The army of Ukraine is preparing for a possible new attack by Russian ground forces from Belarus in the direction of the capital Kyiv. “For this purpose, defense positions in the north of the country have already been prepared and strengthened,” said Kiev’s defense chief General Oleksiy Pavlyuk. “In order to prevent the Russian units from advancing quickly with tanks,” he said, “big minefields were laid in all places accessible to tanks. If the attackers do not overcome these barriers, it will become easier for Ukrainian artillery to shoot down troop concentrations”.
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Right at the start of the Russian war in February last year, Ukrainian forces repulsed an advance of Russian troops from Belarus and into Kyiv. A column of Russian tanks and vehicles many kilometers long was decimated in the dense forests north of Kyiv and forced to retreat. The Ukrainian leadership fears another attack by the Russian army, which has been stationing units along the Ukrainian border in Belarus for several weeks.
ZELENSKY’S MESSAGE – “The new stage of our diplomatic marathon,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the usual evening video message on Telegram. “I talked to the leaders of European states about the situation on the battlefield: the difficult conditions in the Donetsk region, the constant Russian attacks, the fact that Russia does not count its victims, does not spare local people and does not stop every criminal Action”.
“The only defense can only be provided by modern military equipment, which Ukraine can get from partners. Thank you to all the leaders who help us understand that now is the time to make new choices. The free world has everything it needs to stop Russian aggression and bring the terror state to historic defeat. It is important for global democracy, for all who value freedom. Thank you to everyone who is helping us defend Ukraine and freedom, fighting for independence and working to strengthen Ukraine,” he added.
CIVILIAN VICTIMS – The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights confirmed the deaths of 6,952 people, while 11,144 civilians were injured in Ukraine following the full-scale invasion of Russia. The United Nations stressed that the real death toll is much higher because of delays in receiving information from some locations where fighting is ongoing and many reports have yet to be confirmed. “This applies, for example, to the settlements of Mariupol, Izyum, Lysychansk, Popasna and Severodonetsk, where there have been reports of numerous cases of civilian deaths or injuries,” the organization adds.