Press digest – Ukraine
38th day of heroic resistance of Ukraine against Russian military invasion
Every morning, starting March 17, a nationwide minute of silence has been declared throughout Ukraine at 9:00am Kyiv time.
“We will remember the Ukrainians who gave their lives, all the military, civilians and children” (c) President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy
DESTRUCTION AND LOSSES
📌 Photo of the day
In Bucha, liberated from the Russian occupiers, rescuers found the bodies of local victims of the shootings – their hands tied and their heads shot
📌 Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, 158 children have died and more than 254 have been injured. This is one death every six hours and one injured child every three hours. The data are not final, as they cannot be counted in places of active hostilities and the territories temporarily occupied by Russian troops, in particular in the city of Mariupol, in some areas of Kyiv, Chernihiv and Luhansk regions.
📌 Russian troops continue to blockade Chernihiv and launch artillery strikes on residential areas of the city and positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
📌 The Russian occupiers temporarily seized and maintained control of part of the city of Izyum and pontoon crossings across the Siversky Donets River.
📌 On April 1 and 2, Russian aircraft carried out airstrikes in the areas of Rubizhne, Bila Gora, Marinka, and Severodonetsk. The main efforts were focused on taking control of Popasna, Rubizhne and the occupation of the Hero City of Mariupol.
📌 On April 1, during an evening address, President Zelensky said that Russia was trying to recruit Crimean residents. This is a violation of international humanitarian law and a war crime.
📌 The Russian occupiers fired on the outskirts of Kryvyi Rih from Grady. Also, they tried to hit critical infrastructure in the Odesa region, but Ukrainian air defense forces worked successfully.
📌 On the night of April 2, Russian troops fired on two civilian infrastructure facilities in Poltava and attacked Kremenchuk’s industrial facilities. Rescuers are working at the sites of the shelling, information about the victims is being clarified.
📌 Russia has withdrawn about 20% of its units from Kyiv. However, despite statements by the Russian side following a round of Ukrainian-Russian negotiations in Istanbul, a significant part of Russian troops remains near the Ukrainian capital.
📌 According to the National Security and Defense Council and the President’s Office of Ukraine, Russia may use chemical weapons in Ukraine in the coming days.
📌 Russian troops continue to commit illegal acts and, in violation of international humanitarian law, kidnap locals from the temporarily occupied territories, shell residential areas, mine civilian infrastructure, shoot civilians, rape, rob and loot.
📌 There was a series of loud explosions in the temporarily occupied Energodar on April 2 at about 11.40 during a peaceful rally.
📌 On April 1, the body of documentary filmmaker and photographer Max Levin was found. The last time he got in touch was on March 13, when he went to Guta Mezhyhirska, where intensive hostilities began. There has been no contact with the journalist since then. Max worked in the editorial office of LB.ua, and collaborated with Reuters, BBC, TRT World, Associated Press, and Hromadske. His photos have been published in the Wall Street Journal, TIME etc.
One of the last photos taken by Max Levin during the war
📌 The number of victims of the missile strike of the Russian occupiers in the building of the Mykolayiv regional state administration increased to 36 people.
📌 869 educational institutions in Ukraine were damaged by bombing and shelling since the beginning of the war. 83 of them were completely destroyed. More than 80 institutions for children were also damaged – hospitals, music schools, sports and rehabilitation institutions, youth centers and libraries.
📌 On April 2, Russian missiles hit an infrastructure facility in Dnipro. The facility was severely damaged and 2 people were injured.
📌 Russian occupiers kidnapped Tavriya Mayor Mykola Rizak. Since the evening of April 1, there is no information about his whereabouts. The Russian military demands on Rizak are also unknown. In addition, in the Sumy region, the occupiers captured Oleksiy Shibayev, deputy head of the Novoslobidska territorial community of the Konotop district.
📌 Near Severodonetsk, Russians cut off the gas pipeline. Almost the entire Donetsk region was left without gas.
📌 Kharkiv maternity hospital has moved underground. More than 200 pregnant women remain in the city, which is under constant shelling and partial siege.
📌 Russian troops entered the Konotop district of the Sumy region from Russia. A so-called “corridor” has been formed, through which there is a constant movement of military equipment from the Kyiv and Chernihiv regions in the opposite direction to Russia. The occupiers opened chaotic fire on the people who appeared along with the movement of the columns.
📌 The Russian occupiers had taken hostage a mother, Mariana Vyshemirska from Mariupol, whose photo from the Russian-bombed Mariupol maternity hospital had flown around the world. Her relatives asked for permission to take the girl with the newborn child to the territory controlled by Ukraine, but this was not possible.
📌 In just 36 days of the war, the Russians abducted almost 40,000 civilians from Mariupol to Russia and the “DPR (Donetsk People’s Republic)”. Thousands of children were abducted. 17 of them are children who were treated in one of the city’s medical institutions, and their parents were evacuated to Zaporizhia. The mayor of the city Vadym Boychenko reported about it.
