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☆ Russia Hits Ukrainian Power Plants, Further Straining Energy System
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Constant Méheut | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A large Russian missile and drone assault caused serious damage to several power plants across Ukraine early Wednesday, Ukrainian officials said. Ukraine’s largest private electricity company, DTEK, said in a statement that three thermal power plants had been hit, further straining Ukraine’s electricity generation capacity, which was already reeling from previous assaults. Ukrenergo, Ukraine’s national electricity company, said that it might have to cut power to some domestic and industrial customers on Wednesday evening as a result. “You have to be prepared for this,” Volodymyr Kudritskyi, the head of Ukrenergo, told the Ukrainian news media. The attacks have hit Ukraine at a particularly difficult moment.

Persons: Volodymyr Kudritskyi Locations: Russian, Ukraine

☆ Ukraine’s Big Vulnerabilities: Ammunition, Soldiers and Air Defense
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Marc Santora | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Ukraine’s top military commander has issued a bleak assessment of the army’s positions on the eastern front, saying they have “worsened significantly in recent days.”Russian forces were pushing hard to exploit their growing advantage in manpower and ammunition to break through Ukrainian lines, the commander, Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky, said in a statement over the weekend. “Despite significant losses, the enemy is increasing his efforts by using new units on armored vehicles, thanks to which he periodically achieves tactical gains,” the general said. At the same time, Ukraine’s energy ministry told millions of civilians to charge their power banks, get their generators out of storage and “be ready for any scenario” as Ukrainian power plants are damaged or destroyed in devastating Russian airstrikes.

Persons: Oleksandr Syrsky

“Their tactics have changed – unfortunately, not for the better for us,” Svitlana Grynchuk, Ukraine’s deputy energy minister, told CNN. In the first two years of war, Russian attacks were more scattered, firing salvos of missiles to target large swathes of Ukraine’s energy system. More than 200,000 people were left without power after Russian attacks Thursday. But Ukraine is now confronting a wholly different task: repairing not just substations, but entire power plants. Rather than rebuilding large – and, without air defenses, vulnerable – power plants, it may shift how it produces its energy.

Persons: ” Svitlana, –, ” Grynchuk, Oleksandr Kharchenko, ” Kharchenko, Rather, ” Maxim Timchenko, ”, Evgeniy, Kharchenko, ” Olena Pavlenko, Pavlenko, It’s, it’s, Herman Halushchenko, ” Halushchenko, Maria Tsaturian, Pilipey, Andriy Gota, ” Tsaturian, Grynchuk Organizations: CNN, Energy Industry Research Center, Workers, DiXi, Energy, “, Getty Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Kyiv, Russian, United, ”, Kharkiv, Ukrenergo, Ukraine’s, AFP

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Belarus starts military drills near EU borders; Russia targets energy infrastructure in drone strikes
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko (R) enter the hall during the plenary session of the Supreme Council of Russia and Belarus, at the Konstantin Palace on January 29, 2024, in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Belarus began military drills on Tuesday in regions along its border with Ukraine, together with European Union nations Lithuania and Poland, the Russian ally's defense ministry said. Russia and Ukraine meanwhile continued to exchange drone strikes in recent days, with Russia on Monday night targeting energy facilities in raids on the Dnipropetrovsk and Kirovograd regions, Ukraine's Operational Command "South" said on Facebook. The head of Ukraine's national grid company said on Monday that while Russian drone attacks have significantly damaged the Ukrainian power system, a total collapse is unlikely. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held talks on Monday with military and government officials over Kyiv's drone production plans and a project to build an "integrated electronic warfare control system" to protect Ukrainian troops from Russian drone attacks.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Alexander Lukashenko, Konstantin, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Organizations: Supreme, of, European Union, Command, Facebook Locations: of Russia, Belarus, Saint Petersburg, Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Russian, Gomel, Grodno, Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovograd

☆ Why Russian separatists called an exorcist when they discovered a Ukrainian POW was an evangelical Christian
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Viktor Cherniiavskyi said he was targeted because he was an evangelical Christian. AdvertisementA Ukrainian soldier said he was tortured by Russian separatists and forced to undergo an exorcism , partly because of his evangelical Christian faith. While serving as a volunteer in the city of Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, Cherniiavskyi said he was captured by Russian-aligned forces. Second, because I'm an evangelical Christian. "In reality, Russian society, and the Kremlin, to be more precise, hates any type of Christian denomination, bar the Orthodox Church," Cherniiavskyi said.

