Ukraine Daily

Wednesday, 6 April 2022

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Russia’s war against Ukraine

Eight Russian cruise missiles destroyed in one day. Ukraine’s Air Force said on April 5 that in an attempt to evade Ukraine’s aerial defense, Russian forces have instead been launching missiles from Belarus.

New York Times: Up to 200 people missing and presumed dead in Borodyanka. Heorhii Yerko, acting mayor of Borodyanka, said on April 5 that the number is a rough estimate of those beneath the rubble of Russian airstrikes, New York Times reports. Borodyanka, a town northwest of Kyiv, was one of the first to be attacked by Russian aerial bombardment.

Over 400 people missing from Hostomel in Kyiv Oblast. Head of Hostomel Military Administration Taras Dumenko said in an interview with Hromadske radio that many identified as missing or killed have yet to be found, but that some residents were found in Bucha, a sign according to Dumenko that Russian forces had moved people. Dumenko believes that Russian forces more carefully covered their tracks in Hostomel, as it was further from the front line.

Venediktova: Russian occupiers sexually assaulted women, men, children, and elderly. Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova said on April 5 that law enforcement officers are recording a growing number of cases and that Ukraine’s government is working to help the victims.

3,846 people evacuated through humanitarian corridors on April 5. Among them, 1496 people fled from Mariupol, according to Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk.

Vereshchuk: Mariupol evacuation possible with Turkey’s help. Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said on April 5 that Turkey could help put up an evacuation route for Mariupol residents. 120,000 people are still trapped by constant shelling in the southeastern port city and besieged by Russian troops, Vereshchuk said.

Zelensky addresses UN Security Council: Russia uses veto as a weapon, UN system must be transformed. President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the UN had failed to provide security in the world and called for reforming the organization, restoring the “strength of the UN Charter.” He also proposed to hold a global conference in “peaceful Kyiv” to determine how to reform the world’s security system.

Zelensky: No ‘demilitarization, de-nazification’ of Ukraine is even on the table. Russia had claimed that “denazification and demilitarization” of Ukraine were the goal of the invasion. President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a group interview with several Ukrainian journalists on April 5 that Ukraine had refused to even discuss it at the peace negotiations.

Russian troops hit merchant ship under Dominican Republic flag near Mariupol. The ship has caught fire and is sinking in the Sea of Azov, and one crew member has been injured, Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service said on April 5. The crew has been evacuated by Ukrainian border guards.

Ukraine’s Air Force: 3 Russian guided missiles shot down in western Ukraine. A fourth missile was damaged, which prevented it from reaching its target, the air force said. The missiles were launched from Su-35 jets based in Belarus.

Auchan Ukraine: Auchan suspends investments, supplies to its stores in Russia. The Ukrainian branch of the French retail and grocery chain reported that they have “finally made the head office stop investment and supplies to its stores in Russia,” adding that it was only the first step. According to Auchan Ukraine, there will be no opening of the new stores in Russia, and no imported goods. Unlike many other retailers, Auchan has refused to leave Russia.

SBU: Russian occupiers prepare ‘mass provocation’ in Mariupol to blame the Ukrainian military. According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), Russian forces plan to gather the bodies of the civilians they killed in Mariupol to show them as victims of the Ukrainian military. They are spreading false information that Ukrainian soldiers use civilians as “human shields,” SBU reported on April 5.

Poll: 95% of Ukrainians believe in victory over Russia, record-breaking 91% support joining EU. According to the recent poll conducted by the Rating Group, the number of respondents who believe that Ukraine can win the war in the next few weeks decreased from 47% to 35% since the previous poll published on March 20.

A burnt car is seen in Bucha, a suburb of Kyiv, on April 4, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)

Read our exclusive, on the ground stories

Ukrainian intelligence claims that a coup is being prepared against Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. Although such intelligence claims may be seen as dubious, analysts can assess the possibility of a coup d’etat by taking into account the economic and political situation in Russia. Read the Kyiv Independent’s analysis here.

