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Prigozhin made the claim in a video in which he appeared in combat fatigues in front of a line of fighters holding Russian flags and Wagner banners. "Today, at 12 noon, Bakhmut was completely taken," Prigozhin said. Our units are fighting in Bakhmut." Bakhmut has been the focus of the longest and bloodiest battle of Russia's war in Ukraine, which is nearly at the end of its 15th month. His victory claim followed fierce fighting around the city in the past week in which Ukraine said it pushed back some Russian forces.

☆ The Russian military is trying to recruit Central Asian migrant workers to fight in Ukraine to avoid another mandatory mobilization, UK intel says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia is attempting to recruit Central Asian migrants to fight in Ukraine, UK intelligence said. They are reportedly being enticed with high payments and offers of a fast track to Russian citizenship. Russia is likely trying to avoid another mandatory mobilization to minimize domestic anger. Recruiters have visited mosques and immigration offices, where staff who speak Tajik and Uzek attempt to recruit migrants, the update said. The attempts to recruit migrants come amid reports that Russia is trying to sign up 400,000 additional soldiers.

☆ Russia expands war recruitment drive with video ad calling for 'real' men
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/6] A man studies a leaflet given by a campaign member promoting Russian army service in Moscow, Russia April 12, 2023. Russia, which says it is prosecuting what it calls "a special military operation," does not disclose full casualty figures. Next in the video, a man is walking through the fog with other soldiers on what looks like a battlefield. the video asks, before cutting to a taxi driver taking a client's fare who then transforms into a soldier on the battlefield. Posters seeking professional soldiers have sprung up in the Russian capital in recent weeks declaring that "Our Profession is to defend the Motherland."

One Feb. 23, 2023 assessment, titled "Battle for the Donbas Region Likely Heading for a Stalemate Throughout 2023", says Russia is unlikely to be able to take that part of east Ukraine. WARY OF STIRRING CHINAOne U.S. document posted on Russian Telegram channels had the casualty figures crudely altered to reduce Russian casualties and increase Ukrainian casualties. The document on casualties is embossed with emblems of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Defence Intelligence Agency. The documents show that while Russia has overall numerical superiority in some areas, Ukraine has more tanks and armoured personnel carriers (APCs) in theatre than Russia. Ukraine has 802 tanks and 3,498 APCs fielded, while Russia has 419 tanks and 2,928 APCs in theatre.

☆ Russia's e-conscription overhaul underlines scramble for military manpower
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

It is going to be much more difficult to dodge," said Artyom, who asked for his surname to be withheld. The new law appeared part of a renewed push to generate more manpower for Russia’s military in Ukraine, where analysts say a much-anticipated winter offensive appears to have fizzled out without meaningful gains for Moscow. On March 30, British Defence Intelligence said that Russia planned to recruit an additional 400,000 professional soldiers, echoing Russian media reports. Mike Kofman, an expert in the Russian military at the U.S.-based CNA think-tank, has said that only a small proportion of Russia's troops in Ukraine are capable of offensive operations. Meanwhile, a physical recruitment drive is being rolled out across Russia.

☆ Russia is confiscating passports from its elites, fearing they will defect over its invasion of Ukraine, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia is taking the passports of officials and state company execs, per the Financial Times. It's worried that elites may defect as they oppose the war, per the report. The UK MOD earlier said Russia was taking passports to stop "the flight or defection" of officials. The outlet said Russia was worried about defections from people who oppose the invasion of Ukraine. Tens, if not hundreds of thousands, of people also fled Russia after it announced a partial mobilization of reservists in September.

☆ Ukraine says eastern town of Avdiivka could become 'second Bakhmut'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KYIV, March 20 (Reuters) - Ukraine said on Monday the eastern town of Avdiivka could soon become a "second Bakhmut", a small city where its forces have held out against Russian invaders for eight months but risk being fully encircled. The battle for Bakhmut in the industrial Donbas has been one of the fiercest of the nearly 13-month-old war in Ukraine, drawing comparisons with World War One trench warfare. I very much agree with my colleagues from the UK that Avdiivka may soon become the second Bakhmut," spokesman Oleksiy Dmytrashkivskyi said. Ukraine has said Russian forces are taking heavy losses in their offensive in eastern Ukraine. Avdiivka lies just to the north of the Russian-held city of Donetsk, of which Ukraine lost control in 2014.

☆ India-Russia defence firm eyes $200 mln missile deal with Indonesia
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Devjyot Ghoshal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The company has been in protracted negotiations with Indonesia and details about the size and timeline of a potential deal have not been previously reported. "I have a team right now in Jakarta," Rane told Reuters in an interview, adding that a deal could be in place within the year. "The defence forces of Indonesia are extremely interested." A spokesperson for the Philippine Department of National Defence did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Western-led sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine have not impacted BrahMos production or planning, said Rane.

