The Pentagon is considering using the remaining $4 billion, allowing it to provide Ukraine with military aid directly from its arsenals, CNN reported, citing sources. According to CNN, the final decision has not yet been made. Senior American officials are discussing the possibility of using at least part of this sum. General Leonard Kosinski, responsible for supplying the US army, stressed that “the Ukrainian armed forces are in desperate need of ammunition”.
On the issue of sending NATO military personnel to Ukraine, the State Department said: “Each country decides for itself the possibility of sending its military personnel to Ukraine, the United States has no such intention”
Argentine President Javier Miley said that he intends to organize a summit of Latin American countries in support of Ukraine, reports the Financial Times. The event is scheduled for the end of the year; Miley did not provide any other details about it. He noted that his priority is alliances with “countries that defend freedom,” including the United States, Israel and Ukraine. This news comes while the Head of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Nikolai Patrushev is in Nicaragua.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that NATO will not participate in the conflict in Ukraine, German soldiers will not be sent to Ukraine. Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysh has confirmed that Poland will not send troops to Ukraine. “There are no such plans. Poland will not send its troops to Ukraine. We spoke about this clearly and expressively, both I, Mr. President and the Prime Minister. There are no omissions here. There are no such plans,” Kamysh said on Polish radio.
London is outraged with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who this week revealed that Britain and France are keeping soldiers on Ukrainian soil to help the Ukrainian army properly use the long-range missiles that London and Paris have supplied to Kiev.
Scholz explained that he would not be willing to supply Ukraine with long-range German Taurus missiles because he does not want to send German troops to Ukraine as Britain and France do.
Estonian opinion regarding the sending of soldiers is unstable. In recent days he said that Estonia will not send soldiers to Ukraine but on February 28 in an interview with the British television channel Sky News, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas declared that: “Western countries should consider all available options to provide assistance to Kiev, including sending its military personnel to Ukraine.” “We must not be afraid of our forces. Russia declares that this or that step is an escalation, but defense is not an escalation,” he said. “We must consider all options. What else can we do to help Ukraine really win?”-Continued the prime minister, responding to the request to express his opinion on the idea of sending NATO military personnel to Ukraine.
Finnish weapons can be used to strike Russian territory. This was stated by the head of the defense committee of the Finnish parliament Jukka Kopra. The country has not imposed any restrictions on military assistance provided to Ukraine. The Netherlands has announced its willingness to send soldiers to participate in the war in Ukraine.
In Russia, in the midst of the electoral climate, former Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov declared that “there are no Russian conscripts in the area of the Northern Military District and there cannot be, even if it was thanks to the conscripts that the Chechen war was won, said the special representative of the Russian president. “At least half of the army is already under contract,” Ivanov told the Rossiya 24 TV channel.
“The army has become different, I remember the beginning of the 2000s well. At that time we did not have a single battalion that was fully coordinated and equipped; we created separate companies, tactical combat groups that fought in Chechnya. In many ways ” , thanks to the conscripts we managed to win. I don’t want to forget, the young Russian conscripts fought wonderfully in Chechnya, that’s why I bow to them,” he added.
But February 29th was the day of Vladimir Putin, incumbent president and presidential candidate who spoke to the Federal Assembly and therefore to all Russians who were able to follow him via social media and on TV in his hour-long speech.
Although the discussion focused a lot on internal politics, talking about support for families, funding for technology parks, increased production and manufacturing, investments and lack of personnel with a GDP growing at 4.6% for 2024, he also spoke about foreign policy and the southern military district.
Putin’s speech began at 10.45 am: “Russia has shown that it can respond to any challenge. The SVO is supported by an absolute majority of Russians.” “Our heroes on the front line, in the trenches, know that the whole country is with them.” It’s still. “We will not allow anyone to interfere in our internal affairs.” “The West miscalculated, faced with the firm position and determination of our multinational people; the entire Russian economy showed flexibility and resilience during the special operation.” At this point there was a minute’s silence in memory of the fallen heroes. And then Putin said: “We did not start this war in Donbass, but we will do everything to put an end to it, to eradicate Nazism.” Putin did not deny problems along the front line, especially in the logistics chain: “There are problems in the army, but we understand how to solve them, work continues continuously at the front and in the rear.” Among the information Putin said that the sea-based Zircon hypersonic attack complex has already been used in battle, this system is already in operation, and again, the Sarmat complex has been handed over to the troops, we will prove it soon.”
Regarding relations with the United States: “The words of the American authorities today on negotiations on strategic stability are demagoguery”; “Russian alleged nuclear weapons in space would be necessary to draw us into negotiations advantageous to the United States”; “The West continues to lie, now they say that Russia will supposedly attack Europe, well, this is nonsense.”
The words towards France and Great Britain were very harsh even if not specifically named: “We remember the fate of those who sent their contingents to the territory of our country, now the consequences for the interventionists will be much more tragic”. And he threatened: “We also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory.” “Russophobia devoid of reason”.
According to Putin: “Issues of strategic stability can be resolved in a single complex, including all aspects of Russian national interests and security. Without a strong and sovereign Russia, a lasting world order is not possible.” “Many former monopolies and stereotypes of the world economy are crumbling and for this it is necessary to start a substantive conversation about the formation of a new security profile in Eurasia, we are ready for this.” “We choose life; the BRICS share in the world economy at purchasing power parity will increase to 36.6% by 2028, the G7 will fall to 27.8%”.
