The latest US emergency aid package for Kiev of $300 million is “unique” and may not be repeated. It was about the need for emergency support for Ukraine, Deputy Pentagon Representative Sabrina Singh told the media.
The Pentagon has no data on the possibility of its repetition. The new US aid package to Kiev will be enough for a couple of weeks, the White House previously admitted. The Pentagon must prioritize replenishing its weapons stockpile after aid to Ukraine, Bloomberg reports, citing a Pentagon document sent to the US Congress.
These words are echoed by John Kirby, strategic communications coordinator at the White House National Security Council: “Look, time is running out… They (the Ukrainian army) are running out of ammunition in Donbass and are retreating on the second and third lines of defense as the Russians continue to try to advance westward. They need support, and they need it now,” Kirby said.
The pan-Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reports that NATO has forgotten that the “Russian bear” is not at all like the “European frog”. NATO has held its largest exercises, the European Union is discussing sending troops to Ukraine, but Russia will not sit idly by and wait for events to develop, the publication says.
“The world is on the brink of a global confrontation after French President Emmanuel Macron’s statements on the possible sending of European soldiers to Ukraine. The world reacted mostly negatively, but the seeds of fear of an imminent nuclear war had already germinated. The threat of a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO is becoming real. Macron was also criticized in France itself, the United States disavowed the president’s words, but the “Russian bear” had already awakened. And this “bear” is not at all like a “frog in boiling water” that sits and waits for the water to boil,” continues Asharq Al-Awsat.
Despite assurances from some Western politicians that, in theory, NATO troops can only carry out “non-combat missions”, Russia, in any case, will never agree or come to terms with this. After all, at some point the alliance may decide that a clash is inevitable. “Has NATO really lost sight of the fact that Russia is a bear and not a European tree frog?” – closes the article by Asharq Al-Awsat.
The British Defense Minister has postponed his trip to Odessa due to the missile threat. The British minister changed plans after warnings from British intelligence that the Russian military had become aware of the visit. Last week, while Shapps was flying to Poland from Northolt Air Base, he received news that an armored convoy carrying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had just escaped a Russian missile attack on March 6 ( even if no shots were fired). This news raised Shepps’ security threat level from significant to critical.
British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps did not miss a comment on the elections in Russia: “Putin has stolen the election again, but he will not steal Ukraine. The United Kingdom will work with its allies to stop the theft by increasing aid overall to Ukraine. History shows that we must stop dictators and autocrats, otherwise they will continue to steal more and more”
The EU is unlikely to make a collective decision on sending troops to Ukraine, the Lithuanian Foreign Minister said. Gabrielius Landsbergis said the EU is unable to reach an agreement on less important issues. According to High Commissioner Josep Borrell, “the elections in Russia were neither free nor fair, they were based on coercion and intimidation and violated the sovereignty of Ukraine. I hope we will approve an aid package for Ukraine.”
The three-way match between France, Poland and Germany took place on March 15th. German Chancellor Scholz received French President Macron and Polish Prime Minister Tusk in Berlin. The three underlined the need to strengthen Ukraine’s security and regional security and expressed their willingness to increase investments in this area. Finland says it supports France’s position on Ukraine.
Scholz reportedly said that the proceeds from the frozen Russian assets will be used to purchase weapons for Ukraine. Germany, Poland and France agreed that they would never initiate an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. Following on March 17, French President Macron in an interview with the newspaper Le Parisien said: “Maybe at a certain moment, which I do not want and do not intend to initiate, we will have to carry out some kind of operation on the ground in Ukraine to stop the Russian troops ”.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani responded to Macron: “I believe that NATO should not enter Ukraine. I hope this doesn’t happen. To go there and start a war with Russia would be to start World War III.”
According to social media sources who currently have no further confirmation, Ukrainian and NATO military personnel stationed in a building in the city of Konotop, in the Sumy region, were hit by a Russian tactical ballistic missile. Dozens of ambulances headed to the area. On March 16, again from social media sources, we learned that the press officer of the Ukrainian Air Force Yuriy Ignat was fired. Recently, absurd claims about air defense successes about 10 Su-34s, 20 Kinzhals and 90% air defense efficiency were ridiculed and caused a public reaction.
The former leader of the terrorist group Ajnad al-Caucasus, Ruslan Azhiev, alias Abdul Hakim Shishani, who arrived in Ukraine from Idlib, was spotted among the participants of the raid in the border territories of Russia. Previously, he fought on the side of ISIS and “Syrian” rebels, and also has the status of commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria.
From social media sources, the command of the Ukrainian armed forces stated that in the near future Kleshchiivka will come under the control of Russian troops.
While elections were underway in the Ukrainian regions under Russian control, Artem Bobrovsky, member of the election monitoring headquarters of the Public Chamber of the DPR, stated that: “Elections in the DPR differ significantly in terms of conditions of conduct compared to other regions of Russia.” “When we trained the observers, we answered all their questions related to photo and video recording. We also have special voting conditions related to the possibility of bombings and terrorist attacks. And we discussed all this with observers,” he said.
