Press digest – Ukraine

52th day of heroic resistance of Ukraine against Russian military invasion

 #BRAVEUKRAINE 

Bravery is Ukraine’s newest export. We tell the world: Be Brave like Ukraine 🇺🇦💪

https://brave.ua/en.html 

 

📌 Photo of the day

The top of the Empire State Building in New York will be illuminated in blue and yellow for 15 minutes after sunset until early summer

DESTRUCTION AND LOSSES

📌New evidence of the chemical weapons’ usage by the Russian army. After the Russian military’s stay in the Sumy region in the village of Bilka, the remains of chemical weapons were found – sarin and other substances.

📌Since February 24, 2022, 560 children have been affected in Ukraine as a result of full-scale armed aggression by the Russian Federation. 200 children were killed and more than 360 were injured.

📌On the outskirts of the Novovorontsyvka village in the Kherson region, a 15-year-old boy was injured, as a result of the detonation of a cluster missile.

📌 Russian troops fired on a district of Kharkiv. As a result of the shelling, 5 children were injured, two of them died, including a 7-month-old baby. 10 people were killed and 35 were injured.

📌On the outskirts of the Novovorontsyvka village in the Kherson region, a 15-year-old boy was injured, as a result of the detonation of a cluster missile.

📌 Russian troops fired on a district of Kharkiv. As a result of the shelling, 5 children were injured, two of them died, including a 7-month-old baby. 10 people were killed and 35 were injured.

📌In Irpen near Kyiv, more than 1,000 buildings are damaged: 115 are completely destroyed, 698 are significantly damaged, 187 are partially damaged. This is 71% of the city.

📌The main efforts of the enemy are concentrated on regrouping and strengthening the troops, continuing the partial blockade of the city of Kharkiv and shelling it with artillery.  The enemy has concentrated up to 22 battalion tactical groups near  the town of Izyum.

📌In the morning, Kyiv was shelled. The explosions took place in Darnytskiy district on the outskirts of the city. At least one person was killed and a few more were injured.

📌In the Severodonetsk direction, the enemy increased the intensity of the fire impact to inflict losses, exhaust our troops and possibly prepare for offensive operations.

📌In the waters of the Sea of Azov, the enemy’s naval group continues to carry out tasks to block the port of Mariupol and provide fire support in the coastal direction.

📌Taking into consideration the presence of Russian warships armed with Caliber sea-based cruise missiles in the Black Sea, the level of threat of the missile weapons used by the invaders at the objects of the military-industrial complex and the logistics infrastructure of Ukraine remains increased.

📌Explosions rocked the Poltava region last night. According to the RMA (regional military administration) head, Dmytro Lunin, one person was killed and another was injured as a result of the bombing. Some buildings were also destroyed.

📌As a result of night shelling in Luhansk region, one person died and three were rescued by the medics. According to the head of Luhansk RMA Serhiy Haidai, Russians fired on Severodonetsk, Lysychansk, and Kreminna. The central gas pipeline in Severodonetsk has been cut off, there is no water or gas supply in the city.

📌Russian authorities have announced that they have started deporting Ukrainians from Izyum, Kharkiv Oblast, to the territory of the Russian Federation — about 100 people have already been deported to the Belgorod region.

📌In the morning, air defense forces worked in Lviv, the head of the Lviv RMA Maksym Kozytskiy reported.

📌An oil refinery in Lysychansk caught fire from the shelling of the Russians, according to the Head of the Luhansk Regional Military Administration Serhiy Haidai. This is not the first shelling of this plant. The Russians target it systematically to deplete the SES. There is no fuel there. The remains of oil sludge are burning. At the same time, the Russians continue to fire at the residential areas of Lysychansk.

📌The invaders are preparing to close Mariupol to entry and exit on April 18 and to prohibit movement in the districts to filter all men — they want to mobilize some of them.

📌At least 824 new graves have been excavated on the outskirts of Russian-occupied Kherson from February 28 to April 15, according to satellite images published in The Washington Post. The data show that the Russians are going to hide the mass crimes in the Kherson region. Cases of hundreds of tortured activists, raped women and executed families are already known.

📌Russian troops destroyed the homes of almost 220,000 Ukrainians. The number of destroyed houses is over 37,000.

