Worth noting, korrespondent.net has compiled its Invasion of Ukraine series into separate months, beginning May 9th, 2023. Linked in the title.
[Korrespondent] 22:55 Representatives of three IT companies from the Netherlands will help modernize Ukrainian UAVs, the country's Minister of Defense Kaisa Ollongren said in an interview with Radio Liberty. According to her, the Ukrainian defense industry has many prospects for development.
21:49 The Netherlands is providing Ukraine with 350 million euros for ammunition for the F-16 and modern reconnaissance drones, the country's Defense Minister Kaisa Ollongren said during a visit to Kiev. The new military aid package will allocate 150 million euros to finance air-to-ground guided missiles that can be launched from F-16 aircraft, and another 200 million for drones. Danish F-16s are expected to arrive first, expected in the summer, with the first Dutch jets to be delivered later this year, Reuters writes.
21:37 The White House is not ready to announce the delivery of ATACMS missiles, but will continue efforts to support Ukraine, Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan said during a visit to Kiev: “We are working to do this as quickly as possible.” President "Biden is working every day to get this package through the House, but I can't make any specific predictions."
21:08 Shmygal said in an interview with Bloomberg that there is currently no need to mobilize 500 thousand Ukrainians. According to the prime minister, the assessment showed that such a scale of mobilization is not necessary, given the rotations taking place on the front line and the flow of weapons. “We will continue the fight if we receive support from our partners in artillery shells, long- and medium-range missiles,” Shmygal added.
20:59 The Russian command will redeploy part of its army to defend Belgorod due to frequent attacks and shelling, Bloomberg reports, citing a source close to the Kremlin.
20:01 A group of drones on the morning of March 20 attacked the city of Engels in the Saratov region, where one of the largest military air bases in Russia is located. It is from there that the occupiers most often launch missile attacks on Ukraine. In December 2022, after a strike on the airfield, 17 Russian troops were killed and several aircraft were damaged. What was hit this time and who was behind the blow - in the material Attack on Engels.
19:50 Spain will transfer another 19 Leopard 2A4 tanks to Ukraine, InfoDefensa reports. The vehicles will be taken out of storage, so it will take some more time to repair them before they reach the Ukrainian troops, the Spanish publication notes. The delivery will be carried out in two batches: ten battle tanks by the end of June and nine more in September.
19:46 Pope Francis again called for negotiations. In his weekly audience at the Vatican, the pontiff remembered the inhabitants of "martyrned Ukraine and the Holy Land, Palestine, Israel, who suffer so much from the horrors of war." “And let us never forget that war is always a defeat. In a state of war it is impossible to move forward. We must make every effort to negotiate to end the war. Let us pray for this,” Francis stressed.
19:13 Russia again attacked Kharkov, previously with an X-59 missile. A shell hit the enterprise, a strong fire started, five people are already known to have died, and there may be up to ten more people under the rubble. About what is known, see the material Strike on Kharkov.
18:25 Zelensky said that he met with the Minister of Defense of the Netherlands, Kaisa Ollongren, who visited the Dnieper and inspected the consequences of the Russian strikes. We discussed strengthening the Ukrainian air defense system, providing the Defense Forces with artillery, armored vehicles and UAVs.
18:02 In Kharkov, another body was released from the rubble - the number of deaths has increased to five, said the head of the OBA Oleg Sinegubov. Emergency services continue to work at the scene.
17:24 Ukraine is capable of increasing the production of drones to 2 million units per year, but this requires additional financial assistance from the West, said Minister of Digital Transformation Mikhail Fedorov.
17:21 Shmygal said that Ukraine is counting on the delivery of the first batch of artillery ammunition as early as April under the Czech initiative. The Prime Minister said that today in Brussels at a meeting of the EU-Ukraine Association Council, the issue of finding additional resources to the funds that the Czech Republic is currently collecting was raised. According to Shmygal, the European initiative for the purchase of shells from Ukraine is a separate direction and an additional resource that Ukraine should also receive this year.
17:18 The Russians struck the village of Maksimovka, Ugledar community, Donetsk region. As a result of the hit in a private house, two people were killed and one was injured, said the head of the OVA, Vadim Filashkin.
17:13 The death toll as a result of today's missile attack on Kharkov has increased to four, seven people were injured, the prosecutor's office reported. Rescue work continues.
16:52 Zelensky said that he had a telephone conversation with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, thanked him for supporting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, for humanitarian assistance and the active participation of Indian representatives in meetings at the advisory level.
16:39 The third in Ukraine and one of the largest recruiting centers for the Ukrainian army in the state began operating in Dnepr, the Ministry of Defense reported. The agency plans to open 27 recruiting centers in the first half of 2024.
16:18 Amid statements about a possible Russian attack on one of the NATO members in Europe, military personnel are being dismissed from service. According to Western media, now the EU governments are faced with the question not so much of recruiting new soldiers, but of convincing the military not to leave the service. Moreover, a number of European governments began to consider fundamental changes in the concept of forming their armies. For more details, see the material Europe is bringing back conscription.
15:43 Lithuania is allocating 35 million euros to the Czech initiative to purchase artillery ammunition for Ukraine, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said.
15:30 Russia has intensified its campaign to discredit Ukraine in the Middle East, reports the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense. In particular, employees of the Russian Embassy in Egypt received instructions from the Kremlin to hold a series of meetings under diplomatic cover to spread disinformation about the war. The Russians also send propaganda materials to the embassies of other states in Cairo, which justify the war against Ukraine.
15:03 The US House of Representatives adopted a resolution on the abduction of Ukrainian children. The document recognizes that the government of the Russian Federation under the leadership of Putin is responsible for the unlawful and illegal abduction of children from Ukraine, and that facilitating illegal adoptions contradicts the obligations of the Russian Federation under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and constitutes genocide.
The document also states that Russia is trying to destroy a generation of Ukrainian children and thus undermine Ukraine's ability to raise the next generation of citizens and leaders, the ability to rebuild Ukraine after the Russian war, the purpose of which is to destroy the unique Ukrainian language, culture, history and identity.
14:47 The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the Russian military in the Belgorod direction allegedly “completely cleared the settlement of Kozinka from the remnants of Ukrainian militants” and continues measures to prevent the penetration of the DRG.
14:34 The Russians struck Kharkov - three dead and five wounded are known, the number of victims may increase, the National Police reported. As a result of the strike, an eight-story building and a production workshop in the Kholodnogorsk district were damaged. A fire in a workshop for the production of furniture and paints and varnishes covered more than 1000 square meters. m. Among the wounded are printing house workers, two of them are in serious condition. The rescue operation and fire extinguishing are ongoing.
14:26 Ukraine will be able to use F-16 fighters only within its sovereign territory, said Pentagon Speaker Patrick Ryder. At the same time, he noted that the planes will give Ukraine “unique air potential.”
13:55 Russia plans to form two combined arms armies and 30 formations, including 14 divisions and 16 brigades, by the end of the year, Shoigu said. According to him, an army corps, a motorized rifle division, the Dnieper river flotilla and a brigade of river boats of the flotilla have already been formed. Earlier, the Russian Federation decided to recreate the Moscow and Leningrad military districts that existed in Soviet times.
13:27 The European Commission transferred 4.5 billion euros to Ukraine - this is the first tranche of macro-financial assistance from a support package worth 50 billion euros, Borrell said.
13:18 The Cabinet of Ministers announced that it is closing the list of “international war sponsors” maintained by the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption. All information from the list will be transferred to the Interdepartmental Group on Sanctions Policy. The decision was made after a report by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on complaints from the diplomatic corps of partner countries about the lack of a regulatory framework for the existence of such a list.
12:52 The Russians have significantly increased the use of aviation in the Lugansk region, increased ground pressure on Belogorovka, and struck the territory of Serebryansky Forest, said the head of the OVA Artem Lysogor.