☆ Ukraine's military intelligence service got an unannounced delivery of a US-made Black Hawk helicopter
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Stefano D'Urso | The Aviationist | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ukraine's Directorate of Intelligence published photos of the unannounced delivery of a US-made helicopter. The helicopter's livery suggests the US bought a Black Hawk back from a private firm to send to Kyiv. This delivery comes unannounced, as the UH-60 Black Hawk was not included in any of the aid packages and its supply to the Armed Forces of Ukraine was not mentioned by officials. —Defence intelligence of Ukraine (@DI_Ukraine) February 21, 2023However, Defence Blog was quick to notice that the Black Hawk, in addition to the Ukrainian flags and roundels, wears a peculiar livery. This livery was saw in the past on helicopters of the US firm Ace Aeronautics, which specializes in converting older Black Hawk helicopters divested by the US Army for the civilian market.

☆ Russia is likely to claim a big victory in Bakhmut as 1-year anniversary of its invasion approaches, regardless of the reality on the ground, UK intel says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia is under increasing political pressure to capture Bakhmut by February 24, UK intel said. It's "likely" that Russia will claim victory there regardless of the reality on the ground, it said. Analysts say that Russia will struggle to seize Bakhmut by the first anniversary of the Ukraine war. "It is likely that Russia will claim that Bakhmut has been captured to align with the anniversary, regardless of the reality on the ground," the MoD said. The UK intelligence update added that Russia is continuing to pursue several offensive axes in eastern Ukraine, with casualties reportedly remaining high in Bakhmut.

☆ After months of stalemate, it looks like Russia's long-feared new offensive in Ukraine has begun
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia's threats of a renewed assault on Ukraine are already coming to pass, a military chief said. Multiple reports indicate a flurry of Russian attacks along the front line in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine says Russia hasn't had much success so far but "fighting has intensified," one soldier said. Ukrainian politician Anton Geraschenko tweeted on Wednesday that the Russian offensive is already taking place. Officials and analysts have been predicting for months that a new Russian offensive would begin in the spring, with the country likely to commit hundreds of thousands of additional soldiers to the fight.

☆ Russian state energy giant Gazprom is starting its own private security force, a move Ukraine fears will lead to a new Wagner-like mercenary army
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia's government is allowing energy giant Gazprom to start a private security outfit. Ukraine's Ministry of Defence drew comparisons with the notorious private army the Wagner Group. Experts said it's plausible that another Russian mercenary army is in the works. Russia's government gave its go-ahead for the energy giant to create a private security organization on February 4, under the pretext of securing the country's energy sector. "Ukrainians are handling Wagner, they are handling the Russian army."

☆ Russia raised a record $13.6 billion in one day as the cost of Vladimir Putin's war with Ukraine keeps mounting
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-19 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia raised more than $13 billion in a day as the cost of Putin's war in Ukraine keeps mounting. Britain's Defence Intelligence said it was the largest amount Moscow had raised in a single day. Russia's defence spending for 2023 is estimated to be 40% higher than previously forecast. The true cost of Russia's invasion of Ukraine remains unclear. The government estimated in the summer that it needed $5 billion a month to maintain essential services, and some $750 billion for reconstruction.

☆ Ukraine's forces enter Kherson, Russian stragglers must surrender - Kyiv
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Ukraine's defence intelligence agency said on Friday Ukrainian units were entering the southern city of Kherson and told any Russian troops still there to surrender. In a statement issued in Russian, the agency said Kherson was coming back under Ukrainian control after being occupied since March and threatened to "destroy" any Russian soldiers who resisted. The statement, which offered the first official confirmation that Ukrainian forces were in Kherson, guaranteed the safety of any Russian soldiers who surrendered. The ministry did not comment on Ukrainian officials' assertions that Russian troops in Kherson had been ordered to change into civilian clothes. It was not possible for Reuters to assess whether or how many Russian troops were still in the city.

☆ Russian soldier says he will 'pray for a wound' in Ukraine so he can leave the front lines, intercepted audio shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine shared audio it said was intercepted from a Russian soldier. The clip shows a man complaining about Putin and his partial mobilization plans. He also says he will "pray for a wound" in Ukraine so he can go home. A four-minute clip of the intercepted phone call was shared by The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine on Tuesday. It said the conversation was between a Russian soldier based in the occupied city of Kherson and an unidentified woman.

☆ Russian soldiers cursed out their commanders and complained they were getting crushed in audio intercepted by Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine shared audio it said was intercepted from Russian soldiers. The first of the two audio clips shared by The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine on Thursday was a conversation between a Russian man and a woman. The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine said the man was in the Kherson region, but did not give any more details about his location. The shot came about 15 meters away from us or so," the man said in the audio. At one point in the audio, the woman said: "I just don't get this at all."

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