05/14/2022 14:27 (act 05/14/2022 18:25)
Despite heavy Russian losses, eastern Ukraine remains fiercely contested. ©REUTERS/Vladyslav Musiienko
Heavy fighting in the east of the country is still being reported in Ukraine.
It is said that the Russians suffered heavy losses when they failed to cross the river. Under the brunt of the ongoing fighting, according to Kiev, the war is entering a “new and long phase”. “Extremely difficult weeks” are ahead for the country, in which it will largely be alone in the face of an “enraged aggressor”, Defense Minister Olexii Resnikov said on Facebook.
Intense fighting and Russian casualties in eastern Ukraine
Especially in the east of the country, Russian troops continue their intense battles against the Ukrainian armed forces – without making any significant progress. Ukrainian soldiers repelled Russian attempts to cross a river and encircle the city of Severodonetsk, the governor of eastern Lugansk region Serhiy Gajday said on Saturday.
Fierce fighting is currently taking place on the border with the Donetsk region
“Fierce fighting is taking place on the border with the Donetsk region, next to the town of Popasna,” Gaiday said. According to the governor, Russian troops suffered heavy losses of soldiers and equipment. The Ukrainian side learned from intercepted telephone conversations “that an entire Russian battalion refused to attack because they saw what was happening”. Aerial photos showed dozens of armored vehicles destroyed on the riverbank, as well as floating bridges destroyed.
According to Ukraine, Russian troops suffered heavy losses
The British Defense Ministry said Russian troops suffered heavy casualties after Ukrainian forces repulsed their attempt to cross the river. “Crossing a river in a contested area is a highly risky maneuver and speaks to the pressure on Russian commanders to advance their operations in eastern Ukraine,” he said. The ministry added that the Russian military “has not made significant progress despite the concentration of its forces in this area”.
Withdrawal of Russian troops from Kharkiv
Meanwhile, Ukraine says it has managed to drive Russian troops out of the northern city of Kharkiv – which was a priority for Moscow. In the Kharkiv region, “the enemy’s efforts are mainly focused on securing the withdrawal of its units from the city of Kharkiv,” a spokesman for the Ukrainian General Staff said. “The gradual liberation of the Kharkiv region proves that we will not leave anyone to the enemy,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his daily video address on Friday.
Air and ground attacks on Azov Steelworks in Mariupol
Air and ground attacks were also repeated at the Azov steelworks on Saturday, Mariupol city council deputy Petro Andryushchenko said on Telegram. He published a video that allegedly shows aerial photos of the steelworks under Russian fire. Where and when recordings come from cannot be independently verified.
Andryushchenko: “The cruelty of the enemy is increasing”
“The enemy’s cruelty is increasing,” Andryushchenko said. Not only would Mariupol’s defenders themselves be attacked, but their families as well. “Yesterday the occupants found the personal contacts (phone, profile) of the spouses on social networks,” said Andryushchenko.
The Ukrainian government recently said it would do everything possible to get Mariupol’s supporters out of the industrial zone through negotiations with Russia. It was difficult, they said. Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Wereshchuk announced on Saturday that negotiations are underway for 60 people, including wounded fighters and medical staff. “There are a few hundred wounded there, they need to be rescued first because the Russians don’t give their consent to all of them at once,” she said.
Speculation on the number of Russian soldiers killed
There is still only speculation about the number of Russian soldiers killed. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine spoke of about 27,200 Russian soldiers killed on Saturday. Between February 24 and May 14, the enemy also lost 1,218 tanks, 2,934 tanks, 200 planes, 163 helicopters, 2,059 motor vehicles and tankers and 13 ships/boats, among others.
Recent footage from Reuters TV on the outskirts of Kiev highlights the losses: hundreds of bodies of Russian soldiers were loaded into refrigerated train cars at a railway station. They must be kept there until they can be taken to Russia for their relatives, said civilian-military liaison chief Volodomyr Lyamsin. Most of the bodies are from the Kiev metropolitan area, some from Chernihiv and other regions. Such wagons are also available in other parts of Ukraine, Lyamsin said.
Removal of corpses of Russian soldiers
Russia conducts military drills around the Baltic Sea enclave of Kaliningrad
Two days after Finland announced its intention to join NATO, Russia carried out military maneuvers around the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad. SU-27 fighter jets were used, reports Interfax, citing the Russian Baltic Sea fleet. They destroyed the attackers’ planes in a simulated air raid in Kaliningrad. Kaliningrad is located on the Baltic Sea between Poland and Lithuania.
Russia’s neighbor Finland officially announced its desire to join NATO on Thursday. Sweden should follow suit soon. In the past, Russia had warned of “serious consequences” in such a case and threatened to station nuclear weapons in the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad.
Finland has officially announced its desire to join NATO
In any case, Canada is committed to the rapid accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO. “We firmly believe that Sweden and Finland should join NATO,” Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie told the G7 department heads meeting at Weissenhaus in Schleswig-Holstein. A consensus must be reached for this, says Jolie, referring to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s reservations. Russia, on the other hand, considers the two countries’ accession to NATO to be unjustified.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) also said on Saturday after the G7 meeting that she would support “very, very much” the accession of Finland and Sweden. She expressed irritation at Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s opposition. Indeed, every democratic country should be happy that democracies with strong defense capabilities would make the common alliance stronger. The possible NATO membership of the two Nordic countries was due to be discussed at a meeting of the foreign ministers of the NATO countries in Berlin late Saturday afternoon.
Russia sees no reason for Finland to join NATO
From the point of view of Russian Vice Chancellor Alexander Grushko, however, there is no real reason for the two countries to join NATO, according to the RIA news agency. The government in Moscow has no hostile intentions towards the two Scandinavian countries. But she will take precautionary measures if NATO moves nuclear forces closer to the Russian border.
It is still too early to talk about a possible deployment of nuclear weapons, Grushko said, according to the Interfax news agency. The possible admission of the two countries to NATO means “strategic changes” in the region. But Russia will not react emotionally, but according to “a thorough analysis” of the new balance of power.