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You are here: Home / Foreign Affairs / War for Ukraine Day 444: President Zelenskyy Is in Rome

War for Ukraine Day 444: President Zelenskyy Is in Rome

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Here is the current – as of 4:58 PM EDT –  air raid alert map for Ukraine:

Before we get into the rest of the update, I am aware of the RUMINT surrounding Lukashenko. Until I see something more concrete, I’ve noted it, but I’m not addressing it in an update.

President Zelenskyy is in Rome today. He had meetings with the Italian leaders as well as Pope Francis.

Here is his address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump:

Today in Rome, we agreed on weapons and anti-aircraft defense – address of President of Ukraine

13 May 2023 – 23:25

Dear Ukrainians, I wish you health!

Today in Rome. As always with such visits, we have a result. Today, we have become stronger.

I met with the President of Italy and the President of the Council of Ministers – these are political-level meetings. I’ve heard that Italy will continue supporting Ukraine – as much as it is necessary for us to stand up and defend our people and our territory.

We agree with Giorgia, Madam Prime Minister, on our new joint defense steps. There are good things we can do together to protect the sky. There are good things we can do together to protect the land. We agreed on weapons and air defense. As Giorgia correctly said, when we in Ukraine defend freedom and our lives from Russian bombs and missiles, from terror, we keep away war from the rest of Europe.

Today, Russian killers took the life of another Ukrainian child – a girl, who has not yet turned 16. Her name was Nadia… A man also died, he was 64 years old. Just ordinary people from the ordinary town of Kostiantynivka in Donbas… My condolences to their relatives and friends!

It was a Russian rocket artillery strike. Simply on the streets – houses, shops, a pharmacy, and a warehouse. It is how Russia fights. Artillery against ordinary streets, against any people – children or adults, men or women. And this can be stopped only with powerful weapons, with which our soldiers can expel the evil of aggression. Expel so that the Kremlin could not spread aggression to other European nations.

Today, I had the honor to personally thank Rome, all of Italy, Ms. Meloni, and everyone in the Italian political class who is honestly responding to the current threat to our entire European way of life.

I met with Pope Francis, and it was a conversation that could really influence history, could really help stop the evil of aggression.

I told about the crimes committed by the Russian occupiers against our people, about the deportation of Ukrainian children. It is not even known exactly how many children Russia has stolen from Ukraine and is hiding from their relatives, from Ukraine somewhere in a foreign land. I asked His Holiness to help return our children home to Ukraine.

I also spoke about other points of our Peace Formula, besides the return of all deportees and prisoners. And I believe that the will and sincerity of His Holiness can bring the implementation of our Peace Formula closer, can bring a fair, honest peace closer.

In the evening, from here, from Rome, I spoke with the President of the South African Republic. I spoke about the Peace Formula, about justice, and about the fact that our world should be united by the rules of international law. Anyone who helps the aggressor with a weapon will be an accomplice with all the consequences. I called on Mr. President to join together with other countries, all continents, and Africa the joint work to implement our Peace Formula.

By the way, Italy today absolutely clearly supported all points of the Ukrainian Peace Formula. I thank you for that.

Today, there is also a Joint Declaration with Italy. All the important things: the European Union – Italy supported the start of negotiations in 2023, correct and timely signals about NATO.

And one more. I am especially grateful to all those people who were on the streets of Rome with our Ukrainian flags, who met the Ukrainian delegation with an open heart and sincere good emotions… Italy should always be on the side of good so that good remains in Europe!

Viva Italia!

Glory to our soldiers!

Thank you to our Air Force and all air defense fighters of other types of army units!

Glory to Ukraine!

Here is the full text of President Zelenskyy’s tweet:

I met with Pope Francis @Pontifex.
I’m grateful for his personal attention to the tragedy of millions of Ukrainians. I spoke about tens of thousands of deported 🇺🇦 children. We must make every effort to return them home.
In addition, I asked to condemn 🇷🇺 crimes in Ukraine. Because there can be no equality between the victim and the aggressor.
I also talked about our Peace Formula as the only effective algorithm for achieving a just peace. I proposed joining its implementation.

 

Both this observation by GEN Zaluzhnyi and Air Marshal (ret) Stringer’s commentary on it are important!

