posted on 04/20/2022 06:00
(Image credit: Sergei Supinsky/AFP)
Yesterday afternoon, after several appeals from President Volodymyr Zelensky, the US Department of Defense confirmed that the Ukrainian Air Force had received fighter jets, but without disclosing the origin, quantity and type of the aircraft. “Without going into details about what other countries sent, I would say that (the Ukrainians) received additional planes and spare parts to increase their fleet. Today they have more fighter jets at their disposal than they did two weeks ago,” he told Pentagon Voice spokesman John Kirby. According to Kirby, the US has made it easier to ship replacement parts.
Joe Biden’s administration is trying to distance itself from the image of a warlike country. Kyiv asked Western allies for the Mig29 fighter jets that their military can fly and that a handful of Eastern European countries have. Kirby’s announcement coincides with an increased Russian airstrike in Donbass, a region of eastern Ukraine partially controlled by proMoscow separatists.
In the early morning hours of yesterday, Russian troops conducted more than 1,200 bombing raids on Donbass. Kremmina, a town of 18,000 located 560 km southeast of Kyiv, was the first to be captured by Vladimir Putin’s forces. British newspaper The Guardian, citing a European official, reported that 20,000 mercenaries from Syria, Libya and other countries were sent to eastern Ukraine as a form of infantry reinforcement, without armored cars or heavy equipment. The Russian Defense Ministry issued a new ultimatum to Ukrainian troops holed up at the Azovstal Steel Plant, the last center of resistance in the strategic port city of Mariupol (southeast). The new deadline expires today at 8:00 a.m. (Brazilian time).
The British Frank Ledwidge, military strategist at the University of Portsmouth (UK), does not rule out that the Americans sent kits to the Ukrainians. “They could be spare parts to commission some inactive Ukrainian fighter jets and repair damaged planes. It’s a very important development as it is tantamount to giving Kyiv the fighter jets,” he told the Post via email.
Between Monday and Tuesday, five flights from the United States arrived at the Ukrainian border with arms destined for Zelenskyy’s army. A week ago, Biden announced $800 million in military aid to Ukraine.
Olexiy Haran, professor of comparative politics at KyivMohyla National University (Ukraine), recalls that since the beginning of the Russian invasion on February 24, Ukrainians have asked for the transfer of warplanes. “It is a very important decision made when the Russians launched a fullscale offensive in Donbass. Military analysts believe the fighting in the East will resemble WWII battles, with tanks, fighter jets and longrange artillery.”
For Haran, Russia failed in the first phase of the war when it attempted to capture major Ukrainian cities, including the capital, Kyiv. “Now the Russians are concentrated in the Donbass and in some parts of the south of the country. They are trying to undermine Ukraine’s critical infrastructure and arms industry to reduce Ukrainian resilience,” he said. He also sees an attempt to intimidate the West, a strategy to halt the delivery of supplies.
perish
Volleyball coach Igor Pinchuk, 29, returned to Irpin two weeks ago after being away from his hometown for almost a month. 73% of buildings found destroyed. “Irpin is only 10 km from Kiv. The city is in ruins, there are charred houses and civilian bodies buried in the middle of the street. People were buried in parks,” he told the Correio. He said that many countries sent various weapons to Ukraine and showed no enthusiasm for strengthening fighters. “It’s a shame that NATO countries have taken so long to make such decisions. We paid too high a price. Now we need to close the airspace and repel enemy attacks on Donbass,” he said.
Pinchuk sent the report videos and photos showing buildings ripped in half, car and tank carcasses, and body parts. “Irpin is no longer bombed, thanks to our forces driving out the Russians. Now we are rebuilding the infrastructure and repairing the bridges. The water and electricity supply has been restored in some places.”
“I wouldn’t wish that on anyone,” says Anna Volodymyrivna Lytovchenko
Anna Volodymyrivna Lytovchenko, 18, student from southern Ukraine (Photo: Personal archive)
“I lived in Mykhailivka, a village near Zaporizhzhya (south). We were under Russian occupation. When fighting broke out in my village, my parents and I went into hiding to save our lives. The bombings and explosions were terrifying didn’t want any of them dead because they were protecting my family. It’s hard to see how people feel under bombs. It’s a situation I wouldn’t wish on anyone. When my village was occupied, we were without protection. The only thing that might be frightening would be the distant echoes of artillery salvos. When they stopped for a moment, he wanted to hear them again. The closer the explosions, the closer the end of the occupation.
Life under Russian occupation varies from city to city. In some places everything is quiet. In others, Russians kill and rape. Residents of my village were captured and taken to unknown locations. Some suffered beatings and torture. Others were executed. The mayor was kidnapped. Humanitarian activists also disappeared.”