📌Since February 24 this year, 21 journalists have died in the Russian military attack – the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Freedom of Speech and Information Policy.

📌“About 700 Ukrainian servicemen and more than a thousand civilians are currently in Russian captivity,” — Iryna Vereshchuk said. According to her, the Ukrainian side also has about 700 Russian prisoners of war.

📌Ombudswoman Liudmyla Denisova: The occupiers are preparing to set up a referendum in Kherson approximately from May 1 to May 10. During this period, they will close entry and exit from the area. According to eyewitnesses, ballot papers are being printed at the Nova Kakhovka printing house.

📌Occupation authorities of the LDNR (Luhansk and Donetsk unrecognized republics) are mobilizing children who took part in the so-called “patriotic clubs”. The occupiers are mobilizing underage members of these clubs at the age 16+. Some of them are already dead. This is a gross violation of the law on child protection.

📌Russians launched a rocket attack on one of the central districts of Kharkiv, killing one person and injuring at least 18 others.

 

RUSSIAN CONTEXT

⚠️Russia has declared 18 representatives of the European Union to be personae non grata.

⚠️A pro-Russian demonstration took place in Belgrade, Serbia: thousands of Serbs protested against the government’s attempts to distance itself from Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine. Protesters were chanting: “No to NATO”, “Serbs and Russians are brothers”.

⚠️Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Foreign Office chief Liz Truss, Defense Secretary Ben Wallace and ten other members of the UK government and politicians have been barred from entering Russia. According to the reports of Reuters citing the statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

⚠️Russia plans to launch a new deepfake with President Volodymyr Zelensky. In a fictitious statement, the president will allegedly express “his negative attitude towards Ukrainian cities, in particular to Mariupol,” according to the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security.

⚠️Russia sent a diplomatic note to the Czech Republic, in which it warned that Prague cannot supply former Soviet weapons to third parties without the consent of Moscow. Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipovsky said that they would not react in any way and said that “this is nonsense, there is no clause for these funds prohibiting re-export”.

⚠️“Putin believes he is winning the war,” Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer was quoted by The Guardian. Nehammer visited Moscow on April 11. He became the first European politician to have a face-to-face meeting with Putin.

 

DEFENSE UPDATES

📌 Estimated losses of the Russian Federation Army in Ukraine:

📌918 settlements in Ukraine have already been liberated, — Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

📌240 kilometers of roads have already been cleared in Ukraine — State Agency of Automobile Roads of Ukraine (Ukravtodor).

📌“Mriya” (engl. — “Dream”) will live. The world’s leading companies will be involved in the restoration of the aircraft. The destruction of the legendary, unique An-225 aircraft by the Rashists was a heavy blow not only for the “Antoniv” enterprise, but for the entire world community.

📌The first modular houses arrived in Borodyanka. Kyrylo Tymoshenko, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, said that the employees of the State Emergency Service and volunteers involved in the reconstruction of the village, will live in the 15 newly installed houses.

 

HUMANITARIAN CORRIDORS AND EVACUATION UPDATES

📌The Russian military disrupted the evacuation from Lysychansk. During the ceasefire, they opened fire on the city center, according to the Head of the Regional Military Administration Serhiy Haidai.

📌On April 16, 1,449 people were evacuated through humanitarian corridors. Several corridors (particularly in Lysychansk) didn’t work out because of the Russian army who shot people.

 

President Volodymyr Zelensky’s daily statements 

🇺🇦 Between 2,000 and 3,000 Ukrainian servicemen have died in the war since February 24, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told CNN. Another 10,000 Ukrainian servicemen were wounded, and it is “difficult to say how many of them will survive.”

🇺🇦 President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson. “We discussed Ukraine’s defense support and the strengthening of anti-Russian sanctions. I am thankful for the support of Ukraine’s accession to the EU, “ – Zelensky wrote.

 

PUBLIC AND BUSINESS SUPPORT

🇺🇦 Today we tell the world: be brave like Ukraine

More than 1,000 Brave Ukraine billboards have been installed on the streets of 15 countries: Canada, Poland, Germany, Italy, Austria, Great Britain, Spain, USA and others. 

🤝 Support Ukraine — join the social campaign! 

