Russo-Ukraine War - 21 March 2022 - Day 26
| 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 |
On 24 February 2022, Ukraine was suddenly and deliberately attacked by land, naval and air forces of Russia, igniting the largest European war since the Great Patriotic War. The military buildup in preceeding months makes it obvious that the unprovoked and dastardly Russian attack was deliberately planned long in advance. During the intervening time, the Russian government had deliberately sought to deceive the world by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.
"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 US, UK and Norway issued a warning that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could lead to further “bloodshed and catastrophe” across the world, including in Africa. “Putin’s assault is based on a different and profoundly dangerous notion. In invading Ukraine, he is saying that countries have the right to redraw international borders by force,” the three embassies in Sudan said in a joint statement. “If we allow this precedent to become the norm, it would open the door to bloodshed and catastrophe across the world, and in particular in Africa.”
“Russia’s ambitions are not limited to Ukraine. While Putin’s army unleashes terror in Ukrainian cities, his forces undermine stability across the globe,” they said, pointing to the Wagner Group mercenaries dispatched around different African countries. “Wagner Group activities undermine the good governance and respect for rule of law that the Sudanese people have been fighting for since the revolution.”
The Ukrainian army in Mariupol will not lay down its arms and leave the city, said Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for the Reintegration of Uncontrolled Territories of Ukraine Irina Vereshchuk "There can be no talk of any surrenders and laying down of arms. We have already informed the Russian side about this," she told the Ukrayinska Pravda publication. The bombardment of Mariupol reflects Russia's military doctrine that attacks on civilian infrastructure are justified to prevent military losses. The European Union's top diplomat accused Russia of committing a "massive war crime" with its attack and throttling grip on Mariupol as deadly street fighting raged after Ukraine rejected Moscow's ultimatum to give up the besieged city, saying there was "no question of any surrender." Several thousand representatives of Ukrainian nationalist battalions remain in Mariupol, Denis Pushilin, the head of the DPR, said on the air of Rossiya-1.
At least 2,300 people have died in Mariupol, some buried in mass graves, authorities have said. Residents of Mariupol, which had a population of 400,000 before the war broke out, have for the past two weeks been trapped without basic supplies, such as water, food, and fuel.
Russian troops opened fire on protesters at a demonstration in the occupied-city of Kherson Video footage shared on social media shows protesters running from the city’s Freedom Square, where Kremlin forces were reported to have opened fire and thrown stun grenades at crowds. Several people are reported to have been injured as witnesses reported hearing the sound of automatic gunfire. Kherson is the largest Ukrainian city captured by Russian forces, and had seen regular protests since the occupation began in March.
Zelenskiy thanked protesters in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Kherson, hailing their courage in confronting the foreign troops, who used stun grenades and fired shots into the air to disperse the crowd. Zelenskiy said that “we saw slaves shooting at free people, slaves of propaganda that replaced their conscience.”
Ukrainian nationalists in the city of Sumy carried out a provocation at night - an ammonia leak occurred at the Sumykhimprom plant, there is no threat to residents, said the official representative of the Russian Defense Ministry, Major General Igor Konashenkov. The ammonia leak at a chemical facility in Sumy, Ukraine's easternmost city, has contaminated a 2.5-kilometer radius.
Russian soldiers pushing on Kyiv from the northwest have been repelled by Ukrainian opposition, according to the UK government intelligence service. Russian troops achieved success amid the battle in the suburbs of Kiev, the Russian MoD reported on Monday. "Units of the Russian Airborne Forces forced nationalist battalions and the Ukrainian military out of the Kiev suburbs, who, retreating, left tanks, AMPVs, a lot of firearms, anti-tank weapons, and ammunition", an official statement read. The list of the trophies includes T-64 and T-72 tanks, as well as German-made Panzerfaust 3 anti-tank weapons, 9K38 Igla missile systems, and other arms.
