POLITICSUKRAINE
Ukraine updates: Bakhmut may fall within days — NATO chief
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NATO head Jens Stoltenberg said Russia could capture Bakhmut “in the coming days.” Meanwhile, Germany said it inspected a ship suspected of carrying Nord Stream pipelines explosives. DW has rounded up the latest.
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The eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut could fall “in the coming days,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday. His comments came after Russia’s private Wagner mercenary group claimed to control the eastern part of the city.
While Stoltenberg predicted the capture of Bakhmut would not be “a turning point in the war,” he stressed that Russia must not be underestimated.
“What we see is that Russia is throwing more troops, more forces and what Russia lacks in quality they try to make up in quantity,” Stoltenberg said.
He added that Western support in the form of ramping up production of ammunition was necessary, saying that the rate of consumption made the current production rate unsustainable.
“This is now a war of attrition, which is a battle of logistics,” the French AFP news agency quoted him as saying.
In the early hours of Wednesday, Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin said in a Telegram voice recording: “Everything east of the Bakhmutka River is completely under the control of Wagner.”
The report could not be independently verified. Meanwhile, Ukraine denied Russian “success” on the ground.
Serhiy Cherevaty, the spokesman of the Eastern Group of Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces added in an official statement that the Bakhmut was expected to remain the epicenter of hostilities.
Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy refuted reports of plans to withdraw.
After months of fighting in and around Bakhmut, Russian forces are set on capturing the city, which would be their first significant battlefield victory in some six months.
Western strategists and officials suggest a Russian occupation of the city would be of more symbolic than strategic value.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, however, said on Tuesday that control of Bakhmut would allow Moscow’s forces to mount further attacks deeper inside Ukraine.
Ukraine says it will continue defending Bakhmut
02:10
Here are some of the other notable developments concerning the war in Ukraine on Wednesday, March 8:
US spy chiefs see China continue to cooperate with Russia
China will maintain its cooperation with Russia to continue trying to confront the US, despite international concerns about the invasion of Ukraine, US intelligence agencies said.
“Despite global backlash over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, China will maintain its diplomatic, defense, economic, and technology cooperation with Russia to continue trying to challenge the United States, even as it will limit public support,” they said in a report tied to the Senate Intelligence Committee’s annual hearing on worldwide threats to US security.
The report said Russia likely does not seek conflict with the US and NATO, but the war in Ukraine carries “great risk” of that happening, and that there is a “real potential” for Russia’s military failures in Ukraine to hurt Russian President Vladimir Putin’s domestic standing, raising the potential for escalation.
Avril Haines, the Director of National Intelligence, also said the US does not foresee the Russian military recovering enough this year to make major territorial gains.
Borrell proposes EU to spend €1 billion on ammunition
European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said that he had suggested the bloc spend €1 billion ($1.06 billion) for the joint procurement of ammunition for Ukraine and to refill their own stockpiles.
“I propose to mobilize another billion euros,” he told reporters after a meeting of EU defense ministers in Stockholm.
At the same meeting, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said his country needs one million artillery shells, which are expected to cost around €4 billion.
Seoul approved Poland’s export of howitzers with South Korean parts to Ukraine
Seoul approved export licenses last year for Poland to provide Ukraine with Krab howitzers, which are built with South Korean components, a South Korean defense official and a Polish industry representative told Reuters.
The comments are the first confirmation that South Korea officially acquiesced to at least indirectly providing weapons components to Ukraine.
South Korea’s Defense Ministry noted that the Krab includes components from several countries, and that the transfer did not involve a complete South Korean weapons system.
The Krab is a self-propelled howitzer made by combining a South Korean K9 Thunder chassis, British BAE Systems turret, French Nexter Systems 155 mm gun, and a Polish fire controlsystem.
Following Russia’s invasion in February last year, Poland sent 18 Krabs to Ukraine in May, and the two countries have signed orders for dozens more.
Zelenskyy thanks Ukrainian women for their support
On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the women of his country for their help and sacrifice in the face of Russia’s war.
“It seems to me that it is important to give thanks today. To thank all women who work, teach, learn, save, heal, fight — fight for Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said in a video message.
On this day, he said, he wanted to remember all women “who gave their lives for our state.” Zelenskyy also said he would call his mother and thank his wife.
