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☆ Power Grids Are Obvious Military Targets. There’s a Way to Deter That. - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-15 | by ( Peter Fairley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In late March, after two years of withering attacks on Ukraine, Russia knocked out half of Ukraine’s power supply. Up to that point, Russia’s missiles and kamikaze drones had mostly targeted the Ukrainian substations that push electricity from power plants to consumers. But the global community must now draw bright lines for combatants in future conflicts — and strengthen the hand of future prosecutors — by codifying specific protections for power grids. The international community already attempts to do that for select infrastructure, including hospitals, dams and nuclear power plants, via the Geneva Conventions. It’s time to add power grids to that privileged roster.

Persons: grinds, Viktor Nikolayevich Sokolov, Sergei Ivanovich Kobylash, — Organizations: Criminal Locations: Ukraine, Russia, The Hague, Russian, Geneva

☆ Ukraine’s attacks on Russian oil refineries shows the growing threat AI drones pose to energy markets
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-14 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Ukraine's campaign of attacks against Russian oil refineries is demonstrating how relatively cheap drones that utilize artificial intelligence could pose a major threat to global energy markets. Ukraine-launched drones have hit 18 Russian oil refineries this year with a combined capacity of 3.9 million barrels per day, according to report published by JPMorgan earlier this month. Some 670,000 bpd of Russian refining capacity is currently offline due to the strikes, according to the bank. "Certainly, those attacks could have a knock-on effect in terms of the global energy situation," Austin told the Senate Armed Services Committee. The deployment of AI drones also has broader implications for global energy markets, according to Bob Brackett, a senior research analyst at Bernstein.

Persons: Natasha Kaneva, Lloyd Austin, Biden, Austin, we've, John Kilduff, Bob Brackett, Bernstein, Brackett Organizations: Reuters, JPMorgan, Kyiv, . Defense, Senate Armed Services Committee, Financial, Again Locations: Ukraine, Ryazan, Ryazan Region, Russia, Taneco, Kyiv, Moscow, Russian, China, India

“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

☆ In Ukraine’s West, Draft Dodgers Run, and Swim, to Avoid the War
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | Nicole Tung | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The roiling water can be treacherous, the banks are steep and slick with mud, and the riverbed is covered in jagged, hidden boulders. Yet Ukrainian border guards often find their quarry — men seeking to escape the military draft — swimming in these hazardous conditions, trying to cross the Tysa River where it forms the border with Romania. Lt. Vladyslav Tonkoshtan recently detained a man on the bank, where he was preparing to cross the river in the hope of reuniting with his wife and children, whom he had not seen in two years since they fled to another country in Europe. That thousands of Ukrainian men have chosen to risk the swim rather than face the dangers as soldiers on the eastern front highlights the challenge for President Volodymyr Zelensky as he seeks to mobilize new troops after more than two years of bruising, bloody trench warfare with Russia.

Persons: Vladyslav Tonkoshtan, Volodymyr Zelensky Locations: Romania, Europe, Russia

☆ China is giving Russia significant support to expand weapons manufacturing as Ukraine war continues, US officials say
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( Kylie Atwood | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Chinese and Russian entitles have also been working jointly to produce drones inside of Russia, one of the officials said. And Russia’s rapidly expanding production of artillery rounds is due, in large part, to the nitrocellulose coming from China, officials said. The support from China is compensating for the significant setbacks that Russia’s defense industry experienced early in the Ukraine war due to US sanctions and export controls. The US has not seen any interruption to the ongoing Chinese support since that Biden-Xi phone call, though sometimes it takes time to see changes come to fruition. Earlier this month Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen delivered China a warning of “significant consequences” if Chinese companies provide support to Russia for the Ukraine war during her trip to the country.

Persons: ”, Chris Cavoli, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Antony Blinken, Biden, Xi, Vladimir Putin, Janet Yellen, Katie Bo Lillis Organizations: CNN, Ukraine, Biden, People’s, European Command, Russia Locations: China, Russia, Moscow, Ukraine, Kyiv, “, People’s Republic of China, reconstituting, Europe

☆ Opinion | J.D. Vance: The Math on Ukraine Doesn’t Add Up
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( J. D. Vance | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ukraine needs more soldiers than it can field, even with draconian conscription policies. The Biden administration has applied increasing pressure on Republicans to pass a supplemental aid package of more than $60 billion to Ukraine. Mr. Biden suggests that a $60 billion supplemental means the difference between victory and defeat in a major war between Russia and Ukraine. $60 billion is a fraction of what it would take to turn the tide in Ukraine’s favor. Fundamentally, we lack the capacity to manufacture the amount of weapons Ukraine needs us to supply to win the war.