Here’s the full text of GEN Zaluzhnyi’s observation:

Zaluzhnyi said that the losses of the Russian occupiers would have stopped any country: “There is only one conclusion: the cheapest thing in this country is human life. In our country, on the contrary, it is the most expensive.” He also admitted that Ukraine has lost many professional soldiers: “The war is started by career soldiers, and finished by teachers, engineers, accountants. This is what is happening now.” Zaluzhnyi noted that the basis for victory will be not only the heroism of Ukrainians, but also the use of advanced technologies and more efficient equipment: “But for now, everything rests on the shoulders of ordinary people.” Src: Live Ukraine

 

And here’s the video of the interview with GEN Zaluzhnyi with English subtitles:

The highlights:

What Valery Zaluzhny talked about in his first video interview since the full-scale invasion – key quotes. Part 1/2:

– These 8 years of war hardened us and taught us how to fight. The Russians did not expect this from us.

– The strategic goal of the Russian Federation is to destroy the Ukrainian statehood, as such. Russians deliberately travel from the Russian Federation to Ukraine in order to absolutely deliberately kill Ukrainians, namely to kill.

– The essence of this war is that if we do not destroy the enemy now, we will be destroyed.

– Russia is a country where military science is developed at a fairly high level. And she planned this invasion comprehensively, carefully and thoughtfully. Even the groupings of troops that were preparing for the “operation” changed several times.

– We analyzed all possible options, how to act when it is a superior enemy, and when the offensive will be simultaneously from almost all directions, and it will be powerful and swift enough.

– Before the onset of the Russian Federation, our military units and brigades could move from Transcarpathia to the Kyiv region, from Kyiv to the Kherson region, and, in the end, end up in the Odessa region. We conducted a large-scale complex of exercises, and more than one, which allowed us to completely change the configuration of our air defense, and, as a result, preserve its potential.

– When it all started, I called every commander who was responsible for a particular area, and talked to him.

– No need to be superficial about the activities of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. After all, they have caused us significant damage and continue to do so, and our people are dying every day.

– We had the only viable option that could work in this situation – to inflict maximum losses on the enemy in the shortest possible time, to bleed the enemy so that he refused to continue his actions on the greater territory of Ukraine. And it worked.

– We were forced, even at the expense of leaving part of the territory, to “pull out” the enemy, pull back his rear, his reserves, and simply burn him in those cities where the equipment stopped in order to wait for refueling.

– We count every projectile, every mine and every human life. They act like a horde. This is true.

– Such losses, which the Russian Federation bears on the battlefield, would stop any country from further actions. 15 thousand losses in Afghanistan actually brought the Soviet Union to its knees. Now the number of Russian casualties is much, much higher – and this does not stop them.

– The fact that we are holding on so far is the merit of Ukrainian people, Ukrainian soldiers, sergeants, officers who die and are maimed every day, but hold their combat positions. And today they are making this victory. And this is the only phenomenon that allows us to fight so far – this is our Ukrainian people.

– We lost a lot of our people: many soldiers, sergeants, professional military leaders – those who had skills and experience. All the victories that we had – they were all won at the cost of human lives. But this is a war, and we will definitely win.

– The sinking of the cruiser Moskva is, of course, of strategic importance to us. But we will definitely get to Grigorovich, and to Admiral Essen, and other ships.

– These massive columns that were moving towards the Kyiv region – they had no fear of resistance, they could not even imagine that the “second army of the world” could be defeated.

– Regarding Serpent’s Island: the Russians made a huge mistake when they brought people, artillery and rockets there, and thought that they would organize a military garrison there and that it would exist there.

– We, without a doubt, will return the Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk regions. We will return everything. And we know what needs to be done for this, and we are doing it.

What Valery Zaluzhny talked about in his first video interview since the full-scale invasion – key quotes. Part 2/2:

– It is impossible to forgive and do some kind of indulgence to the enemy, because those who cannot defend themselves suffer: suffering Ukrainian children are pushing them to do their best and kill the enemy.

– What Russia is doing in Ukraine is genocide.

– I could not imagine that the Russians would turn our cities into a stone desert. Yes, I saw what was happening in Syria, I saw what happened to Chechnya, but I could not imagine that this would happen in Ukraine.

– I tried to do the main thing – I tried to change the culture in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine: so that each commander listens to the opinion of his subordinate, treats his subordinate as a person, so that normal relations are built between people in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

– I did not serve in the Soviet army, but the Soviet army lived in the Armed Forces of Ukraine for a very long time, and in some places has not yet completed its existence. If I find a representative of the Soviet army somewhere among us, I won’t investigate for a long time.

– There were cases when a sergeant who is on the front line called the commander in chief and said that it was necessary to deliver a fire strike at one point or another.

My family has hardly seen me since 2014.

– In Russia there is one military leader whom I read all the time. Now he does not publish anything fresh, but I am interested in his opinion, as a military man. This is General Gerasimov. He is cunning, he is unpredictable. This is a strong enemy that we, the military, must respect.

– The Russian army had a good potential, and we must deprive them of this potential as soon as possible in order to destroy them as soon as possible.

