The war in Ukraine He turns 412 days old this Tuesday. Russian and Ukrainian forces continue clashes in Bakhmutwhere Russia accuses Ukraine of leading its own troops into a “meat mincer”.
The Kremlin claims that the alleged leaked documents from the Pentagon are “quite interesting” and he stressed that “it cannot be ruled out” that the United States has been spying on the president of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenskiin the framework of the war unleashed in February 2022
The United States Strategic Command announced that A 23rd annual nuclear deterrence exercise known as Global Thunder will begin on Tuesday.which involves key Washington allies and partners, such as the United Kingdom.
On February 24, 2022, the President of Russia Vladimir Putinordered the Russian offensive in the country in what he called a “special military operation”.
Since then, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that more than 20 million people have fled Ukraine, since the beginning of the Russian military offensive, which he considers to be the fastest exodus in Europe since World War II. That is, more than 49.2% of the population –estimated at almost 41 million in 2021– would have left Ukrainian territory.
Situation of the war in Ukraine on April 11, 2023 / Map: EA According to him last report of Institute Study of War (ISW) (1) stresses that Russian forces “continue to make territorial gains in and around Bakhmut, and continued ground attacks on the Avdiivka-Donetsk City line“.
On the other hand, the ISW also claims that the Russian forces are still “conducting limited ground attacks along the Svatove-Kreminna line“.
Also, the think tank American reports that Russian forces are carrying out “the defensive preparations in the provinces of Jerson and Zaporiyia.“.
The governor of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), Denis Pushilin, accused the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Monday of leading his own troops into a “meat grinder” in the city of Bakhmut, which has become a key front in the framework of the Russian invasion of the territory.
Pushilin, who has announced that he has traveled to the area, where clashes between the parties continue to take place, has indicated that the town “is being liberated by the Wagner Group”, a group made up of Russian mercenaries. “Our units continue to liberate Russian soil,” he pointed out in a video broadcast through his Telegram channel.
He has also indicated that Ukraine “is not saving forces or units” in the area and has pointed out that “the enemy does not skimp on its own people either.” “They are leading them all into a meat grinder,” she has said.
On the other hand, Pushilin has denounced that the Ukrainian troops have destroyed the headquarters of the Bakhmut City Council before their “withdrawal”, although he has assured that, as they did in Mariúpol, the pro-Russian authorities “will rebuild the city”.
“There is a lot of work to restore (…) There are practically no entire buildings, almost all of them are one hundred percent damaged, but we will equip everything,” said the governor of the self-proclaimed DPR, according to the Russian news agency TASS.
On April 3, the founder of the Wagner Group, Yevgeni Prigozhin, announced that the city was “legally” under the control of Russian forces. However, since then fighting has broken out again in the immediate vicinity, especially next to the train station.
On Friday, Britain’s Defense Ministry said the Russian military could have made “significant gains” in Bakhmut, allowing them to enter the eastern part of the city.
Bakhmut is the scene of the main clashes between Russia and Ukraine on the eastern flank of the war. From kyiv they continue to deny that the Russian forces have taken control of the city although they have admitted that there are “difficulties”.
The Kremlin has affirmed this Monday that the alleged leaked documents from the Pentagon are “quite interesting” and has stressed that “it cannot be ruled out” that the United States has been spying on the president of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenski, in the framework of the war unleashed in February of 2022.
“The fact that the United States began surveillance of various heads of state a long time ago, especially in European capitals, has repeatedly come to light and caused several scandals,” Russian Presidency spokesman Dimitri Peskov said. according to the Russian newspaper ‘Izvestia’.
Thus, he has maintained that “it cannot be ruled out” that Washington has spied on Zelenski, after the US television channel CNN reported over the weekend that one of the leaked documents would point in this direction.
Later, the adviser to the Presidential Office of Ukraine, Mikhailo Podoliak, called this information “strange” and defended that all Ukrainian employees close to President Zelensky work in an “absolutely professional” manner, the Ukrinform agency reports.
The US Department of Justice has opened a criminal investigation into the leak of Pentagon documents that “appear to contain sensitive and highly classified material” after the circulation of these documents.
The leaked information did not include overly sensitive plans, but US authorities fear it could provide key clues for the Russian military. Analysts consulted by the newspaper ‘The New York Times’ affirm that it is difficult to estimate the real damage for the Ukrainian offensive that such a leak could cause.
In addition, there were other documents from other international conflicts, such as alleged tensions between Washington and Seoul over military aid or information about the Wagner Group mercenary group, owned by an oligarch close to Russian President Vladimir Putin. It was also reported that the United States would be considering leaning on Israel to provide lethal aid to Ukraine.
With regard to the supply of weapons, Podoliak has once again stressed the need to be able to count on long-range weapons “only to destroy key logistics in the Crimean peninsula”, since that is where the main flow of Russian supplies to the forehead.
The US Strategic Command announced Monday that it will begin on Tuesday a 23rd annual nuclear deterrence exercise known as Global Thunder, involving key Washington allies and partners such as the United Kingdom.
“The purpose of GT23 is to improve nuclear readiness and ensure a secure and reliable strategic deterrent force. This is an annual exercise and does not respond to actions by any nation or other actors,” the US Strategic Command said in a statement.
Specifically, the Command has stated that the exercise includes sectors related to strategic deterrence, as well as anti-missile defense or the analysis and selection of military targets. “As in previous years, Global Thunder 23 will include increased bomber aircraft flights throughout the exercise,” it added.
The annual exercise coincides with the escalation of tensions with China in the Pacific region, which began with the trip to the island of the now former speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi in August of last year and which has rebounded in last week following a meeting between Taiwanese President Tsai Ing Wen and the current Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy.
In fact, the Eastern Operations Command of the Chinese Army has reported this Monday that it has “successfully” completed its military exercises around Taiwan after the deployment of an aircraft carrier in the vicinity.
For its part, the US Navy has affirmed this Monday that its destroyer ship ‘USS Milius’ has carried out a mission of rights and freedoms of navigation in the South China Sea, “in accordance with International Law”.
Flow of refugees from Ukraine to other countries as of April 4, 2023 / Map: EA The number of refugees who have crossed the border from Ukraine into the rest of Europe it continues to grow since the start of the war in Ukraine, unleashed by order of Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24.
He United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that more than 20 million people have fled Ukraine, since the beginning of the Russian military offensive, which he considers to be the fastest exodus in Europe since World War II. Until the 49.2% of the population –estimated at almost 41 million in 2021– would have left Ukrainian territory.
According to the latest UNHCR data (2), 20,189,825 people have left the Ukrainian territory as of April 4, 2023. By countries, 10.606.537 Ukrainian refugees have already arrived Poland, 2.852.395 a Russia (October 3, 2022), 2.448.937 a Hungary (April 3), 2.185.338 a Romania (April 2), 1.281.690 a Slovakia (April 2), 798.223 a Moldavia (April 3) and 16.705 a belarus (28th March).
The High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that more than 8.1 million Ukrainian refugees have already been registered on European territory, and that five they would be in a situation of Temporary Protection, due to the Russian invasion of his country.
References
- (1) Institute for Study of War (ISW).
- (2) United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).