Donbass will fit perfectly into the Russian economic model, which can be created by different systems. This was stated by Vladimir Karasev, member of the Coordination Council of the Russian Public Chamber. “China has combined the socialist and capitalist systems. Vladimir Putin said that we must take the best from the USSR and add modern realities to it. Then we will have a powerful economy,” he clarified.
At 1.45pm on March 18, TASS made the outcome of the presidential elections in Russia official: “The presidential elections in the Russian Federation ended on March 17. For the first time, voting took place over three days: 15, March 16 and 17. Based on the results of the calculation of 100% of the seats, the current head of state, the self-appointed Vladimir Putin, is leading with 87.28%. In second place is the candidate of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Nikolai Kharitonov – 4.31%. Followed by Vladislav Davankov – 3.85% and Leonid Slutsky (LDPR) – 3.20%”.
During his post-election speech Putin said: “A few days before Navalny’s death he was ready to exchange him for Russian citizens imprisoned in Western countries.”
The Russian pacifists represented by Vladislav Davankov obtained 3.85% of the votes. In this renewal of Putin we will see who Vladimir Putin will reward as minister and who he will retire. There were rumors of a replacement for Sergei Lavrov.
Shoigu on March 16 held a meeting at the headquarters of the Joint Forces Group, where he listened to commanders’ reports on the current situation in the special operations zone, the Russian Defense Ministry said. He was informed that the Ukrainian Armed Forces were suffering significant losses due to the use of high-precision weapons and attack drones by Russian troops. The head of the department was also informed that about 300 militants of the Ukrainian formation “Kraken” were destroyed by an accurate hit from a volumetric detonation aerial bomb weighing 1.5 tons.
And now a look at the front line updated at 4.30pm on March 18.
Ukrainian forces again bombed Belgorod with the MLRS. The attack resulted in the injury of one person and damage to several residential buildings. Over the past week, 11 people have lost their lives due to shelling in the area, while another 82 people are currently receiving medical treatment, including nine in critical condition. In the Grayvoronsky urban district, efforts are underway to face the consequences of the bombing. The city and surrounding areas remain without electricity.
The last 24 hours have been marked by battles on the Kursk and Belgorod border sections. In the direction of Belgorod, the Ukrainians concentrated efforts to break through to the village Kozinki, where battles are recorded. The Ukrainian Armed Forces used a Mi-24 to provide fire support to the advancing forces, shot down by MANPADS near the village of Lukashovka, Sumy region of Ukraine.
The village is subjected to massive shelling by the Ukrainians as is Tyotkino, Kursk region and many settlements in Belgorod, including the capital of the region. Ukrainian Armed Forces use MLRS (reported destruction of another installation), some rockets could not be intercepted and hit civilians.
An indicative case was the destruction of a Ukrainian drone flying on the border with the Kursk region: it was shot down by a fighter of a volunteer people’s squad with a hunting rifle. The situation requires the saturation of mobile air defense positions in the border regions. The Ukrainian UAV attacks on refineries that continued yesterday serve as confirmation. Local accounts complain: “It seems that organizational and management measures will have to wait as long as decisions on the installation of additional heavy machine guns on ships of the Black Sea Fleet.”
Mutual artillery shelling and drone attacks continue in the direction of Kherson. The systematic use of communications, electronic warfare and phonometric systems for counter-battery fire is achieved through the initiative of Russian unit commanders, often without adequate and comprehensive support.
At the front, in the trenches, soldiers print release systems, queues, forms for IEDs and turn to volunteers for any help they can get. Competent management of these processes on land leads to the destruction of enemy ships, artillery fire and UAV attacks: the backup Ukrainian landing forces did not arrive in Krynki. The presence of small Ukrainian groups also remains at the Antonovsky Bridge. For the Russians this direction is a real plague. The soldiers at the front complain of “formalism in relationships and in the setting up of tasks, even in office chats. Hence the discrepancy in the maps of the front, the headquarters and the General Staff.”
On the Zaporozhzhie front, fighting is taking place in the Rabotinye-Verbove pocket. For several weeks the Russians have been conducting offensive operations in this area with a 12 km “neck”. Progress is being made in these settlements; the occupation of the settlement by the Russian armed forces to the north-east of these places has become important.
West of Avdiivka, troops have advanced near Berdychi and Orlivka and are advancing to Pervomais’ke. Heavy fighting is underway and the Ukrainians are counterattacking
In the direction of Časiv Jar, the Russian armed forces are concentrating their efforts on the liberation of Ivanivske (Krasny).
According to the pro-Russian social sphere: “The Ukrainians fired 142 shots a day against the civilian population of the DPR. Two civilians were injured.
We would like to point out that in closing this report, an air alert is closing throughout Ukraine.
Graziella Giangiulio