📌 On April 2, Russian troops launched a massive missile strike on the city of Myrhorod. The Ukrainian Armed Forces countered some cruise missiles, but the attack damaged the runway and infrastructure of the airfield.
📌 Russian troops launched a missile attack on an industrial facility near Shepetivka in the Khmelnytsky region around 5 p.m., there were no dead or injured — Head of the Regional Military Administration Sergiy Gamaliy.
📌 UNESCO: More than 50 cultural heritage sites in Ukraine have been affected by the Russian invasion. These include 29 religious sites, 16 historic buildings, 4 museums and 4 monuments. One of the worst-hit regions of Ukraine is Kharkiv, where Russian bombings have affected the Holocaust Memorial, the State Opera and Ballet Theater and the Art Museum.
📌 “Blitzkrieg” and the Crimean scenario in the Kherson region failed, so the Russians changed tactics: they are blocking the evacuation and humanitarian aid, kidnapping activists and trying to form a loyal attitude towards the occupiers.
📌 643 units of explosives were seized and neutralized in Irpin after the liberation from the Russian occupation forces as of April 2. The work continues.
RUSSIAN CONTEXT
⚠️ Moldova has decided to remain neutral and will not join the sanctions that Western partners have already imposed on Russia.
⚠️ From April 4 to May 23, Russia will hold a military meeting with reservists. In addition, units based in the Transnistrian region of Moldova are involved in carrying out provocations on the border with Ukraine.
⚠️ During the second half of March, Russian oil from the Black and Azov Seas was transported by 116 tankers owned by shipowners from 19 countries.
⚠️ “Biden is to blame for everything!” — the appeal of “Putin’s detachment” to the President of America.
⚠️ One of the Russian narratives explaining the invasion of Ukraine is that NATO has surrounded Russia. As of April 2, the common borders of Russia and NATO actually look like.
DEFENSE UPDATES
📌 Estimated losses of the Russian Federation Army in Ukraine:
📌 On April 1, officers of the Donetsk Military Administration, SES and the National Police of Ukraine evacuated 248 residents, including 40 children from the hottest spots in the region – Vuhledar, Avdiyivka, Ocheretyane, Novogrodivka.
📌 According to a court decision, 12 transport aircraft An-124-100 “Ruslan” of the Russian airline “Volga-Dnepr” were arrested in Ukraine due to the criminal proceedings opened at the request of the Ukrainian state enterprise “Antonov”.
📌 The entire Kyiv region has been liberated from the invaders, — said Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Anna Malyar.
📌 The flag of Ukraine was solemnly raised above the Chernobyl NPP and the anthem was sung. The entire team, which has worked heroically in the harsh conditions of the occupation since February 24 and provided nuclear and radiation safety at the station and nearby facilities, gathered for the ceremony.
CYBER-RESISTANCE
📌 On the night of the invasion, Russia wanted to destroy all of Ukraine’s cyber defense. According to the Security Service of Ukraine, since the beginning of the full-scale aggression by Russia, more than 120 powerful cyberattacks on the resources of state authorities and military administration of Ukraine have been promptly detected and neutralized.
HUMANITARIAN CORRIDORS AND EVACUATION UPDATES
📌 6,266 people were evacuated on April 1. 1,431 people moved to Zaporizhzhia on their own transport corridors, 771 of them were residents of Mariupol and 670 were residents of Zaporizhzhia region, including cities like Berdyansk and Melitopol.
📌 On April 1, 80 tons of humanitarian aid were delivered from the city of Zaporizhzhia to the city of Berdyansk. The transportation was carried out by 10 buses. They will also be able to evacuate Mariupol residents who do not have their own transport in the coming days if there is a humanitarian corridor for buses.
⚠️ As of 16:00 on April 2, the Russian military does not allow 2,000 civilians to move to Zaporizhzhia through the checkpoint for more than 24 hours. A convoy of cars is not allowed at the Russian checkpoint in Vasylivka.
📌 On April 2, 1263 people were evacuated by their own transport corridors from Mariupol and Berdyansk on their own transport to Zaporizhzhia. 765 people from Mariupol and 498 residents of cities of Zaporizhzhia region.
📌 On April 2, 2,650 people were evacuated in Luhansk Oblast.
President Volodymyr Zelensky’s daily statements
📌 The visit of the President of the European Parliament Roberta Mezzola is an important step in support of Ukraine and all its citizens. I am grateful that the European Parliament is on the side of light and kindness toward Ukraine. Ukrainians really appreciate it.
PUBLIC AND BUSINESS SUPPORT
📌 The London Metal Exchange has suspended the storage of several metals from Russia, including copper and aluminum.
📌 Danish manufacturer of thermal automation and refrigeration equipment Danfoss has announced that it is leaving the markets of Russia and Belarus.
📌 The international rating agency S&P Global Ratings has revoked the ratings of several Russian banks following the imposition of appropriate EU sanctions.
📌 Swatch Group suspends exports to Russia.
📌 All Wizz Air flights to and from Russia will be canceled at least until October 30.
