5:08 p.m
Ukraine, capes to protect images from drones and cameras
Ukrainian soldiers could soon wear it real invisibility cloaks, modeled on the one JK Rowling imagined for Harry Potter. Clothing that would allow them to protect their images from drones and cameras. This was announced by Ukrainian Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov, explaining that these cloaks are capable of blocking thermal radiation, thereby making the wearer invisible to the enemy. The invisibility cloaks, in the works since 2015, are manufactured by Brave1, a defense technology project funded by the Ukrainian government. The material was originally intended for use by snipers and special soldiers in the Donbass region. However, it would now be used in the counteroffensive, although it is unclear in what way.
4:07 p.m
Kiev, many Russian losses, but also Ukrainian deaths in Crimea
In Crimea “there was a battle with the Russian invaders, there were many dead and wounded among the invaders’ personnel. Unfortunately, there are losses among the Ukrainian defenders that are not comparable to those of the Russian ones.” This was stated by the representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, Andriy Yusov, in an interview with Ukrainska Pravda about the Ukrainian invasion of the Russian-occupied peninsula. The official clarified that the special forces group withdrew after completing the operation and inflicting casualties on the intruders. “The special operation to liberate Crimea continues. We appeal to all residents of the peninsula to wait and support the defense forces in every possible way in returning the Ukrainian territories,” he added.
2:05 p.m
Ukrainian intelligence services claim destruction of air defense system
Ukrainian intelligence services claim to have destroyed an air defense system near the Russian city Belgorod in a drone strike last night. According to a SSu security service source cited by Ukrainska pravda, it is a Triumf anti-aircraft system with S-400 missiles worth $1.2 billion. It was a “triumphant” attack, jokes the SSU, recalling that on September 14th another Triumf defense system was destroyed in Yevpatoria in Russian-occupied Crimea. In a video posted on Russian social media, around twenty explosions could be heard at the site of the Triumf system and its radars, while power went out in surrounding cities, writes Ukrainska pravda. Russian authorities in Bryansk and Belgorod oblasts claimed this morning to have repelled Ukrainian drone attacks.
1:51 p.m
Ukrainian special forces in Crimea
Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Agency (GUR) posted a video on Telegram showing speedboats and jet skis heading toward the coast of Crimea, which was unilaterally annexed by Russia in 2014. After landing on the coast of the peninsula, the military special forces unfurl the Ukrainian flag
1:46 p.m
Zelenskyy: “Human relationship with Giorgia Meloni”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wanted to “express my gratitude to Giorgia Meloni,” with whom he said he had “a human and personal relationship” based “on shared values.” Speaking on Sky Tg24 as part of Sky’s 20th anniversary celebrations, Zelensky said that “our relations are based on the principles of honesty and fairness.”
1:44 p.m
Zelensky: “Kiev will definitely be part of the EU.”
«Ukraine will definitely be part of the EU». Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made this statement live on Sky Tg24 as part of Sky’s 20th anniversary celebrations. Zelensky stated that he had been invited to Granada, but – he said – “they must understand that I am the president of a country at war” and “they cannot guarantee all my visits”. “We have many problems to solve and one of them is air defense and I will focus on these problems when I meet the EU leaders,” he noted.
1:40 p.m
Zelensky invites the Pope to Ukraine
“The Pope was invited by me to Ukraine, I would be happy if he came.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed this in his interview with Sky TG24 as part of the celebrations for “Sky’s 20th anniversary”.
1:36 p.m
Kiev, special forces landed in Crimea, Russians struck
Men of the Stuhna and Bratstvo special units of the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Service (GUR) landed on the territory of the Crimean Peninsula and attacked the Russian occupiers. Gur himself wrote it on Telegram. “The special forces of the Gur command landed in the occupied Crimea and inflicted a defeat on Putin’s invaders,” assures Gur.
12:50 p.m
Russia: Non-war journalist sentenced to eight and a half years in prison
Marina Ovsyannikova, the Russian journalist who interrupted 1TV’s television broadcasts with a protest sign against the war in Ukraine on March 15, 2022.
The court ruled that the journalist, who has since fled abroad, must serve her sentence in a “correctional colony” and banned her from “participating in activities related to the management of websites of information and telecommunications authorities” for four years. ». The court accused Ovsyannikova of distributing videos and photos in July 2022 that contained “false information” about the Russian military’s operations in Ukraine. In October last year, Russian authorities issued an arrest warrant for Ovsyannikova, who had fled abroad under house arrest. Before he was sentenced to prison, the journalist had been fined several times, always on charges of acting against the interests of the Russian army. After the live demonstration, she was sentenced to a fine of 255 euros “for unlawful demonstration”. Then, at the end of the investigation into the incident, she was fired.
12:44 p.m
Explosion in Crimea
An explosion this morning in Crimea in the temporarily occupied Krasnoperekopsk Territory was reported by the Telegram channel Crymsky Wind, quoted by Rbc-Ukraine. The social network also reported the launch of a rocket towards the Kherson region of Ukraine.
12:42 p.m
Moscow condemns Ukrainian drone strikes
The Russian Defense Ministry said dozens of Ukrainian drones attacked three Russian regions overnight, saying they shot down 31 unmanned aerial vehicles in a “terrorist attack.” Tass reports it. “31 drones were shot down overnight over Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk,” the Russian Defense Ministry reported. Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz said on Telegram: “Ukrainian armed forces fired cluster munitions at four districts of the border region with Ukraine. There was damage but no casualties.”
12.40 p.m
Kyiv, almost 280,000 Russians killed
Russia has already lost around 279,890 soldiers in Ukraine, 450 more than yesterday. It is the budget of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Facebook, as Ukrinform reports.
12:37 p.m
Crosetto: “I think that the dialogue between Russia and Ukraine will take place in the spring”
“I think that next spring could be the time when, once both sides have exhausted their weapons to bring about a turning point on both sides, an attempt at dialogue can be opened.” This was said by Defense Minister Guido Crosetto at the Festival of Cities in Rome about the war in Ukraine. For Crosetto, “there will probably be a Russian response to the Ukrainian counteroffensive” in the winter.