As the US entered the election campaign, US presidential candidate Nikki Haley said, ‘We will put term limits on Congress and mandatory intelligence tests for politicians over 75’.
In contrast, Canada approved a new aid package for Ukraine on 16 February: $5.6 million for demining in Ukraine
In Russia, territorial areas continue to be defined and new commands given as if to say that the war is not only not about to end but that a widening of the front is in fact taking place. General Andrey Mordvichev was appointed commander of the Central Military District.
Previously, this position was held by General Lapin, who came under widespread criticism in October for his actions in the direction of Liman, but nevertheless remained in the Defence Ministry structure. Moreover, in January, Lapin was appointed chief of staff of the ground forces.
General Mordvichev himself had previously been commander of the 8th Combined Arms Army of the Southern Military District, also leading the operation to assault Mariupol.
So, in 2023, this is the third news about the change of district commanders. At the end of January, new commanders of the Southern Military District and the Western Military District were acquired
The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation has updated the data on military district commanders, in addition to Mordvichev and Muradov we now have: General Sergey Kuzovlev appointed commander of the Southern Military District; General Yevgeny Nikiforov was appointed commander of the Western Military District.
And now a look at the front line: on the night of 16-17 February 2023. In the early morning, the Ukrainian Armed Forces attempted to attack the Balaklava TPP in Sevastopol with a drone, but the air defence intercepted the approaching device.
Russian troops hit targets in the border regions of Popovka, Bachevsk and Partizansk in the Sumy region, as well as in Veterinary, Svetlichny and Volchansk in the Kharkiv region.
Late in the evening, the Russian Armed Forces launched several missile attacks on Kharkov: one of the projectiles hit the target near the eponymous plant. Malyshev.
In the Starobelsky direction, Russian troops worked on enemy positions in Novomlynsk, Dvurechnaya, Kucherovka, Stelmahovka and Nevsky.
In the Bachmut (Artemovsky) direction, RF forces hit targets in Bachmut, Veseloe, Razdolovka, Krasnoye, Predtechino and in the vicinity of Disputed.
In the Donetsk direction, Russian troops attacked the facilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Avdeevka, Krasnogorovka, Georgievka and the western suburbs of Maryinka. The Ukrainian Armed Forces, in turn, fired on Donetsk, Makeevka and Mineralnoye.
In the direction of Yuzhnodonetsk, enemy manpower piles were hit in Vuhledar, Novomikhailovka, Bogoyavlenka and Bolshaya Novoselka.
In the Zaporozhizhia region, the Russian armed forces attacked the positions of the Ukrainian armed forces in Orekhovo, Zaliznychny, Gulyaipole and Kamensky.
In the southern sector of the front, Russian troops beat Ukrainian army structures in Kherson, Antonovka and Tokarevka.
On the morning of 17 February, fighting continued in Paraskoveevka. The WAGNER continued its assault operations, but the Ukrainian forces resisted, fully realising the importance of Praskoveevka for the entire Bachmut defence system. With the loss of Paraskoveevka, there will be a direct threat (after the advance to Berkhovka from Parpskoveevka) to establish fire control on the road through Khromovo, which will bring the operational encirclement of the group closer to Bachmut. Therefore, significant Ukrainian reserves are now being launched against Wagner.
Graziella Giangiulio
