Worth noting, korrespondent.net has compiled its Invasion of Ukraine series into separate months, beginning May 9th, 2023. Linked in the title.
[Korrespondent] 22:11 The United States is working on new packages of military assistance to Ukraine, but is not yet ready to talk about the timing, State Department Speaker Matthew Miller said.
22:09 Zelensky said in an evening video message that he heard a separate report from the Minister of Defense and a report from the Commander-in-Chief today. The main priorities are positions at the front, the physical protection of people and communities, and the disruption of any attempts at offensive actions by the Russian Federation.
22:04 The Slovaks have collected more than 4 million euros for shells for Ukraine - this money is enough to produce almost 2,700 artillery ammunition. They should be delivered to Ukraine no later than the end of summer, said Dodo Dobrik, a participant in the Gift for Putin project.
21:56 The Russians attacked Ukraine at night with a new and modernized X-101 missile with a double warhead, writes the specialized publication Defense Express. The main feature of the missile is that in addition to the standard warhead weighing 450 kg, it had an additional warhead weighing 350 kg, that is, a warhead weighing 800 kg was used in total.
20:57 The UK announced an additional contribution to the Ukraine Energy Support Fund in the amount of about 23 million euros, the Ministry of Energy reported. The funds will be used to purchase equipment to repair damaged energy infrastructure, strengthen physical protection and provide backup power, including generators and distributed generation.
20:31 The Verkhovna Rada adopted in the second reading bill No. 11079-1, which allowed certain categories of prisoners to mobilize into the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. As expected, such an initiative caused a strong reaction in society and many concerns, but people’s deputies assure that the document is well thought out and prohibits the mobilization of those convicted of serious crimes. Read more in the material Mobilization of prisoners: who will go to the front.
19:24 Zelensky said that he had telephone conversations with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Prime Ministers of Denmark and the Netherlands Matte Frederiksen and Mark Rutte, Secretary General of the Council of Europe Maria Pejčinović-Burich - they all confirmed their participation in the Global Peace Summit, which will be held in Switzerland on 15 -June 16. In addition, the president had a “long and substantive” conversation with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Zelensky invited him to the Peace Summit, and the integration of Ukraine into the EU was also discussed.
19:18 The total resource of prisoners who could potentially be mobilized into the Ukrainian Defense Forces is 15-20 thousand people, said the head of the parliamentary faction Servant of the People David Arakhamia. “We don’t know how many of them will sign the contract, because this will happen by agreement of the parties. We estimate that it will be several thousand people,” he added. Arakhamia noted that prisoners will be able to mobilize after a court decision on parole.
18:53 The former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, who did not appear in public for a long time after resigning from office, became more active in the media field and social networks. First, he published a photo on his Facebook page, and then met with one of the Ukrainian singers and came to Lina Kostenko’s home. Read more about Zaluzhny’s appearance in public in the article What surprised the general.
18:27 Great Britain will send the Russian military attaché, “who is an undeclared military intelligence officer,” said the country’s Interior Minister James Cleverley. London will also deprive some properties of diplomatic status and limit the validity of Russian diplomatic visas.
17:58 The number of victims as a result of the shelling of Kharkov has increased to seven, of which four are children from eight to 15 years old, said the head of the OVA Oleg Sinegubov. Two children are in serious condition.
17:46 In India, four citizens were arrested suspected of luring Indians by deception into the war in Ukraine on the side of the Russian Federation, the BBC reports, citing the Indian Central Bureau of Investigation. According to the department, people were lured with offers of study and work in Russia with high salaries and obtaining Russian citizenship. As a result, at least 35 Indians ended up in the war, at least two of them died. According to Reuters, the Indian Foreign Ministry "in strong terms" raised this issue with the Russian authorities.
17:29 Italian President Sergio Mattarella said that Russia's invasion of Ukraine cannot be resolved by encouraging the Kremlin's aggression. According to him, peace can only come when the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine is restored.
17:01 EU permanent representatives have previously agreed on the use of income from Russian assets for military assistance to Ukraine, the Belgian presidency reported.
16:56 The elected President of Slovakia, Peter Pellegrini, stated the need for “peaceful negotiations” between Ukraine and the Russian Federation and noted that he was ready to offer Bratislava as a platform for them.