12:09 The situation near Rabotino, Zaporozhye region, is “fluid, but this is not critical,” said Natalya Gumenyuk, speaker of the Southern Defense Forces. This is how she commented on information from Deep State analysts that Russian forces are advancing in the village of Verbovoye in the direction of Rabotino.
12:03 The Russian Ministry of Defense announced the destruction of 13 Vampir MLRS rockets in the Belgorod region. Russian public pages write about one death and several wounded as a result of the shelling of Belgorod.
11:58 The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, said that he proposed that EU member states use windfalls from frozen Russian assets in Europe to support Ukraine. The proposal envisages channeling 90% of the funds through the European Peace Fund, 10% through the EU budget.
11:45 Russian troops attacked civilian vehicles between the settlements of Sadovoe and Antonovka in the Kherson community. According to preliminary information, two people were killed, the OVA reported.
11:42 The Pivnich operational command showed footage of the construction of fortifications in the Chernihiv region:
11:36 According to updated information, as a result of a night attack in the Sinelnikovsky district of the Dnepropetrovsk region, six people were wounded, including two teenagers aged 13 and 15, said the head of the OVA Sergei Lysak. Five private houses were destroyed and several were damaged. In addition, in the morning the enemy fired artillery at Nikopol, one person was injured.
11:11 Kuleba said in an interview with the Italian newspaper La Stampa that Macron spoke about sending not combat units to Ukraine, but instructors: “We never asked for people and combat units, we are proud of our soldiers. When Macron started talking about sending troops to Ukraine, "European leaders panicked. Macron only wanted to say that there is a possibility of training Ukrainian soldiers directly in Ukraine, and not outside its borders, as is happening now."
10:40 Production of scarce 155-mm shells in Ukraine will begin no earlier than the second half of this year, writes The Washington Post, citing a representative of Ukroboronprom. In the meantime, Ukraine independently produces Soviet-style shells of 122 mm and 152 mm caliber, as well as mortar shells, military equipment, and missiles.
As for the production of drones, as reported by Ukroboronprom, it is possible to cover 90% of the demand. For other positions, our own production is not enough to compensate for the lack of international support. The newspaper also writes that Ukraine last month began production of missiles with a range of more than 640 km.
10:29 Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson refused to consider the allocation of aid to Ukraine until the general US budget is adopted. This delays the resolution of the issue for at least another three weeks - until April 9, when the House of Representatives is due to return after the Easter break, writes The Hill.
09:46 Bloomberg writes that the European Commission will today announce proposals for using profits from frozen Russian assets to finance arms supplies to Ukraine and stimulate its defense industry. The publication notes that this will happen on the day of the visit of Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmygal to Brussels.
09:05 At night, the Russians attacked the village of Kazachya Lopan, Kharkov region, with a controlled aerial bomb. Part of the village was left without electricity as a result of a damaged power line, one person was injured, said Oleg Sinegubov, head of the OVA.
08:37 The General Staff announced the estimated losses of the Russian Federation as of the morning of March 20:
personnel - about 433,090 (+700) people,
tanks - 6828 (+9),
armored combat vehicles - 13,058 (+9),
artillery systems - 10,714 (+16),
MLRS - 1017 (+0),
air defense systems - 721 (+0),
aircraft - 347 (+0),
helicopters - 325 (+0),
UAV of operational-tactical level - 8355 (+37),
cruise missiles - 1922 (+0),
ships/boats - 26 (+0),
submarines - 1 (+0),
automotive equipment and tank trucks - 14,198 (+7),
special equipment - 1738 (+3).
08:09 Over the past 24 hours, 80 military clashes took place at the front, the General Staff reported in its morning report. In particular, the enemy tried 29 times to break through the defenses of Ukrainian troops in the Novopavlovsk direction - in the areas of Krasnogorovka, Georgievka, Novomikhailovka, Vodyanoye, Urozhaynoye of the Donetsk region. In addition, 14 enemy attacks were repulsed in the Liman direction (in the Belogorivka districts of the Lugansk region, Ternov and Spornoye in the Donetsk region) and 13 attacks in Avdeevsky (in the Berdychi, Orlovka, Tonenky, Pervomaisky, Nevelsky districts of the Donetsk region).
In the Kupyansk direction, the enemy unsuccessfully tried ten times to storm the positions of the Defense Forces in the Sinkovka area of the Kharkov region. In the Bakhmut direction, Ukrainian defenders repelled seven enemy attacks in the areas of the settlements of Predtechino, Kleshcheevka, Belaya Gora in the Donetsk region. In the Orekhovsky direction, the enemy attacked the positions of Ukrainian troops six times in the Staromayorsky district of the Donetsk region and Rabotino of the Zaporozhye region. In the Kherson direction, the enemy carried out one assault on the positions of the Defense Forces.
07:38 At night, the Russians shelled the Sinelnikovsky district of the Dnepropetrovsk region, said the head of the OVA Sergei Lysak. According to preliminary information, five people were injured, including an entire family of four. Among the wounded is a 12-year-old child.
07:14 Governor of the Belgorod region Vyacheslav Gladkov said that holidays for schoolchildren from border areas will begin early, from Wednesday, March 20. Clubs and sections in cultural, sports and additional education institutions will not work this week. Meanwhile, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported the destruction of one drone over the Belgorod region and four over the Saratov region at night. Russian public pages write that UAVs tried to attack the Engels strategic aviation airfield.
04:21 The United States can transfer Russian military equipment to Ukraine, which is on the balance sheet of the defense departments of South American countries, said the head of the US Southern Command Laura Richardson. According to her, such equipment is found in nine countries in South America. Richardson explained that the United States is offering South American countries to exchange this equipment for new ones.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Korrespondent] Ukrainian Armed Forces fighters repel Russian invaders.
In the Avdeevsky direction, defenders repelled 11 Russian attacks, in the Novopavlovsky direction - 18.
During the day, 67 clashes were recorded. In the Kupyansk direction, the Russian invaders did not conduct offensive actions. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces announced this in an evening report on Wednesday, March 20.
In total, Russian troops carried out two missile and 54 air strikes, and carried out 41 attacks from multiple launch rocket systems on positions of Ukrainian troops and populated areas.
In the Kupyansk direction the enemy did not conduct offensive (assault) operations. Conducted air strikes in the area of the village of Ivanovka, Donetsk region.
In the Liman direction, soldiers repelled 10 enemy attacks in the areas of the settlements of Belogorovka, Zolotarivka in the Luhansk region and Yampolevka, Terny, Razdolevka, Veseloye in the Donetsk region, where the enemy, with the support of aviation, tried to break through the defenses of our troops.
In the Bakhmut direction, five attacks by the invaders were repelled in the areas of the settlements of Bogdanovka, Ivanovskoe, and Kleshchievka in the Donetsk region.
In the Avdeevsky direction, defenders repelled 11 attacks by Russians in the areas of the settlements of Berdychi, Semenovka, Tonenkoye, Pervomaiskoye, Netailovo, Nevelskoye in the Donetsk region.
In the Novopavlovsk direction, the Defense Forces continue to contain the enemy in the areas of the settlements of Krasnogorovka, Georgievka, Novomikhailovka, Vodyanoye, Urozhainoye, where the enemy, with the support of aviation, tried to break through the defense 18 times.
In the Orekhovsky direction, the invaders, with the support of aviation, attacked the positions of Ukrainian defenders five times in the areas of the settlements of Staromayorskoye, Donetsk region, and Rabotino, Zaporozhye region.
In the Kherson direction, during the day the enemy carried out three attacks on the positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the left bank of the Dnieper.
During the day, Defense Forces aviation carried out strikes on 10 areas where the occupiers' personnel, weapons and military equipment were concentrated. Units of the missile forces inflicted a defeat on the composition of the Russians' ammunition.
Let us remind you that over the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian Armed Forces liquidated 700 invaders. Since the start of the full-scale war against Ukraine, the Russian army has lost 433,090 soldiers.
In the Sumy region, the protection of defense lines is being strengthened.
The head of the OVA noted that the state has allocated an unprecedented amount of funds for strengthening. The Lviv and Ternopil regions came to the rescue.