📌 The International Association of Publishers and the Frankfurt Book Fair supported all the initiatives of the Ukrainian Publishers and Booksellers Association.
The list of suggested actions includes:
- the establishment of the Fund for Support of Ukrainian Publishers and Booksellers;
- acquisition of rights to publish works by Ukrainian authors;
- acquisition by foreign colleagues of ready-made books of Ukrainian publishers for libraries of the EU and the American continent, as well as their delivery to foreign book trade networks;
- assistance in placing orders for the printing of Ukrainian books in printing houses of EU countries.
📌Ukraine will have access to the European environmental programs LIFE and Copernicus.
📌 Event of the day
Polish President Andrzej Duda used a presidential plane to transport Ukrainian children with cancer to Rome
INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR UKRAINE
📌On April 1, the UN Human Rights Council adopted a resolution to counter misinformation. The document was initiated by Ukraine. The resolution condemns the use of hybrid operations and calls on states to fight disinformation more actively.
📌 During a visit to Kyiv, European Parliament President Roberta Mezzola said the EU would recognize Ukraine as a candidate for EU membership and help it rebuild after the war.
📌 French President Emmanuel Macron received Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov, who was in Russian captivity in the first weeks of the war, at the Elysee Palace.
📌 Latvian Foreign Minister Edgar Rinkevics believes that there is an urgent need to reform the UN Security Council, in which Russia, as a permanent member, plays a destructive role.
📌 The Netherlands has frozen almost 516 million euros in Russian assets.
📌 Germany has suspended information exchanges with Russian and Belarusian tax authorities.
📌 The Pope is considering a visit to Ukraine.
📌Italy is ready to act as a guarantor of Ukraine’s neutrality, Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Mayo says.
📌 The United States will provide $ 300 million in security assistance to Ukraine. This is the beginning of funding for the Pentagon’s Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) program to strengthen Ukraine’s defense capabilities.
📌 Lithuania was the first member of the European Union to completely abandon Russian gas imports.
📌 The Minister of Transport of the United Kingdom Grant Shapps announced the blocking of another plane that has ties to Russian oligarchs.
📌Italian police have confiscated a three million-euro yacht belonging to a Russian-sanctioned citizen in the port of Liguria.
📌 The Embassy of Ukraine in the United Kingdom purchased 30 armored ambulances with funds raised through the withukraine.org platform.
📌Germany will provide 49 million euros for the construction of housing for internally displaced people in Ukraine.
📌At the request of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the Japanese government has decided to hand over 5,000 blankets, 4,500 mats, and 8,500 mattresses to Ukrainians who fleed their homes due to Russian aggression.
📌 France has provided an opportunity for almost 7,000 Ukrainian children to continue their education in schools, colleges, and gymnasiums.
📌 Since the beginning of Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine, the Georgian government has provided 140 tons of humanitarian aid to Ukraine, which included medical equipment and supplies, and essentials.
📌 In Lithuania, the Wing Aid International Charitable Foundation provides humanitarian aid with food and medicine, totaling 56 tons.
✅ On March 26, Ukrainian refugees staged a major clean-up of a city park in Suwalki, Poland, in gratitude to Poles for their support and shelter.
✅ From April 1, several luxury brands, whose goods can be attributed to luxury items, refuse to sell Russians. Thus, according to Russian buyers, in Dubai and Paris, the Chanel and Chloe brands require buyers with Russian citizenship to sign a document stating that buyers do not live in Russia and will not wear the brand’s items in Russia.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba’s daily statements
📌 Ahead are even more blows to Russia’s economic, financial system and trade, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said after talks with Anthony Blinken on April 1.
📌 Dmytro Kuleba called on nine countries on NATO’s eastern flank to provide more weapons to Ukraine and increase sanctions on Russia.
📌 Dmytro Kuleba discussed with the Polish side the strengthening of Ukraine’s defense capabilities and further joint efforts to restore peace in Ukraine during a working visit to Warsaw.
📌 In cooperation with Vodafone, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine provided the opportunity for the forced removed Ukrainians to call free of charge to the numbers of Ukrainian embassies in Ukraine’s neighboring countries or countries of possible transit.
📌On April 2, during a meeting in Warsaw, Foreign Ministers of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba and Japan’s Yoshimasa Hayashi agreed on steps to increase sanctions on Russia.
📌 Tweet of the day
📌 The Latvian Seimas has banned the use of symbols used by Russia to denote military aggression and crimes against Ukraine.
📌 The Estonian government has approved a draft amendment to the Penitentiary Code, according to which the public display of criminal symbols of the Russian Federation will be classified as a crime.
📌 The Ministry of the Internal Affairs of the Czech Republic transfers medical goods of 230 thousand dollars.
📌 A charity auction was held in Prague, raising more than €1 million for the Armed Forces.
📌 Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calls for the exclusion of Russia from the G20.
📌Tweet of the day
We endured much more than the enemy expected. When you are on your land, everything helps you. The land itself, rivers, everyone. Even the one you didn’t expect before.