Moscow/Leopolis (Ukraine).- The Russian Army maintains its pressure in the east of Ukrainewhere he claims advances to “more advantageous positions” and maintains the threat to several cities while kyiv tries to resist and celebrates the announcement of more US aid.
“As a result of the offensive actions of the units of the ‘Zapadni’ (Western) group, the enemy was expelled from the western environs of the town of Dvurechoe, in the Kharkov region,” the spokesman for the party said. Ministry of Defense of RussiaIgor Konashenkov, in his part of the war.
RUSSIAN PRESSURE ON EASTERN UKRAINE
According to the Russian command, Russian aviation and artillery hammered the 92nd motorized brigade of the Ukrainian Army in the towns of Krojmalne and Berestove and annihilated “more than 30 Ukrainian soldiers, two armored vehicles and three cars.”
“In the framework of the offensive actions of the units of the Southern Group in the Donetsk direction, more advantageous positions were occupied,” Konashenkov noted.
For its part, the Ukrainian command acknowledged that “the enemy, suffering heavy losses, does not stop offensive operations in the Liman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Novopavliv directions” in Donetsk.
During the last weeks, the Russian Army has concentrated its actions in eastern Ukraine and particularly in Vugledar, Siversk and Bakhmut, since the capture of these cities -and particularly the last one- would open the way to Sloviansk and Kramatorks, the main strongholds. Ukrainians in Donbas.
While the rumors about the expected Russian spring offensive, which could coincide with the first anniversary of the conflict, do not cease, Petro Andryushchenko, adviser to the Ukrainian mayor of Mariupol, the long-suffering port city taken by Russia last April, warned of the arrival of new Russian reinforcements.
Andryushchenko asserted on Telegram that only in the last week the Russian contingent in Mariupol received a reinforcement of between 10,000 and 15,000 troops, who were stationed alongside civilians to use as “human shields.”
“In general we can speak of approximately 30,000 occupiers concentrated in Mariupol and its surroundings,” he said, indicating that Chechen troops were among the last units to arrive.
The Ukrainian representative added that the Russians “have good conversations with the local population” and have said that the attacks will be directed against Vugledar and Zaporizhia.
EXCHANGE OF PRISONERS OF WAR
While the situation at the front remains relatively stable and without much progress, Russia and Ukraine announced a prisoner-of-war exchange that allowed the return of 63 Russians and 116 Ukrainians.
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, this exchange was carried out thanks to the mediation efforts of the United Arab Emirates.
“At the moment all the soldiers are on Russian territory” and “they are offered the necessary psychological and medical help, in addition to giving them the opportunity to communicate with their families,” the Russian command said.
“The group of released Russian soldiers includes people from the ‘sensitive category’, whose exchange was made possible thanks to the mediation efforts of the United Arab Emirates authorities,” the entity said without giving further details.
For his part, the head of the office of the Ukrainian president, Andriy Yermak, stated that Ukraine managed today “to return our people, our heroes.”
In the group of released Ukrainians are 87 soldiers of the armed forces, while the rest are members of the national police, the border guard service and emergency services.
NEW HELP FROM THE US
Meanwhile, the United States announced today the granting of a new military aid package to Ukraine worth 2.175 million dollars, with anti-aircraft defenses and Javelin anti-tank missiles, to resist the Russian invasion.
Pentagon spokesman Gen. Pat Ryder said the assistance also includes munitions and long-range rockets for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) provided to Ukraine by Washington.
Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the US has provided $29.3 billion in military aid to kyiv, making it the country that has provided the most aid to Ukraine since the start of the war. .
In recent weeks, Washington reported the shipment of 31 Abrams main battle tanks to Ukraine, after Western allies such as Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain announced they were going to do the same.
The President of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelensky, celebrated this event and assured that his country is facing Russian terror together with the United States.
“The greater the range of our weapons and the more mobility our troops have, the sooner we will put an end to this cruel aggression by Russia,” he said. EFE