– The scale of this war is quite consistent with the First and Second World Wars. The front line for the Armed Forces of Ukraine is 3750 km and this is a lot. The amount of ammunition used by us and the enemy corresponds to those wars. I was sure that a war of this magnitude was impossible in the 21st century. And our Western colleagues did not believe that this was possible.

– Our victory is, of course, the liberation of the entire occupied territory of Ukraine. And also – a powerful, ultra-modern, and perhaps huge, combat-ready Armed Forces that will not allow Russia to repeat what is happening now. And this must be implemented now, while we are still at war.

– I would like to thank the Ukrainians. I am grateful that the Armed Forces of Ukraine are staffed with such people. These are wonderful people who deserve great respect.

Bakhmut:

Here’s the machine translation of the tweet above:

‼️ The offensive of the Third Assault Brigade, or how the 72nd Brigade of the Russian Federation “fled” from Bakhmut

This video was shot on GoPro cameras of soldiers during the offensive actions of the Third Separate Assault Brigade on the South-Western outskirts of Bakhmut. Ukrainian positions were located here when they were captured by enemy troops. So, in order to repel their own and connect the controlled areas of the front, the attack aircraft launched a counterattack.

Luhansk:

Kostyantynivka:

Kherson:

Here’s the full text of the tweet:

The oldest Kherson gymnasium, No. 20, after being shelled by mortars on May 11, 2023.
It was established on March 1815… Four times after the de-occupation, the russians deliberately tried to destroy it. Only God knows what irritated those barbarians about this historical structure.

Meet the Oplot!

The Bryansk Region of Russia:

The New Voice of Ukraine has details:

Residents of Bryansk Oblast became witnesses of incredible incidents in the sky for a few minutes on May 13. Russian military helicopters and planes began to explode in the air and fall – videos indicate that they were shot down.

5:45 p.m. Video of the second military plane crash appeared.

The footage was taken on a farm near the village of Shkryabine in the Starodubsky district.

4:49 p.m. “Excellent job.” A military expert voiced possible versions of the destructive “aircraft fall” in Bryansk Oblast.

Ukrainian reserve officer Andriy Kramarov, in an interview with Radio NV, said it was unlikely that sabotage and reconnaissance groups were working in Bryansk Oblast.

“Let’s be frank: to enter one sector and hit four targets immediately… I don’t know how many shots it takes. Portable anti-aircraft missile systems are needed,” he said.

There is a “risky” option for the development of events, says Kramarov: “For example, a Patriot missile defense system was brought up to a distance of 30-40 km from the border. It quickly worked out its ammunition – four missiles. And this launcher was immediately folded and sent to another duty station. The range of this air defense system is up to 160 km. That is, being 30-40 km from the border, one can theoretically try to shoot down (targets) at a depth of up to 120-130 km.”

4:29 p.m. Mash: The second downed aircraft is not Su-25, but Su-35.

The Russian Telegram channel Mash clarified that the Su-35 was probably shot down, not the Su-25, as previously reported.

The crews of all four destroyed aircraft were killed, according to the report.

4:24 p.m. The second Mi-8 helicopter crashed near the village of Volkustichi in Bryansk Oblast.

As reported by Telegram channel Baza, the crash site was cordoned off, and explosive experts are inspecting it.

4:15 p.m. Russian Telegram channels publish videos from the crash sites of the Russian Mi-8 helicopter in Bryansk Oblast.

3:48 p.m. Butusov announced that Ukrainian air defense shot down Russian aircraft.

“Historic victory of the Air Defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the sky over Russia! In one battle, in a brilliantly organized ambush, the Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile system destroyed four Russian combat vehicles at once!” – Ukrainian journalist Yuriy Butusov wrote on Facebook.

According to him, the aircraft were flying at a considerable altitude and were suddenly destroyed by long-range anti-aircraft missiles, without having the time to perform anti-missile maneuvers.

“The missiles hit the Russian planes and helicopters from the nose, so the Russians spread information that all the crews were destroyed, no one managed to jump out after a powerful strike in the cabin area,” Butusov said.

More at the link!

Apparently Russian air defense has been defending Russian air from the Russians:

Germany!

Here’s the full list:

Machine translation:

Germany will provide Ukraine with the largest package of military aid since the beginning of the war, Spiegel reported.

The €2.7 billion package will include:
– 20 Marder IFVs;
– 30 Leopard 1 tanks;
– 4 IRIS-T-SLM air defense systems (12 launchers and hundreds of missiles for it);
– 200 reconnaissance UAVs;
– 100 combat vehicles (probably light APCs).
– 100 logistical support vehicles.
– A large supply of ammunition;

In addition, an additional 15 Gepard anti-aircraft systems will be delivered to Ukraine from German stocks.