Persons: Viktor Cherniiavskyi, —, Cherniiavskyi, Vladimir Putin's, Putin's, NICHOLAS KAMM, Russia's, Pat Buchanan, Buchanan, Putin, Dmytro Smolienko, Pastor Dmitry Bodyu, Bodyu, Mykhailo Brytsyn, Evangelical Christians Melitopol, Pastor Brytsyn Organizations: Russia, Service, Putin's Russia, Getty, Russian Orthodox Church, Boston, Kremlin, Publishing, Atlantic Council, Reuters, Tavriski Christian Institute, Life, Russian, NBC, Dallas, Fort, Grace, Evangelical Christians, Freedom, Washington DC, Religious, Orthodox Locations: Ukrainian, Russian, Russia, Luhansk, Ukraine, Moscow, South Carolina, Crimea, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Melitopol, Fort Worth, Washington, Kyiv

☆ Ukrainian POWs are being bought and sold on a Russian black market, report says
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russian fighters are operating a black market for Ukrainian prisoners of war, The Times of London reported. AdvertisementA black market in Ukrainian prisoners of war is being operated by Russian fighters, according to The Times of London. The Chechens were buying the POWs from other Russian forces in order to use them in prisoner exchanges for their own troops, he said. Soon, Levytskiy was taken to Grozny, where he recuperated and, in June 2023, was part of a group exchange of Ukrainian prisoners for Chechen ones, the paper reported. An estimated 4,000 Ukrainian combatants have been taken prisoner by Russian forces, The Guardian reported.

Persons: —, Petro Yatsenko, Ramzan Kadyrov, Vyacheslav Levytskiy, Levytskiy Organizations: Service, Russian, The Times, Donetsk People's, Guardian Locations: London, Russia, Grozny, Chechen, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Donetsk, Avdiivka, Donetsk People's Republic, Geneva, Russian

☆ Ukraine is setting up a separate branch of its military focused purely on drone warfare
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ukraine is creating a new military branch for drone warfare, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. A military expert said it's likely the first time a country has set up a separate drone branch. AdvertisementUkraine is creating a new branch of its military dedicated to drone warfare. Ukraine has regularly used drones to take out Russian tanks, bomb trenches, hit equipment stores, and target soldiers. But drone warfare in Ukraine is not one-sided.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, it's, —, he'd, Zelenskyy, Bruce Riedel, Mykhailo Fedorov, Sergei Shoigu, James Patton Rogers Organizations: Service, Defense Forces —, Unmanned Systems Forces, Ukraine's National Security and Defense, Brookings Institution, NBC, Digital Transformation, Russia's, Cornell Brooks Tech Policy Institute Locations: Ukraine, Ukrainian, Russia

CNN —Russia and Ukraine have exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war, in the first such swap since the deadly crash of a Russian military plane that Moscow claimed was carrying 65 captured Ukrainian soldiers. Wednesday’s exchange was the first since the mysterious crash of a Russian IL-76 plane on January 24 in Russia’s Belgorod region, which neighbors eastern Ukraine. But Ukraine’s intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said there was still no reliable information as to who might have been on board the downed Russian plane. Speaking after Wednesday’s prisoner exchange, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed the IL-76 plane had been downed by a US Patriot missile system. Putin stressed that Russia would not halt prisoner exchanges despite the plane crash.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Zelensky, Zelensky, ”, Andriy Yusov, Yusov, Petro Yatsenko, Kyrylo Budanov, Vladimir Putin, ” Putin, Putin, “, Andriy Yermak Organizations: CNN, Russian Defense Ministry, Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence, Social Media, Ukraine’s, US Patriot, American Patriot, Patriot, Russia’s Defense Ministry Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Russian, Moscow, Mariupol, Ukrainian, Russia’s Belgorod, Kyiv, Belgorod, Yablonovo, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Luhansk, Kherson, Sumy