In the Sumy region, the protection of defense lines is being strengthened. Thousands of people were recruited to work on strengthening the borders. This was stated by the head of the Sumy OVA Vladimir Artyukh during a briefing on March 20.
“We are now creating the most powerful fortification since independence. The state has allocated an unprecedented amount of funds for strengthening. The Lviv region and Ternopil region have come to our aid,” he noted.
According to him, organizations from other regions are working together with local contractors to quickly, quickly and efficiently complete the tasks set by the state leadership.
“Thousands of people, hundreds of units of special construction equipment are involved. This is powerful work and a great responsibility,” Artyukh emphasized.
Let us remind you that the Russians began to shell the border areas of the Sumy region more intensively. The entire population left 22 villages in the region.
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[EngMilRu] The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the special military operation.
In Kupyansk direction, units of the Zapad Group of Forces improved the situation along the front line and defeated the enemy near Sinkovka, Kislovka, Yagodnoye, and Timkovka (Kharkov region).
Two counter-attacks launched by assault groups of the 18th Ukrainian National Guard Brigade were repelled near Terny (Donetsk People's Republic).
The AFU losses amounted to up to 85 Ukrainian servicemen, three motor vehicles, and one U.S.-made M777 artillery system.
In Belgorod direction, Russian units fully mopped up Kozinka of the rest of Ukrainian militants and continued to carry out activities to prevent sabotage and reconnaissance groups of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from entering the border area.
As a result of air strikes and artillery fire, the enemy lost up to 650 militants, two armoured fighting vehicles, and two Czech-made Vampire MLRS combat vehicles.
In Donetsk direction, units of the Yug Group of Forces took more advantageous lines and positions as well as defeated units of the 79th Air Assault and 46th Airmobile Brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Krasnoye, Andreyevka, Kleshcheyevka, Novomikhailovka, and Georgiyevka (Donetsk People's Republic).
One counter-attack launched by units of the AFU 81st Airmobile Brigade was repelled near Belogorovka (Lugansk People's Republic).
The AFU losses amounted to up to 420 Ukrainian troops, one tank, two armoured fighting vehicles, and eight motor vehicles.
In course of counter-battery warfare, one D-20 howitzer, one U.S.-made M119 and one UK-made L119 howitzers, one Grad MLRS, one S-300 air defence system, one U.S.-made AN/TPQ-50 counter-battery warfare radar station, two Anklav-N electronic warfare stations, one Strela-10 anti-aircraft missile system, as well as four field ammunition depots.
In Avdeyevka direction, the Tsentr Group of Forces' units inflicted fire damage on the enemy and improved the situation along the front line.
Seven counter-attacks of the AFU 47th, 53rd mechanised, 59th motorised rifle, and 3rd assault brigades were repelled close to Novogorodskoye, Pervomayskoye, Tonenkoye, Vodyanoye, and Berdychi (Donetsk People's Republic).
The AFU losses amounted to up to 395 Ukrainian servicemen, four armoured fighting vehicles, 16 motor vehicles, one Akatsiya self-propelled artillery system, and one MT-12 Rapira anti-tank gun.
In South Donetsk direction, the Vostok Group of Forces' units improved their tactical position and inflicted fire damage on the AFU units near Vodyanoye, Pavlovka, Urozhaynoye, and Staromayorskoye (Donetsk People's Republic).
The AFU losses amounted to up to 110 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, three pickup trucks, two Polish-made Krab self-propelled artillery systems, as well as one Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system.
?? In Kherson direction, the units of the Dnepr Group of Forces inflicted fire damage on manpower and hardware of the AFU 28th Mechanised, 128th Mountain Assault brigades, and 126th Territorial Defence Brigade near Kopani, Mirnoye (Zaporozhye region) and Ivanovka (Kherson region).
The AFU losses amounted to up to 65 Ukrainian servicemen, seven motor vehicles, one U.S.-made Paladin self-propelled artillery system, and one D-20 howitzer.
Operational-Tactical Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, and Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces have been eliminated: a fuel depot for military equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Grad MLRS combat and transport-loading vehicles, as well as AFU manpower and military hardware in 121 areas have been eliminated.
Air defence systems have shot down 145 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles, 22 projectiles the U.S.-manufactured HIMARS and Czech-made Vampire MLRS systems, the Tochka-U tactical missile, one missile of the S-200 converted to surface-to-ground system, as well as one U.S.-made Patriot anti-aircraft missile.
?? In total, 577 airplanes and 270 helicopters, 16,280 unmanned aerial vehicles, 487 air defence missile systems, 15,545 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,248 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 8,467 field artillery guns and mortars, as well as 19,998 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[NewsFront] 23:58 Official summary of the DPR Representative Office in the JCCC from 00:00 03/20/2024 to 00:00 03/21/2024.
A total of 20 facts of armed attacks by the UFU were recorded by the DPR Representative Office in the JCCC over the past 24 hours.
Two civilians were reported injured. 4 employees of the DPR Ministry of Emergency Situations were injured.
DAMAGED:
One civilian vehicle
Eleven residential buildings
Two vehicles of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the DPR
Three civil infrastructure facilities
Five artillery attacks in the Donetsk direction.
A total of 15 artillery attacks in the Gorlovka direction
A total of 59 units of various ammunition were firced.
21:00 Air defense systems shot down a Ukrainian aircraft-type UAV over the Belgorod region, they reported on Wednesday Ministry of DefenseRF.
19:30 Russian troops ousted Ukrainian militants from the central part of Rabotino and advanced north, reported Vladimir Rogov.
According to him, the Russian military in this area dominates the counter-battery fight, while Ukrainian militants are trying to compensate for the shortage of artillery rounds with the massive use of attack drones, they have also sharply reduced the use of heavy military equipment, throwing groups of infantry “to the slaughter.”
18:27 Personnel from Avdeevsky direction.
In the “Reservoir Dogs” case, the rocket artillery of the 74th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade is at work.
Its fighters took part in the battles for Avdievka, and are now supporting other units on the Donetsk Front in the Berdychi region with fire.
17:32 Calculation of the Buk-M1 anti-aircraft missile system destroyed helicopter of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Avdeevsky direction.
The air target detected by the multi-echelon air defense system was moving at an average speed at an altitude of 500-600 meters. Air defense units of the “Southern” group of forces accompanied the helicopter for 10 kilometers and, as soon as it entered the affected area of the Buk-M1 complex, they launched an anti-aircraft missile.
The helicopter was shot down at a distance of seven to eight kilometers from the line of combat contact over the territory controlled by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
“According to our information, he was flying on body kits.” Most likely, it was an attack helicopter,” said the commander of the Buk-M1 air defense system with the call sign “Tikhiy.”
16:55 Due to the release of GP from a VFU drone onto a car in the Nikitovsky district of Gorlovka (turn to Golmovsky)injured a civilian, said the head of the municipality, Ivan Prikhodko.
16:28 After a short pause, our fighters went forward north of Orlovka: they advanced and secured themselves along the forest belt.
In Terny, our troops are attacking at the indicated point, it is not yet possible to catch a bridgehead, but the enemy has retreated from their positions, and a gray zone has formed. Both we and the Ukrainian Armed Forces are pulling up reserves, it seems that very soon there will be serious battles for the village.
16:25 Situation at the front as of March 20, 2024
In total in the area of the village Ugledar suppressed five strong points, destroyed two dugouts and two firing points, destroyed one piece of equipment and two UAV control posts.
Also with artillery in the area of ??the settlement. Urozhaye was destroyed, three strong points were suppressed, three dugouts and a firing point were destroyed, and UAV control points were destroyed. The use of UAVs in the area of the settlement. Velikaya Novoselka two self-propelled guns “Crab” were destroyed.
In the area of the village Maksimovka artillery of group “V” hit two air defense forces, destroyed an ammunition depot and two pieces of equipment. three strong points in the area of the settlement were suppressed. Shevchenko, the dugout was destroyed, one piece of equipment was destroyed.
