International press review
Headlines: Moscow steps up offensive in most major Ukrainian cities
Audio 05:03
A destroyed building in Brovary, on the outskirts of the city of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, on March 1, 2022. © AP/Efrem Lukatsky
By: Véronique Rigolet Follow
4 mins
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The international press feared "
a dramatic escalation of hostilities
", like the
Daily Mail
and the
Wall Street Journal
, which both published on the front page photos of an explosion in the sky of Kiev.
Because it failed to deliver "
a fatal blow
", from the first days of the war, the Kremlin is now "
ready to resort to even more desperate measures
", worries the
Guardian
, which reports that "
rocket fire already killed dozens of civilians yesterday in Kharkiv
", Ukraine's second largest city, and that Kiev, the capital, is now directly "
under the threat of a large-scale offensive
".
“
Putin is bombing civilians
”, is also moved on the front page of the British daily, like the
Times
, which denounces “
the tragic symbol
” of children trapped in Ukraine.
The intense bombardment of Kharkiv came a few hours after the Russian markets were shaken "
by an unprecedented wave of Western sanctions
", analyzes the
Financial Times , which also fears the "
destructive
" escalation
of Vladimir Putin.
Western sanctions plunge Russia into economic chaos
The Russian currency, "
the ruble plunges into the abyss
", headlines the
Süddeutsche Zeitung
which, like all of the international press, describes the panic of the Russian population, "
the long queues which have formed in front of automatic teller machines of the country
", in an attempt to "
recover their savings before the damage worsens
".
But "
the damage is done
", explains the
Guardian
correspondent for whom "
the Russians are facing an economic point of no return
".
For them, "
the benefits of globalization have abruptly disappeared
", also explains the correspondent of the
New York Times
, who points out that the decision of the West to restrict the access of the Russian Central Bank to its some "
643 billion dollars of reserves in foreign currency - nullified the Kremlin's efforts to mitigate the impact of the sanctions
".
"
The national economy has entered another new reality
", recognizes for its part the
Nezavisimaya Gazeta
, the Russian daily which does not hide that "
this economic reality is even harder than it had been for the past eight years.
since the imposition of the first Western sanctions.
Doubts about the effectiveness of international sanctions
Even if these sanctions are intended "
to compel the Kremlin to give up its invasion of Ukraine
", explains the editorialist of the
Guardian
, the truth is, he says, "
that the sanctions do not work and that only serious diplomacy can arrest Putin
”.
"
In Iran, in North Korea or even in Syria, the sanctions have on the contrary reinforced the power
", notes our British colleague who fears a deadly escalation in Ukraine, if the West does not find the words to convince "
the 'proud Russian regime to stop its unjustified aggression
'.
"
The worse the threat scenario becomes, the more the question of a possible exit from the escalation arises
", similarly considers the
Frankfurter Neue Presse
which underlines that unless "
the Russian people rise up against their president bellicose, which seems unrealistic for the moment
", the West will not be able to do otherwise "
than to build a bridge with Putin
".
And the German daily to congratulate itself that French President Emmanuel Macron has maintained the thread with Putin and "
tried yesterday to explore the possibilities of compromise
", during a telephone interview.
“
Even though Putin is a war criminal, the
“, also insists the
Hamburger Abendblatt
.
The war in Ukraine impacts the fight against global warming
It is also on the front page of the international press, with this extremely alarmist new report from the IPCC, "
the
greatest climatologists in the world
", explains the
Japan Times
, stress that the "
irreversible effects
" of climate change outweigh the “
pace of efforts to protect billions of vulnerable people
”.
But the alarm signals of the Giec, are drowned out by "
the anti-aircraft alarms ringing over Ukrainian cities
", notes the
Süddeutsche Zeitung
which fears that climate protection will become "
collateral damage of Putin's war
“, while the Nations should fight together against the deadly warming of the earth, the German daily regrets that “
the planet must thus wait
”.
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