16:15 In the almost completely destroyed Chasovy Yar of the Donetsk region, 679 people remain who refuse to evacuate, said the head of the OBA Vadim Filashkin. According to him, every day it becomes more and more difficult to deliver humanitarian aid to the city, since the enemy is shooting at all routes.
16:03 Since March, Russia has resumed periodic massive attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, which were previously practiced in the fall of 2022 and next winter. According to Ukrenergo estimates, this is the fifth such attack since March 22. In early April, Putin acknowledged new attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, presenting them as a response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian fuel and energy sector facilities. Read more in the article Power outages throughout the country.
15:40 The European Union did not refuse to recognize Putin as President of Russia, since all member states could not reach a consensus on this issue, said Peter Stano, spokesman for the EU foreign policy service. According to him, the bloc itself does not have the authority to recognize or not recognize anyone’s power, and traditionally such a decision is made by member states.
“Of course, if 27 member states unanimously say that they do not recognize the legitimacy of a country’s representative, as they did in the case of the Syrian leader Assad or the dictator in Belarus Lukashenko, then we can have this position. In the case of Russia there is no pan-European EU position agreed upon by the 27 countries that would argue that we do not see Putin as a legitimate representative of Russia,” Stano explained.
15:07 British intelligence reports that Russia has begun equipping its main X-101 aircraft missiles with a second warhead. It is designed for increased fragmentation damage to the target, which will make it more effective against unfortified targets. Analysts note that the range of such missiles is halved, but this will still be enough for Russia to strike throughout Ukraine.
14:59 Three children injured as a result of the shelling of Kharkov are in serious condition, said Oleg Sinegubov, head of the OBA. According to him, the boys, aged 13, 14 and 15, were playing football on the playground when the Russians struck the city. Two adults were also injured.
14:32 In Kharkov, the number of victims has increased to five, of which three are children, said Oleg Sinegubov, head of the OVA.
14:28 The Verkhovna Rada adopted a bill on the mobilization of convicts as a whole. According to the document, only certain categories of prisoners can mobilize. It is prohibited for those convicted of premeditated murder, sexual violence and crimes against the fundamentals of national security to mobilize.
14:05 In Kharkov, according to preliminary information, a hit was recorded in an open area on the territory of an educational institution. There is information about three injured children aged 12 to 15 years, said the head of the OVA Oleg Sinegubov.
13:41 The Russians attacked Kharkov - according to preliminary information, at least three children were injured, said the head of the OVA Oleg Sinegubov.
13:24 The Verkhovna Rada approved presidential decrees on extending martial law and general mobilization for 90 days - until August 11, 2024. Now Zelensky must sign them. This is the 11th decision to implement martial law and general mobilization since the beginning of a full-scale war.
13:10 The number of victims of the Russian attack on Odessa on April 29 has increased to seven - one of the wounded died in the hospital, the city council reported.
12:59 In the Donetsk region, rescuers spent more than ten hours extinguishing a fire in a coniferous forest in the vicinity of the city of Liman, caused by Russian shelling. A total of five fires broke out over a total area of 470 hectares. There was no information about deaths or injuries, the State Emergency Service reported.
12:21 In 2024, Ukraine caught up with Russia in terms of production of kamikaze drones similar to Shahed-131 and Shahed-136, as well as in the production of other attack drones, General Director of Ukroboronprom German Smetanin said in an interview with ArmyInform. He confirmed that “everything that explodes in Russia is all ours.”
In addition, according to Smetanin, Ukraine has significantly increased the production of ammunition - this is the main product the front is waiting for. The enterprises have not only established and are scaling up the serial production of artillery shells and mortar mines of Soviet caliber, but are also gradually moving to the production of NATO caliber ammunition - 60-mm mortar mines. The Defense Forces also successfully use air defense systems developed as part of the Ukrainian-American FrankenSAM project against enemy drones. Such a system shot down the Iranian kamikaze drone Shahed from a distance of 9 km. “We are capable of producing even more, but we are constrained by the state’s lack of money, and we are counting on additional funding, in particular from abroad,” Smetanin added.
