Russia Ukraine Update Thread

* - Russian army shelled Nizhyn with MLRS Uragan, at least 2 killed

* - US State Department: We will continue to provide security assistance to Ukraine

* - Fire at Pyatykhatky near Kharkiv as result of shelling

* - National Science Centre "Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology" is on fire

* - Airstrike targeted Rubtsi village in Donetsk region, destroyed boiler room and damaged kindergarten

* - Kharkiv(20:20). Red Alert: aerial threat. Sirens sounding. Take cover now!

* - Asked about why sending the fighter jets is viewed as too high risk, @PressSec says "I would say what our assessment is based on is how to prevent a world war here"

* - Biden spoke with Turkish Pres Erdogan to talk about "shared concern" over Russia's invasion of Ukraine

* - European Commission President: What is happening is not just an attack on Ukraine, but an attack on the principle on which the European Union is based

* - Near Mokrets village on the border of Kyiv and Chernihiv regions Ukrainian army destroyed Russian unit, SAM, several tanks. Several tanks also seized

* - Mayor of Kharkiv: Russian air and artillery bombardment destroyed 400 buildings in Kharkiv in two weeks

* - Avdiyivka(19:14). Red Alert: aerial threat. Sirens sounding. Take cover now!

* - Kharkiv(19:12). Red Alert: aerial threat. Sirens sounding. Take cover now!

* - Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke by phone today with Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau on coordinated efforts to provide security and humanitarian support to Ukraine in the face of Russia’s unprovoked, unjustified, and premeditated war and its inhumane and unconscionable attacks on population centers in Ukraine

* - Near Svitlodarsk Russian shelling hit natural gas pipeline

* - Orthodox church was damaged by Russian army in Kamianka village of Izyum district in Kharkiv region

* - Erdogan discussed with Biden Russia's war against Ukraine: Turkish presidency

* - Bryansk news report that Colonel Alexey Khasanov was killed

* - Russian army shelled a school in Velyka Komyshuvakha village in Kharkiv region

* - Peaceful protest against Russian occupation in Berdyansk, Zaporizhiye region

* - Putin has overestimated his ability to use cryptocurrency to bypass sanctions; US has intercepted and taken down a number of crypto networks: FBI Chief Chris Wray tells Senate Intell Committee

* - US Treasury: More sanctions will be imposed on Russia

* - An unusual MAZ of the Armed Forces of Belarus was spotted in Brest this afternoon. The vehicle doesn't have license plates, and had an identification mark – a red square

* - "Putin probably still remains confident that Russia can militarily defeat Ukraine & wants to prevent Western support from tipping the balance & forcing a conflict with @NATO" per @ODNIgov's Haines

* - Up to 70% of the population has already been evacuated from Korosten

As a reminder -

Just so people know and understand. Information from war zones can become confusing as there will no doubt be info released from the players (on both sides) involved that might not necessarily be true.

As such take everything as a possibility and NOT as absolute truth.

The very first casualty in a war is the truth and all warfare is based on deception

10 March update.

* The likelihood is increasing that Ukrainian forces could fight to a standstill the Russian ground forces attempting to encircle and take Kyiv. Russian forces also appear to be largely stalemated around Kharkiv and distracted from efforts to seize that city.

* Russian advances in the south around Mykolayiv and toward Zaporizhya and in the east around Donetsk and Luhansk made little progress as well in the last 24 hours

* Russia likely retains much greater combat power in the south and east and will probably renew more effective offensive operations in the coming days, but the effective reach and speed of such operations is questionable given the general performance of the Russian military to date.

Cheers

originally posted by: carewemust
a reply to: Xcathdra

IF Favored Nation trade status is revoked from Russia, will that end their ability to sell oil/gas to other nations? If so, that would really put pressure on Putin to either cancel his Ukraine takeover, or to go nuclear. (Depends on his ego)

Most-favored-nation (MFN) status is an economic position in which a country enjoys the best trade terms given by its trading partner. That means it receives the lowest tariffs, the fewest trade barriers, and the highest import quotas (or none at all). In other words, all MFN trade partners must be treated equally.

All nations in the WTO have MFN with each other (supposedly). In Russia's case it adds additional barriers to trade with Russia (affects Russia), costing a lot more to import/export their items to nations that canceled MFN status.

MFN, Free trade agreements, etc are all the same thing and countries use them differently.

