International

Russia launches Ukraine’s “biggest attack on the energy industry”

At least three people have died and three others are missing as a result of the massive attack with missiles and drones launched by Russia against numerous regions of Ukraine.

According to the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenski, there have been almost 90 missiles and more than 60 Shahed drones aimed at power plants and transmission lines, a hydroelectric plant and residential buildings.

“It is important to understand the cost of delays and postponed decisions,” Zelenski said on his Telegram account, after giving his condolences to those killed in the attack, referring to the request he made to the European Council on Wednesday for more air defense systems to better protect the entire Ukrainian territory from Russian attacks.

For his part, the Minister of Energy, German Galushchenko, has assured on his social networks that this morning is the largest attack recently launched by Russia against the Ukrainian energy sector.

“The enemy is carrying out the biggest recent attack against the Ukrainian energy industry,” Galushechenko wrote early Friday morning. The minister added that “the Russian goal” “is not only to damage, but to try to provoke again a large-scale collapse of the country’s energy system.”

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Galushchenko reported power cuts in several regions of the country as a result of the attack. One of the affected areas is the northeastern city of Kharkov, whose authorities have reported that the city has run out of light.

In addition, the authorities have confirmed that one of the projectiles has hit the largest hydroelectric plant in the Zaporiyia region, in southeastern Ukraine.

According to the company in charge of this installation, Russia seeks to “create a new ecological disaster” by hitting the infrastructure of the plant and the dam from which it is fed with water.

Ukraine is receiving electricity from Romania, Slovakia and Poland to maintain the supply after the massive attack on its energy system.

The explosions were recorded after the Ukrainian Air Force reported the detection of Russian cruise and ballistic missiles that were heading for Ukrainian territory under Kiev’s control.

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The Ukrainian defenses managed to destroy 55 of the 63 Shahed kamikaze drones and 37 of the 88 missiles of different types launched by Russia, according to the balance sheet of the Ukrainian Air Force.

“During the early morning of March 22, the enemy launched a combined air attack against critical infrastructures in Ukraine,” it reads the Kiev military report, which reports that Russia used, among other types of projectiles, 7 Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and 12 Iskander-M ballistic missiles in the attack.

Ukrainian air defenses shot down 35 of the 45 cruise missiles fired by Russia, but could not intercept any of the Kinzhal or the Iskander-M.

Ukraine can intercept ballistic and hypersonic missiles such as the Kinzhal in Kiev, but it is vulnerable to this type of Russian weaponry in almost the rest of the country.

In addition, Russia has launched 49 retaliatory attacks for Ukrainian incursions in the border regions of Belgorod and Kursk during the last week.

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“From March 16 to 22, in response to the bombing of our territories, the attempts to raid and capture Russian border localities, the Russian Armed Forces launched 49 retaliatory attacks with long-range aerial weapons, including Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and drones,” the Russian Ministry of Defense reported today in its daily war report.

The military department indicated that as a result of the attacks, “decision-making centers of the Ukrainian Army, airfields, weapons repair workshops, air and nautical drone warehouses, supply bases and site areas for Ukrainian military and foreign mercenaries” were reached.

Russia has been reporting daily for several days of the shooting down of drones and missiles in border regions with Ukraine, in particular in Belgorod, where it has suffered several incursions by militias of Russian volunteers fighting on the Ukrainian side.

During the last ten days, at least 21 Russian civilians have lost their lives as a result of these attacks.

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International

German president warns Iran war could spread and disrupt Strait of Hormuz

The president of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, warned Monday that the war involving Iran could expand and further disrupt shipping through the strategic Strait of Hormuz. He urged a swift end to hostilities between Iran, United States and Israel.

Speaking in Panama City during a joint appearance with Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino, Steinmeier said available information suggests Iran has significant capacity to disrupt maritime traffic through the key oil route.

“Iran has considerable potential to interfere with shipping through the Strait of Hormuz,” Steinmeier said through an interpreter. “We should therefore reach an end to the hostilities as soon as possible and call on all parties involved to make that happen.”

The remarks came during Steinmeier’s visit to Panama, the first by a German president to the Central American nation.

The German leader described the possibility of the conflict spreading as “very dangerous,” saying recent developments indicate that such a scenario cannot be ruled out.

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Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump urged allied nations to help ensure safe passage for ships through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran moved to block the waterway in response to U.S. strikes. However, several allies—particularly in Europe—have shown little support for the proposal.

“Some are very enthusiastic, others are not, and some are countries we have helped for many years,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “We have protected them from terrible external threats, and they’re not that enthusiastic. And the level of enthusiasm is important to me.”

Meanwhile, Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, said the Strait of Hormuz falls “outside NATO’s scope” and stressed that “the war involving Iran is not Europe’s war.”

International

Mexico security chief meets DEA director in Washington to boost anti-drug cooperation

Mexico’s Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection, Omar García Harfuch, met in Washington with the head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Terrance Cole, to discuss cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking and illegal arms flows.

The Mexican official said Monday on social media that he attended the meeting in representation of the Mexican government’s Security Cabinet.

“In Washington, D.C., I represented the Security Cabinet to hold talks with DEA Director Terrance Cole on the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation to combat drug trafficking, curb the flow of weapons into our country, and reduce violence in Mexico through significant arrests,” García Harfuch wrote.

He added that, following instructions from Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, the government will continue strengthening international cooperation on security matters.

For his part, Cole said the meeting focused on cross-border collaboration to tackle drug trafficking and to build safer communities on both sides of the border.

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The meeting comes as Mexico and the United States begin a new round of dialogue on economic and security issues.

Earlier Monday, President Claudia Sheinbaum said she will look for the “best moment” to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, adding that maintaining a good relationship with Washington is a priority for her administration.

International

Venezuela’s foreign minister accuses UN rights chief of “immoral bias”

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil criticized the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, accusing him of having an “immoral bias” and acting as an “echo chamber for falsehoods” regarding the situation in Venezuela.

Gil’s remarks came after Türk stated that his office had not received an official list from Venezuelan authorities detailing the release of political prisoners, nor authorization to carry out visits related to the issue.

“The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights insists on a narrative biased against our country, repeating unfounded accusations while deliberately omitting the impact of unilateral coercive measures on the rights of the Venezuelan people,” Gil said in a message posted on his Telegram channel.

Without directly addressing the question of prisoner releases, the Venezuelan foreign minister also accused Türk of aligning with what he described as the “agenda of extremism in Venezuela.”

Gil added that, despite serious human rights violations occurring in other parts of the world, the UN official has chosen to maintain what he described as an “immoral bias” against Venezuela.

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The criticism is part of a broader dispute between the Venezuelan government and the UN human rights office over reports and investigations concerning the human rights situation in the country.