11:37 Tonight from 18:00 to 23:00 it is possible to restrict household and industrial consumers throughout Ukraine, Ukrenergo reported. The restrictions will be evenly distributed across all regions, and shutdown schedules will be published on the official pages of local regional power companies. The reason for the restrictions is a shortage of electricity in the energy system, which arose due to new damage to the equipment of Ukrainian power plants as a result of Russian strikes. A particularly difficult situation is expected today from 18:00 to 23:00 - Ukrainians are asked to consume electricity sparingly at this time.
11:14 Lithuania may refuse to provide residence permits to men from Ukraine if Kiev proves that they are evading military service, said Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte. At the same time, according to her, Lithuania will not deport or search for Ukrainian men in the country, because this would be illegal.
Simonyte also stated that Lithuania is ready to send its soldiers to Ukraine on a training mission. According to her, the Lithuanian parliament has already given permission, but Kyiv has not yet asked for it.
10:43 They plan to include a clause in the NATO declaration following the July summit stating that the Alliance will not send its troops to Ukraine, writes the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. Also at the summit, a decision should be made on the transfer of coordination of Western assistance to Ukraine from the United States to NATO headquarters. The publication notes that in general, “the strategy dictated by the United States does not change,” but a “change of pace” is being prepared.
10:02 The General Staff announced the estimated losses of the Russian Federation as of the morning of May 8:
- personnel - about 477,430 (+970) people,
- tanks - 7418 (+13),
- armored combat vehicles - 14,246 (+19),
- artillery systems - 12,317 (+30),
- MLRS - 1057 (+0),
- air defense systems - 792 (+0),
- aircraft - 349 (+0),
- helicopters - 325 (+0),
- UAV of operational-tactical level - 9728 (+11),
- cruise missiles - 2151 (+2),
- ships/boats - 26 (+0),
- submarines - 1 (+0),
- automotive equipment and tank trucks - 16,549 (+40),
- special equipment - 2019 (+2).
09:38 Over the past 24 hours, 84 military clashes took place at the front, the General Staff reported in its morning report. In particular, in the Avdeevsky direction, the Defense Forces repelled 27 attacks in the areas of the settlements of Alexandropol, Novoaleksandrovka, Progress, Evgenievka, Novoselovka Pervaya, Umanskoye, Netaylovo, Donetsk region. Another 17 attacks were repulsed in the Bakhmut direction - in the areas of Verkhnekamensky, Vyemka, Sporny, Razdolovka, Ivanovsky, Novy and Andreevka of the Donetsk region.
In the Seversky and Slobozhansky directions, the Defense Forces did not allow the penetration of enemy DRGs in the area of the settlement of Pylnaya, Kharkov region. In the Kupyansk direction, 16 enemy attacks were repelled in the areas of Sinkovka, Peschanoye, Berestovo in the Kharkov region, as well as Stelmakhovka in the Lugansk region; on Limansky - three attacks in the Nevsky district of the Lugansk region and Ternov, Donetsk region; on Novopavlovsky - 11 attacks in the areas of Krasnohorivka, Konstantinovka, Vodyanoy and Urozhayny, Donetsk region; on Orekhovsky - six attacks in the area of Staromayorsky, Donetsk region, Rabotino and north-west of Verbovoy, Zaporozhye region; on Kherson - three attacks on the left bank of the Dnieper.
09:25 The head of the Lviv Regional Military Administration, Maxim Kozitsky, clarified that in the Stryisky district, Russian troops attacked a gas storage facility, in Chervonogradsky - a heating station. He noted that the region lacks modern air defense systems; they are trying to compensate for this by creating mobile groups.
09:13 Zelensky recorded an address on the occasion of Remembrance Day and the victory over Nazism in World War II. The President emphasized that “the world slept through the revival of Nazism - at 5 am on February 24, 2022. And today everyone who remembers the Second World War and has lived to this day feels déjà vu.”
09:10 In the Ivano-Frankivsk region, as a result of a night attack on an energy infrastructure facility, a fire started, which was quickly extinguished. No people were injured, said Svetlana Onishchuk, head of the OVA.
09:06 At night, Russian troops shelled Belozerka, Kherson region - one person was killed, two were wounded, said the head of the OVA Alexander Prokudin. Over the previous 24 hours, one person was killed and three were injured as a result of Russian shelling in the region.