☆ Ukraine says there's no evidence for Russia's claim that dozens of POWs died in a plane crash
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Russian Defense Ministry said Wednesday that missiles fired from across the border brought down the transport plane that it said was taking the POWs back to Ukraine. Local authorities in Belgorod, which borders Ukraine, said the crash killed all 74 people onboard, including six crew members and three Russian servicemen. Kyiv has neither confirmed nor denied that its forces downed a Russian military transport plane that day, and Russia's claim that the crash killed Ukrainian POWs could not be independently verified. An International Committee of the Red Cross spokesperson in Ukraine urged Russia on Friday night to return the bodies of any POWs who might have died in the plane crash. While Ukraine and Russia regularly exchange the bodies of dead soldiers, each trade has required considerable preparation, Vlasenko said.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin, Moscow, Kyrylo, Budanov, Mykola Oleshchuk, Oleksandr Vlasenko, Vlasenko, Vladimir Putin, Putin Organizations: Russian, Wednesday, Ukraine's, Staff, Kyiv, Russian Defense Ministry, Local, Social, International Committee, Red Cross, U.S, Free, Radio Liberty, Red Cross Media Locations: Davos, Switzerland, Ukraine, Russia, Ukrainian, Russia's Belgorod, Belgorod, Russian, Kyiv, Moscow, Free Europe, thoughtlessness, St . Petersburg

I don’t know whether they did it on purpose or by mistake, through thoughtlessness,” Putin said of Ukraine at a meeting with students. Putin offered no details to support the allegation that Ukraine was to blame, which other Russian officials have also made. Ukrainian officials have not said whether their military shot down the plane, but they called for an international investigation. Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesBoth sides in Russia's 23-month-long war in Ukraine have often used accusations to sway opinion at home and abroad. Ukrainian officials confirmed that a prisoner exchange was due to happen Wednesday but said it was called off.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, ” Putin, Mykola Oleshchuk, “, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Organizations: Authorities Locations: Russia’s Belgorod, thoughtlessness, Ukraine, Belgorod, Moscow, russia, ukraine

☆ Russia Says It Finds Ukraine IDs, Tattooed Body Parts at Plane Crash Site
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Friday it had recovered Ukrainian identity documents and tattooed body parts from the site where a Russian military plane that Moscow says was carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war crashed two days earlier near the Ukrainian border. Ukraine has neither confirmed nor denied that its forces downed the plane and said there is no proof of who was on board. On Thursday the Investigative Committee said preliminary findings showed the plane was struck by a surface-to-air missile fired from Ukraine. Ukraine has rejected a Russian assertion that it was forewarned that a plane carrying Ukrainian POWs would be flying over Belgorod region at that time. Russia state media said the black boxes from the plane had been delivered to a special defence ministry laboratory in Moscow and investigators were already working on them.

Persons: Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Mark Trevelyan, Alison Williams Organizations: Russian, Federal Penitentiary Service, . Security, Reuters Locations: MOSCOW, Russia, Russian, Moscow, Ukrainian, Russia's Belgorod, Ukraine, Belgorod

☆ Ukraine floats the theory it may have been tricked into shooting down the plane Russia says was full of Ukrainian POWs
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia accused Ukraine of shooting it down, killing 74 people on board, including prisoners of war. AdvertisementUkraine has suggested that it may have been tricked into shooting down a plane that Russia claims was carrying 74 people, including 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war. Russia said there were no survivors after an Il-76 plane crashed near Yablonovo, 44 miles southeast of the Belgorod border region of Russia. Ukraine's Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk said that Russia was seeking to undermine Ukraine's international support by exploiting the plane crash. AdvertisementUkraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for an international investigation into the incident and accused Russia of "playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners."

Persons: —, GUR, Mykola Oleshchuk, Oleshchuk, Ukrainska, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Dmitry Peskov, Zelenskyy, We've, we're, John Kirby Organizations: Service, Russian Federation, Air, Russian Defense Ministry, Ukrainska Pravda, Associated Press, National Security Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Yablonovo, Belgorod, Russian, Ukraine's Kharkiv, Lyptsi, Kharkiv, Ukrainian

☆ Ukraine's Zelenskiy: Russia Is 'Playing With the Lives of Ukrainian POWs'
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

(Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called for full clarity on Wednesday on the circumstances of the crash of a Russian plane in a Russian border region and accused Moscow of "playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners of war." "It is clear that the Russians are playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners, the feelings of their loved ones and the emotions of our society," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video broadcast. Russian officials accuse Ukraine of deliberately shooting down the Il-76 military transport and said it was carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war due to take part in a swap. (Reporting by Ron Popeski and Oleksandr Kozhukhar; Editing by Chris Reese)