* - At Daryivka village of Kherson region Russian troops shot at civilian car and killed a driver

* - Kharkiv(16:56). Red Alert: aerial threat. Sirens sounding. Take cover now!(16 hours ago)

* - Russian army have planted mines on the shore of Kahovske water reservoir next to Zaporizhiye NPP

* - The German government has not agreed to any meeting by former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder with Putin, two government sources said

* - Evacuation today: over 1000 evacuated from Irpin', 2000 evacuated from Izyum, buses arrived in Sumy, Humanitarian convoy on the way from Zaporizhiye to Mariupol, Humanitarian aid arrived at Enerhodar

* - Ukrainian forces destroyed 1 Russian 9K33 Osa system in Chernihiv area

* - Coca Cola Ukraine factory damaged near Brovary in Russian army shelling

* - Protest against Russian occupation in Kherson

* - The aftermath of a Russian airstrike in the center of Mariupol on March 10. Note the size of a bomb crater.

* - Ukrainian President: I discussed with Johnson and Macron increasing our support and stopping the war, while they are aware of the new Russian crimes

* - Kryvyy Rih airport was targeted with 2 missiles, no casualties

* - Big rally against Russian occupation in Melitopol

* - US Vice President: We have provided Poland with Patriot air defense missile batteries

* - The United Nations: The Russian-Ukrainian war presents a new challenge in securing food supplies

As a reminder -

Just so people know and understand. Information from war zones can become confusing as there will no doubt be info released from the players (on both sides) involved that might not necessarily be true.

As such take everything as a possibility and NOT as absolute truth.

The very first casualty in a war is the truth and all warfare is based on deception

a reply to: Xcathdra

Thankyou for explaining how Most Favored Nation status works in the real world.

Flightradar24

* - LAGR240 - Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker / USAF - flying circles in Romania
* - ROF2706 - Alenia C-27J Spartan / Romanian airforce - Over Romania
* - PERSEO71 - Gulfstream G550 AEW / Italian air force - Patrolling Romania
* - RRR9915 - Airbus KC2 Voyager (A330-243MRTT) / RAF - Flying circles in Poland
* - CL60 - Airbus KC2 Voyager (A330-243MRTT) / unknown - patrolling north / north eastern border of Romania
* - nocallsign - Sikorsky S-70i Blackhawk / Polish armed forces - over southeast Poland (near Rzeszow)

originally posted by: carewemust
a reply to: Xcathdra

Thankyou for explaining how Most Favored Nation status works in the real world.

I guess I should have answered your question. Can it deter Russia? To be honest its doubtful however Russia is talking about nationalizing foreign companies in Russia that closed shop due to sanctions. The first 2 companies on the list is IKEA and Apple. Russia is so far in the hole that it seams like they dont care what happens to them anymore.

People keep saying China will come to their aid however China allowed the Ruble to tumble in order to protect their own currency.

Losing MFN will hurt Russia but I dont think its enough to stop Putin. I think the only way to stop Putin is by the Russian people. However his successor would most likely be the Defense Minister - Shoigu.

a reply to: Xcathdra

Agreed. The verbiage is highly important

Ill ask you as I havent had any other response. At this point how could you substantiate russias documents?

Headlines about Ukraine - click links for full articles

* - Security Council to hear Russian claim of US labs in Ukraine

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council scheduled a meeting Friday at Russia’s request to discuss what Moscow claims are “the military biological activities of the U.S. on the territory of Ukraine,” allegations vehemently denied by Ukraine's leader and the Biden administration.

“This is exactly the kind of false flag effort we have warned Russia might initiate to justify a biological or chemical weapons attack," Olivia Dalton, spokesperson for the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, said late Thursday. “We’re not going to let Russia gaslight the world or use the U.N. Security Council as a venue for promoting their disinformation.“

* - Facebook and Twitter remove Russian embassy posts denying Mariupol hospital bombing

Major social networks aren't done cracking down on Russian misinformation following that country's invasion of Ukraine. As CNN's Donie O'Sullivan and CNBC report, Facebook and Twitter have both removed posts from Russia's UK embassy over false claims surrounding the bombing of a maternity hospital in the Ukraine city of Mariupol. Russia claimed without evidence that a woman in a photo of the destroyed hospital was a "beauty blogger" and that the photo was staged.

* - Apple, IKEA, among companies Russia is considering nationalizing

McDonald's, IKEA and Apple are few among the list of 59 companies that the Russian Federation may nationalize, according to Oleg Pavlov, head of the Public Consumer Initiative organization.

This comes as a response to many companies cutting ties with Russia in line with international sanctions, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

"A list of foreign companies has been sent to the government and the Prosecutor General's Office that can be nationalized due to the cessation of their work in Russia," Pavlov said.

* - After more than two weeks of war, the Russian military grinds forward at a heavy cost

They don’t fully control the skies, despite possessing one of the world’s most advanced air forces. Their ground assault on the capital has been inching along for days, with a miles-long convoy marooned by supply problems. And all the while, they are taking heavy losses — both in personnel and equipment.

Two weeks after Russian forces streamed into neighboring Ukraine following months of buildup, evidence is mounting that the invasion has not gone to plan — and that Russia’s much-vaunted military may not be the formidable force once feared.