08:59 In the morning, Russia attacked the civilian railway infrastructure in Kherson; as a result of the attacks, the tracks and the city station were damaged, Ukrzaliznytsia reported. The movement of train No. 121/122 Kyiv - Kherson - Kyiv is temporarily limited to Nikolaev, from there passengers will be transported to Kherson and back by buses. All 99 passengers are safe.
08:44 Air defense destroyed 59 out of 76 air targets at night, the Air Force command reported. Russia used for a combined strike:
- one Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missile (launched from the Tambov region);
- two Iskander-M ballistic missiles (Crimea);
- four Caliber cruise missiles (Black Sea);
- 45 X-101/X-555 cruise missiles from Tu-95 TS strategic aviation aircraft (Saratov region, Caspian Sea);
- one Iskander-K cruise missile (Crimea);
- two X-59/X-69 guided aircraft missiles (occupied Zaporozhye region);
- 21 attack UAVs of the Shahed-131/136 type (Primorsko-Akhtarsk, Kursk region).
59 air targets destroyed:
- 33 Kh-101/Kh-555 cruise missiles;
- four Caliber cruise missiles;
- two X-59/X-69 guided aircraft missiles;
- 20 attack UAVs of the Shahed-131/136 type.
08:38 Zelensky said that on the Day of Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in World War II, Russia fired more than 50 missiles and more than 20 suicide bombers into Ukraine. Infrastructure was attacked in Lviv, Vinnytsia, Kyiv, Poltava, Kirovograd, Zaporozhye, and Ivano-Frankivsk regions.
08:32 At night, the Russians attacked the Kiev region with missiles and drones, two people were wounded, the prosecutor's office reported. In several areas of the region, private households were damaged and fires broke out. The mayor of Brovary, Igor Sapozhko, clarified that two people were injured as a result of a missile attack and a fire at a civilian infrastructure facility. In Kyiv itself, all air targets were shot down, said the head of the KGVA Sergei Popko. According to him, the enemy attacked the capital with X-101/X-555/X-55 cruise missiles.
08:26 At night, the Russians attacked two critical energy infrastructure facilities in the Lviv region, said the head of the OBA Maxim Kozitsky. In particular, cruise missiles hit a power generation facility in the Chervonograd region, and firefighters are working on the scene. Also, as a result of the missile hit, a critical energy infrastructure facility in the Stryisky district was damaged. In addition, in the morning the enemy attacked the area with Daggers - critical and residential infrastructure was not damaged.
08:05 In Zaporozhye, as a result of a night attack, there was destruction at critical and civilian infrastructure facilities, said the head of the OVA, Ivan Fedorov. Over the past 24 hours, one person was injured in the region as a result of an air strike in the Zaporozhye region.
07:53 At night, three thermal power plants of DTEK came under Russian attack, the equipment was significantly damaged, the company reported.
07:42 The head of the Vinnytsia OVA, Sergei Borzov, reported that critical infrastructure facilities were hit during a night attack.
07:37 At night, the Russians fired artillery and kamikaze drones at the Nikopol district of the Dnepropetrovsk region. One person was injured, five private houses, a gas pipeline, and a power line were damaged, said the head of the OVA, Sergei Lysak.
07:29 In the Poltava region, a hit to an energy infrastructure facility was recorded. According to preliminary information, no people were injured, said the head of the OVA, Philip Pronin.
07:26 As a result of a night missile attack in the Alexandria district of the Kirovograd region, a critical infrastructure facility was damaged, said the head of the OBA Andrei Raikovich. An eight-year-old child was injured and 13 private houses were damaged.
07:20 Russia attacked electricity generation and transmission facilities in the Poltava, Kirovograd, Zaporozhye, Lvov, Ivano-Frankivsk and Vinnytsia regions at night, said Energy Minister German Galushchenko. He called for economical use of electricity, especially in the morning and evening hours.
01:12 The Ukrainian Armed Forces attacked an oil depot in Lugansk, said the leader of the “LPR” Leonid Pasechnik. As a result of the attack, a fire broke out and five oil depot employees were injured. Power lines were damaged and houses in the area of the oil depot were partially without power.