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Ron Popeski, Oleksandr Kozhukhar, Chris Reese Organizations: Reuters Locations: Russian, Moscow, Ukraine

☆ Plane Crash in Western Russia - What We Know and Don't Know
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

(Reuters) - Russia accused Ukraine on Wednesday of shooting down a military transport plane carrying 65 captured Ukrainian soldiers to a prisoner exchange. The crash took place just northeast of Belgorod in western Russia, close to the border with Ukraine. The aircraft was an Ilyushin Il-76, a large military transport plane designed to carry troops, cargo or weapons. He said a second Il-76 transport plane carrying around 80 more Ukrainian soldiers to the exchange had managed to turn around. Ukraine's defence ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Persons: Here's, Andrei Kartapolov, Kartapolov, Ukraine's, Andriy Yusov, Margarita Simonyan, Mykhailo Podolyak, Mark Trevelyan, Andrew Osborn, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Reuters, Ukraine, WHO, U.S . Patriots, IRIS, Radio Svoboda Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Belgorod, Russian, Ukraine's Kharkiv, Chkalovsky, Moscow, UKRAINE, Ukrainian

☆ Another mysterious Russian plane crash raises more questions than answers
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Analysis Tim Lister | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The Russian Defense Ministry said the plane was destroyed by an anti-aircraft missile system deployed in the area of Liptsy in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, some 50 miles (80 kilometers) from where the plane came down. Another Ukrainian military source was quoted as claiming that the plane was carrying Russian missiles, not prisoners. Another puzzling element is that according to the Russian version of events, the Ukrainian PoWs were guarded by just three Russian personnel on board the plane (besides the crew.) But a large Russian military aircraft without anti-missile defenses approaching Belgorod – itself a frequent target of Ukrainian drones – would have been a tempting and valuable target for Ukraine. There’s been no visual evidence of the wreckage, and the Russian Defense Ministry has not responded to the claim.

Persons: CNN — It’s, Andrey Kartapolov, Maksym Kolesnikov, Dmytro Lubinets, “, There’s Organizations: CNN, Ukrainian, Russian Defense Ministry, Defense Ministry, Duma Defense, IRIS, Patriot, Ukrainian PoW Locations: Belgorod, Ukraine, Liptsy, Ukraine’s Kharkiv, Ukrainian, Sumy, Russian, Moscow, US, Russia, Bryansk, Olenivka, Donetsk, Belgorod –, Azov

☆ Russia said a military transport plane crashed with 65 Ukrainian POWs on board. Reports saying Ukraine shot it down were quickly changed.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia said an Il-76 transport aircraft crashed — and that it was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war. AdvertisementRussia said one of its transport aircraft crashed with 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war on board. At least two outlets — Ukrainian Pravda and Ukraine-RBC — posted articles saying Ukraine had shot down the planes, citing military sources. AdvertisementRussia's defense ministry said that the plane, an Il-76 cargo vessel, had 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war, six crew and three escorts on board when it crashed, per state media. AdvertisementAn early report on the crash by the outlet Ukrainian Pravda cited a Ukrianian defense source calling the shootdown "our work."

Persons: —, Vyacheslav Gladkov Organizations: Service, Ukrainian Pravda, RBC, Pravda Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Russian, Belgorod

A Russian military transport plane carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war, six crew and three people accompanying them crashed on Wednesday morning in Russia’s Belgorod region near Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry said. The authorities were investigating the cause of the crash, and a special military commission was on the way to the crash site, the Defense Ministry said. The Russian Defense Ministry said that air defenses shot down four Ukrainian drones over the Oryol region of western Russia early Wednesday. The German defense ministry announced Wednesday that it plans to send six SEA KING Mk41 multi-role helicopters from Bundeswehr stocks to Ukraine. Since the beginning of the war military deliveries from Germany have amounted to around 6 billion euros ($6.52 billion), including substantial anti-aircraft and air defense systems, the government said.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, ” Zelenskyy, Oleh Syniehubov, Yuri Parakhin, Vyacheslav Gladkov Organizations: Russia’s Defense Ministry, Defense Ministry, Twitter, Russian Defense Ministry, Oryol, Gov, SEA Locations: Russia’s Belgorod, Ukraine, Russian, Kyiv, Kharkiv, Russia, U.S, Washington, Moscow, Iran, North Korea, Oryol, Ukrainian, Belgorod, United States, Germany, russia, ukraine

