Russia-Ukraine War: Media in Russia reported today (Friday) that air defense systems of the Russian army were “urgently” moved to the residence of the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin. According to the report, “panic broke out in the Russian capital, after the authorities ordered to secure the building in Moscow and high-rise administrative buildings in the center of the city.”
According to the video circulated on social networks, the air defense system was deployed in the “Udintsov” region near the capital Moscow. Putin’s “bunker” is located about 10 kilometers from where the battery was placed. According to the report, it is a “Shell C1” type system, with missile systems and anti-aircraft guns on it.
Earlier today, The Washington Post reported that the head of the CIA, William Burns, arrived last weekend secretly in Ukraine in order to present President Volodymyr Zelensky with an intelligence picture of Russia’s military planning in the coming months. Senior intelligence officials at the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense raised in the meeting the fear of a decrease in military aid, this against the background of the Republican takeover of the House of Representatives and the decrease in public opinion support in the US in recent times.
A CIA spokesman declined to characterize the message Burns gave to Zelensky about Russia’s military planning. Now, Ukrainian and Russian forces are locked in an intense war of attrition in eastern Ukraine, around Bakhmut. The city has relatively little strategic value, but has gained symbolic importance for both sides, especially Russia, which has not captured a major Ukrainian city since last summer.
However, military analysts predict that an increase in fighting this spring may determine the course the war will take. The US and Western countries are rushing to arm Ukraine with armored vehicles, artillery and missiles in an effort to strengthen its firepower. This, in the hope that the equipment will allow Ukraine to break through the areas controlled by Russia.