Russo-Ukraine War - 18 March 2022
| Su | M | Tu | W | Th | F | Sa |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
"To initiate a war of aggression... is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole." [Judgment of the International Military Tribunal]
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" in Ukraine in response to the appeal of the leaders of the "Donbass republics" for help. That attack is a blatant violation of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine. Putin stressed that Moscow's goal is the demilitarization and denazification of the country.
The Dutch government said it would send a Patriot missile defence system to Sliac, Slovakia, as part of NATO moves to strengthen air defences in Eastern Europe. Germany is also sending two Patriot systems to Slovakia, the statement said. Richard Weitz, a defence and military analyst with Wikistrat in Washington, DC, says the latest weapons supplies pledged for Ukraine by the US and other Western countries do not amount to an escalation. “The weapons under discussion are the same that Western powers have been providing the Ukrainian armed forces for months, anti-air missiles, anti-tank and armor missiles, other types of light weapons. The S-300 systems that the Slovaks may provide are already in the Ukrainian inventory, and Russia has more advanced S-400 and S-500 systems,” he told Al Jazeera.
“So it seems to me, this is in line with what the alliance has been doing, providing the Ukrainians with the weapons and the munitions they need to replenish the stocks they have lost and take advantage of Russian tactical errors. But it’s not an escalatory move.”
Washington promptly transfers intelligence to Kiev, which is used against the Russian Armed Forces involved in the special operation in Ukraine, confirmed the US Deputy Secretary of Defense for Intelligence Ronald Maltry. Speaking at a House of Representatives Armed Forces Committee hearing, Maltry said intelligence information and the work they are doing to support the Ukrainian government makes a big difference. “We believe we are supporting them in a way that makes them happy with what we provide,” he added.
The German authorities have so far been able to supply Kiev with only 500 of the previously promised 2.7 thousand Strela anti-aircraft missiles, the Welt am Sonntag newspaper reported, citing sources in Ukrainian government circles. According to the publication, the transfer took place only on the evening of March 17.
Ukrainian forces launched its first serious counter-attack and reached the border of Kherson Oblast again. Russian forces didn’t advance much. In Kyiv Oblast Russian forces didn’t conduct any offensive operation in the area. The main focus of the enemy forces was to resupply and refuel units on the contact line and secure the rear. The enemy sporadically shelled Ukrainian positions in the vicinity of Brovary, but didn’t launch any assault. Russian troops resumed offensive operation towards Izium, but didn’t succeed to capture southern part of the town.
Ukrainian forces launched a counter-offensive towards Kherson. The operation was supported by elements of 28th Mechanized Brigade that arrived to Mykolaiv from Odesa. Ukrainian troops pushed alongside road M-14 and liberated Posad-Pokrovske (in Kherson Oblast). Ukrainian forces ambushed a Russian convoy near the town and destroyed several vehicles.
The British Ministry of Defence says logistical problems are continuing to beset Russia’s “faltering invasion of Ukraine”. “Reluctance to manoeuvre cross-country, lack of control of the air and limited bridging capabilities are preventing Russia from effectively resupplying their forward troops with even basic essentials such as food and fuel,” the ministry said in its latest intelligence update. “Incessant Ukrainian counterattacks are forcing Russia to divert large number of troops to defend their own supply lines. This is severely limiting Russia’s offensive potential,” it added.
The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation held a morning briefing on Ukraine, which marked the main events by the morning of March 18 on a special military operation. This was told by the official representative of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, Major General Igor Konashenkov. A group of troops of the LPR, with fire support from the Russian military, liberated more than 90% of the territory of the republic Units of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and the DPR are squeezing the encirclement in Mariupol and are fighting against nationalists in the city center.
Aviation and air defense systems of the Russian Aerospace Forces shot down six Ukrainian drones overnight, including one Bayraktar TB-2. Operational-tactical, army and unmanned aircraft hit 81 military facilities of Ukraine, including four installations of multiple rocket launchers, three command posts, eight ammunition depots and 28 military equipment accumulation areas. In total, since the beginning of the special military operation, 183 unmanned aerial vehicles, 1406 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 138 multiple rocket launchers, 535 field artillery pieces and mortars, as well as 1197 units of special military vehicles have been destroyed.