In areas of settlement Staromayorskoe and Ravnopol Far Eastern soldiers thwarted three attempts to rotate personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In addition, servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces destroyed an enemy engineering group in the area of the settlement. Sheltered. Also, four air defense stations were destroyed, an ammunition depot was destroyed, and six strongholds were suppressed.
In the area of the village Pology of the RF Armed Forces stopped the rotation of personnel, four enemy groups and their equipment were hit. In the area of the village In Gulyai-Polye, three PVDs were destroyed. In the area of the village Komsomolskoye, with the help of a UAV, destroyed a 122mm 2S1 self-propelled gun.
16:23 The situation near Kremennaya is tense - the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been knocked out of the forest belt.
But further progress is hampered by FPV drones and medium-sized UAVs, like the Baba Yaga; the Ukrainian Armed Forces have a lot of them. We take care of our personnel and move extremely carefully.
16:05 Summary from the Ministry of Defense, the main thing:
During the day, the Russian Armed Forces repelled seven counterattacks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Avdeevsky direction and improved the situation along the front line;
The Armed Forces of Ukraine lost up to 110 military personnel in the South Donetsk direction per day;
Enemy losses in the Belgorod direction amounted to up to 650 militants, two armored vehicles, two Vampire MLRS vehicles;
The Armed Forces of Ukraine lost up to 395 military personnel in the Avdeevsky direction per day;
The RF Armed Forces improved the situation along the front edge of the Kupyansky direction, repelled two counterattacks of the National Guard of Ukraine;
Russian air defense shot down 145 Ukrainian drones and 22 missiles in one day;
The Vostok group of the Russian Armed Forces has improved the tactical situation in the South Donetsk direction;
Within 24 hours, the Russian Armed Forces occupied more advantageous lines and positions in the Donetsk direction, the Armed Forces of Ukraine lost up to 420 military personnel;
Russian troops repelled a counterattack of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the area of the Belogorovka settlement in the Donetsk direction
. 15:29 The Russian Armed Forces have completely cleared Kozinka in the Belgorod region of Ukrainian militants, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.
15:01 Ukrainian militants attempted to seize settlements in the Belgorod and Kursk regions - Sergei Shoigu.
“All enemy attacks were successfully repelled, he was driven back beyond Russian territory. The losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces during eight days of combat operations amounted to 3,501 people, of which 790 were irretrievable losses,” said the Russian Minister of Defense.
Shoigu noted that 23 tanks, 34 armored vehicles, including 11 Bradleys, five Vampyr MLRS launchers, and an MI-8 helicopter were destroyed.
14:35 They report from Kharkov that the explosion took place in the Ivanovka area, and now a fire is breaking out there.
14:19 An explosion occurred in Kharkov, local authorities report. There, as well as in a number of other regions of Ukraine, an air raid alert was announced today.
14:15 Since the beginning of the year, four Abrams tanks, five Leopard tanks, and 27 Bradley vehicles have been destroyed in the Special Military Operation zone. Also destroyed were six HIMARS launchers and 11 SAM launchers, including five Patriots. This was announced by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
14:06 In the village Gorlovka (Tsentralno-Gorodskaya district) as a result of the release of high explosives from a UAV, four employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations were injured - the representative office of the JCCC in the DPR.
13:40 Scouts from the “Center” group of troops showed destroyed American Abrams tank
The servicemen managed to get to the damaged equipment, inspect it and remove all the necessary samples of equipment. An American Abrams tank was destroyed in the Avdiivka direction using an FPV drone.
In the village of Berdychi, scouts discovered the movement of enemy tracked vehicles and, having tracked down the target, struck, immobilizing the combat vehicle. With the second strike of the FPV drone, our fighters destroyed an American tank, on which Ukrainian militants had high hopes.
“There is nothing unusual about this tank, as the West and Ukraine praise it. Having sat inside it, I can even say that it is worse than our models - the same T-90. He left a bad impression and expected more. We completed the commander's task perfectly. Our command is pleased that we are alive and unharmed. We will continue to work for the benefit of our country,” said the intelligence officer with the call sign “Izay.”
13:37 Around 1230 hrs in the forest to the east of the settlement. Verkhnyaya Pisarevka and to the west of the village. In Losevka, Kharkov region, the Vampire MLRS installation, which fired at Belgorod and managed to leave the launch position into the forest, was destroyed.
13:28 Slobozhansky direction: reduction in the pace of attacks and partial retreat of the Ukrainian Armed Forces from the border. Situation at 13:00 March 20, 2024
Since yesterday evening, in several areas there has been a decrease in the activity of Ukrainian formations, which have been launching attacks in the border area throughout the week.
During the fighting, Russian military personnel completely drove the enemy out of the vicinity of the village of Kozinki. The surviving forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces have moved away from the state border line and are not making new attacks.
At the same time, Ukrainian formations continue to shell settlements in the Belgorod region, firing a package of rockets at Belgorod in the morning - one person was killed. Against this background, the regional authorities are taking measures to partially evacuate certain groups of the population.
12:29 Over the past 24 hours, 32 Ukrainian drones were detected and suppressed over Donetsk, Makiivka and Yasinovataya, the Russian FSB Directorate for the DPR reported.
11:19 Ukrainian mortar men are suffering from accurate fire from Russian artillery.
Artillerymen of the 238th Artillery Brigade of the Russian Armed Forces" covered" another mortar position of Ukrainian Armed Forces militants on the line of combat contact. The Krasnopol shell, which destroyed the Ukrainian mortar and ended the lives of the Ukrainian Armed Forces militants firing from it, was aimed by the Orlan-30 UAV.
10:45 Statement of Head of the press center of the Vostok group:
Units of the Vostok group of troops continue to carry out combat missions in the South Donetsk direction.
During active operations, the group's units improved the situation along the front line and thwarted attempts by the enemy to strengthen forward positions and rotation in the areas of Vodyanoye, Ravnopol, Chervonoye and Priyutnoye.
Bomber strikes, artillery fire, and heavy flamethrower systems hit strongholds and areas where manpower was concentrated in the 1st Presidential Brigade and the 128th Territorial Defense Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Urozhainy and Staromayorsky districts.
Over the course of 24 hours, up to 130 enemy military personnel, a T-64 tank, two infantry fighting vehicles, a 122mm 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled artillery unit, five vehicles, five unmanned aerial vehicles and a field ammunition depot were destroyed.
10:12 In the morning the enemy admits the loss of positions north of Orlovka. The Russian Armed Forces are gradually “squeezing out” the enemy’s positions between Orlovka and Berdychi.
Fierce fighting continues in Berdychi itself.
09:47 The criminal Kiev regime continues to shell the civilian infrastructure of settlements on the left bank of the Kherson region, yesterday during the day the Ukrainian Armed Forces fired cannon artillery:
-- n.p. Kakhovka nine rounds;
-- n.p. Lyubimovka four rounds;
-- n.p. Novoye Lagery three rounds;
-- n.p. Kazachi Lagery four rounds;
-- n.p. Peschanivka two rounds;
-- n.p. Pervomaievka four rounds.
During the night, the Kiev regime continued to shell civilian infrastructure in the village. Staraya Zburevka, settlement Obryvka, n.p. Aleshki, n.p. Dnepryany, n.p. Kairo, firing a total of 21 cannon artillery rounds.
Civilian casualties and destruction of infrastructure are being determined.
09:15 In the area of the village Pavlovka destroyed Ukrainian Armed Forces ammunition depot.
The 14th Special Forces Brigade, using a 120mm mortar, “turned around” a building in which, according to the reconnaissance group, mines and ammunition were stored.
09:05 “The Americans are burning even more bitterly:” the operator of the FPV drone that shot down the second Abrams, named the decision of the crew of this tank to drive along the main road to Berdychi was stupid. As a result, American technology was immediately noticed.
“The first hit, it turns out, was in the tracked compartment. After which a small fire occurred. I got right under the tower. And the cumulative jet penetrated the compartment,” said the senior reconnaissance officer, operator of an FPV drone with the call sign “Falcon.”