Videos, poster layouts and stickers can also be found on the Brave website (https://brave.ua/en.html) — and then printed out or shared on social media. 

📌Canadian rock band Arcade Fire, who recently raised $100k for Ukraine, had a surprise appearance at Coachella festival. During the set, Arcade Fire performed a song called “The Suburbs” and dedicated it to the people of Ukraine.

📌A charity dinner in support of Ukraine was held at Jamie Oliver’s restaurant in London. Among the dishes there were borsch in mushroom broth with garlic donuts, cabbage rolls, and slow-cooked pork. For dessert – dumplings with berries and halva from sunflower seeds.

📌A large yellow and blue sign “Glory to Ukraine” was set on the sidewalk in front of the Russian Embassy in Poland.

📌Hollywood actress with Ukrainian roots Vera Farmiga called on the world to help Ukraine with the supply of heavy weapons: “Stop the war! Post your photo with the ArmUkraineNow sign. Ask your government to support Ukraine. Mark 3 friends and ask them to do the same.”

📌Marina Abramovic will repeat her performance “The Artist Is Present” to support Ukraine. All proceeds from the auction will go to support Direct Relief, which works with the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and other groups in the region to provide essential medical care – from oxygen concentrators to emergency medicines – and is preparing to offer longer-term care to people affected by the Russian war in Ukraine.

📌The French chain L’Occitane is closing all its beauty stores in Russia and shutting down the Russian site.

📌Latvian national airline AirBaltic, which operates passenger and freight services, has decided to leave the Russian market and cancel all flights to and from Russia.

📌German insurance company Munich Re Group, one of the leaders in the global insurance market, has left the Russian business.

📌One of the world’s largest manufacturers of pipes for the energy sector, including drilling and casing pipes for oil and gas production, Tenaris, has suspended all sales and purchases in Russia.

 

INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT OF UKRAINE

📌Polish Post has joined the appeal of the Universal Postal Union to stop any delivery to Russia and Belarus. Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Australia and Latvia also joined the blockade.

📌A group of Lithuanian parliamentarians and ministers suggested to make May 9 not only Europe Day, but also the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Genocide in Ukraine.

📌French authorities froze the real estate of Russian oligarchs as a part of the implementation of sanctions: the villa of Putin’s close friend Arkady Rotenberg and the villa of Alexander Ponomarenko. The villa of SUEK and Eurokhim owner Andriy Melnychenko was arrested on the Cote d’Azur. In Cannes – the house of the former chairman and co-owner of the company “Sibur” Dmitry Konov. Two hotels belonging to Olena Yermakova, the wife of billionaire Hennadiy Tymchenko, were also arrested.

📌Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo visited Kyiv to sign the Agreement on Friendship and Coordination between the cities.

📌The Italian Embassy in Kyiv will resume fully-fledged work on Monday, April 18.

📌 Instructors of the elite British Special Air Service (SAS) have returned to Ukraine, writes The Times. According to the publication, they will resume training for our defenders in Kyiv and on the outskirts of the city.

📌Rescuers from the Australia, USA, Germany and Poland are already in Ukraine and will help to liquidate the consequences of the Rashists invasion in the liberated cities. First in line is Borodyanka, Kyiv region.

📌From April 17, Russian ships will not be able to enter Romanian ports. At the same time, Ukrainian-flagged vessels have priority in Romanian ports and are exempt from paying for port services. This was stated by Romanian Transport Minister Sorin Grindeanu.

📌Latvia sent 13 cars and mini buses for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in particular, for territorial defense units, as well as charitable organizations.

📌Germany has joined the group of countries that allowed Ukrainian carriers to carry out bilateral and transit traffic without previously required authorization until June 30.

⚠️Tonight in Rome, a religious procession took place on the Catholic Good Friday. Despite the protests of the Ukrainian ambassador to the Vatican, Andriy Yurash, natives of Ukraine and Russia, Irina and Albina, jointly carried the cross at the Colosseum in the final. At the same time, the text of the prayer, which mentioned Ukraine and Russia, was shortened to a minimum. Among other things, an excerpt about “fraternal nations” disappeared from there, Yurash said on Facebook.

 

📌 Tweet of the day