Persons: Biden Organizations: Republicans, Senate Locations: Ukraine, United States, Russia

☆ Eastern Europeans buy up property in the West as Putin steps up ‘war on nerves’
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

But several realtors told CNN that their clients are now citing another reason: Russia’s war in Ukraine, and the fear that the conflict could spread. A record-breaking number of Poles bought property in Spain in 2023, topping the previous record set the year before, according to Polish outlet Bizblog. Lopez said a client last month bought a property because they wanted to avoid being conscripted into the Polish military. “The trigger, really, was the war in Ukraine.”But most buy just for peace of mind – a back-up plan, for those wealthy enough to afford one. “Obviously, we are in NATO, but I must say there’s a big amount of people who are really, really afraid,” she said.

Persons: Agnes Marciniak, She’s, “, ”, Kostrzewa, Volodomyr Zelensky, Ukraine “, Donald Trump, Donald Tusk, –, Maria Ruiz Lopez, Lopez, Wieslaw, John Keeble, Liivia Illak, she’s, ” Illak, Alexey Navalny, Putin, they’ve Organizations: CNN, realtors, United States, NATO, Getty Locations: Baltic, Ukraine, Russia, Europe, Spain, Warsaw, Poland, Andalucia, Malaga, Belarus, Estonia, Lithuania, Russian

400,000 Men at each age 200,000 Age: 15 25 35 45 55 65 75 85 95Can Ukraine Find New Soldiers Without Decimating a Whole Generation? Healthy men under age 30, the backbone of most militaries, are part of the smallest generation in Ukraine’s modern history. Mr. Zelensky’s decision to draft men starting at age 25 risks further diminishing this small generation of Ukrainians. But the lower draft age risks shrinking a small generation even more. And in occupied areas of the country Russia is conscripting Ukrainian men to fight against Ukraine, starting at age 18.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, birthrates, thein, —, Oleksandr Gladun, it’s, ”, Serhiy Hrabsky, Gladun, “ Organizations: Boys, United Nations, Ptukha, Social Studies, European Union, Eurostat, Ukraine Locations: Ukraine, United States, Soviet Union, Russia, Europe

☆ Dan Coats: Why Aid for Ukraine’s Fight Against Russia Matters - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-11 | by ( Dan Coats | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Since Russia’s first invasion of Ukraine in 2014, a rare consensus has formed in Washington around this conviction: America must provide military support to Ukraine’s resistance. Three administrations and large majorities of both parties in Congress have consistently held that President Vladimir Putin’s aggression cannot be tolerated. The choices facing America are always based on the same foundation: what best serves our nation. Those interests are inextricably linked to the strength of our global alliances and the international system of law and cooperation in which American democracy survives and prospers. And the strength of those networks, in turn, depends on our role as a trusted ally and friend, on our credibility and — frankly — on our virtue.

Persons: Vladimir Putin’s Locations: Ukraine, Washington, America

CNN —Ukraine’s parliament has scrapped plans to give soldiers who have spent prolonged periods fighting on the frontlines the chance to return home on rotation, after passing a draft law seeking to boost the number of soldiers in its military. The draft law passed Thursday with 283 votes in favor, including a raft of measures aimed at providing a desperately needed boost for Ukraine’s military. Dozens of wives and relatives of servicemen gathered outside Ukraine’s parliament Thursday to protest the passing of the draft law, demanding that demobilization deadlines be included. Libkos/Getty ImagesThe issue of mobilization has bedeviled Ukrainian lawmakers for months, as the needs of its military clash with political constraints. It is not clear when the draft law passed Thursday will receive presidential approval.