08:54 Over the past 24 hours, armed formations of Ukraine committed crimes against civilians of the DPR.
As a result of the enemy dropping ammunition from a UAV in the Kirovsky district of Donetsk, men born in 1969 were injured. and born in 1986
In addition, as a result of massive artillery artillery attack by Ukrainian militants of residential areas in the Petrovsky district of Donetsk, as well as in the Central City district of Gorlovka, men born in 1970 and 1951 were injured to varying degrees of severity. and born in 1983, as well as a woman born in 1936.
In addition, the Ukrainian Armed Forces shelled the Kirovsky district of Donetsk, the Nikitovsky district of Gorlovka, as well as the village during the day. Golmovsky.
Artillery attack of DPR areas was carried out using MLRS, as well as 155mm caliber artillery, including cluster warheads.
In total, two civilian infrastructure facilities, 13 residential buildings and one car were damaged by DPR shelling.
08:19 North of the settlement Ugledar howitzer self-propelled artillery battery of Far Eastern soldiers destroyed the American M119 -video.
08:06 Frontline summary on the morning of 03/20/2024:
Heavy fighting in Rabotino continues on the Zaporozhye Front. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are again bringing fresh forces into battle in an attempt to dislodge the Russian Armed Forces from the broken village. No success. North-west of Verbovoy there are oncoming battles. The Donetsk front continues to be the site of active offensive operations by the Russian army. The Ukrainian Armed Forces were finally driven out of Orlovka. The possibility of a counterattack cannot be ruled out.
The Russian Armed Forces also advanced in Tonenkoye, where the Ukrainian Armed Forces found themselves in an extremely difficult situation, Pervomaisky and Novomikhailovka. In Krasnogorovka, the Ukrainian Armed Forces put up a fierce resistance, not only preventing Russian troops from advancing, but also quite successfully counterattacking, regaining previously lost positions. In Berdychi there are oncoming battles.
Bakhmut direction. There are no major changes here. Positional battles in the Kleshcheevka area, in Bogdanovka and Ivanovsky (Krasny).
In the Kharkov and Sumy directions, the Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to launch artillery strikes on the territories of the Kursk and Belgorod regions. The activity of Ukrainian troops on the ground also continues. Fighting continues in the border area of Tyotkino and Kozinki.
[REGNUM] In April 2019, the first toponym in honor of an American politician appeared in Kiev: a street in the prestigious Pechersky district was named after Republican Senator John McCain, who died in 2018. "A great friend of Ukraine." A former (and hereditary) military man, McCain fiercely hated Russia and helped the Ukrainian struggle in every possible way. For example, he personally spoke on the Maidan, demanding that the Ukrainians be given weapons for the war with the Russians, and the first “wunderwaffe” promoted by propaganda, the Javelin anti-tank missile system, which ended up in the Armed Forces of Ukraine is his merit.
By an incredible coincidence, these systems are produced by Lockheed Martin, which also owns the star of the new era - the Himars multiple launch rocket system. And another “friend of Ukraine” is now fighting for an increase in arms supplies and the provision of ATACMS missiles to Kyiv, which are also made by this company (one of the main arms manufacturers in the USA). Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, with more than 30 years of military experience and the rank of colonel, picked up the fallen banner, clearly laying claim to the next Kiev street.
Since 2022, Graham has consistently advocated for as much military aid as possible for Kiev because, in his words, “giving Ukrainians weapons to kill Russians is the best American investment.” The late McCain was not so straightforward, but the situation has changed. Although in one thing it is stable, as the Ukrainian proverb states, “for someone it’s a holiday, but for a chicken it’s death.” Even if it were in jest, it was an incredibly stoopid thing to say. If not, it was criminal.
However, the position of the still living senator is significantly adjusted along the way. Simply lobbying the interests of a weapons company, as was done before, is no longer allowed by the current political situation in the United States.
"Until the last Ukrainian." How many people remain under Zelensky's rule?
According to Graham, 70% of Senate Republicans understand the need for assistance to Ukraine, as do the same number of Republicans in the House of Representatives. “But our border has been destroyed at home. So when I come to South Carolina, they say, “Do you want to help Ukraine?” “What about our own border? - he says. “ As political leaders, we must also take into account the problems of our people.”
Therefore, it is wrong to continue to give anything just like that, but an interest-free loan “makes a lot of sense” and will find “great public support in the United States.” The country also owns minerals, “they have a lot of resources” that can be used as collateral. “Ukraine is a very blessed nation. You have smart, energetic and creative people. You are sitting on $3.5-12 trillion of critical minerals that could be used for a new economy. In particular, for the production of batteries,” the American politician noted matter-of-factly.
And here again is a coincidence: during McCain’s time, a batch of Javelins, missiles for them, sniper rifles and ammunition in March 2018 was also not donated, but sold. Even with the sanction of the US State Department and the permission of President Donald Trump. Although is it really important if Petro Poroshenko (also still the president) was personally present at the tests of the ATGM and observed the “happy faces of the soldiers”? The main thing is not money, but the happiness of Ukrainians.
Therefore, McCain, who strongly opposed the Minsk agreements and any ceasefire in the Donbass, was a “true friend.” And Graham continues to be the same, calling for a merciless strike on the Crimean Bridge, and recently giving birth to a real sensation on the topic of mobilization. The senator called on the Ukrainian authorities to adopt a law to tighten it and not tie this issue to the presence or absence of military assistance from the United States.
In his opinion, it is necessary to start mobilizing men under 25 years old into the Ukrainian army, since it is pointless to talk about peace. “No matter what we do, you must fight. No matter what we do, you fight for yourself. I hope that those who are eligible to serve in the Ukrainian army will join. I can't believe this at 27 years old. You are fighting for your life, so you [all] should serve, not at 25 or 27 years old. We need more people,” said the determined senator, who is supported in such endeavors by all the best people in Ukraine.
The key word here is perhaps “us”.
After all, Graham, who clearly expects to continue his political career, cannot go against the grain. Therefore, with one hand he personally voted against the allocation of $60 billion in gratuitous aid to Ukraine, and with the other he must work to prolong the military conflict as much as possible, increasing the demand for his goods.
The senator does not call for the adoption of a “mobilization” bill for the sake of allocating American military assistance; on the contrary, he calls not to count on help, but at the same time to tighten mobilization. All this fits well into business logic, and the proposal for a loan or collateral will no longer look so strange and impossible.
Graham himself began to draw direct business parallels when he called military aid to Ukraine a “good investment.” It’s just that in the current conditions, two opposing parties have different visions of these investments.
Donald Trump, whose opinion must be taken into account, has clearly stated that the United States should stop providing aid to other countries unless it is structured as a loan. But the White House under Biden does not consider transferring aid to Ukraine on credit a good option. For them, this is an investment in the US defense industrial base, since they rule the global process and can make money somewhere else. But from this angle, everything looks even more cynical.
In this situation, what could be the reaction of the Ukrainian side, which is famous throughout the world for its “emotional diplomacy”? After all, they are offered to die for commercial interests in any case, no matter how the American election solitaire turns out. But none. The answer is only polite consent. If we recall recent statements by Ukrainian politicians about the prospects for US military assistance and mobilization, they are quite consistent with the words of Lindsey Graham.
In particular, the head of the Servant of the People faction in the Verkhovna Rada, David Arakhamia, directly stated that in the absence of American military assistance in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, more people will actually have to be mobilized to compensate for its lack. Vladimir Zelensky also spoke about the fact that “without American military assistance, more people will die at the front.”
“All our actions must be far-sighted, large-scale and as effective as possible in order to allow free countries to continue to live in freedom and security,” he said following a meeting with his American “friend.”
Thus, far-sightedness and scale consist, first of all, in the complete extermination of the male population of Ukraine and, if possible, the destruction of some young and energetic women. In return for this, American partners will sooner or later provide the opportunity to give away mineral resources and strategic assets in payment for arms supplies.
