Worth noting, korrespondent.net has compiled its Invasion of Ukraine series into separate months, beginning May 9th, 2023. Linked in the title.
[Korrespondent] 21:56 Zelensky intends to attend events in Normandy in honor of the 80th anniversary of the landing of the allied forces and a G7 meeting in Italy to ask the West for even more weapons, as well as “ask NATO to shoot down Russian missiles,” Politico writes, citing sources.
21:45 The Cabinet of Ministers approved additional leave for the military for destroyed equipment. According to government decree, the longest vacation can be obtained for the destruction of an enemy ship or aircraft - five days. For an anti-aircraft missile system, a helicopter, an air defense radar, and a long-range visual surveillance complex, four days are provided; for a downed missile, destroyed self-propelled guns or MLRS, tank, howitzer, armored vehicles, heavy drone - three days; for other armored vehicles, trucks, medium drones, electronic warfare, electronic warfare or counter-battery weapons - two days; for light drones - one day of vacation.
21:38 The United States does not have information about China’s intention to supply weapons to Russia, Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan said.
21:33 Ukraine is already openly demanding permission to use Western weapons on Russian territory. The Financial Times writes that the recent invasion of the Russian army in the Khar'kov region could have been prevented if the Ukrainian Armed Forces had been able to launch a preemptive strike. Ukrainian officials argue that Russia might not have advanced as quickly in the northeastern Kharkiv region if Ukraine had been able to strike beforehand. For more details, see the material Western ban harms Ukraine.
20:19 The task of the Defense Forces today remains unchanged - to inflict as many losses on the Russians as possible, Zelensky said in an evening video message. He also said that during the day he heard Syrsky’s report twice: “The directions of the main battles have not changed. These are, first of all, Pokrovskoe and other Donetsk directions. Also the Kupyansk direction in the Khar'kov region. Maximum attention is given to everything along the border now, and not only in the Khar'kov region, but and also in the Sumy region."
In addition, the president said that today he had telephone conversations with the leaders of Chile, Albania, Austria and Mozambique - all of these countries will be represented at the Peace Summit in Switzerland. Zelensky also said that he held a special meeting on the basis of the National Security and Defense Council and Headquarters on the Ukrainian production of electronic warfare, drones, and missile programs. “There is something positive, but much remains to be done in countering Russian KABs,” the head of state noted.
19:37 The Khmelnitsky court allowed the first two convicts to mobilize - men born in 2000 and 1981, convicted of theft before the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation. Each of them is fit for service due to health reasons, has passed psychological selection and has a sufficient level of physical fitness - these are some of the main conditions for release and mobilization. Now they will serve in the National Guard.
19:32 On Thursday, May 23, hourly power outage schedules will be in effect for industrial and household consumers throughout Ukraine from 00:00 to 24:00, Ukrenergo reported.
18:44 Speaker of the US House of Representatives Mike Johnson spoke in favor of allowing Ukraine to strike with American weapons at targets in Russia: “I think Ukraine should be allowed to wage war as they see fit. They should be able to fight back. And I think That we're trying to micromanage efforts is not good policy for us."
18:38 The European Union has prepared the 14th package of personal sanctions against Russia, Radio Liberty correspondent in Brussels Rikard Jozwiak reported. 21 companies and 19 people will be subject to restrictions, including businessmen and defense industry enterprises close to Putin.
18:15 The Russian authorities decided to unilaterally change the country’s maritime borders with Lithuania and Finland in the Baltic Sea. Now the bill, which attracted the attention of the media, is no longer available on the website of the Russian government. But in the web archive there remains a copy of the description of the project that the Russian Ministry of Defense proposed for consideration. Read more in the material Threat to NATO .
17:58 Russia is blocking the transfer of bodies of dead Ukrainian soldiers, said Bogdan Okhrimenko, head of the secretariat of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. In particular, he said, Moscow refused to hand over the bodies of the soldiers who died on May 15. In addition, Russia has yet to hand over to Ukraine the bodies of prisoners who Moscow claims died aboard the Il-76 in January.
