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☆ Ukraine says it's now a de facto member of NATO — further underlining a crucial error in Putin's invasion
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ukraine has become a "de facto" NATO member since Russia's invasion, its defence minister said. Russia used the potential of NATO expanding to Ukraine as an pretense for its invasion. But this appears to have backfired, instead bringing it closer to the Western military alliance. Oleksii Reznikov told the BBC in an interview broadcast on Friday that NATO's support for Ukraine meant "Ukraine as a country, and the armed forces of Ukraine, became [a] member of NATO." Putin partly justified his invasion of Ukraine by saying that he was worried NATO was expanding towards Russia's borders, including into Ukraine.

☆ Russia says Belarus may enter Ukraine conflict if 'invaded'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 13 (Reuters) - A Russian foreign ministry official said on Friday that Belarus may enter the conflict in Ukraine if Kyiv decides to "invade" either country. Russia used Belarus as a springboard to invade Ukraine in February 2022, and since October has deployed troops in Belarus for joint military drills. In an interview with state media, foreign ministry official Aleksey Polishchuk said that Russia's joint drills with Belarus were designed to prevent escalation, but warned that Belarus may join the Ukraine conflict if it or Russia were invaded. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday that his country must "be ready" at its border with Belarus, but that he so far only saw "powerful statements" coming from his neighbour. "We understand that apart from powerful statements, we do not see anything powerful there, but nevertheless we must be ready both at the border and in the regions," he said.

☆ Russian prisoners sent to the front lines in Ukraine have been publicly executed for not charging into enemy fire, captured inmates say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Captured members of a Russian mercenary group say disobedient troops and deserters are being publicly executed in Ukraine. The infamous Wagner Group has recruited prisoners to fight on the front lines. One captured former inmate described many of the recruited prisoners as "completely insane." The Russian military has suffered staggering losses since Moscow launched an unprovoked invasion of Ukraine last February. In an effort to address worsening manpower issues, the Wagner Group has fought alongside the Russian military and has recruited Russian prisoners in the process.

☆ Ukraine says a team of military surgeons removed an unexploded grenade from inside the body of a Ukrainian soldier
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Grace Eliza Goodwin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A Ukrainian surgeon successfully removed a live grenade from inside a soldier's chest. The Armed Forces of Ukraine tweeted that the grenade could have detonated "at any moment." The surgery went well and the wounded soldier has been sent to recovery, Ukraine's military said. Two sappers were on hand to handle the live grenade after it was removed from the soldier's chest, according to Ukraine's armed forces. The Armed Forces of Ukraine tweeted that "everything went well — the wounded man has already been sent for rehabilitation and recovery."

A total of 50 rockets fell in the Kherson region, including on military targets. Dimitar Dilkoff / AFP - Getty ImagesThe Kremlin dismissed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s 10-point so-called peace plan, saying proposals to end the conflict must take into account what it claims are “today’s realities” of four Ukrainian regions having joined Russia. In September Russia annexed the four regions of Ukraine after the occupied areas held sham votes, which were denounced by Kyiv and the West. We are entering the next year and must retain a common understanding of our national goals,” the statement read. Otherwise, the issue will be decided by the Russian army.”Zelenskyy has said his country will never relinquish land.

☆ Ukraine Defends Bakhmut Against Russian Assaults as Zelensky Heads to U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( James Marson | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LVIV, Ukraine—The Ukrainian military said it had repelled a fresh wave of Russian assaults around the eastern city of Bakhmut following a visit there on Tuesday by President Volodymyr Zelensky , who is due to visit the U.S. on Wednesday. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in its regular morning report that Russian troops had assaulted Bakhmut and other towns and villages in the eastern Donetsk region, including with artillery and tanks, but without success. The Russian Defense Ministry said its military had seized some territory in Donetsk, without giving details, Russian state-run news agency TASS reported.