Persons: CNN —, Rustem Umerov, Oleksandr Syrskyi, Chris Cavoli, Anastasia Bulba, Vitalii, ”, “, Young, Libkos, Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine “, ” Zaluzhnyi, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky Organizations: CNN, Defense, European Command Locations: Ukraine, Kharkiv, Odesa, Lviv, Zaporizhzhia, Kyiv, Ukraine’s, Russia

CNN —The largest power-generating plant in Ukraine’s Kyiv region was reportedly destroyed in a Russian missile attack on Thursday as Moscow steps up its attacks on infrastructure. There were no casualties, and the attack has not resulted in power cuts in Ukraine’s capital region Kyiv or other regions supplied by Trypilska TPP. The plant was the largest supplier of electricity to the regions of Kyiv, Cherkasy and Zhytomyr, the Centrenergo statement said. The attack on the Trypilska plant follows a recent Russian attack that destroyed the company’s plant in the Kharkiv region, Zmiivska TPP, on March 22, according to the Centrenergo statement. The total designed capacity of the three power plants was 7690 MW, according to the company’s website.

Persons: Centrenergo, Trypilska TPP, since, TPP, Andriy Gota, Svitlana Vlasova, Caitlin Danaher Organizations: CNN, Supervisory, of Centrenergo Locations: Ukraine’s Kyiv, Russian, Moscow, Ukraine’s, Kyiv, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Russia, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Europe, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Andriy, London

☆ Ukraine’s Parliament Passes a Politically Fraught Mobilization Bill
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-11 | by ( Marc Santora | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After months of political wrangling, Ukrainian lawmakers on Thursday passed a mobilization law aimed at replenishing the nation’s exhausted and depleted fighting forces, which are struggling to hold back relentless Russian assaults that are expected to intensify in coming months. Yulia Paliychuk, a spokeswoman for the party of President Volodymyr Zelensky, confirmed that the law had been adopted by Parliament. The urgent need for fresh troops has been evident since last fall, but Mr. Zelensky has been exceedingly cautious in dealing with the politically fraught topic, which has the potential to undermine the social cohesion that has played a critical role in Ukraine’s ability to wage war against a far larger and better-armed enemy. Mr. Zelensky had urged lawmakers to act this week and is widely expected to sign the new legislation soon. However, the last time the Parliament passed controversial legislation related to mobilization — lowering the draft eligibility age to 25 from 27 last May — Mr. Zelensky waited nearly a year before signing it into law this month.

Persons: Yulia Paliychuk, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, Mr

Ukraine desperately needs to replenish its depleted forces in the face of relentless Russian attacks. So it has lowered the draft age from 27 to 25. That means that more young people will have to leave their jobs to join the army. And face an almost certain future of violence and tragedy.

Locations: Ukraine

☆ Trump is recreating his web of chaos at home and abroad in a preview of what a second term could look like
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

CNN —Some top Democrats worry that Americans have forgotten the chaos that raged every day Donald Trump was president, and that voters’ faded recall of the uproar will end up handing him a second term. Trump ally Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is threatening to topple Johnson if he dares to pass it. — Nationwide chaos is, meanwhile, spreading in the wake of the Trump-built Supreme Court conservative majority overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022. — Bipartisan efforts to solve a border crisis are in tatters after Trump’s House followers in February killed the most sweeping and conservative bill in years. Yet Trump has vowed to end the war in 24 hours if he wins a second term.

Persons: Donald Trump, ’, Trump, Mike Johnson, Ukraine –, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Johnson, Roe, Wade, Trump’s, Joe Biden, —, Johnson –, Lago Trump, bucked Johnson, Bill Barr, CNN’s Annie Grayer, ” Barr, ”, Barr, “ We’re, Greene, “, ” Greene, CNN’s Manu Raju, We’re, laud, Ronald Reagan’s, Vladimir Putin’s, Volodymyr Zelensky, don’t, CNN’s Frederik Pleitgen, Putin, Christopher Cavoli, ” Cavoli, Biden, majority’s handiwork, he’d, didn’t, –, he’s Organizations: CNN, GOP, Republican, Trump, Washington, Trump -, Mar, Foreign Intelligence, FBI, FISA, Kremlin, Ukraine, European Command, House Armed Services Committee, Arizona Locations: Ukraine, Arizona, tatters, America, Washington, Russia, Georgia, Florida, Russian, Mar, Alabama

