7:39 p.m. ET, March 7, 2023
It’s past midnight in Kiev. Here’s what you need to know
Ukrainian forces continue to defend against Russian attacks in the battered city of Bakhmut, according to the military general staff. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that if Russian forces take control of Bakhmut, they will have “the road open” to seize other key cities in eastern Ukraine. He defended his decision to keep Ukrainian forces in the besieged city and in his nightly address announced the death of Dmytro Kotsiubaylo, a celebrated Ukrainian fighter who was killed in Bakhmut. Almost 4,000 civilians are in Bakhmut as of Tuesday, according to the country’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk. She said Ukrainian workers are still working to evacuate the rest of the population, but the current situation is making their job even more difficult.
If you’re just catching up, here’s what you should know:
Russian attacks. While most attention is focused on the battle for Bakhmut, fierce fighting continues further north in the Lugansk region, according to Ukrainian officials. Ukrainian military said Russian forces continue to focus their offensive on Kupiansk, Lyman, Avdiivka and Shakhtarsk.
prisoner swap. Ukraine and Russia exchanged prisoners of war in another swap announced by both sides on Tuesday. Moscow said it was able to bring back 90 soldiers from Kiev-controlled territory, while Ukraine said it was able to bring back 130 of its soldiers from Russian captivity.
Nord Stream leaks. A senior Ukrainian official denied any Ukrainian government involvement in the Nord Stream pipeline leaks in late September 2022, which Western leaders said were likely the result of sabotage. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, responded to a New York Times report saying that new intelligence information indicated a “pro-Ukrainian group” was launching an attack on the Russian-owned Nord Stream Pipelines they left badly damaged last year.
Execution of a Ukrainian soldier. The Ukrainian army identified the soldier seen at the execution as Tymofii Mykolayovych Shadura in a video circulating online Monday. US State Department spokesman Ned Price said the department was aware of “gruesome video” of the execution.