☆ Ukraine official says American citizen Suedi Murekezi released in Ukraine-Russia prisoner swap
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Minyvonne Burke | Minyvonne Burke Is A Senior Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

American citizen Suedi Murekezi was reportedly freed after Ukraine and Russia conducted another prisoner exchange, said Andriy Yermak, the head of the President’s Office of Ukraine on Wednesday. Among those freed were 64 soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, he said, before noting that Murekezi was also freed. The U.S. Department of State confirmed that an American citizen was freed but declined to release further details "due to privacy considerations." Murekezi was reportedly arrested in June in the city of Kherson, which was occupied by Russian forces at the time, the Guardian reported. A Russian news agency said that Murekezi was detained on charges of "inciting ethnic hatred" for protesting against Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

☆ A Ukrainian fighter pilot who took a blood-covered selfie after ejecting has been named a Hero of Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( David Cenciotti | The Aviationist | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Maj. Vadym Voroshylov snapped a selfie after a night ejection from his MiG-29 Fulcrum. Voroshylov regularly posts photos and videos that provide a unique view of the air war in Ukraine. Recently, he snapped a selfie of his blood-covered face after ejecting over west-central Ukraine. Top editors give you the stories you want — delivered right to your inbox each weekday. —Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) October 15, 2022However, the wreckage of one of the destroyed UAVs caught the MiG-29 cockpit.

☆ Partner of US veteran killed fighting for Ukraine says its army never told her and she found out from Facebook
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A US Army veteran was killed in July while volunteering to defend Ukraine from Russia's invasion. Bryan Young's partner, Maria Lipka, told Insider that she found out about his death on Facebook. His partner, Maria Lipka, told Insider that she only found out about Young's death from a message sent to her on Facebook. "No one, absolutely no one informed me," she told Insider. Lipka told Insider that Young said he needed to go to Ukraine to help fight off the Russian invasion because it was his duty to protect the free world.

Explosions at two Russian air bases Monday have focused attention on Ukraine's efforts to develop longer-range combat drones. The Russian Defense Ministry says the attacks were carried out by Ukrainian drones, which it claims were brought down by Russian air defenses. Imagery — both satellite and photographs — indicates some damage was done to Russian military planes at one base in Ryazan region. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has offered no official comment on the explosions, and the Ukrainian government has not acknowledged adding long-range attack drones to its arsenal. The two bases hit, according to the Russian Defense Ministry, are hundreds of miles inside Russian territory and beyond the reach of Ukraine's declared arsenal of drones.

☆ Russia has stopped using its Iranian suicide drones because they don't work in the cold, Ukraine says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia has stopped using Iranian-made suicide drones due to cold weather, a Ukrainian official said. Russia started to use the Iranian drones in October, as part of a new playbook that targeted power distribution and other critical infrastructure from afar. A composite image showing an Iranian drone in the sky and the aftermath of a strike on Kyiv on October 17, 2022. And it reported that Iran and Russia had reached an agreement for Russia to start producing the drones itself. Multiple reports have also said that Iran has been training Russia on how to use the drones and other weapons.

CNN —Explosions at two Russian air bases Monday have focused attention on Ukraine’s efforts to develop longer-range combat drones. The Russian Defense Ministry says the attacks were carried out by Ukrainian drones, which it claims were brought down by Russian air defenses. Imagery – both satellite and photographs – indicates some damage was done to Russian military planes at one base in Ryazan region. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has offered no official comment on the explosions, and the Ukrainian government has not acknowledged adding long-range attack drones to its arsenal. The two bases hit, according to the Russian Defense Ministry, are hundreds of miles inside Russian territory and beyond the reach of Ukraine’s declared arsenal of drones.

☆ Satellite images show Russia is making a big gamble on how it plans to defend territory near Crimea from Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Russian forces have set up defensive lines and positions in territory leading toward Crimea. Close-up view of Russian defensive positions in Novotroitsky, Ukraine, captured on November 15, 2022. Ukraine's tanks and tracked vehicles could cut through fields and bypass them or assault the Russian positions from their more vulnerable flanks. Beyond this, Barros said that in establishing these defensive lines, Russian forces are also limiting themselves in their ability to conduct offensive operations in the area. Since late summer, advancing Ukrainian forces have managed to liberate thousands of square miles of territory from under Russian occupation.