Ukraine’s military said a Russian ground offensive on the Ukrainian capital in the “near future” is “improbable”, citing a lack of experienced commanders as well as heavy casualties and low morale among Russian forces. It also said Russia is trying to replenish their losses with mercenaries from Syria and had already recruited 1,000 volunteers.
The United States sees no evidence of volunteers being transferred from Syria to participate in Russia's special operation in Ukraine, General Kenneth McKenzie, head of the US Central Command, said. "You asked about mercenaries and recruiting in Syria. We see little evidence of recruiting in Syria to transfer people to Ukraine," the American military leader said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has hailed what Russia calls its special operation in Ukraine, appearing on stage at a rally at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium in front of thousands of people waving Russian flags. The event was dedicated to the eighth anniversary of the annexation of the peninsula to the Russian Federation. “ We had to pull Crimea out of the humiliating situation they were in when they were part of another state ,” said Vladimir Putin.
The President of Russia, in his speech at the concert-rally, quoted the Holy Scriptures. He also noted that the annexation of Crimea was necessary in order to " save people from the genocide ." “This is the main goal of the operation in Ukraine. Words from the Holy Scripture come to me: “There is no greater love than if someone gave their soul for their friends ,” the head of state explained. Putin spoke about the actions of the Russian military in Ukraine. According to him, they cover each other, " We have not had such unity for a long time."
There is no evidence to suggest that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s overall intent in Ukraine has altered despite the invasion failing to reach its original objectives, a Western official said. “I’ve seen nothing which suggests that the original intent of Putin has significantly altered,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “Therefore … the difference between what was planned, what is being executed is at the moment, one of timing and they have failed to achieve their objectives in the time that they set out in their original objectives and their original plan.”
According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Moscow has made it clear that cargoes with Western weapons brought into Ukraine will become a legitimate target of Russia's special operation. He also stated that denazification in Ukraine implies the abolition of any laws that discriminate against the Russian-speaking population.
Russian troops and their separatist allies have been fighting in the center of Mariupol, a strategic port city in the southeast of Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry said. “In Mariupol, units of the Donetsk People’s Republic, with the support of the Russian armed forces, are squeezing the encirclement and fighting against nationalists in the city centre,” the ministry said in Moscow.
The introduction of a no-fly zone over the Donetsk People's Republic with the assistance of Russia makes sense in order to prevent cases like the shelling of the center of Donetsk with a Tochka-U rocket, said Eduard Basurin, deputy head of the People's Militia Department of the DPR. “From a military point of view, if there are some serious air defense systems, then we don’t need to transfer them. It is enough for the Russian Federation to control the sky itself, as they say, to make an “umbrella” or “dome” of a no-fly zone over our republics. Therefore that modern air defense systems, they need to learn for a very long time. Therefore, maybe this would just make sense to be asked to completely close the sky over us and such cases as with Tochki-U never happened again," he said.
Zelenskyy said that 130 people had been saved after the bombing of a theatre in the port city of Mariupol under Russian siege, but “hundreds” were still trapped in the rubble. Ukraine accused Russia of hitting the theatre on 16 March 2022. It had been feared that up to 1,000 people may have been taking refuge underground at the time of the blast. Russia has denied responsibility for the attack.
One woman who said she had been preparing food for the people sheltering in the theater said nearly 800 civilians were in the building when it was hit. “I’d say only a hundred or so managed to disperse,” she said in a video circulated by Ukraine’s far-right Azov Battalion. The rest “are likely under rubble because there were a lot of people in the basement under the stage. And it’s the stage that got hit.”