Russian troops are close to finally defeating Ukraine’s "Donbass" nationalist battalion, Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov has stated. He elaborated that up to 60 of the battalion’s fighters were killed, two tanks, while three armoured transports and six pieces of artillery and mortars were destroyed during Russian troops’ push towards Nikolskoye settlement. Konashenkov added that Russian troops were cooperating with units of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) as they advanced towards Nikolskoye.
Since the beginning of the special operation in Ukraine, the Russian armed forces have destroyed 216 drones, 1,506 tanks and 152 multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS). This was announced by the official representative of the Russian Defense Ministry, Major General Igor Konashenkov. "In total, since the beginning of the special military operation, 216 unmanned aerial vehicles, 180 anti-aircraft missile systems, 1,506 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 152 multiple rocket launchers, 592 field artillery and mortars, as well as 1,284 special military automotive technology units have been destroyed." he said.
A Russian court on banned Facebook and Instagram in the country after finding Meta Platforms Inc FB.O "extremist", TASS news agency reported. Russia has already banned Facebook for restricting access to Russian media while Instagram was blocked after Meta said it would allow social media users in Ukraine to post messages urging violence against Russian President Vladimir Putin and troops Moscow sent into Ukraine on Feb. 24. Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Germany will continue to support Ukraine, but is unlikely to be able to organize the supply of new weapons in excess of those already approved, said German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht. In a big boost to Slovakia's defence, the Patriot air defence system arrived in Slovakia amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. Slovakia had offered to send its older S-300 system to Ukraine.
Allegations that Estonia has sent almost all of its Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine are untrue, said Lieutenant General Martin Herem, commander of the Estonian Defense Forces. According to him, in one of the broadcasts, two people claimed that Estonia sent almost all of its anti-tank weapons to Ukraine. "This is a deliberate lie," Herem wrote on his Facebook page. "In recent months, we have been explaining to the media, as well as directly to politicians, what we have conveyed and what our position is," he added.
Polish Ambassador to the United States Marek Magerowski acknowledged that Warsaw's idea of deploying some kind of NATO peacekeeping mission in Ukraine would be difficult to implement from the point of view of international law, such a decision should be made by all countries of the alliance. “This is a preliminary concept that has been submitted for consideration. This proposal should be considered by NATO allies,” the ambassador said in an interview with CNN , which aired on Sunday. “Of course, under international law, this will be difficult, as you might imagine But we must engage any options <...> as soon as possible without involving Russia in a direct military confrontation, because that is not the goal."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on European leaders to cease all trade with Russia in an effort to pressure Moscow to halt its nearly month-long military assault on his country. "Please do not sponsor the weapons of war of this country, of Russia. No euros for the occupiers. Close all of your ports to them. Don't export them your goods. Deny energy resources. Push for Russia to leave Ukraine," Zelensky said in a video address.
The Kremlin said peace talks have not yet made any significant progress. Moscow has accused Kyiv of stalling talks by making proposals unacceptable for Russia. Ukraine has said it is willing to negotiate but will not surrender or accept Russian ultimatums.
Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in an interview that Russian and Ukrainian negotiators were nearing agreement on "critical" issues and that he was hopeful for a potential cease-fire soon in the conflict. But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that "significant progress" in the peace talks between negotiators is needed before a meeting between Putin and Zelenskiy would be a possibility.
There has been softening of positions on both sides. On March 15, Zelenskyy said he would not press for NATO membership, but insisted on strong security guarantees for Ukraine from the West.According to Çavusoglu, the Ukrainian government also appears open to negotiating disarmament and the status of the Russian language in Ukraine, which are part of Moscow’s demands. A “de-Nazification” process that would see Ukraine banning certain far-right groups is also being discussed.
However, agreement on another point – the status of Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, and the Donbas region, where Ukrainian armed forces and Russian-backed separatists have been fighting for eight years – seems to be more challenging. For both Putin and Zelenskyy, concession on this issue would incur severe political costs or amount to capitulation, which both want to avoid for their political survival.