☆ Russia has stopped exchanging POWs because it wants Ukrainian families to think their country is abandoning their loved ones, official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Thibault Spirlet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia has stopped prisoner of war swaps since August, a Ukrainian official said. It wants Ukrainian families to think their country has left loved ones behind, Dmytro Lubinets said. AdvertisementRussia has stopped exchanging prisoners of war with Ukraine because it wants Ukrainian families to think their country is not doing anything to bring their loved ones back home, an official said. The last swap was held on August 7, when 22 Ukrainian POWs were released, Yatsenko said. AdvertisementA dozen former Ukrainian POWs told the BBC in August that they were beaten, given electric shocks, and not given enough food while held in Russian captivity.

Persons: Dmytro Lubinets, —, Petro Yatsenko, Yatsenko, Lubinets Organizations: Service, Human Rights, Ukraine's, BBC, UN's, Human, Geneva Convention, Institute for Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Kyiv, Geneva

☆ Ukraine Welcomes Western Allies' Air Defence Coalition
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and his defence minister welcomed the formation by Ukraine's Western allies on Thursday of a 20-nation "coalition" to boost air defences, seen as a key element in the country's campaign against Russian forces. Zelenskiy said the group, one of several devoted to specific areas of Ukraine's defence, was formed at a virtual meeting of the "Ramstein group" examining Ukraine's military needs. "Not everything can be disclosed publicly at this time, but the Ukrainian air shield is becoming stronger every month." Defence Minister Rustem Umerov also noted other assistance agreed by participants, including a German air defence package announced this week during a visit to Kyiv by Defence Minister Boris Pistorius. Zelenskiy has long pointed to improved air defence as a key element to help keep Ukrainian cities safe from Russian air strikes - including on energy infrastructure - as wintry weather takes hold.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Rustem Umerov, Boris Pistorius, General Valery Zaluzhniy, Ron Popeski, Ludwig Berger, Stephen Coates Organizations: Reuters, Russian, Germany's Defence Ministry, " Defence Locations: Ramstein, Germany, France, Kyiv, Dutch, Russia

☆ Russia stockpiles 800 missiles in Crimea ahead of winter bombing campaign, says Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-18 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia has stockpiled 800 missiles in Crimea in preparation for its second winter campaign. It is feared the missiles are intended for strikes on critical Ukrainian civilian infrastructure. AdvertisementUkraine is bracing itself for an aerial onslaught this winter, with reports suggesting Russia has stockpiled 800 missiles in Crimea to strike at Ukrainian civilian infrastructure. Last winter, Russia adopted the same tactic it appears to be preparing for this year — targeting Ukrainian power and water infrastructure with missiles. As the war in Ukraine heads into its second winter, territorial movement could be limited in the months ahead.

Persons: —, Humenyuk, Jack Watling, Volodymyr Zelensky Organizations: Ukrainian Southern Military Command, Service, Kremlin, International Rescue Committee, NATO, of Energy Locations: Russia, Crimea, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Crimean, Kyiv

☆ Russian Spies Behind Cyberattack on Ukrainian Power Grid in 2022 - Researchers
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By James PearsonLONDON (Reuters) - Russian cyber spies were behind a hack which disrupted part of Ukraine's power grid in late 2022, U.S. cybersecurity firm Mandiant, part of Google, said in a report on Thursday, in a rare and advanced form of cyberwarfare. Last October, a massive wave of Russian missile strikes on Ukraine's power network caused blackouts in many parts of the country, prompting Kyiv to halt electricity exports and leaving four regions temporarily without electricity. Sandworm hackers rose to prominence in 2015 after a separate cyberattack against Ukraine’s power grid which cut off power for around 255,000 people. The disruptive, digital, intrusion was widely considered to be one of the first, known, successful cyberattacks against a power network. “There have only been a handful of incidents similar to this, with the majority carried out by Sandworm,” Mandiant analyst Nathan Brubaker said.