“The word I’m hearing from everybody in the government who is watching this is ‘surprising.’ My own word is ‘shocking,’” said Barry Pavel, a former top Pentagon official who is now senior vice president at the Atlantic Council. “It’s shocking how incompetent they are in the basics of joint military operations by an advanced country.”

* - Italy probes ‘mystery £530m vessel’ amid rumours Vladimir Putin owns it

Italian police are probing a mysterious superyacht in a small Tuscan town to see whether it should be seized under Russian sanctions amid speculation it could belong to Vladimir Putin himself.

The Scheherazade, worth an estimated $700 million, (£533m) dominates the harbour at Marina di Carrara, but no owner has been publicly identified.

The ownership of the 459-foot vessel, which has two helicopter decks, is now being probed by the Italian authorities.

Workers at the shipyard have speculated for more than a year that the ship belongs to Putin, a source told Daily Mail.

* - Russia ally China tries to protect itself from the ruble's collapse by letting it fall more against the yuan

* - In a new exchange rule, China is seeking to protect itself from big moves in the Russian ruble.
* - Beijing said it would double the margin size by which the ruble can move against the yuan.
* - That means China doesn't have to subsidize Russian buyers purchasing Chinese goods.

China is seeking to protect itself and its fiat currency from Western sanctions aimed at Russia's economy as President Vladimir Putin's forces attack Ukraine.

Starting Friday, the China Foreign Exchange Trade System will double the margin by which the Russian ruble can move against the Chinese yuan to 10% in daily state-controlled trading.

The ruble has collapsed against other foreign currencies as sanctions from Europe and the US have hit Russia's financial system. The ruble is down 40% against the US dollar this year and is now worth less than a penny.

* - What happens if Russia can’t pay its debts after western sanctions?

Russia is close to being unable to pay its debts amid sanctions imposed by the west after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

The World Bank’s chief economist, Carmen Reinhart, warned on Thursday that Russia and its ally Belarus were “mightily close” to default.

A key test will come on Wednesday next week, when the Russian state has to make a $117m (£89m) payment on some of its debts denominated in US dollars. While Russia has relatively low debts and its financial system is less integrated with the rest of the world than other countries’, some analysts warn an imminent Russian debt default could have unforeseen consequences.

originally posted by: JinMI
a reply to: Xcathdra

Agreed. The verbiage is highly important

Ill ask you as I havent had any other response. At this point how could you substantiate russias documents?

Depends on what the documents are and where they came from and what they say. We shall see at the UNSC meeting tomorrow / today.

* - Video showing Russian forces entering destroyed Volnovakha town

* - On March 11, at about 06:10, three air strikes took place in the city of Dnipro. There was a hit near a kindergarten and an apartment building and hit a two-story shoe factory with subsequent burning

* - The head of the Volyn Regional State Administration Yuriy Pohulyayko stated that two people killed as a result of the shelling of the military airfield in Lutsk by the Russian air forces

* - Russian army is shelling Toretsk with MLRS GRAD

* - Russian army bombed a residential area in Dnipro city. Explosions damaged a shoe factory, one apartment building and a kindergarten

* - Statement of the European Summit in Versailles: Russia's aggression against Ukraine flagrantly violates international law

* - Statement of the European Summit: Demanding Russia to withdraw its forces from Ukraine immediately and without conditions

Since people have been bitching about sources here are headlines from RT.

* - Facebook and Instagram to allow calls for violence against Russians

Meta’s social media platforms have eased their hate-speech policies to permit calls for the death of some Russians. Meta has confirmed that hate speech calling for violence is now permissible on Facebook and Instagram – as long as the targets are Russian and the topic of conversation relates to Moscow’s military offensive in Ukraine.

The revised rules on violence and incitement will apply in certain countries – such as Ukraine and Poland – and will allow violent rhetoric against Russians and Russian soldiers.

* - WHO advised Kiev to destroy disease-causing pathogens – media

The World Health Organization (WHO) has reportedly told Kiev to dispose of dangerous research materials kept in laboratories around the country to prevent the pathogens from being leaked or “accidentally” released.

The UN agency revealed the details behind its recommendation to Ukraine in statements to Reuters and Russia’s TASS news agency on Friday.

“As part of this work, WHO has strongly recommended to the Ministry of Health in Ukraine and other responsible bodies to destroy high-threat pathogens to prevent any potential spills,” the UN agency stated, as quoted by Reuters. It specified neither the nature of materials that should be destroyed, nor the date when it gave the advice.

As I was loading another article from RT I got a 403 forbidden error. For those that want humor go over to RT and read their headlines and the articles. I see now where US media got the "anonymous sources" bs excuses.

originally posted by: Xcathdra
I think the only way to stop Putin is by the Russian people. However his successor would most likely be the Defense Minister - Shoigu.