Ukraine’s military has said the Lviv State Aircraft Repair Plant was struck by cruise missiles launched from the direction of the Black Sea. The type of the missile was likely Kh-555, the military said, which are launched from heavy strategic bombers. The Russian Armed Forces destroyed a parking lot with Ukrainian combat aircraft at the Lvov aircraft factory and ammunition depots in the suburbs of Nikolaev and Voznesensk with high-precision weapons, Major General Igor Konashenkov, spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, said.
The Commerce Department will warn companies and other entities around the world that any refueling, maintenance, repair, or spare parts or services violate US export controls and subject companies to US enforcement actions that could include “substantial jail time, fines, loss of export privileges, or other restrictions,” the department said. The department said in a statement the action means “international flights from Russia on these aircraft are effectively grounded.”
The Biden administration is ramping up its public pressure campaign on China, urging the country to exert influence on Putin to end the invasion. So far, China has taken what it describes as a neutral stance on the war, as it largely shies away from intervening in the affairs of other nations. They have this ‘don’t meddle’ policy. But the US is trying to pressure Beijing into actually taking a stand – not just a legal stand, but a moral stand, as well.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has told United States President Joe Biden during a secure video call that the ongoing conflict in Ukraine is in “no one’s interest”, Chinese state TV has reported. The call, which began shortly after 9:00am ET (1300 GMT), was months in the making and followed the first virtual meeting between Biden and Xi in November. It comes amid US concerns that Beijing may come to Moscow’s aid – either in giving military equipment or in bypassing sanctions – in the increasingly brutal offensive in Ukraine.
The Chinese authorities are against providing US military support to Ukraine, since the transfer of lethal weapons to Kiev calls into question the restoration of peace and stability, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said. “China has provided Ukraine with food, instant baby milk, sleeping bags and quilts, waterproof bedding as humanitarian aid. As for the United States, they have transferred lethal weapons to Kiev,” he said. “Can these weapons bring peace and stability, or can they lead to new casualties and wounded among the civilian population? Residents of Ukraine are in greater need of food and sleeping bags."
Russia is using the UN Security Council to spread disinformation and propaganda about its invasion of Ukraine, six Western members states said. They made the allegation at a council meeting called at Russia’s request to discuss its allegations that Ukraine is developing biological weapons. “Russia is once again attempting to use this council to launder its disinformation, spread its propaganda, and justify its unprovoked and brutal attack on Ukraine,” the six countries with seats on the council said in a statement read out by US ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
Putin told German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during a phone call that Kyiv is attempting to stall peace talks with Russia but that Moscow was still keen to continue negotiations. “It was noted that the Kyiv regime is attempting in every possible way to delay the negotiation process, putting forward more and more unrealistic proposals,” the Kremlin said in a readout of the call.
The neutral status of Ukraine and its non-entry into NATO are topics on which Moscow and Kyiv have brought their positions as close as possible in the negotiations, said the head of the Russian delegation, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky. Ukraine will not abandon its bid to join the EU to reach a compromise with Russia as part of an agreement to end the war, Zelenskyy’s deputy chief of staff has said. “I will be categorical, this is absolutely unacceptable. It is our choice, the application for EU membership has been submitted and now it is being put into practice,” deputy chief of staff Andrii Sybiha said.
The UN migration agency estimates that nearly 6.5 million people have now been displaced inside Ukraine, on top of the 3.2 million refugees who have already fled the country. The estimates from the International Organisation for Migration suggests Ukraine is fast on a course in just three weeks toward the levels of displacement from Syria’s devastating war – which has driven about 13 million people from their homes both in the country and abroad. The number of people evacuated to Russia from Donbass and Ukraine exceeded 300,000.
Ukraine’s defence ministry has said that Russia lost some 14,200 servicemen since the invasion began on February 24, including about 200 in the past 24 hours. It also said that Ukrainian forces destroyed 450 Russian tanks, 1,448 armoured vehicles, 93 planes, 112 helicopters and 12 drones. Lieutenant General Andrei Mordvichev of the Southern Military District 8th Army has reportedly been killed. No army in modern history has lost as many commanders in such a short period as Russia has lost in the past 3 weeks.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
