Ukraine updates: Zelenskyy in France for D-Day anniversary

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled to Normandy on Thursday to mark the 80th anniversary of the Allied landings on D-Day.

While in France, Zelenskyy is due to meet US President Joe Biden for talks on how Ukraine can gain back ground after recent Russian advances.

Here's a look at the latest developments regarding Russia's war in Ukraine on Thursday, June 6.

06/06/2024June 6, 2024

Biden underscores Ukraine support at D-Day memorial

US President Joe Biden used his speech at the D-Day memorial in Normandy, France, to draw parallels between the fight for freedom in World War II and his support for Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.

"We will not walk away because if we do Ukraine will be subjugated and it will not end there," Biden said. "Ukraine's neighbors will be threatened, all of Europe will be threatened."

Biden went on to say that it was "unthinkable" to surrender to bullies.

"If we were to do that, it means we'd be forgetting what happened here on these hallowed beaches," he said.

06/06/2024June 6, 2024

Scholz says peace for Ukraine 'doesn't mean capitulation'

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz addressed the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in a statement on national security that also touched on Germany's stance on the war in Ukraine.

The German leader reiterated his support for Ukraine and vowed that "peace does not mean capitulation" and that he refused "to allow the return of war as the continuation of politics by other means."

He clearly stated that Russia was trying to rob Ukraine of its territory in its now nearly two-and-a-half-year-long war of aggression, adding that, "if we were to accept this imperialism … then, especially then … our own security would be under threat and the security of the whole of Europe with it."

Scholz's remarks come just days after a dramatic change of course regarding Ukraine, in which he followed Washington's lead by giving Kyiv permission to use German weapons to strike legitimate military targets inside Russia.

While noting that the decision had been made in "close consultation with our allies," Scholz pointed to Ukraine's right to defend itself against attacks on it territory, its citizens and its sovereignty.

06/06/2024June 6, 2024

Ukraine seeks damages for Russia's destruction of dam

Ukraine's state hydroelectric company Ukrhydroenergo said that it had launched international arbitration to seek compensation for Russia's destruction of the Kakhovka dam and power plant in June 2023.

The company estimated the damage at €2.5 billion ($2.72 billion), it said.

The Kakhovka dam, one of six on the Dnipro River that cuts through central and southern Ukraine, was seized at the start of Moscow's invasion in February 2022.

Russian forces blew up the Kakhovka dam on the night of June 6, 2023, flooding swaths of farmland, leaving tens of thousands of people without drinking water and Europe's largest nuclear power plant without enough water to cool its reactors.

Ukrhydroenergo said the Russian president and government had been officially informed of the dispute.

Electricity from Ukrainian hydroelectric plants is a key source of energy for Ukraine, and the company's plants have been repeatedly targeted by Russian missiles.

06/06/2024June 6, 2024

Zelenskyy arrives in Normandy for D-Day anniversary

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Normandy on Thursday to mark the 80th anniversary of the Allied landings on D-Day.

"This event and day serve as a reminder of the courage and determination demonstrated in the pursuit of freedom and democracy. Allies defended Europe's freedom then, and Ukrainians do so now. Unity prevailed then, and true unity can prevail today," he said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

While in Normandy, Zelenskyy is due to meet US President Joe Biden for talks on how Ukraine can gain back ground after recent Russian advances.

On Friday, Zelenskyy is also expected to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace and speak to reporters, the French president's office said. 

The two leaders were set to sign two agreements providing €650 million ($707 million) in loans and grants to Ukraine to support local authorities and critical infrastructure, particularly energy facilities, targeted by Russia, Macron's office said.

dh/nm (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)