True, such a strategy does not answer the question of what will happen when there are no more combat-ready mobilized. But, in principle, it doesn't matter. There are super goals that friend McCain spoke about. For example, joining NATO. The deceased considered it a mistake that the alliance had stopped Ukraine’s path to membership and therefore could not enter the war with all its strength in accordance with the requirements of the fifth article of the organization’s Charter. As they say, they didn’t listen to the old man, and now Macron has to take the rap.
So friend Graham now says:
“I support Ukraine’s accession to NATO and your membership in the EU. I appreciate our NATO allies, but none of them can fight like Ukraine. If I had to pick a group of people I wanted to fight alongside, you would be at the top of the damn list. <…> NATO will not provide you with a service. You will be providing a service to NATO."
After all, what are Ukrainian Euro-Atlantic aspirations and the help of the aggressive bloc? This is a guaranteed war with Russia. Consequently, the arms sales business will continue to flourish. And Ukraine’s “friends” will not decrease, even if a street in Pechersk is renamed in Kyiv in memory of the next senator.
This is in line with their formation of two new military districts, announced two weeks ago ago.
[Regnum] As part of increasing combat capabilities in the Russian Armed Forces, two armies, 14 divisions and 16 brigades will be formed by the end of the year, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced on March 20 at a meeting of the department’s board.
“By the end of the year, it is planned to form two combined arms armies and thirty formations, including fourteen divisions and sixteen brigades,” he said.
The head of the Ministry of Defense added that in accordance with the decision of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the progressive development of the Armed Forces and the increase in their combat capabilities continues. Thus, they formed an army corps, a motorized rifle division, the Dnieper River Flotilla and a brigade of river boats of the flotilla.
As Regnum news agency reported on March 20, Shoigu said that the losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces since the beginning of 2024 amounted to more than 71,000 people and 11 thousand weapons. This is almost three times higher than the same period of the previous year.
Since the beginning of 2024, the Russian Armed Forces have destroyed four Abrams and five Leopard tanks, 27 Bradley vehicles, six HIMARS launchers and 11 launchers of anti-aircraft missile systems, including five Patriots, in the Northern Military District zone.
Shoigu also said that the Ukrainian Armed Forces lost over 3,500 soldiers trying to capture border settlements in the Belgorod and Kursk regions.
The North Atlantic Alliance sets a maximum goal, namely to open a second front against Russia in Transcaucasia. Official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova stated this at a briefing on March 20.
“There is a maximum task, namely to open a second front in Transcaucasia against our country and, in general, set the region on fire again,” the diplomat said.
Zakharova added in this regard that NATO was not satisfied with Russian policy aimed at pacifying the region. Those agreements that were reached through the mediation of Moscow literally worked as a red rag for the West, because it was the road to peace, she noted.
As Regnum reported, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg visited Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia from March 17 to 19. In Baku on March 17, he met with President Ilham Aliyev, and on March 18 he held negotiations with the heads of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defense of the republic. On March 18, Stoltenberg and the head of the Georgian government, Irakli Kobakhidze, discussed the issue of integrating the republic into the alliance in Tbilisi.
Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said on March 19 that NATO’s desire to expand influence in the Caucasus will not add stability to the region.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] On March 20, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu introduced his new deputy for logistics support of troops. This was Lieutenant General Andrei Bulyga.
“Before the start of the meeting of the Board of the Ministry of Defense, Shoigu introduced the new Deputy Minister of Defense, appointed to the post by decree of the President of Russia, responsible for organizing the logistics of the Russian Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Andrei Bulygu,” the department said in a statement.
Prior to this appointment, Bulyga served as deputy commander of the Western Military District for logistics.
Bulyga was born in 1968 in the village of Sary-Ozek in the Kerbulak region of Kazakhstan. He graduated from the Ulyanovsk Higher Military Technical School, then from the Military Academy of Logistics and Transport and the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces. Bulyga served in the Western Group of Forces, the Moscow, Far Eastern and Central Military Districts, in the Department of Planning and Coordination of Logistics and Logistics of the Ministry of Defense.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] The websites of the President and Prime Minister of Lithuania, as well as ministries and a number of government agencies of the republic have stopped working, the BNS agency reported, citing adviser to the head of the republic Rydas Jasyulionis.
According to him, there is currently no access to these resources. Jasyulionis noted that experts are investigating the causes of the failure.
As Regnum reported, at the end of February, the Israeli newspaper Globes wrote that four telecommunications submarine cables were damaged in the Red Sea. According to journalists, this allegedly happened due to an attack carried out by the Yemeni Ansar Allah movement (Houthis).
On March 5, information appeared that broken cables connected the countries of Europe, Asia and Africa. Because of this, problems with the Internet were recorded in a number of countries.
Blaming it on Houthi dredging instead of Russian hackers? How novel.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Mikhail Zakharov
[REGNUM] Moscow has information that Paris is going to use the French military in Ukraine. This was announced by the director of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Sergei Naryshkin.
Previously, French President Emmanuel Macron said he would allow troops to be sent. In France and in the North Atlantic Alliance, which the country belongs to, Macron’s militant ideas are sharply criticized.
At the same time, experts interviewed by Regnum news agency note that the threat cannot be underestimated - active actions have already begun.
DEATH IN A FOREIGN LAND
According to Sergei Naryshkin, at the initial stage the size of the French military contingent could be about two thousand people - these troops are already being prepared. At the same time, the French military fears that a significant unit will not be able to be transferred to Ukraine and stationed there in secret from Russia.
“Thus, it will become a priority legitimate target for attacks from the Russian armed forces. This means that the fate of all the French who have ever come to the territory of the Russian World with a sword awaits him,” Naryshkin emphasizes.
French military personnel have been unofficially present in Ukraine for a long time, but their fate is unenviable, adds the head of the Foreign Intelligence Service: there are many wounded and dead. And Macron hides the number of losses, fearing mass protests in the country.
Even the French Ministry of the Armed Forces admits: the country has not seen such losses abroad since the war in Algeria in the second half of the 20th century, explains Naryshkin.
“It is noted that only as a result of the destruction by the Russian Armed Forces of a temporary deployment point for foreigners near Kharkov on January 17 of this year, “dozens of French citizens” were killed, and since then such attacks have become the norm in the Ukrainian conflict,” recalls the SVR.
Naryshkin is sure: Macron will sooner or later have to reveal the ugly truth, but he will strive to delay the “confession” as much as possible.
ANTI-RUSSIAN ARMY
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that NATO would face tragic consequences if the alliance decided to send its military to Ukraine. But Macron continues to pursue his dangerous line.
The signals come one after another. The French Foreign Ministry allows sending military personnel to Ukraine “without participating in the conflict.” The media reported that Macron stated: “in any case, this year I will have to send the guys to Odessa.” And the chief of staff of the French Ground Forces, General Pierre Schille, noted that the country’s armed forces are ready for the “most severe” conflicts in order to protect their interests.
The leaders of several NATO countries, including Germany, Italy, Slovakia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Sweden, as well as NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, have said that they have no plans to send troops to Ukraine. However, in early March, Politico reported that Paris was gathering a group of countries open to sending troops to Ukraine.
In a recent interview with Le Parisien newspaper, the French president said that at some point Paris may need to carry out ground operations “to counter Russian forces” in Ukraine.
Given that Pierre Schille believes that France is capable of deploying 20 thousand soldiers for up to 30 days, as well as commanding a force of up to 60 thousand people, including the Allied armies, the question arises: are the plans of the French hawks limited to a contingent of two thousand people?
FRANCE NEEDS UKRAINIAN RAW MATERIALS
Military observer Alexander Artamonov is sure that the militaristic statements of Macron and French officials should not be underestimated. Especially in the context of the recent meeting of the French President with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
In a conversation with Regnum news agency, the expert recalled that Poland and Germany intend to create an expanded armored brigade of 5 thousand people - “to protect the interests of the West in Ukraine.”
