2023-06-19 20:26:15
Britain stated that the Russian forces are conducting “tactical” moves on the southern fronts of the areas it controls in Ukraine, while France announced providing Kiev with an advanced air defense system equivalent to the Patriot system.
A MoD intelligence assessment of developments in Ukraine said that over the past 10 days Russia had likely begun moving elements of the Dnipro Group of Forces on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River to reinforce the Zaporizhia and Bakhmut sectors.
And the assessment – which the ministry published on its Twitter account – added that this is likely to include several thousand members of the 49th Army forces, which include the 34th separate brigade, in addition to the Airborne Forces and Marine Corps units.
The assessment noted that the relocation of the Dnipro Group of Forces likely reflects Russia’s perception that a major Ukrainian offensive across the Dnipro is less likely now, following the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka Dam and the resulting flood.
Russian forces during mobilization operations last year (Archyde.com)
Blinkin.. fears of “deadly weapons”
On the other hand, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken confirmed – in Beijing today, Monday – that China has renewed its pledge not to supply Russia with lethal weapons for use in Ukraine, while expressing concern about the actions of private Chinese companies.
“We and other countries have received assurances from China that it is not and will not provide lethal assistance to Russia for use in Ukraine,” Blinken told reporters.
“We haven’t seen any evidence to the contrary. What we have ongoing concerns about are Chinese companies that might provide technology that Russia could use to further its aggression in Ukraine,” he added.
According to Blinken, Washington has asked the Chinese government to be “extremely vigilant” in this regard. He emphasized that China had made assurances about this file in the “recent weeks”, and not only during his visit to Beijing.
SAMPT system
Also in terms of armaments, French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Monday that Ukraine had received and is now using a medium-range surface-to-air defense system of the French-Italian SAMP / T model, and this came four months after Paris pledged to grant Kiev the system.
Paris had announced in early February that it would hand over this system to Kiev, equivalent to the American “Patriot” system.
“I am pleased to inform you, together with my Italian colleague Georgia Meloni, that the French-Italian SAMP-T has been deployed and is now operating in Ukraine, protecting key facilities and saving lives,” Macron said in a speech in Paris on European air and missile defence.
The SAMP-T Mamba is supposed to help Ukraine deal with attacks from Russian drones, missiles and aircraft.
Kiev has been calling for months to strengthen its air defenses, especially after the wave of Russian strikes on its vital infrastructure using Iranian-made drones last fall.
Ramaphosa.. Evaluating the work of the African Mission
On the diplomatic level to resolve the conflict, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa praised – on Monday – the African mission to bring peace to Ukraine, describing it as “historic”, upon his return from Kiev and St. Petersburg after holding talks with the leaders of both sides of the conflict.
The high-level African delegation met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday, before heading to Russia for talks with its President Vladimir Putin.
“This initiative was historic in that it was the first time that African leaders had undertaken a peace mission beyond the borders of the continent,” Ramaphosa said in a weekly news release.
The mission conveyed the voice of a continent that was greatly affected by the repercussions of the Ukrainian conflict, especially due to the high prices of grain, a large part of which is imported from the two warring countries, Russia and Ukraine.
10-point proposal
The mission presented a 10-point proposal, including de-escalation, recognition of the sovereignty of the two countries, non-obstruction of grain exports across the Black Sea, and the return of prisoners of war and children to their countries of origin.
Ramaphosa pointed out – on Monday – that the “positive reception” that the mission enjoyed from both parties is in itself “among its most important achievements.” Ramaphosa.
On the other hand, the Kremlin believes that applying these principles is “very difficult,” while Zelensky ruled out holding talks with Moscow as long as Russian forces occupy parts of Ukraine.
In this context, the Kremlin said – today, Monday – that it will remain in contact with the African mediation mission, especially during the Russian-African summit scheduled for next month, adding that some of the proposed ideas can be implemented.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that talks with the delegation will continue, as some of his proposals are theoretically applicable, but he did not mention the aforementioned proposals, adding, “In general, the dialogue with Africans will continue.”
Intense battles on many fronts
On the ground, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that its forces had taken full control of the city of Novodonetsk, in the Donetsk region.
The ministry said that its forces repelled a Ukrainian attack and destroyed about 50 Ukrainian vehicles and tanks during the fighting. It published two video clips, which it said showed its forces controlling the city and the Ukrainian losses.
For her part, Hana Malyar, the Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Defense, said that the Ukrainian forces continued their advance in the direction of Bakhmut during the past week, despite the Russian reinforcements in the region, and added that the Ukrainian forces thwarted Russian attempts to advance in the directions of Liman Kobyansk, Avdiivka, and Marinka.
Malyar said that within two weeks of offensive operations in the direction of Berdyansk and Melitopol, Ukrainian forces recaptured 8 towns, and advanced – within two weeks – approximately 7 kilometers deep towards the Tavrian area of operations.
And the Ukrainian army announced that it had regained control of the town of Pyatakhatka, southwest of Zaporizhia, after two weeks of battles, and published a video clip that it said showed its soldiers in front of one of the official buildings in the town.
The Ukrainian counterattack has been going on for about two weeks, and the pace of battles is increasing, especially on the southern and eastern fronts.
Flaming fronts in the south
In a related context, the Ukrainian military administration in Kherson said that 10 buses caught fire as a result of the Russian bombing of a bus stop, while an emergency services facility in the Odessa region was damaged as a result of the bombing.
Al-Jazeera correspondent reported hearing a series of explosions in the city of Zaporizhia, southeastern Ukraine, after monitoring the launch of S-300 missiles.
For its part, the military administration in Odessa announced that the region was subjected to a missile attack from the Black Sea, which the air defenses responded to.
The Ukrainian Air Force said that it had detected the movement of missiles and marches towards Zaporizhia, Dnipro, and Donetsk, south and east of Ukraine.
In the north, the governor of the Russian province of Belgorod, Vyacheslav Gladkov, reported that 7 people were injured in a Ukrainian bombing that targeted the village of Valuisky, and 9 residential buildings were damaged in the border province with Ukraine.
In Donetsk, the pro-Russian authorities reported that 8 civilians were injured in the Ukrainian bombing that targeted the city, and the bombing also damaged 7 residential buildings and 3 infrastructure facilities.
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