Status: 03/30/2022 1:40 pm
Despite Russia’s announcement that it is reducing its fighting in Kiev, the attacks appear to continue. In the east of the country, it is said that there was heavy Russian artillery fire.
According to Ukrainian information, there were further attacks overnight – although the Russian side announced that it would reduce military activities in northern Ukraine.
“Chernihiv was bombed all night,” Governor Vyacheslav Chaus said on the Telegram online service. The attacks were carried out with artillery and aircraft. In Chernihiv, civilian infrastructure was destroyed and the city was still without water and electricity, Tschaus explained.
The Russian army also attacked the nearby city of Nizhyn. Chernihiv and the region of the same name are located northeast of the capital Kiev. In the capital itself, however, no targets were hit, the Ukrainian military reports. But explosions could be heard. Ukrainian air defenses destroyed Russian missiles.
conflicting parties as source
Information on the course of the war, bombing and casualties provided by official bodies of the Russian and Ukrainian parties to the conflict cannot be directly verified by an independent body in the current situation.
Russia announced on Tuesday that it would drastically reduce its military activities in the north. Doubts about the announcement quickly arose in Ukraine and internationally. The Ukrainian General Staff said overnight: “The so-called ‘troop withdrawal’ is likely a rotation of individual units aimed at deceiving the military leadership of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.” The intention is to create a false image of the allegedly discontinued plan to encircle Kiev.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of “positive” signs from Moscow on Tuesday. “But these signals do not dampen Russian shell explosions.” The reality is that Ukrainian cities will continue to be besieged and bombed. Therefore, the Ukrainian armed forces are “the only guarantee of our survival”.
The head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinski, makes a different assessment of the negotiations on Tuesday: the negotiations in Istanbul were considered constructive and brought movement to the deadlocked conflict. However, we are still a long way from an agreement.
Artillery bombardment continued in eastern Ukraine
Attacks also continued in eastern Ukraine today. The governor of the Luhansk region reports heavy artillery shelling on residential areas in the village of Lysychansk in the morning. “Some skyscrapers were damaged,” writes Serhij Gaidai on Telegram. We are in the process of confirming information about the victims. “Many buildings have collapsed. Rescue teams are trying to save those who are still alive.”
New attacks were also reported in the eastern Ukraine region of Donetsk. According to the governor, almost every town along the demarcation line is under attack. The situation could get worse, Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Ukrainian television, as Russian troops focus on attacks in the region.
The demarcation line separates areas under Ukrainian control from the territory of pro-Russian separatists.
In the city of Lisichansk, the Russian military bombed residential areas with heavy weapons, the governor of the region said. Some skyscrapers were seriously damaged or collapsed. Rescue teams tried to free people from the rubble. A Ukrainian grenade hit a residential building in Donetsk, the mayor said. At least one person died and several were injured. However, the information cannot be independently verified.
Skepticism and renewed attacks in Ukraine after Russian announcement of troop withdrawal
Jens Eberl, WDR, Daily News 12pm, March 30, 2022
UK: Russian units reorganize
According to Ukraine, Russia is currently moving troops from the north of the country to the east in order to encircle Ukrainian troops. Some Russian soldiers remained near the capital Kiev, said Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to President Zelenskyy. That should prevent Ukraine from redeploying troops to the east.
Shaded in white: Russian army advance. Shaded in green: Russian-backed separatist areas. Crimea: annexed by Russia. Image: ISW/03/29/2022
British military intelligence believes Russia is responding to losses in Ukraine with heavy artillery fire and rockets. The Defense Ministry said in London that Russian units that had suffered heavy losses had returned to Belarus and Russia to reorganize and re-equip. “This increases pressure on Russia’s already weakened logistics and shows the difficulties Russia is having in reorganizing its units in combat zones in Ukraine.”
With information from Karin Bensch-Nadebusch