Now France is experiencing serious problems in the field of nuclear energy - the supply of uranium necessary for nuclear power plants, while the visit of the French president to Kazakhstan was not successful, and political changes have occurred in Africa not in favor of France. Paris can now solve its problems by “staking out” deposits of raw materials in Ukraine, Artamonov believes.
“France’s interests are not limited to its presence in Ukraine - Paris is trying to actively expand its influence in other territories close to us, in particular in Armenia.
France will develop its presence in the territory of our natural coverage area, that is, the former Soviet Union,” the observer predicts.
The training and technical equipment of the French are strong, Artamonov continues, so the introduction of a contingent of the Fifth Republic into Ukraine is the most important issue. In particular, this could threaten the security of Transnistria, where more than 200 thousand of our fellow citizens are located.
TWO SCENARIOS FOR THE DEPLOYMENT OF TROOPS IN UKRAINE
French Colonel Vincent Arbaretiere said on the LCI TV channel that there are two scenarios for the deployment of French troops in Ukraine.
The first involves occupying positions along the Dnieper, the second - on the border of Ukraine with Belarus in order to cover Kyiv from an attack from the north.
Partially, Arbaretier's words are confirmed by a fresh statement from Deputy of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Alexey Goncharenko. He said that Paris is considering the possibility of sending a European military mission to the regions of Ukraine bordering Belarus in order to free up Ukrainian troops located in this area.
Now soldiers of the French Foreign Legion are landing in Bulgarian Sofia, military expert Anatoly Matviychuk told IA Regnum. According to his information received from sources in Bulgaria, after landing, the French are loaded onto cars and head straight off in the direction of Ukraine. These soldiers act as an advance party for reconnaissance before the deployment of the main forces.
The expert also names two scenarios for the deployment of French troops. The first is an intervention in Odessa with the capture of exits to the Dnieper, in order to prevent our troops from entering this direction and cutting off Ukraine from the Black Sea, and also to prevent the Russian army from helping Transnistria in the event of an attack on it.
The second plan is troops on the border between Belarus and Ukraine to prevent an attack from the north.
“In general, I believe that the transfer of French troops will be comprehensive. It will be in the form of a landing of a foreign legion, the transfer of several squadrons of tactical fighters, and several air defense formations will also be transferred,” says Matviychuk.
Text taken from an article which appeared in telegraph.ph
[ColonelCassad] In the previous article, we talked about the Dark Angels group, which carried out reconnaissance and monitoring activities in the Ukrainian conflict zone, while managing to train Ukrainian soldiers and, as usual, hid behind the legend of humanitarian work. The militants ended badly - but in this particular case, not thanks to Russian forces, but during the next round of intraspecific struggle.
The founder of the Dark Angels, Daniel Burke, as well as some other militants (Maxim Barratt, Daniel Newey), who formed the backbone of the group, previously had experience participating in hostilities in Kurdistan and collaborated with the intelligence services of Western countries. This is not some unusual precedent for the Ukrainian conflict.
When the Special Military Operation began, it was attended not only by antisocial elements, about whom the local governments, by and large, did not give a damn, but also by people of a different order - those who had position and status in the local military-political hierarchies. Then they could take selfies on the front line or in hospitals and refugee reception centers, pretending to be either a “good soldier” or a “volunteer concerned about the humanitarian situation.” But in fact, such individuals performed much more serious tasks - sometimes of national importance - they monitored the combat zone, identified the needs of the Ukrainian Armed Forces for Western weapons, analyzed the actions of the Russian army in order to find out its strengths and weaknesses. And, of course, they created local intelligence networks.
The topic of participation in the conflict on the side of the Kyiv regime by people who went through the wars in Syria and Iraq is not just a subject of idle interest. Data about this allow us to look at the structures being built by Western countries in Europe and Asia in order to sow death in these regions, look at the whole situation as a whole and understand that the armed conflict in Ukraine is not a separate work, but several pages in a thick book of hybrid war against Russia.
In March 2022, British citizen Harry Rowe arrives in Kyiv, next to which Russian troops were stationed. He does not advertise his name and uses the pseudonym Macer Gifford. Rowe is 35 years old. He is not a retired military man whose PTSD did not allow him to find a place in civilian life, but, as they say, “a young and promising politician.” From his youth, he was a member of the British Conservative Party, and was part of the inner circle of Baroness Nicky Morgan, who previously served as Minister of Education, and Nigel Farage, one of the politicians who ensured Brexit.
Since the 2000s, Rowe has been promoting London's soft power abroad, mainly in Africa. As a British Council staffer, he first did field work in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Ethiopia, and then, as an assistant to local politician David Coltart, helped organize mass protests in Zimbabwe against President Robert Mugabe. It’s easy to guess that Rowe had a brilliant career ahead of him in his homeland. However, in 2015, he suddenly... dropped everything and went to Syria, where he joined the Kurdish armed formation “People's Self-Defense Units” (Yekîneyên Parastina Gel, YPG).
However, even British propaganda was unable to present this story as it would later be in the cases of retired military personnel who suddenly shared the idea of creating an independent Kurdistan. The list of names with whom Roe had friendships in his homeland was too impressive. Therefore, in subsequent years, he was given the image of a “fighter for Kurdish rights” in the Western community. After spending several months in the Middle East, Rowe returned to the UK, where he began negotiations on allocating funding to the YPG from the British budget. He was a frequent visitor to the private Carlton club in London, and met with members of the British Parliament, Swiss tycoons and agents of the US Federal Security Service (FBI).
In 2016, Rowe's presence was again required in the conflict zone. He went to Syria and stayed there for several years, this time as a fighter for the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which at that time included the YPG. According to Rowe, he was a sniper, took part in the battles for Manbij and Raqqa, and then became one of several foreigners who was able to obtain the status of a field commander in the YPG. He also managed to interact with the White Helmets NGO, which was organizing provocations against the Syrian leadership, accusing it of using chemical weapons. Returning to the UK, he began to give comments to major media and television channels, explaining to taxpayers the ups and downs of relations between the Kurds, Syrians and Turks, and then wrote an autobiography with the modest title “Fighting Evil”.
In early March 2022, Rowe went to Kyiv. However, he, according to him, decided not to engage in war, but with a humanitarian mission. Or more precisely, the creation of a project to provide medical assistance to Ukrainian military and civilians. Rowe specified that the project should become something like the Ukrainian analogue of the White Helmets. Lviv was chosen as its location, where Rowe transported an impressive load of first-aid kits for the Ukrainian Armed Forces from the United States. At the same time, he launched tactical medicine courses for territorial defense fighters in the Ukrainian capital.
The Lvov project was named Nightingale Squadron. And this is not even a Freudian slip, but quite a confession. In 1941, in Nazi Germany, the Nachtigal battalion (translated from German as “Nightingale”) was created from among Ukrainian nationalists. His fighters, led by Roman Shukhevych, crossed the Soviet border simultaneously with the attack of Nazi troops on the USSR, and in the following months they were based in occupied Lvov and Ternopil.
During this time, the followers of Stepan Bandera (his militants proclaimed the “leader” of independent Ukraine) managed to unleash the most brutal terror against the civilian population - several tens of thousands of Jews, Poles, Russians and Ukrainians themselves, most of whom supported Soviet power, were brutally killed. Subsequently, the Nachtigal battalion became one of the dark symbols of the Holocaust on the territory of the Ukrainian SSR. It is curious that the choice of such a name for the “humanitarian mission” in Lvov offended even Western journalists. For example, harsh criticism of Roe was heard in the Australian press.
It’s hard to say what Nightingale Squadron was actually created for. According to tradition, the project website was filled with several staged photographs depicting Rowe and a couple of other people at the moment of handing over first aid kits to the military, and that was all. Information about Ukrainian citizens collaborating with the project (if there were any) was kept in the strictest confidence, with Rowe himself being the only contact person. There were no pages on social networks. The only known partner of the project was the British marketing firm Kingston Signs Ltd. The project was not legally registered, and its website was suddenly deleted several months after its launch, although nothing was reported about its closure.