Zelenskiy said any potential deal agreed in peace negotiations to end the war with Russia will be submitted to the Ukrainian people in a referendum. "I explained it to all the negotiating groups: When you speak of all these changes [in a possible deal] and they can be historic...we will come back to a referendum," Zelenskiy told Internet news site Suspilne. “The people will have a say in any type of compromises. But what the [compromises] will end up being will be the result of our talks and agreements between Ukraine and Russia. Therefore, I am ready to do whatever is necessary if our people support my decisions," he added.
Many observers agree that a “Syrian scenario”, in which the war continues for years, is unlikely given a number of factors. First, the punishing Western sanctions on Russia would erode its ability to maintain a prolonged military presence in Ukraine, which is already resulting in significant military personnel losses and an estimated financial cost of tens of millions of dollars per day. Second, it would have trouble maintaining control over occupied territories, where the population remains loyal to Kyiv. And third, Western economic and military support for the Ukrainian army could reinforce Ukrainian resistance and make any future Russian advances quite difficult.
Moscow will not put on pause its military action against Ukraine while conducting peace talks with Kiev, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists. “You see, a pause in the operation, any pause, is used by the nationalist units to regroup, used to continue attacks against the Russian military,” the official explained. He claimed Russian troops in Ukraine have experienced this before “on multiple occasions.”
Germany says it had reached a long-term energy partnership with the Persian Gulf nation of Qatar as Berlin looks to become less dependent on uncertain Russian energy sources following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. "Although we might still need Russian gas this year, in the future it won't be so any more. And this is only the start," German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said on March 20 during a visit to Doha. Germany, Europe’s largest economy, has for years been reliant on energy supplies from Russia and had been reluctant to place sanctions on Moscow following the Kremlin’s aggressive moves in Eastern Europe.
Ukraine, a major global wheat exporter, is likely to export just 200,000 tonnes of wheat from March to June due to its Black Sea ports being blocked by the Russian invasion, analyst APK-Inform said. The consultancy said in a report that 2021/22 July-June wheat exports would not exceed 18.3 million tonnes, while ending stocks will reach 5.9 million tonnes. Ukraine exported 18.1 million tonnes of wheat from July 2021 to March 2022.
More than 80 percent of Sudan's wheat imports are at risk after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, an aid group warns, exacerbating economic and humanitarian crises that deepened after last year's military takeover. "Sudan is in a particularly vulnerable position because 86-87 percent of its wheat imports is coming from Russia and Ukraine combined," said David Wright, chief operating officer at the charity Save the Children. By the end of the year, UN data is warning of "almost 20 million people, or almost half the country, being food insecure", Wright said.
One of Indonesia’s best-loved foodstuffs, Indomie bills itself as “the pioneer of instant noodles in Indonesia” and produces some 19 billion packs annually for sale in more than 100 countries. But now, the war in Ukraine, one of Indonesia’s biggest suppliers of wheat, has raised fears for the supply of the snack, which is made from wheat flour. So far, the impact of the conflict on Indonesia’s wheat supply remains unclear, although anecdotal evidence from local shops and restaurants suggests products made from the staple are becoming harder to find. Ukraine exported nearly 3 million tonnes of wheat and meslin – a cereal comprising a mixture of wheat and rye – to Indonesia in 2020, making it the top supplier of the grain to the country.
More than 3.3 million refugees have fled Ukraine since the invasion and nearly 6.5 million are thought to be internally displaced within the country, the UN refugee agency has said. Approximately 25,000 Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Spain since the beginning of Russia's special military operation in Ukraine.
Nearly 6.5 million Ukrainians have become internally displaced as a result of the fighting, the International Organization for Migration said in Geneva, citing a study it conducted from March 9 to 16. "More than 6.48 million people are internally displaced persons in Ukraine," the organization said. According to her, 53% of internally displaced persons are women, more than 60% of families have children.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