Millions of Ukrainians face a deadly winter — and it isn't just the risk of being hit by Russian bombs. “This winter will be life-threatening for millions of people in Ukraine,” according to Dr. Hans Henri Kluge, the United Nations health agency’s regional director for Europe. Average winter temperatures in Ukraine are around 27 degrees Fahrenheit, and are expected to reach minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit in parts of the country in the coming months, the WHO said. Ukrainian officials say the wreckage of Shahed-136 drones — which are fitted with a warhead and fly directly into their target — have been found at the site of bomb attacks across the country. The city was recently retaken by Ukrainian forces following a Russian retreat.

☆ Russia accuses Ukraine of executing more than 10 POWs
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 18 (Reuters) - Russia's defence ministry said on Friday that Ukraine had executed more than 10 Russian prisoners of war, accusing Kyiv of carrying out war crimes that Moscow said the West ignores. The ministry cited video circulating on Russian social media which it said showed the execution of Russian prisoners of war. "This brutal murder of Russian servicemen is neither the first, nor the only war crime," the defence ministry said. Ukraine has repeatedly accused Russia of war crimes, claims that Russia has denied. The Russian defence ministry said the video showed "the deliberate and methodical murder of more than 10 immobilised Russian serviceman by degenerate Ukrainian soldiers."

☆ Russian administrators leave second city of Ukraine's Kherson region
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 15 (Reuters) - Civil servants working for the Russian-installed administration in Nova Kakhovka, the second-largest city in Ukraine's southern Kherson region, have left along with thousands of residents due to fighting, officials said on Tuesday. The city lies on the east bank of the Dnipro river, next to the huge Kakhovka dam, which both Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of shelling. "Indiscriminate fire from the left bank of the Dnipro has made life in the city unsafe ... Thousands of Nova Kakhovka residents responded to the call of the Kherson regional administration to protect their lives and left their homes. "Employees of the Military-Civilian Administration of Nova Kakhovka, state and municipal institutions also left the city and were relocated to safe places in the region." Since Russia's withdrawal from Kherson city and areas to the west of the Dnipro last week, attention has focused on Russian-controlled towns and settlements on the east bank.

Kherson, Ukraine CNN —For eight months, residents of the Ukrainian city of Kherson have been living under brutal Russian occupation. But on Friday, Ukrainian forces swept into the city and Russian troops retreated to the east. Another local resident named Andrew said he was so glad to see Ukrainian soldiers. The woman said it felt “amazing” to see Ukrainian troops in Kherson. He warned that many Russian troops “threw away their military uniforms, and are now hiding with civilian clothes on.”

☆ Videos show Ukrainians celebrating with troops and chanting 'Ukraine above all!' as Russian forces are driven out of Kherson
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Rebecca Cohen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Videos show Ukrainian citizens and troops celebrating in the streets following Russia's retreat in Kherson. "Kherson is Ukraine! On Friday morning, Ukrainian troops entered Kherson, a crucial city that fell to Russia in the early days of the war. Ukrainian troops entered Kherson Friday morning, a crucial city that fell to Russia in the early days of the war but is being retaken by the Ukrainian armed forces. In one video from Kherson, Ukrainians can be heard chanting "Glory to Ukraine!

☆ UK boosts support for Ukrainian troops through winter
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Alistair Smout | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/8] NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg observes Operation Interflex a UK led training programme for the Armed Forces of Ukraine during a visit to Lydd Camp in Kent, Britain. REUTERS/Chris RadburnSummary UK to send more cold-weather sleeping kits to UkraineAlso announces dispatch of more military equipmentNATO chief watches Ukrainian troops training in BritainLYDD, England, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Britain is stepping up its support for Ukrainian soldiers through the winter, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told Reuters on Wednesday, following weeks of Ukrainian advances towards the southern city of Kherson. Wallace joined NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to observe the training of Ukrainian troops in the southeast English town of Lydd, as Britain announced the delivery of a further 12,000 extreme cold-weather sleeping kits for Ukraine. "So we're determined ... to give Ukrainian soldiers the best basic skills because we already know that the Russian military aren't doing that." Stoltenberg, who said other NATO allies were also providing support to Ukrainian troops through the winter months, also met Britain's new prime minister, Rishi Sunak, on Wednesday in London, where they discussed the Atlantic alliance's continued support for Ukrainian sovereignty.