New phase in war opens up as Ukraine pushes back Russia in battle for Kyiv. After nearly 40 days of fierce hostilities, by April 1 Russian forces had withdrawn from battlefields in northern Ukraine. What comes next is the even more decisive and difficult battle for Donbas, writes defense and security reporter Illia Ponomarenko. Read his report here.

The human cost of Russia’s war

BBC: Bucha mayor estimates 320 civilians killed by Russian forces. Mayor of Bucha Anatoly Fedoruk said in a televised interview on April 5 that he had also personally witnessed the murder of several of the town’s residents by Russian forces during its occupation.

12 civilians killed, 41 injured in Russian shelling of Mykolaiv. Russia shelled Mykolaiv on April 4 with cluster munitions, Prosecutor General’s Office wrote.

Russian shellings on April 4 kill 6 people, injure 8 in Kharkiv Oblast. Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Synehubov said on April 5 that Russian troops had shelled Kharkiv Oblast 54 times on the previous day.

International response

EU to expand sanctions on Russian elite, expel several Russian diplomats. EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell announced on April 5 that the EU will expand sanctions against the Russian elite including politicians and businessmen, as well as declared a number of officials of the Russian Mission to the EU “persona non grata.”

Turkey, Estonia announce return of embassies to Kyiv. The Turkish Embassy in Ukraine announced on April 5 that its embassy in Ukraine will relocate from Chernivtsi back to Kyiv and resume operations on April 6. The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said earlier on April 5 that the Estonian Ambassador to Ukraine will also return to Kyiv.

Truss: ‘We won’t stop until Putin fails.’ British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss wrote in a column for European Pravda news outlet that “those who finance (Russia’s) war must be dealt with as soon as possible.” Truss added the U.K. won’t stop “until Ukraine wins.”

Boris Johnson calls on Russian citizens to “seek out the truth” about war in Ukraine in video address. “Your president stands accused of committing war crimes,” U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in Russian in his address on April 5, as images of dead bodies and mass graves played on the screen. “But I cannot believe he’s acting in your name.”

Bloomberg: US, EU, G7 to ban all new investments in Russia. The new round of sanctions could include a U.S. ban on all new investments in Russia, according to an undisclosed Bloomberg source from the Biden administration. Bloomberg writes that the U.S. is planning to increase penalties on Russian financial institutions and state-owned enterprises.

Estonia sends lethal weapons to Ukraine. Estonia has handed over to Ukraine anti-tank missiles and mines, automatic weapons, ammunition, disposable grenades and hand grenades.

US to announce additional sanctions on Putin’s children, Russian banks for killings of Ukrainians. According to an anonymous source familiar with the plans, the announcement may come as early as April 6. Measures will include the expansion of sanctions against Russia’s largest financial institution, Sberbank, and one of its largest private banks, Alfa Bank, as well as on Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s adult children.

Twitter to introduce restrictions on Russian government accounts, propaganda. Head of Site Integrity at Twitter Yoel Roth said that Twitter will not “amplify or recommend government accounts belonging to states that limit access to free information and are engaged in armed interstate conflict.” Russia blocked access to Twitter on March 4.

New Zealand to introduce 35% tariff on Russian imports in response to Bucha massacre. The New Zealand government also said on April 6 that it would extend existing export prohibitions to industrial products related to strategic Russian industries. New Zealand plans to introduce further sanctions against Russia in support of Ukraine. Both measures will be effective as of April 25.

US to provide additional $100 million in security assistance to Ukraine. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on April 5 that he had authorized the security assistance “to meet Ukraine’s urgent need for additional anti-armor systems.”

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Alexander Query, Daria Shulzhenko, Oleg Sukhov, Sergiy Slipchenko, Teah Pelechaty, Olena Goncharova, Oleksiy Sorokin, Olga Rudenko, Toma Istomina, Lili Bivings and Brad LaFoy.

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