The Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, Irina Vereshchuk, has asked this Wednesday the residents of Lugansk, Donetsk and Járkov to leave these places due to the possibility of a new Russian offensive after being expelled from kyiv and Chernigov.
“It is necessary because the population will be under fire and death threats. They will not be able to do anything and we will not be able to help because it will be almost impossible to stop the fire. It is necessary to evacuate while there is such a possibility,” Vereshchuk said in a statement.
Vereshchuk has explained that the ukrainian military forces deployed in these regions have begun to sound the alert to the residents and wanted to reassure the population by asserting that the Government “is doing everything possible to guarantee that the evacuation is organized”.
In this sense, he has warned the population that “must be prepared” for a new escalation of hostilities by Russia.
“The withdrawal of the occupying troops from the regions of kyiv and Chernigov It was not a gesture of goodwill before the next round of talks, as Russian officials are trying to present”, but a sign “of the iron will of our Army, Government and all the Ukrainian people”, he stressed.
This Wednesday the opening of eleven new humanitarian corridors was also known, several of them from the city of Mariupol to Zaporizhia and also from Berdyansk a Zaporiyiafrom where buses will be chartered to leave the region, reports Ukrinform.
Russia’s offensive
The main Russian military efforts are now focused on preparing an offensive to establish full control over the territory of the Ukrainian Donetsk and Luhansk regions, in the east of the country, and Mariúpol, in the south, according to the last part of the High Command of the Ukrainian Army.
This part, issued in the 42 day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, indicates that Russian troops continue their offensive towards Izium, a city located on the river Donetskin the province of Kharkivas well as towards Sloviansk and Barvinkove, also in the same province, which according to analysts are key cities in the Russian offensive towards Donetsk and Luganskthe self-proclaimed republics of eastern Ukraine.
“In the direction of Donetsk, the enemy is trying to improve the tactical position of his units and continues to carry out assault operations in some areas,” the report says.
The Ukrainian High Command also refers to the situation in the besieged city of Mariupol, a strategic southern port on the banks of the Sea of Azov heavily bombed and in which, according to Ukraine, more than 150,000 people live without basic services.
“The attempts to storm Mariupol do not stop. The defenders of the city maintained a heroic defense for more than forty days, holding back the overwhelming forces of the Russian invaders,” says the Ukrainian High Command.
The Russian Army announced on Tuesday the fine offensel for the seizure of the port city after the deadline for the Ukrainian forces to lay down their arms and leave the city for the territory controlled by kyiv.
The battle for Mariupol continues
The Russians continue to hit the city of Mariupol using artillery and air force and “Ukrainian forces appear to be holding organized resistance in some parts of the city”says for its part the latest analysis of the Institute for the Study of War.
According to the analysis of this American institute, the Russian forces continued to position themselves to continue their invasion in eastern and southern Ukraine, having abandoned the attack on kyiv and “redeploy some of the withdrawn combat forces from Belarus to Russia”.
“But it is likely, based on their analysis, that the Russian units that withdrew from kyiv will not regain combat effectiveness for some time,” they say.
“Russian offensive operations southeast of Izium toward Sloviansk they continued on a small scale and made limited progress. Russia has not yet attempted to assemble large concentrations of forces on this axis, but continues to send tactical groups of individual battalions to advance on their own,” according to the analysis of this institute.
More US military aid
United States has approved a new package of 100 million dollars -91.7 million euros- in specialized defense military aid for Ukraine in the face of the Russian military offensive, which began on February 24. “I have authorized $100 million to meet an urgent need for additional anti-armor systems for Ukraine’s forces,” said US Secretary of State Antony Blink, on his official Twitter profile.
As Ukraine’s forces bravely continue to combat Russia’s renewed invasion, I have authorized $100 million to meet an urgent need for additional anti-armor systems for Ukraine’s forces.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) April 6, 2022
Specifically, the new package includes anti-tank missiles ‘Javelin’, ‘Stingers’ anti-aircraft missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles, as announced on Monday by Pentagon spokesman John Kirby.
In this way, the President of the United States, Joe Biden, has “delegated” to the US Secretary of State “the authority of the country’s Armed Forces” to order the “withdrawal” of up to $100 million in defense goods and services to “provide assistance to Ukraine”, as stated in a White House statement.
Related news
This authorization is the sixth withdrawal of weapons, equipment and supplies from Department of Defense inventories for Ukraine since August 2021 and is in addition to the $300 million in military assistance announced on April 1.
“The world is shocked and horrified by the atrocities committed by Russian forces in Bucha and throughout Ukraine. LUkrainian forces continue to valiantly defend their country and their freedom, and the United Statesalong with our allies and partners, stand firm in support of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Blinken said in a statement.