☆ Zelensky says he will listen to Trump’s ideas to end war ‘with pleasure’
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Sophie Tanno | Lauren Said-Moorhouse | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he would listen to former US President Donald Trump’s ideas to end the war in Ukraine with “pleasure” but trod carefully around the issue during an interview at the Delphi Economic Forum in Greece. I haven’t heard that directly from Trump,” Zelensky told CNN’s Senior Correspondent Fred Pleitgen via video link from Ukraine. Ukrainian President Zelensky is pictured speaking from Ukraine during an interview with CNN’s Fred Pleitgen, who is at the Delphi Economic Forum in Greece. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky inspects new fortifications for Ukrainian servicemen near the Russian border in the Kharkiv region on Tuesday. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout/Reuters“I’d like to underscore that no Western weapons were used to attack in such a way.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Donald Trump’s, ” Zelensky, CNN’s, Fred Pleitgen, “, Zelensky, Trump, Ukraine “, ”, The Trump, “ There’s, he’s, CNN’s Fred Pleitgen, Pleitgen, Vladimir Putin’s, Putin’s, Reuters “, Oleksandr Prokudin, Ukrenergo Organizations: CNN, Delphi, Republican, German, Wednesday, Trump, Russia, West, Presidential Press Service, Reuters, Ukraine’s Defense Forces of Locations: Ukraine, Greece, Ukrainian, Russia, Trump, Delphi, Zelensky, “, Kharkiv, Western, Russian, Odesa, Mykolayiv, Kherson, Mykolaiv

☆ Without More Aid, Ukraine Could Lose the War, U.S. General Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Eric Schmitt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The top American military commander in Europe warned on Wednesday that Ukraine could lose the war with Russia if the United States did not send more ammunition to Ukrainian forces, and fast. General Cavoli, who is also NATO’s top military commander, said Ukraine’s allies had provided much of the equipment and arms that Kyiv needed to combat the larger Russian military, including all donated fuel and 90 percent of its tanks. But the United States gives Ukraine most of the two critical munitions that are in shortest supply: artillery shells and air-defense interceptors. “If we do not continue to support Ukraine, Ukraine will run out of artillery shells and will run out of air defense interceptors in fairly short order,” General Cavoli said. “Based on my experience in 37-plus years in the U.S. military, if one side can shoot and the other side can’t shoot back, the side that can’t shoot back loses.”

Persons: Gen, Christopher G, General Cavoli, Ukraine’s, Cavoli, ” Organizations: Command, House Armed Services Committee, U.S . Locations: Europe, Ukraine, Russia, United States, U.S

Editor’s Note: In this appeal to Congress, more than 35 artists, activists, scholars and others call for funding for Ukraine. On territory that Russia occupies, it tortures Ukrainian citizens, kidnaps Ukrainian children and murders Ukrainian leaders. By fighting Russia alone, they protect Europe. By fighting a conventional war against a nuclear power, they are making nuclear proliferation and nuclear war less likely. Together we call upon Congress to do the right thing – right now.

Persons: Read, Stringer, Abrams, José Andrés, Gabrielle Carteris, Mona Charen, Misha Collins, Rosario Dawson, Felicia Day, Doug Fears, Jonathan Safran Foer, Francis Fukuyama, Mark Hamill, Gale Anne Hurd, Dara Khosrowshahi, William Kristol, Eric Edelman, Scott Kelly, Daniel Lubetzky, Michael McFaul, Kate McKinnon, Alyssa Milano, Viggo Mortensen, Patton Oswalt, Phillips O’Brien, Brad Paisley, Sean Penn, Serhii Plokhii, Ivanna Sakhno, Eric Schmidt, Liev Schreiber, Timothy Snyder, Terrell Jermaine Starr, Barbra Streisand, Hilary Swank, Peter Wehner, Katheryn Winnick Organizations: Ukraine, CNN, Getty Locations: Russia, Russian, Crimean Tatars, Ukrainian, Kharkiv, Mariupol, Aleppo, Grozny, Europe, Donetsk, Ukraine, AFP, China, Beijing, Asia, East, Africa, United States

☆ A Drone Strike in Odesa Shatters a Family’s Life
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Constant Méheut | Oksana Parafeniuk | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In the photograph, Anna Haidarzhy and her 4-month-old son, Tymofii, are barely visible under the bloodstained blanket. Just two arms, one from the mother, 31, one from her son, can be seen sticking out of the blanket. “It looked like they were saying goodbye,” one of the rescuers, Serhii Mudrenko, said of the image. Throughout the search, Serhii Haidarzhy, 32, Anna’s husband and Tymofii’s father, had stayed with the rescuers as they combed the debris. “I was hoping that Anichka would survive under the rubble,” Mr. Haidarzhy said, using her nickname.