Persons: James Pearson, ”, Sandworm, Nathan Brubaker, Christopher Bing, Sharon Singleton Organizations: James Pearson LONDON, Google Locations: Russian, Russia, Ukraine, Kyiv, London, Washington

☆ Russia says a battalion made up of Ukrainian prisoners of war is about to be sent to fight against their own country
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ukrainian prisoners of war will soon be fighting against their own country, Russian state media says. The move could violate the Geneva Convention on Prisoners of War. AdvertisementAdvertisementRussia says a battalion of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) will soon be sent to the front lines, state media said in a report on how they will fight against their own country. On November 7, Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti said Ukrainian POWs in the "Bogdan Khmelnitsky" battalion swore an oath of allegiance to Russia and would soon deploy into battle. STRINGER/AFP via Getty ImagesThe details surrounding the coming deployment of Ukrainian POWs are murky.

Persons: —, Bogdan Khmelnitsky, Kaskad, ISW, STRINGER Organizations: Geneva Convention, Service, Novosti, Donetsk People's Republic, Institute, Russian University of Special Forces, Getty, RIA Novosti Locations: Russia, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Geneva, Azov, Chechen, Gudermes, Chechnya, Ukraine

Russia is sending Ukrainian prisoners of war to the front lines of their homeland to fight on Moscow's side in the war, the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported. The news agency said Tuesday the soldiers swore allegiance to Russia when they joined the battalion, which entered service last month. The Institute for the Study of War in Washington said there have been previous reports of Ukrainian POWs being asked to “volunteer” for the battalion. Earlier this year, Russian media reported about 70 Ukrainian POWs joined the battalion. Given the location of the unit, Hird said she expected the Ukrainian POWs would be deployed to the front lines in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

Persons: ”, Yulia Gorbunova, Nick Reynolds, Bogdan Khmelnitsky, Karolina Hird, ” Hird, Hird, Reynolds Organizations: RIA Novosti, Associated Press, Ukrainian, Russian Defense Ministry, AP, Human Rights Watch, Land Warfare, Royal United Services Institute Locations: Russia, Russian, Geneva, Ukraine, London, Washington, Moscow, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, russia, ukraine

☆ Fears Ukrainian POWs have been coerced to fight against their fellow citizens by Russia, says ISW
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-28 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia is training Ukrainian prisoners of war to fight on the front lines, Russian media reported. AdvertisementAdvertisementRussian authorities are planning to deploy a battalion of Ukrainian prisoners of war to the front lines, Russian media reported. The outlet described it as a volunteer battalion including about 70 prisoners from various penal colonies. A Russian battalion consists of two-to-four companies and has from 250 to 1,000 people. AdvertisementAdvertisement"Russian authorities have likely coerced Ukrainian prisoners of war into joining a 'volunteer' formation that will fight in Ukraine, said the Institute for the Study of War.

Persons: —, Bogdan Khmelnitsky, Andrii Tyshchenko, Tyshchenko, Andriy Yusov, HUR Organizations: Geneva Convention, Service, RIA Novosti, Russian, Institute for, Siberian Battalion, International Legion of, Armed Forces of, Defense, Main Intelligence Locations: Russia, Russian, Donetsk Oblast, Geneva, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Armed Forces of Ukraine, Kyiv

While Biden and most congressional leaders still support aid to Ukraine, and Biden's Democrats control the Senate, Zelenskiy faces a tougher crowd than when he visited Washington nine months ago. Zelenskiy told Senators that military aid was crucial to Ukraine's war effort, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in the Senate chamber after the briefing, which took place behind closed doors. "If we don't get the aid, we will lose the war," Schumer quoted Zelenskiy as saying. Biden will announce a new $325 million military aid package for Ukraine, which is expected to include the second tranche of cluster munitions fired by a 155 millimeter Howitzer cannon. About a third of the House Republican caucus voted in July for a failed proposal to cut funding for Ukraine.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Hakeem Jeffries, Kevin McCarthy, Zelenskiy, Joe Biden, Biden, Chris Murphy, Chuck Schumer, Schumer, Lloyd Austin, we're, Vladimir Putin, J.D, Vance, McConnell, Makini Brice, Phil Stewart, Patricia Zengerle, Andrea Shalal, Simon Lewis, Don Durfee, Heather Timmons, Alistair Bell Organizations: U.S . House, U.S, Capitol, United Nations, Pentagon, National Archives, Senate, Chamber, U.S . Defense, Washington, Biden, Republican, Management, Republicans, Democrats, Reuters, Ukraine, Thomson Locations: Washington, WASHINGTON, Russia, Ukraine, United States, Ukrainian, NATO, Kyiv

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