17:19 Commander-in-Chief of the Swedish Armed Forces Mikael Büden said that the war in Ukraine “has reached a dead end” and will continue “for a very long time.” In his opinion, neither Russia nor Ukraine have sufficient capabilities to win it by military means. “I expect that the war will continue for a very long time. We have already taken this into account in our strategic plans for security and military assistance to Ukraine,” Buden said. He also noted that “Putin has set up the Russian economy for war in a way that we cannot. Currently, the Russians are producing a huge amount of weapons, much more than we can supply to Ukraine.”
16:37 According to preliminary data, the Russians today struck Khar'kov with two UMPB D30-SN (unified interspecific glide munition, 30 cm caliber), the prosecutor's office reported. In the Shevchenko district of the city, a hit was recorded at the entrance to a cafe, ten people were injured. One of the victims was a trolleybus driver who was near the epicenter of the explosion. The man is in serious condition; both legs have been amputated. In the Kholodnogorsk region, as a result of an airstrike, the buildings of a civilian enterprise, which is now not functioning, were destroyed. One person was injured.
15:56 In Volchansk, Khar'kov region, the Russians hit a police car with an FPV drone during the evacuation of local residents. One policeman was killed and one was wounded, said Interior Minister Igor Klimenko.
15:20 Ukrenergo reported that power outage schedules on Wednesday, May 22, will be in effect throughout the country from 19:00 to 00:00, and not from 20:00, as previously reported. The reason for the adjustment is an increase in cloudiness, which interferes with the operation of solar power plants.
14:59 In Kharkov, the number of victims has increased to ten, said the head of the OVA Oleg Sinegubov.
14:32 The Russians struck Kharkov, first with guided ammunition. There was a fire at a gas station and a cafe was damaged. A fire also broke out in an apartment building. Currently, four people are known to be wounded, one in serious condition - the trolleybus driver, said Oleg Sinegubov, head of the OVA.
13:55 British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said that American and British intelligence has evidence that China is preparing to provide Russia with lethal assistance for use in the war against Ukraine. “Lethal aid is already coming or will be coming from China to Russia and Ukraine,” he noted.
13:47 DTEK clarified that the blackout schedules in Kiev, as well as in the Kiev, Odessa, Donetsk and Dnepropetrovsk regions today will be in effect from 19:00 to 00:00.
13:06 The first F-16 maintenance specialists have begun returning to Ukraine, said Air Force Speaker Ilya Yevlash. According to him, these specialists will also share their experience with other Ukrainian military technicians.
12:58 Ukraine stopped the Russian offensive in the Khar'kov region thanks to weapons from the United States, writes Bild. According to the publication, the advance of the Russian army stalled 11 days after crossing the state border in the north of the Khar'kov region. In the direction of the village of Liptsy, the Russians remain in the same border villages that they took in the first three days. In the area of Volchansk, fighting for the city continues, but in its surroundings there is also virtually no progress. The reason is Ukraine receiving new American weapons. In particular, GLSDB bombs, Javelin ATGMs, and 155 mm artillery shells are actively used. They also entered the front line in the Donetsk region.
12:27 The Rada adopted a bill on improving the system of initial combined arms training. According to the document, instead of pre-conscription training, a new system will be introduced - initial combined arms training. It is implemented at the third level of complete general secondary education and is carried out in institutions of general secondary, vocational, vocational, higher education and other educational institutions by teaching the subject Defense of Ukraine and implementing activities aimed at military-patriotic education.
12:21 The Swedish government has approved a three-year program of military support for Ukraine worth almost $7 billion. It is designed for 2024-2026 - the country will provide 2.3 billion annually.
11:49 The Verkhovna Rada has created a temporary special commission for the arrangement of fortifications and the purchase of drones, said People's Deputy Yaroslav Zheleznyak. In particular, deputies will study the use of budget funds for the construction of engineering structures and the need for drones.
11:16 Russia likely launched an anti-space weapon into low-Earth orbit last week, Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder said: “On May 16, Russia launched a satellite into low-Earth orbit that we assess is most likely an anti-space weapon, presumably capable of attack other satellites in low Earth orbit." Ryder noted that this new weapon was deployed by Moscow in the same orbit as a US government satellite. Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Sergei Ryabkov called this information a “stuffing”.
