s frontman Oleh Psiuk’s mother.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sent a wish for good luck early in the night, saying that if the Kalush Orchestra wins, it will have great symbolic implications.
“Victory is very important to us today,” he said in his nightly speech.
Russia was excluded from the competition in Turin due to the invasion of Ukraine.
![After winning the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest in Turin, Italy on May 15, 2022, the Ukrainian Kalush Orchestra will be on stage. [Yara Nardi/Reuters]](https://news.google.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/eurovision2.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C513)
![Ukrainian service members will watch the performance of the Karsh Orchestra in the final of the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest on May 14, 2022. [Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters]](https://news.google.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/2022-05-14T213212Z_813283425_RC297U90C1PR_RTRMADP_3_UKRAINE-CRISIS-EUROVISION.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C513)
Mariupol’s convoy arrives safely and refugees talk about “catastrophic” escape
A large convoy of cars and vans carrying refugees from the ruins of Mariupol arrived in the Ukrainian-controlled city of Zaporizhia after days waiting for Russian troops to leave them.
Refugees arriving on Saturday must first leave Mariupol and then somehow head to Berdyans’k (about 80 km further west along the coast) and other settlements, before 200 km head northwest to Zaporizhia. I had to.
Nikolai Pavlov, 74, said he lived in the basement for a month after the apartment was destroyed. His relatives, using the “secret detour”, managed to take him from Mariupol to Berdyans’k.
“We had little success. There were a lot of older people in us … the trip was devastating, but it was worth it,” the convoy arrived in the dark. Later he said.
Mariupol’s aide said earlier that the number of convoys was 500 to 1,000, the largest single evacuation from the city since Russia invaded Ukraine.
The envoy says Russian diplomats in the United States have been threatened and seduced by the FBI and CIA.
Russia’s US envoy has said that Russian diplomats in Washington are under threat of violence and US intelligence is trying to contact them, according to TASS news outlets.
“It’s like a besieged fortress. Basically, our embassy operates in a hostile environment … embassy employees are under threat, including the threat of physical violence. “TASS quoted Ambassador Anatoly Antonov on Saturday.
“A US security service agent is hanging out outside the Russian embassy and is handing out CIA and FBI phone numbers that can be called to establish contact,” the ambassador told TASS.
Russia and the United States have been involved in the debate over the size and function of their diplomatic missions even before Russia invaded Ukraine.
![Russian Embassy in Washington, DC in March 2022 [File photo: Susan Walsh/AP]](https://news.google.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/embassy.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C513)
US Mitch McConnell meets Zelensky in Kieu
Mitch McConnell, a top Republican member of the US Senate, visited Kieu without notice with other Republican Senators and met with the President of Ukraine.
McConnell was accompanied by Senator Susan Collins, John Barasso, and John Conin.
Zelenskyy welcomed this visit as a strong signal of US bipartisan support for Ukraine and the strength of relations between the two countries.
“We talked about many areas that support the country, such as defense, finances, and increased sanctions against Russia,” Zelensky said in a video speech, emphasizing the need to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism. rice field. ..
McConnell is pressing Republican Senator Rand Paul to end the opposition to the $ 40 billion aid package to Ukraine, which has received overwhelming support from both major US parties.
![In this handout, provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is shaking hands with Senator Mitch McConnell in Kieu, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 14, 2022. [Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP]](https://news.google.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/mitch.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C552)
Ukrainian band pleads for Mariupol at Eurovision
The Ukrainian Kalush Orchestra has pleaed the fighters working hard in the city of Mariupol and the Azovstal Iron and Steel at the end of their appearance in the Eurovision Song Contest.
“Help Mariupol, Ukraine. After the band played” Stephania, “lead singer Ole Pushuk shouted in front of the stage in Turin, Italy.
After more than two months of siege, Russian troops bombed the ironworks at the South Harbor of Mariupol, the last fort of hundreds of Ukrainian defenders in a city almost completely controlled by Russia.
![Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra will perform in the final of the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest in Turin, Italy, on May 14, 2022. [Yara Nardi/Reuters]](https://news.google.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/eurovision.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C513)
Putin told the Finnish President: Joining NATO would be a “mistake”
Russian President Vladimir Putin told Finnish counterparts that joining NATO was a “mistake” because Moscow cut off power to the Nordic countries early.
“President Putin emphasized that the end of the traditional military-neutral policy is a mistake because there is no threat to Finland’s security,” the Kremlin said in a statement on Saturday.
“Such changes in the political orientation of the country can adversely affect Russia-Finland relations, which have developed over the years in the spirit of good neighbor relations and cooperation between partners.”
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Hello and welcome to the ongoing coverage of the Ukrainian War by Al Jazeera.
Read all updates from Saturday, May 14th Here..