LONDON — Another U.S. citizen has died fighting in Ukraine, two people with knowledge of his death told NBC News on Monday, bringing the number of Americans killed in Russia’s war to at least six. Griffin had been taking part in Ukraine’s counteroffensive on the eastern front, according to the International Legion. The next month, 52-year-old Stephen Zabielski of Hernando, Florida, was killed fighting in the village of Dorozhniank. And in July, the State Department confirmed that two more Americans had been killed in eastern Ukraine. Last week, the body of a fifth American killed in Ukraine, 24-year-old Joshua Jones, was returned by Russia to Ukrainian custody.

☆ 'We're holding on', says deputy mayor of besieged Ukrainian city
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Joseph Campbell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Clodagh KilcoyneBAKHMUT, Ukraine, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Residents of the besieged eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut are living in dire conditions, with civilians killed and wounded daily, the deputy mayor said on Saturday, as fighting between Russian troops and Ukraine's forces rages around the city. Kyiv's military says the area is the site of some of the heaviest fighting with Russian forces, and deputy mayor Oleksandr Marchenko told Reuters that Russia's troops were "trying to storm the city from several directions". "With every day it's becoming harder and harder to survive in this city," Marchenko said from inside an empty government building as mortar fire boomed nearby. He said more than 120 civilians have been killed in Bakhmut since Russia's Feb. 24 invasion. "We're holding on and hoping that the armed forces of Ukraine will be able to repel the enemy further from the city," he said.

☆ Ukraine shares video showing a lone paratrooper single-handedly blowing up a Russian tank
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Footage appears to show a Ukrainian paratrooper striking and destroying a Russian tank. Ukrainian forces have had success in destroying tanks with handheld weapons. The video was apparently taken in the east of Ukraine, where heavy fighting is taking place. Watch the video here:—Генеральний штаб ЗСУ (@GeneralStaffUA) November 4, 2022According to the Ukraine Weapons Tracker Twitter, the incident occurred in east Ukraine, and the lone soldier destroyed the tank. The Ukrainian military said on Thursday that heavy fighting was taking place in the country's east as Russian forces were attacking in multiple locations.

Organizations: ЗСУ

☆ Explainer: Russia and North Korea forge closer ties amid shared isolation
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Josh Smith | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

As Russia's isolation over its war in Ukraine has grown, it has seen increasing value in North Korea. North Korea was heavily reliant on Soviet aid for decades, and when the Soviet Union collapsed in the 1990s, it helped spark a deadly famine in the North. UKRAINE WAR SUPPORTNorth Korea has reciprocated with public support for Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine. Both Russia and North Korea have denied claims by the United States that Russia has sought to buy millions of rounds of ammunition and other weapons from North Korea. ECONOMIC TIESRussia and North Korea recently restarted train travel for the first time since railway journeys were cut during the COVID pandemic with an unusually opulent cargo - 30 grey thoroughbred horses.

KYIV, Ukraine — Russian control of the key southern Ukrainian city of Kherson appeared increasingly in doubt Thursday after officials suggested that the Kremlin's troops would withdraw from the west bank of the Dnieper River. Civilians remaining in Kherson city should leave immediately as they are putting their lives in danger, he added. The dam holds back an enormous reservoir and controls the water supply to the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014. Ukrainian forces have targeted the main river crossings for months, making it difficult for Russia to supply its huge force on the river’s west bank. Yurii Sobolevskyi, the deputy head of Ukraine’s Kherson regional council, remained cautious about the Russian forces’ intentions.

☆ Russia says movement of ships in Black Sea corridor is 'unacceptable'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 31 (Reuters) - Russia said on Monday it was "unacceptable" for shipping to pass through a Black Sea security corridor after it suspended its participation in a Turkish- and U.N.-brokered deal that had allowed Ukraine to resume grain exports. "The movement of ships along the security corridor is unacceptable, since the Ukrainian leadership and the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine use it to conduct military operations against the Russian Federation," the Russian defence ministry said in a statement. The ministry did not say what Russia would do if ships continued to sail the route. On Monday a record volume of 354,500 tonnes of agricultural products left Ukrainian ports under the grain deal, despite Moscow's weekend announcement, a spokesperson for Odesa's military administration said. The Kremlin said earlier on Monday that without Russian security commitments, the grain deal was "hardly feasible, and it takes on a different character - much more risky, dangerous and unguaranteed".

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