The Russian Army has continued its offensive in the east and south of Ukraine in the last 24 hours, although with fewer attacks than in previous days, while the siege of the Azovstal steel plant, in the port city of Mariupol, continues. has practically controlled. “The Russian enemy continues to conduct offensive operations in the Eastern Operational Zone to defeat the (Ukrainian) Joint Forces, establish full control over the territory of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions and maintain the land route with occupied Crimea”has assured the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, according to local agencies.
Donetsk and Lugansk They are two pro-Russian regions that declared their independence as republics and they were recognized by Moscow days before the start of the invasion of the country. The Klemlin’s strategy in Ukraine in recent days involves trying to control both regions from neighboring Kharkov, which is suffering heavy bombardment, especially its capital and the city of Izium. It is about establishing a corridor between this area, known as Donbas, and the Crimean peninsula, in the Black Sea, occupied by the Russians since 2014.
According to the military report, bombings and explosions have occurred in the Kherson region. Russian troops try to take control of towns and villages by resorting to threats and kidnapping. The situation in the region is difficult and tense. In the Lugansk region, the situation remains tense. During the day Sievierodonetsk, Lysychansk, Hirske and Pryvillia were shelled. In each of these cities and towns there is damage to houses and farm buildings, with no civilian casualties.
And in Donetsk there has been shelling along the entire front line: Russian troops deploy Grad multiple rocket launchers, artillery, mortars, aircraft and missiles. On the night of Thursday, April 28, there was a missile attack on the outskirts of Kramatorsk. However, the “Russian invaders did not conduct active offensive operations in the Izium direction (in the Kharkov region). Their main efforts were focused on reconnaissance, identifying Ukrainian defensive positions and their destruction by artillery fire.”
Russian troops continue to restrict movement and detain local residents and block humanitarian aid goods.”
Izium had been an area especially punished by the Russian offensive in the last days. The Russian occupation forces continue the siege of the Ukrainian units in Mariupol, around the Azovstal plant, where, according to the authorities, half a thousand soldiers of the Azov regiment, which is part of the Ukrainian army, and a thousand civilians are taking refuge. .
On the other hand, the Russian army, which began the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, had stopped bombing the city of kyiv and its surroundings in recent weeks, but this thursday he did it again, although it did not cause fatalities. In the “temporarily occupied” territories, the Russian occupation authorities continue to restrict movement and detain local residents and block humanitarian aid goods flowing through the territory of Ukraine, the military underlines.
In the war report it is also denounced that “Russian occupiers are stealing from local farmers. For example, more than 60 tons of wheat were stolen from an agricultural facility in the city of Kamianka-Dniprovska, along with the trucks that were in the area.” On the other hand, and according to kyiv, the Ukrainians shot down fifteen aerial targets during the last day, including one fighter jet, five cruise missiles and nine drones.
Russia acknowledges the attack on kyiv
The Russian Ministry of Defense has confirmed the attack perpetrated on Thursday on kyiv, in the midst of a visit by the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, and has assured that it launched “high precision” missiles on supposedly military targets.
Ministerial spokesman Igor Konashenkov has reported attacks on real estate linked to the aerospace industry and with rockets, according to the morning report collected by the Interfax news agency. Moscow has reported no personal injuries as a result of this bombing.
The mayor of kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, has denounced in his Telegram account the death of at least one person, found lifeless in the rubble of a residential building. In addition, several other people have been injured by this attack, which occurred in the Shevchenko neighborhood.
First attack from a submarine
The crew of a Russian submarine has launched Kalibr cruise missiles at Ukrainian military targets from the Black Sea, marking the first time Russia has mentioned using a submersible to attack Ukraine in the military campaign. “The crew of a diesel-electric submarine of the Black Sea Fleet launched a salvo of Kalibr cruise missiles against the military infrastructure of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” the Russian Defense Ministry said on its Telegram account.
In the video that accompanies the information, you can see how a missile is shot into the sky from within the sea. According to the Russian agency Interfax, it is the first time that the Ministry of Defense mentions the use of a submarine to attack Ukrainian military targets. Until now, he had only reported the use of frigates, aircraft and missile systems.
The EU and the US respond to Russian threats
From the European Union, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, has affirmed that gas contracts with Russia will not be paid in rubles and has indicated that he does not rule out the possibility of reopening the debate on a possible embargo of hydrocarbons. The also vice-president of the European Commission has taken advantage of his visit to Chile -the first stop on his tour of Latin America- to refer to the EU’s position on what he has called the latest “Russian aggression”.
The European bloc has refused to impose an embargo on Russian gas or oil and has also ruled out a tax on fuel imports, as detailed by the senior official during a press conference at the inauguration of the new EU embassy in Santiago. However, the initial rejection “does not mean that (these sanctions) cannot be considered again in view of the events and how they are developing”.
“All member states are united in a solidarity response. What happens to Poland and Bulgaria happens to the European Union“, Borrell has wielded, who has defended that “there is capacity to substitute the supply of gas to these countries through other sources”. The Russian state company Gazprom announced on Wednesday the total interruption of its gas exports to Poland and Bulgaria by his refusal to pay in rubles, a demand from Moscow that most countries in the European bloc reject.
The US allows Biden to use a World War II law to lend more weapons to Ukraine
The senior official has added that “the contracts will be strictly fulfilled in the terms in which they are foreseen” and “where it is said that it is paid in euros or dollars, it will be done in euros or dollars”. “Naturally, Russia will do everything possible to try to make these payments in a currency that puts us in difficulty, it is part of the rules of the game,” he said.
For its part, the United States House of Representatives has approved a legislative measure that allows the country’s president, Joe Biden, to use a law dating from the second world war to lend more weapons to Ukraine. With 417 votes in favor and only 10 against, the measure has been supported by both Democrats and Republicans, as was previously the case in the Senate, and allows Biden to deliver weapons faster and with less bureaucracy to kyiv. .
Furthermore, just hours before the House of Representatives voted in favor of the legislation, Biden formally asked Congress $33 billion in additional aid for Ukraine, of which more than 20,000 million will be military assistance to defend against Russia, given the possibility of a long war. In a speech from the White House, Biden explained that it is “crucial” that Congress give the green light to this aid, because giving in to Russian aggression would be much more costly.
Zelensky appreciates the help
The President of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenski, has thanked the new US aid package; a package that, according to what he said, will serve to stop the Russian attack against his country and against democracy in the world. In a speech published on the website of the Ukrainian Presidency, Zelensky referred to the new support package for Ukraine worth 33,000 million dollars, the approval of which the Joe Biden Administration has asked the US Congress.
“In particular, more than twenty billion can be allocated for defense. More than 8,000 million are planned for economic support. Another 3,000 million will go to humanitarian aid,” the Ukrainian president clarified. This “is a very important step by the United States, and I am grateful to the American people and personally to President Biden for it,” added Zelensky.
Likewise, he has stated that he hopes that “the (US) Congress will quickly support this request for help to our state. President Biden has rightly said today that this step is not cheapbut the negative consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and against democracy are of such magnitude for the whole world that, compared to them, this support is necessary”, the Ukrainian leader finally stressed.
Source: Lasexta
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