I think everyone is so understandably transfixed by the immediacy of Ukraine and wishing Putin away to end the conflict that there’s little thought being given to what comes after Putin - who fills that vacuum.

We’ve seen too often how the removal of a ‘problem’ can lead to an even bigger problem: Saddam < ISIS (and everything in between). Didn’t it seem a great day for global democracy when Saddam fell, or at least we were told it was. But the first domino in that long sequence of chaos was probably not so much 911, but the toppling of Saddam. Taking out Bin Laden ended the 911 story, but Iraq’s invasion started a new one. Apologies for the topic drift… the point is, be careful what you wish for.

While being swamped by the 24hr rolling updates on Ukraine Ive seen no debate on Putin’s successor should he be toppled by his people. Is the media avoiding this on orders because there’s a plan? Or more likely there’s no plan at all, except that the media needs villains to sell their brand. You don’t start debating who the next Bond villain will be halfway through the story of the current one - you need the audience’s fear fully focused on the current villain until his story is over, then rinse and repeat.

Would Shoigu be a safer pair of hands, or is it better the devil we know?

a reply to: McGinty

IMO, Everyone is so concerned about here&now because one of the ways "for Putin to leave", takes all of us with him.

a reply to: Xcathdra


Interesting that russia demanded this special session the very day after most of russia's external internet connections were cut.

Seems this is a direct play to russia's domestic population who are getting pretty angry at putin about the invasion.

Now most Russians will be 100% reliant on whatever russia says about it.

Should be interesting.

a reply to: McGinty
6 of one, half dozen of the other..

He has zero military experience. He was appointed by Putin in 2012 as Minister of Defense because he was neutral compared to the people who actively wanted that position (and a threat to Putin). Prior to all of that he was emergency minister and prior to that, at the close of the USSR he was a civil engineer appointed Deputy Chief of State Architecture and Construction Committee of the Russian Federation.

Putin at least has an intelligence background. The issue with Putin is he can never voluntarily retire unless his replacement is hand picked and loyal (considering Putin has $2 billion in stolen assets in his portfolio).

Shoigu is the loyal replacement but I dont think he has the reach to keep the job and instead would probably be overthrown / removed. They need a leader than did not grow up in the cold war as anything less would be Putin 2.0

While Shoigu would be a replacement I think it would lead to a second Russian civil war.

a reply to: PatriotGames4u

Well Peskov (Putins spokesperson) talked about the russian economy and made the comment that russians are in for a shock (prices etc etc). The Russian people are pissed.

Ive said it before - Putin wants it to be the 1980's all over again.

Also I am curious what evidence, if any, the Russians will show. Although there latest misinformation has taken the headlines instead of their failed war in Ukraine.

* - Missile strike hit Baryshivka town in Kyiv region. Possible Iskander

* - Lukashenka's delegation arrived in Kremlin to meet Putin

* - Putin convened meeting of Russian National security council (The source is state-funded media. Please, be aware, do not rely on this source without proper objective analysis of facts to form a judgment.)

* - An evacuation convoy left Enerhodar for Zaporizhia

* - In the Kharkiv region, the Russian military fired on the Oskilsky psychoneurological boarding school, which housed 330 people. The information on dead and wounded is specified - the head of regional administration Sinegubov

* - Russian Defense Minister Shoigu at National security council reported to Putin that "everything according to the plan" in Ukraine(LOL)

* - As a result of an air strike on the village of Milova in the Balakliia community, a deputy of the Balakliia City Council from the Svitlychna Bloc "Together." Marina Osipenko was killed. Another person killed also, several under rubble. Total 2 airstrikes destroyed 2 houses

* - Kharkiv: woman killed as result of Russian army shelling of residential house at Heroiv Pratsi 48a

* - Stadium in Chernihiv destroyed as result of Russian attack

* - Evacuation continues from the towns N-W to Kyiv

* - Kyiv(10:58). Red Alert: aerial threat. Sirens sounding. Take cover now! (6 mins ago)

As a reminder -

Just so people know and understand. Information from war zones can become confusing as there will no doubt be info released from the players (on both sides) involved that might not necessarily be true.

As such take everything as a possibility and NOT as absolute truth.

The very first casualty in a war is the truth and all warfare is based on deception

a reply to: carewemust
Indeed! As i said, most understandable why we're focused on the NOW! But history tells us it'd be wise not to ignore the NEXT!

a reply to: Xcathdra
Very interesting - thanks for the low down. This is not discussed in my vicinity, despite being a vital part of the context that informs currents events.

a reply to: sapien82

Thank you for raising an understudied and reported topic. Aside from the moral components, do the Ukrainians know they have had practical reasons to treat POWS respectfully and humanely? If a POW is expecting mistreatment and finds a "friendly face", their outlook might change. So, in short, the value of indirect interrogation methods was forgotten by intel communities after 1945.