At the same time, Ukraine’s first lady offered spirited support to her nation’s people while visiting the United Arab Emirates, a country that still remains open to Russia despite Western sanctions.
Olena Zelenska described her role and that of other first ladies and gentlemen in the world as a real power while speaking before a packed ballroom on International Women’s Day. She also applauded the work of Ukrainians amid the ongoing war.
“We are a force and we can continue to change the world,” Zelenska said at the Forbes 30/50 Summit.
Ukraine and UN chief call for Black Sea grain deal extension
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the extension of a deal with Moscow that has allowed Kyiv to export grain via Black Sea ports during Russia’s invasion.
Zelenskyy said after talks with Guterres in Kyiv that the Black Sea Grain Initiative was necessary for the world. Guterres underlined the importance of the deal to global food security and food prices.
“I want to underscore the critical importance of rolling over the Black Sea Grain Initiative on 18 March and working to create the conditions to enable the greatest possible use of export infrastructure through the Black Sea in line with the objectives of the initiative,” Guterres said.
The 120-day deal, initially brokered by the United Nations and Turkey in July and extended in November, will be renewed on March 18 if no party objects. Russia has signalled that obstacles to its own agricultural exports need to be removed before it lets the deal continue.
To help convince Russia to allow Ukraine to resume Black Sea grain exports, a three-year deal was also struck last year in which the United Nations agreed to help facilitate Russian food and fertilizer exports.
German defense minister: Tanks should arrive soon
According to German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, the main battle tanks promised by Germany and Portugal for Ukraine will be delivered by the end of March.
“I can tell you that I just found out that 18 German Leopard 2A6 tanks and three Portuguese ones can all come together to Ukraine this month,” Pistorius said on the sidelines of an EU defense ministers meeting in Sweden. The tanks would come into the country with trained crews and could then go to the frontline.
Portugal’s Defense Minister Helena Carreiras also announced in Stockholm that three Leopard tanks provided by her country are already in Germany and are “fully operational.”
The delivery of Leopard 2 main battle tanks is part of the military aid provided by Germany and other countries to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia. In addition to Germany and Portugal, countries such as Poland, Norway, Canada and Spain are also involved in the initiative.
Poland delivered the first four Leopard 2 Type 2A4 main battle tanks to Ukraine in February. Ten more are to follow this week.
EU court annuls EU sanctions on Wagner founder’s mother
The European Union’s General Court annulled on Wednesday earlier EU sanctions imposed on Violetta Prigozhina, the mother of Russian Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.
The court said there was insufficient evidence linking her to her son’s illegitimate activities in Ukraine.
Prigozhina was sanctioned by the EU at the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The decision was based on her co-ownership of Concord Management and Consulting LLC, alongside other undertakings she had with her son.
The EU Council, which is made up of leaders of the bloc’s 27 nations, had concluded that by co-owning the firms, Prigozhina “supported actions and policies which undermine the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.”
Prigozhina, however, challenged the Council’s decision, and said she has not been co-owner of Concord Management and Consulting since 2017.
The court also ruled that the grounds for measures taken against her failed to establish sufficient financial or asset links to her son at the time the sanctions were enacted.
German prosecution inspected ship suspected of carrying Nord Stream explosives
Authorities searched a ship thought to have possibly transported explosives tied to the Nord Stream pipeline explosions, the German Prosecutors Office said Wednesday.
The announcement came following media reports indicating pro-Ukrainian groups may have been responsible for the blasts.
In January, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office searched a ship suspected of transporting explosives used in sabotaging the two pipelines in September 2022, a spokeswoman for the Karlsruhe-based prosecutor’s office said.
US reports new findings on Nord Stream 2 explosions
02:17
Authorities were still evaluating the seized objects.
The spokeswoman said authorities were still investigating the identity of the perpetrators as well as their motives. She added that no further statements could be released in the time being.
UN: Video of unarmed Ukrainian’s execution may be authentic
The UN Human Rights Office said it believes a viral video showing the purported execution of a captured soldier after saying “Glory to Ukraine” may be authentic.
“Based on a preliminary examination, we believe that the video may be authentic,” a spokeswoman for the office told the French AFP news agency on Wednesday.
The Ukrainian army said on Tuesday that it provisionally determined the identity of the man allegedly shot by Russian soldiers in the video, describing him as a Ukrainian prisoner of war.