10:53 Ukrenergo today lifted restrictions on electricity consumption in all regions from 07:00 to 20:00. The company explained that sunny weather contributes to the operation of solar power plants, and the deficit in the energy system has decreased. At the same time, the head of the Poltava Regional Administration, Philip Pronin, said that an emergency shutdown schedule has been applied in the region, and currently there is no electricity for more than 19 thousand household and more than 1.3 thousand legal consumers in the Mirgorod, Lubensk, Gadyach and Lokhvitsk communities.
10:41 The number of victims as a result of the morning Russian strike on Chuguev, Khar'kov region, has increased to seven, said Oleg Sinegubov, head of the OVA.
10:35 Sea Baby SBU sea drones are now equipped with Grad systems, Ukrainian media report citing sources. According to them, on the night of May 20, Sea Baby drones effectively worked from the sea against Russian positions on the Kinburn Spit.
10:28 The head of the Bundestag Defense Committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, accused France of “doing relatively little” for Ukraine: “We have a problem that while Poland is doing a lot as a neighboring country, "while Germany does a lot, France does comparatively little."
10:01 A delegation of the French Armed Forces led by the Chief of the Joint Staff, General Thierry Burcard, visited Ukraine on an official visit, the Ministry of Defense reported.
09:37 Late in the evening of May 21, Russian troops launched a missile strike on the territory of the village. Rog city of Pokrovsk, Donetsk region, the prosecutor's office reported. As a result of a hit in the yard of a private house, a married couple was killed and their ten-year-old son was wounded. A resident of a neighboring house was also injured. According to preliminary information, the Russians used an Iskander missile for the attack.
09:22 In the Kherson region over the past 24 hours, as a result of Russian shelling, eight people were injured, including one child, said the head of the OVA, Alexander Prokudin. Six high-rise buildings and seven private houses, a cell tower, an agricultural enterprise, and a gas pipeline were damaged.
09:06 In the morning, the Russians shelled the city of Chuguev, Khar'kov region - the building of a kindergarten was damaged, one person was injured, said the head of the OVA Oleg Sinegubov. Another person was wounded the day before as a result of artillery shelling in the village. Goptovka, Khar'kov district.
07:57 The General Staff announced the estimated losses of the Russian Federation as of the morning of May 22:
- personnel - about 496,370 (+1300) people,
- tanks - 7611 (+6),
- armored combat vehicles - 14,721 (+22),
- artillery systems - 12 820 (+41),
- MLRS - 1077 (+0),
- air defense systems - 812 (+1),
- aircraft - 354 (+0),
- helicopters - 326 (+0),
- UAVs of operational-tactical level - 10 346 (+56),
- cruise missiles - 2208 (+1),
- ships/boats - 27 (+0),
- submarines - 1 (+0),
- automotive equipment and tank trucks - 17,442 (+59),
- special equipment - 2090 (+5).
07:25 Air defense at night destroyed all 24 attack UAVs of the Shahed-131/136 type, which Russia attacked from Primorsko-Akhtarsk, Kursk and Crimea, the Air Force reported. The drones were destroyed within the Nikolaev, Dnepropetrovsk, Zaporozhye, Donetsk, Sumy and Odessa regions.
07:08 Power engineers have resumed power supply in the Sumy, Romny and Akhtyrsky districts of the Sumy region, which was stopped at night as a result of an enemy air strike. Work to restore power supply continues, OVA reported.
04:54 Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee of the US House of Representatives Michael McCall (Republican from Texas) and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Jim Risch (Republican from Idaho) in their letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken criticized the Biden administration for using its Presidential authority to fast-track $60 million in military aid to Haiti to crack down on gangs when the aid could have been sent to Ukraine, Politico writes. According to the publication, there is growing concern in Congress that American support for Haiti could “cost dearly” to Ukraine.
The State Department stated that “support for the people of Haiti does not limit or deprive us of the opportunity to support the people of Ukraine.”
03:59 As a result of an enemy attack, the city of Sumy was cut off from power, said the head of the GVA Alexey Drozdenko.
01:16 The Russians hit Shahed-type UAVs at energy facilities in the cities of Shostka and Konotop, Sumy region, OVA reported. Work is underway to restore power supply, which was cut off due to an enemy attack.