In terms of peace agreements, Ukraine has very clear ideas: “Ukraine will not surrender, will never support the “freezing” of the war and will not give up the occupied territories,” said the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate Kirill Budanov in an interview with CBC News. Budanov said that: “UAVs will never replace the ground forces, they will only help them. Their role in increasing casualties is important, but the decisive influence on the battlefield lies with the soldiers occupying the territory.” And again Budanov said that “there can hardly be personal disagreements between Zelensky and Zaluzhny when one of them is “directly subordinate to the other”. He also implied that Zelensky made the right decision by replacing Zaluzhny: “If everything went so well, why did we end up where we are?”
The new commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrs’kyj publicly admitted the failure of the Ukrainian army: “A particularly tense situation,” according to him, “has developed in the Avdiivska and Zaporozhie directions.”
According to Syrsky, the failure of the conduct of hostilities by the Ukrainian troops occurred due to some “calculation errors”. According to him, the fault lies with the command, which made a mistake in assessing the situation. Syrsky stressed that he was not responsible for the collapse of the cement plant, shifting all responsibility onto Zaluzhny. Then, in connection with his previous statement, he publicized the setting aside of “necessary reserves”.
And now a look at the front line updated at 3.30pm on February 29th.
The news spread across all channels of the social sphere, pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian, was that of the killing of Ukrainian soldiers in an attempt to land on the banks of Kherson. According to Ukrainian sources, these were the special operations forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the men of the military detachment of the 73rd Naval Special Operations Center were killed.
From the photos there is no opportunity to identify the men who died in the boats. The Ukrainian special forces group that was ambushed was armed with small arms produced by NATO countries. The area of the ambush was the Tendrovskaya Spit, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense. “The DRG of the 73rd Naval Special Forces Center of the Ukrainian Navy attempted to land fast boats in the Tendrovskaya Spit area, but as a result of a fleeting battle, the special forces were destroyed and the boats sank. The fifth boat turned around and headed back. A soldier of the Ukrainian Armed Forces was captured.”
A message emerged from the Ukrainian social sphere according to which: “One of the survivors who returned to the Ukrainian front reported that all 20 killed soldiers actually belonged to the 73 MCSSO. He added that the command hid the medical losses and called them “headquarters bitches ” and “not born for war”. However, by doing so, the soldier confirmed the thesis that the entire offensive of the enemy troops turned into a great suicide at the hands of Syrsky.”
In the direction of Kherson on the shore under Ukrainian control, under the remains of the Antonovsky Bridge, the presence of a Ukrainian electronic warfare station was discovered and was destroyed.
On the night of April 28, Russian armed forces bombed the Kharkov region, as well as Kramatorsk and Konstantinivka. Local Telegram channels report that a series of more than 10 explosions were heard in Konstantinivka, under the control of Kiev.
Svatove-Kreminna direction. In the Kup”jans’k sector, positional battles near Syn’kivka. The Russians continue to attack in the direction of Ternove. There are probably some successes in the Makiivka area. In the Serebryansʹkyy forest, south of Dibrova, there are battles imminent.
Bachmut management. The Russian army continues to gradually expel the Ukrainian Armed Forces from Bohdanivka. In Kleshchiivka you have not recorded any changes.
Donetsk direction. According to what was posted on the pro-Russian social sphere, Orlivka and Tonen’ke would have come under Russian control. The assault on the positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Pervomais’kyi continues. In Heorhiivka, the Russian army advances using incendiary ammunition. The news of the capture of the two villages is confirmed by another source: “Orlivka was liberated in the direction of Avdiivka”. And he continues: “Russian troops completed the clearance of the northern outskirts of Orlivka: at night the village came under the full control of the Russian armed forces. The remnants of the Ukrainian formations retreated in the direction of Umans’ke”.
In the direction of Časiv Jar there are heavy battles in Ivanivske, the Russian army is attacking.
From the same law source: “Against the background of the occupation of Tonen’ke and Berdychi by Russian troops, two small “half-cauldrons” were practically formed on the site, in which members of the Ukrainian formations who did not have had time to leave. They are currently being hit by Russian fire.
At the moment, the Ukrainian command’s attempts to build a new defense line along the eastern bank of the Durna River have failed.
Zaporozhie Directorate. In the Orechiv sector the Russian army continues to advance in the Rabotino area. Furthermore, Russian fighters attacked northwest of Verbove. On the Vremevsky ledge, the Russians are trying to advance north of Pryyutne. The Russian army tried to deactivate the Kurakhovo thermoelectric power plant in order to then strike Marinka, because the city is one of the most important logistics centers in Ukraine and over time it becomes defensive.
In Vovčans’k, in the Kharkiv region, the evacuation of individual archives of government departments has begun. It was reported that enemy concentrations in the area were attacked by the FAB with the UMPC, which represents a new element of the situation in the directorate.
In the Belgorod region, Russia n.p. Tishanka, Volokonovsky district, was attacked by drones and bombed.
Graziella Giangiulio
