Day 667 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Russia May Cut Diplomatic Ties With US If It Seizes Its Assets

Day 667 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

• WSJ: Patrushev orchestrated Prigozhin's assassination
• The US is imposing sanctions on financial institutions that help Russia circumvent sanctions
• New drone attack against Kyiv
• Zelensky: Russian military activity is slowing down
• Russia will never leave alone any country that confiscates its assets
• Russia may cut diplomatic ties with the US if it seizes its assets, Russian deputy foreign minister warns
• The Polish foreign minister is in Kyiv, a Ukrainian official said
• We cannot let Russia win, Macron said in Jordan

WSJ: Patrushev orchestrated Prigozhin's assassination

The murder of the founder of PMC "Wagner" and the so-called "Putin's chef" Yevgeny Prigozhin, was organized by the secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev, the American newspaper Wall Street Journal claims.

Patrushev began warning Russian President Vladimir Putin about the threat posed by Prigozhin's growing influence as early as the summer of 2022, the paper said, citing anonymous intelligence sources.

However, the president did not listen to his words, because according to the Kremlin, the mercenaries of PMC "Wagner" achieved success on the battlefield in Ukraine. A former Russian intelligence officer claims that the situation changed dramatically in October 2022.

At that time, Prigozhin called Putin and complained in plain text about the shortage of ammunition leading to heavy losses. At the time, Patrushev was in Putin's office,...