The video, which surfaced on Monday, shows what appears to be an unarmed man in uniform with a Ukrainian flag insignia on his arm. The man is heard saying “Slava Ukraini,” which means “Glory to Ukraine,” before multiple shots are heard and the man is seen collapsing as bullets hit his body.
A voice is heard telling him to “die” in Russian.
Ukraine’s army said that the man had been listed as missing near the eastern city of Bakhmut since February 3.
Berlin cautions against hasty accusations on Nord Stream sabotage
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has warned against any hasty accusations on the backdrop of US and German media reports suggesting that a pro-Ukrainian group was responsible for last year’s attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines.
“It may just as well have been a false flag operation staged to blame Ukraine, an option brought up in the media reports as well,” Pistorius told German public broadcaster Deutschladnfunk on Wednesday.
Pistorius was speaking ahead of a meeting of EU defense ministers to discuss providing Ukraine with ammunition.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock echoed the same caution, saying investigations into the attacks by the relevant authorities must be concluded first.
During a visit to Erbil in the Iraqi autonomous Kurdistan region, Baerbock said on Wednesday that Berlin would not “jump to conclusions” until the federal prosecutor’s investigation is concluded.
DW interview with Slovak Defense Minister on Nord Stream
03:55
Guterres in Kyiv to discuss grain deal extension
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday, where negotiating an extension of the grain export deal between Russia and Ukraine is on the top of his agenda.
Guterres arrived from Poland, where he visited on Tuesday. He is scheduled to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during his visit.
The Black Sea Grain Initiative was brokered by the UN and Turkey last summer to alleviate the impact of the war on global food security. It allows the export of millions of tons of grain and other foods out of Ukraine via three Black Sea ports.
Before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year, the country was a major grain exporter.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the secretary-general will discuss upholding the deal “in all its aspects and other pertinent issues.”
The agreement, signed last July and extended once in November, is due to expire on March 18. Last week, Ukrainian officials urged both the UN and Ankara to seek a renewal.
Kremlin rejects US media reports on Nord Stream attacks
The Kremlin has rejected reports in US media regarding last year’s Nord Stream pipeline attacks, saying it was confused as to how US officials could make assumptions about the attacks without investigation.
“Obviously, the authors of the attack want to divert attention. Obviously, this is a coordinated stuffing in the media,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted by the state RIA news agency as saying.
Peskov said Nord Stream shareholder countries should insist on an urgent, transparent investigation. He complained that Moscow had yet to gain permission to investigate.
“Only a few days ago, we received notes about this from the Danes and Swedes,” he said. “This is not just strange, it smells like a monstrous crime.”
New intelligence reviewed by US officials suggests that a pro-Ukrainian group carried out the attack on the Nord Stream pipelines last year, The New York Times reported.
There was no evidence that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy or his top lieutenants in Ukraine were involved in the operation or that the perpetrators were acting at the direction of any Ukrainian government officials, the newspaper reported, citing US officials.
Aerial footage of Nord Stream 2 gas leak near Bornholm.Aerial footage of Nord Stream 2 gas leak near Bornholm.
A New York Times report suggests that a pro-Ukrianian group is behind last year’s attacks on the Nord Stream pipelineImage: Danish Defence Command/dpa/picture alliance
Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior aide to Zelenskyy, said that Kyiv was “absolutely not involved” in last year’s attacks on the Nord Stream pipelines and had no information about what happened.
Russia’s deputy UN envoy Dmitry Polyanskiy said that a report “only proves that our initiative on launching an international investigation under the auspices of the UN Secretary-General is very timely.”
Russia plans to call a vote in the UN Security Council by the end of March on its draft resolution asking Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to establish such an inquiry.
EU defense ministers to meet on boosting Ukraine supplies
The defense ministers of the European Union bloc are meeting in Stockholm on Wednesday to discuss a plan to pump €1 billion worth of ammunition to Ukraine.
The critical ammunition shortage Kyiv is currently suffering will top Wednesday’s agenda. European leaders are trying to restore the thousands of shells fired by Ukrainian forces daily to ward off Russia’s offensive.
With the eastern city of Bakhmut being the main battlefield at the moment, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has warned that Moscow would have an “open road” for offensives deeper into Ukraine should Russia capture the city.
rmt/sms (AFP, dpa, Reuters)