Persons: Anna Haidarzhy, Tymofii, Serhii Mudrenko, Serhii Haidarzhy, Anna’s, Tymofii’s, Lizi, Mr, Haidarzhy Locations: Ukrainian, Odesa, Ukraine

☆ Ukraine ‘will lose the war’ if US aid not approved, says Zelensky
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Christian Edwards | Maria Kostenko | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Ukraine “will lose the war” if the United States Congress does not approve military aid to help it resist Russia’s invasion, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. “It’s important to specifically address the Congress: if the Congress doesn’t help Ukraine, Ukraine will lose the war,” Zelensky said Sunday during a video meeting of the Ukrainian fund-raising group UNITED24. “If Ukraine loses this war, other countries will be attacked. Zelensky previously told CNN that “millions” could die in Ukraine’s war with Russia if US lawmakers do not approve the aid package. There’s certain weapons systems, certain logistical support which the European countries simply cannot provide to Ukraine” such as air defense systems, he said.

Persons: Ukraine “, Volodymyr Zelensky, “, ” Zelensky, ”, Mike Johnson, Zelensky, Ukraine’s, Russia –, –, Anton Shtuka, Franz, Stefan Gady, Gady, UNITED24 ’ Organizations: CNN, United States Congress, Senate, Getty, International Institute for Strategic Studies Locations: Ukraine, “, Kyiv, Russia, Israel, Moscow, Avdiivka, Kharkiv, AFP, ”, Washington, Ukrainian

☆ British Foreign Secretary David Cameron meeting with Trump on Monday night
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Kaitlan Collins | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —British Foreign Secretary David Cameron will meet with Donald Trump at the former president’s Mar-a-Lago club on Monday night, two people familiar with the visit told CNN. “The Foreign Secretary is on his way to Washington DC, where he will hold discussions with US Secretary of State Blinken, other Biden administration figures and members of Congress. “Ahead of his visit to Washington, the Foreign Secretary will meet former President Trump in Florida today. The foreign secretary of one of America’s closest allies, Cameron served as prime minister from 2010 to 2016, stepping down before Trump assumed the presidency the following year. Trump and Cameron have both in recent days criticized Israel’s handling of its war in Gaza.

Persons: David Cameron, Donald Trump, Antony Blinken, Biden, Trump, ” Cameron, America, Ukraine’s, Mike Johnson, America’s, Cameron, “, Israel “, Israel, CNN’s Jack Forrest, Kate Sullivan, Rob Picheta Organizations: CNN, British, Washington DC, State, Western, Russia, Trump, Conservative Party, Labour, Sunday Times, Israel, Gaza Ministry, Health Locations: South Florida, Washington, Ukraine, Florida, languish, Gaza, Israel

“This is a clear violation of the basic principles for protecting Europe’s largest (nuclear power plant). No nuclear power plant in the world is designed to withstand full-fledged fire from the armed forces. Damage to infrastructure facilities may affect the safe operation of the NPP,” the statement added, using an acronym for the nuclear power plant. Petro Kotin, head of Ukraine’s nuclear power operator Energoatom, said they were initially forced to work at “gunpoint” by invading Russian troops. Grossi points on a map of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, March 2022 Joe Klamar/AFP/Getty Images/FileBut fighting continued to rage around the plant in the summer of 2022, to the grave alarm of the IAEA.

Persons: Rafael Grossi, ” Grossi, Dmitry Peskov, Andriy Yusov, ” Yusov, “, Petro Kotin, Joe Klamar, Grossi, Volodomyr Zelensky Organizations: CNN, United Nations, International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Europe’s, Zaporizhzhia NPP, NPP, Defense Intelligence, Ukrainska Pravda, Ukrayinska Pravda, Ukrainian Armed Forces, Russian, Getty, Kremlin Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Russia, ”, Ukrainian, Europe, Zaporizhzhia, AFP, Nova, ZNPP