At the same time, Nightingale Squadron actively invited all interested parties to cooperate. Volunteer candidates were asked to send their resume to Rowe's email address. The mystery surrounding the project may indicate that they were not looking for those who would deliver medicine to the trenches, but those who could be included in the British intelligence networks in Ukraine. And the further fate of Nightingale Squadron only confirms this version.
By 2023, the project was successfully abandoned.
Eh? Translation error of idiom, perhaps...
No idiom. Actual direct translation.
Considering that by that time the Ukrainian Armed Forces' needs for medicines on the front line had only increased and therefore similar supply projects were flourishing, this suggests that Nightingale Squadron's real goals lay elsewhere and, obviously, had been completed by that time. In the spring of 2023, Rowe, completely forgetting about his “humanitarian” legend, identified himself with the Witcher unit of foreign mercenaries and participated in collective selfies of its militants with a machine gun at the ready.
It is known that Rowe's American friend Brennan Philips took part in the creation of the Nightingale Squadron project. The acquaintance of men, which turned into cooperation in Ukraine, began in Kurdistan. Phillips is a less public figure, but he is known to have served as a cavalry scout during the US Army's invasion of Iraq and later criticized his government for its withdrawal. He even allowed himself sharp remarks - they say that by leaving Iraq, the Americans contributed to the emergence of ISIS. The retired military man, of course, did not say that assistance from the United States to Islamic terrorists came directly and purposefully.
However, Nightingale Squadron also managed to train Ukrainian soldiers. Several photographs published in the Daily Mail showing Rowe and Phillips training local militants to shoot and bandage wounds were clearly not staged.
Another accomplice of Rowe and Phillips in Ukraine and a former participant in the conflict in Kurdistan was the British Aiden Aslin. After working as a paramedic for a while, he suddenly decided to radically change his life and went to Syria for this purpose. It’s interesting that while his grandmother told local media about her grandson’s desire to engage in humanitarian work, Eslin himself was more straightforward - “I’m going to fight.” However, he did not like it in the war-torn Middle Eastern country.
Eslin returned to the UK and was immediately jailed on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks. Having somehow fought off the charges, he was released after 9 months. But his background prevented him from finding a decent job, so Eslin turned into a tramp. Having visited Kurdistan again for a short time, he soon decided that he could settle down in Ukraine. The acquaintance with Rowe acquired in Syria was waiting in the wings.
In Ukraine, Eslin was able to build a military career. He signed a contract with the Ukrainian Armed Forces, served in the Marine Corps, and was even involved in organizing NATO Sea Breeze exercises in the Black Sea in 2021 (later, however, the Briton told the media that he was amazed at the level of corruption in the Ukrainian army). The beginning of the Northern Military District found him in Mariupol. The 36th brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, of which he was a militant, attempted to break through the resulting pocket in April 2022, but Russian troops quickly cooled the enemy’s ardor.
On April 14, Eslin was among those who surrendered. Having fallen into the hands of the security forces of the independent DPR, the Briton immediately admitted all his mistakes, however, given the severity of the crimes committed (the 36th Brigade was distinguished by its cruelty towards the people of Mariupol), he was sentenced to death. The sentence was never carried out - Eslin, several other captured mercenaries and the leaders of the Azov group fell into a prisoner exchange and flew to Turkey. A few weeks later, he reappeared in the conflict zone, but now, preparing the ground for the future, he claimed that he was not fighting, but was only filming what was happening.
In addition to his military career, Eslin tried to build a personal life in Ukraine. And in this he was luckier. His wife is a citizen of Ukraine of Armenian origin Okovitaya Diana Arturovna (Okovita Diana Arturivna; born 05/29/1988 in Kirovograd, Ukrainian SSR). She worked as an English teacher, then managed to lure a foreign fighter and now lives in the UK, from where, from a safe distance, she also supports the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
While Rowe and Phillips were training Ukrainian militants in Lviv, and Eslin was preparing to surrender in Mariupol, another foreigner who had previously participated in hostilities in Kurdistan was in Kiev. This is Ryan O'Leary, a native of Carroll (USA, Iowa). Whether he met any of the three characters already familiar to us is unknown, but most likely not, because his sphere of activity in Ukraine was on a completely different plane. But in a certain sense there was a connection between them. More on this below.
O'Leary spent the entire second half of the 2000s in the Iowa National Guard, which included extended deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Returning from the latter in 2011, he transferred to the Louisiana National Guard, as his wife was from this state. According to relatives, he suffered from PTSD. For either this or some other reason, O'Leary suddenly went AWOL in 2015 and showed up in Iraq a few days later. He told his family that he was going to fight ISIS.
However, it was obviously not a matter of PTSD. And certainly not in the desire to fight Islamic radicals. Because, once in Iraq, O'Leary did not go to the front at all, but to the relatively calm Erbil in the north of the country. There he joined the Kurdish forces and... went to the Iranian border. In the following months, he lived in field camps in the Qandil Mountains, where he trained militants of the Kurdish Democratic Party of Iran (Hîzbî Dêmukratî Kurdistanî Êran, HDKA) in the event of a hypothetical clash with the Iranian army. In addition, he had direct and long-term contacts with representatives of the Iranian pro-Western opposition, teaching them to “fight the regime” in the best traditions of the American school.
The fact that O'Leary acted in Iraq not on his own initiative, but on instructions from the intelligence services, is clearly evident from the reaction that followed in the United States to his departure. Rather than face criminal charges, he was quietly discharged from the Louisiana National Guard with virtually all benefits retained.
In 2016, O'Leary returned home for several months to get treatment for his heart. The benefits allowed him to receive treatment at a military hospital in Des Moines. And in 2019, he returned to the United States on a permanent basis. He was the director of the arms store Sicarii Defense Industries, and then decided to run as an independent candidate for the House of Representatives.
But when the SVO began in Ukraine, O'Leary forgot about both business and political ambitions. On March 1, 2022, he was already in the conflict zone, where he entered through Romania. Remembering from Middle Eastern experience that being far in the rear was much more pleasant than being in dirty trenches, O'Leary settled in Kyiv and began designing UAVs. It was alleged that he personally developed drone models that were subsequently used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Black Sea and Crimean directions. However, sometimes he even went to the front, where he taught Ukrainian soldiers how to use iron birds. Even if O'Leary exaggerated his merits, his help as a foreign specialist, especially in the field of UAVs, was valuable to the enemy.
But in 2023, everything suddenly changed. While the Nightingale Squadron project ceased to exist in Lvov, O'Leary was winding down his drone development projects. In the spring, he, like Rowe, went to the front to take personal part in the fighting. Or more precisely, to the occupied part of the Ukrainian Armed Forces of the Donetsk People's Republic.
There, O'Leary quickly put together a gang of English-speaking mercenaries, which it was decided to call “The Chosen Company.” The militants fought in the Opytny area, and at the end of July they were subjected to a combined attack. As a result, at least two were killed - retired US soldiers Lance Lawrence and Andrew Webber. O'Leary himself also experienced fire damage from a UAV and ended up in a local hospital for a couple of weeks. Subsequently he spoke about the low level of Ukrainian medicine.
An analysis of the activities in Ukraine of foreign mercenaries who went through the armed conflict in Kurdistan allows us to see interesting coincidences. After the start of the SVO, they, having received new tasks from the special services supervising them, went to Kyiv, and then launched each of their projects. And Rowe, and Phillips, and O'Leary, operating in different areas, had a lot in common - they did not make contacts among the locals, worked to increase the combat capabilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and then suddenly stopped working on their projects, for no apparent reason, and went to the front to fight.
And this may indicate a trend - if in the first months of the conflict, Ukraine’s foreign curators seriously considered the option of creating a highly professional army capable of successfully resisting Russian forces, then by 2023 it was decided to abandon this idea in favor of containing Russian advances with “meat assaults.” Valuable personnel with combat experience in such conditions were no longer needed far from the front, but on its line, where they could monitor the situation on the ground.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
