The long battle over Bakhmout is turning in Russian forces’ favor, according to the Wagner paramilitary group, which said on Friday it had “virtually surrounded” that Donbass town.
The United States announced new military aid to Ukraine on Friday, March 3, during the visit of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Washington, which was an opportunity to reaffirm Western support for Kiev. On the ground, the Russian paramilitary group Wagner claimed to have “virtually surrounded” the town of Bakhmout. Here is the essence of this new day of conflict.
The Siege of Bakhmout becomes clearer
Russian paramilitary group Wagner, whose men are on the front lines in Ukraine, has announced it has taken another step towards capturing Bakhmout, a city symbol of the East. “Wagner’s units have practically surrounded Bakhmout, there is only one way left” to get out, said his boss, Evguéni Prigojine, in combat fatigues. This suggested to the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to order the Ukrainian troops to withdraw from the city. On Wednesday, the Ukrainian army denied that a withdrawal from Bakhmout was underway.
Moscow promises “measures” against attacks on its soil
Russia pledged that it would “take steps” to prevent Ukrainian raids after Russian authorities reported an “infiltration” of Ukrainian “saboteurs” into a Russian border region with Ukraine the day before. According to Russian security services, this group opened fire on a car, killing two civilians and injuring a child in the village of Lioubetchané. The Ukrainian presidency has denied these allegations, calling them a “deliberate provocation” which it says is aimed at justifying the invasion that Moscow has been spearheading for more than a year.
Russia’s investigative committee announced on Friday that it had sent a team to the scene of the crime and said the situation was “under the control of law enforcement.” Russian security forces said they found a “large amount of explosives” in the area.
The US announces new military aid
The United States has announced $400 million in new military aid to Ukraine, consisting mostly of ammunition. The new aid includes ammunition for the Himars rocket launcher systems, which are effectively used by Ukrainian forces, as well as Bradley armored vehicles and other equipment, according to the US State Department. “As long as it takes, we will stand behind Ukraine to strengthen its army on the ground,” Washington promised. The United States, Ukraine’s top donor, has supplied or promised more than $32 billion in various weapons to Kiev’s armed forces since the Russian offensive began.
Ahead of a meeting between Joe Biden and Olaf Sholz in Washington, the Kremlin warned that new supplies of weapons from the West would only “prolong the conflict in Ukraine”. “We note that the United States is continuing its policy of increasing arms sales to Ukraine and persuading its protégés to do the same,” Moscow said.
The EU calls for an “improvement” in Russian diplomacy
The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, said he noticed “a small improvement” at the diplomatic level with Russia during the G20 meeting in India. While his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov walked out of a working session last year, this time he stayed for the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting as Western countries condemned Russia for its invasion.
“At least this time he stayed and listened. It’s a small improvement, but it’s important,” said Josep Borrell. “I think it’s better than nothing,” he added, expressing his opposition to Russia’s exclusion from the G20. “We must retain the means to speak, or at least to listen,” he argued.
Kiev will house an office of the International Criminal Court
The Prosecutor General of Ukraine has announced that his country is preparing to open an office of the International Criminal Court in Kiev to investigate possible war crimes or crimes against humanity committed during the Russian offensive in Ukraine. This “will allow the ICC Prosecutor to more fully investigate international crimes committed in Ukraine,” Andriy Kostin said, referring to an opening “in the near future.”
“However, there is currently no legal mechanism in place that would allow the ICC to try those who planned and started this brutal and unprovoked war for the crime of aggression,” he said. “This would require the creation of a special international court.” Volodymyr Zelenskyy insisted that “Russian President Vladimir Putin and all his accomplices must be legally and fairly convicted,” arguing that “more than 70,000 Russian war crimes” have been registered in Ukraine.