☆ Russia Pounds Kharkiv in Deadly Barrage, Straining Ukraine’s Defenses
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-06 | by ( Marc Santora | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Russian rockets slammed into residential buildings in Kharkiv before dawn on Saturday, Ukrainian officials said, killing at least six people and injuring at least 11 more in the latest assault on Ukraine’s second-largest city. “Russian terror against Kharkiv continues,” President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said in a statement. “It’s crucial to strengthen the air defense for the Kharkiv region. And our partners can help us with this.”Ukraine’s air defenses have come increasingly under strain since American military support stopped flowing into the country more than six months ago, and future assistance remains uncertain amid Republican resistance in Congress to a $60 billion aid package. Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana, has hinted that he would soon bring the issue of military aid for Ukraine to a vote in the House, but has also said that he might tie the issue to unrelated matters like domestic energy policies that could complicate its passage.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, “, Mike Johnson Organizations: Republican Locations: Kharkiv, Ukraine, Louisiana

☆ As Russia tests for weak spots, Ukraine is banking on enemy mistakes
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-06 | by ( Tim Lister | Victoria Butenko | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —It generated little attention: another Russian assault in eastern Ukraine, across barren, pock-marked fields, met by determined, nimble resistance. But these frequent mechanized ground attacks by the Russians are like sand-blasting – eroding Ukrainian defenses in multiple spots along the frontlines. Yusov told CNN that recruitment in Russia continues, for contract soldiers, prisoners and international mercenaries. The Ukrainians won’t acknowledge such attacks but Yusov told CNN cryptically that refineries are military targets and “damage there is quite natural. Matthew Schmidt told CNN: “Whatever NATO can get to Ukraine is enough to stabilize its position, not to change it meaningfully.

Persons: Kateryna Stepanenko, Russia’s, ”, Narciso Contreras, Andriy Yusov, Kurt Campbell, Yusov, Matthew Schmidt, Oleksandr Syrsky, Ukraine “, –, Nazar Volosyn, “, Roman Pilipey, Putin, Jens Stoltenberg, Trump, what’s, Dmytro Kuleba, ” Kuleba, Andriі Kovalenko, Petr Pavel, Stepanenko, ” Stepanenko Organizations: CNN, Institute for, Russian, Anadolu, Getty, “, Ukrainian Defense Intelligence, UK’s Defense Ministry, National Security Department, New Haven University, NATO, Ukrainian, Congress, National Security and Defense Council, European Union Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Tonenke, Donetsk, Washington, Karlivka, Russia, North Korea, Ukrainian, Chasiv Yar, Kyiv, AFP, Rostov, Czech, Europe

☆ Dwindling Ammunition Stocks Pose Grave Threat to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The crew at an artillery position in eastern Ukraine had 33 shells in its ammunition bunker, stacked neatly like firewood against a wall. Twenty minutes later, smoke wafted around a howitzer and 17 shells were gone — more than half the crew’s ammunition. The rapidly depleted stack was emblematic of Ukraine’s dwindling supply of artillery munitions, even as Russian attacks persist. “Artillery decides battles,” said Capt. Vladyslav Slominsky, the artillery commander along this section of the front.

Persons: ”, Vladyslav Slominsky, Mike Johnson Organizations: “ Artillery, ”, U.S . Congress, Republicans Locations: Ukraine, Russia

☆ Western officials warn munition shortages could be catastrophic for Ukraine as US stalls on providing more aid
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Natasha Bertrand | Katie Bo Lillis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The Ukrainian military is “experiencing shortages in air defense munitions, mostly in the medium to long range,” a NATO official said on Wednesday. Last fall, the administration asked Congress for more than $60 billion in additional funds to help support Ukraine, but more than 6 months later the funding has not passed amid opposition from Republican lawmakers. And the separate shortages of artillery ammunition could be “potentially catastrophic” for Ukraine in the short term, the official added. The NATO official said that as of now, Russia appears to lack the necessary maneuver units to mount such a large-scale, successful attack. That is why they believe it is critical for the west to continue to support Ukraine through this period of attrition.

Persons: “ It’s, Jens Stoltenberg, ”, Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s, Olha Stefanishyna, Stoltenberg, Donald Trump, ” Stoltenberg, Kylie Atwood Organizations: CNN, NATO, Patriots, Republican, ” Energy, “, Pentagon, Ukraine Contact Defense, Ukraine Locations: Russia, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Kyiv, Brussels, Avdiivka, Russian, Belarus

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