That’s enough for tonight.

Your daily Patron!

And a new video from Patron’s official TikTok:

@patron__dsns

Ну що, впізнали голоси?🤭 @Nikita Dobrynin @Pedan @positiff

♬ оригінальний звук – Patron_official

The machine translation of the caption:

Well, did you recognize the voices? 🤭 @Nikita Dobrynin@Pedan@positiff

Open thread!

Reader Interactions

45Comments

  3. 3.

    Alison Rose

    If Lukashenko is dead, I’m not one to celebrate death but I sure as shit won’t shed any tears. Although as with putin, who knows what sack of trash would come after him.

    These 8 years of war hardened us and taught us how to fight. The Russians did not expect this from us.

    This plus the air defense mishegas and so much else just really makes it clear that the orcs have maybe about 14 brain cells amongst them all. I don’t think the phrase “high on their own supply” has ever been more on point.

    I remain pleasantly surprised, however, that Meloni is so forthright in her support of Ukraine, given what I’d heard about her politics and party.

    Thank you as always, Adam.

  4. 4.

    Gin & Tonic

    I know Eurovision isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but… It was supposed to be in Ukraine this year. So as the Ukrainian act was getting set to perform, the russians bombed the city they are from, Ternopil.

    I have no further details. My wife and I have many close friends in Ternopil.

  7. 7.

    Carlo Graziani

    The video from the article on the shoot-down haul at the 2:00PM update appears to have caught a frame of a missile intercepting the Hind. The missile appears to be travelling horizontally at matched altitude, rather than upwards, which I think supports the story of the long-range AD ambush, rather than infiltrating special forces types with MANPADS.

    And that is kind of interesting, because if true, it puts paid to the narrative of “The US will not allow Ukraine to have long-range weaponry that can strike inside Russia”. I’m sure that the UA would never have done something like this without tacit consent from the US, for fear of jeopardizing future weapons deliveries.

  9. 9.

    zhena gogolia

    I fell for the news of the “near death” of Mikhalkov, so I’m wary.

  10. 10.

    HinTN

    Thank you, Adam. Sometimes I can’t even read all the way through these. I don’t know how you do it. This one was very informative. Blessings and respect for your energy and dedication.

  11. 11.

    MattF

    Rumors about the failing health of national leaders are nearly always exaggerated, at best.

  13. 13.

    Mike in DC

    The question would be whether Lukashenko’s death destabilizes Belarus, whether the opposition there will rise up, perhaps joined by the Belarus volunteers in Ukraine, and/or whether Putin would attempt an “annexation” of Belarus taking advantage of the instability.

  14. 14.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Mike in DC: it’s a difficult question: which is better, revolt when Lukashenko dies (And Belarus is in chaos) or wait until ukraine wins and Putin is much more unfeebled?

  15. 15.

    Another Scott

    @Mike in DC: @Chetan Murthy:

    I’m reminded of Galeev’s giant thread on Lukashenko from last year:

    On April 21 the official channel of Belarus border control complained that Poland & Lithuania hamper the truck flows from the EU to Belarus. The question is – why would Poland and Lithuania allow any traffic at all? Belarus is *the* main Russian smuggling channel and trade proxy pic.twitter.com/eyy2pJnY9X

    — Kamil Galeev (@kamilkazani) April 24, 2022

    It seems like in some ways Belarus is in a union with russia, and in other ways it’s a benefit to both of the leaders for them to be separate.

    If VVP is trying some sort of Anschluss, I would assume that the opposition inside Belarus would be fierce (given the election protests in 2020), and he really cannot afford another front right now (or in the future).

    We’ll see!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  16. 16.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Another Scott: IIRC an Anschluss is in plan, for 2030. There’s a union treaty and everything.Lukashenka has been playing a clever delaying gameto retard implementationof that treaty for years.

  17. 17.

    Carlo Graziani

    @Chetan Murthy: The odds are pretty good that FSB and GRU have Belarussian military, intelligence, and security pretty thoroughly infiltrated, and are likely in a position to prevent any sort of anti-Russian coup, or at a minimum supply enough warning about an incipient coup attempt to allow the Russians to intervene directly.

    This situation might actually beneneficial to Russia, because Lukashenko never turned Belarus into a full and enthusiastic participant in the war. So having him fall ill and die could furnish an opportunity to install a more determined supporter of the Special Military Operation as the next Belarussian leader. In fact,  I think it’s not that farfetched to suppose that they may have slipped him some Strontium-90 or painted his underware with Novichok, just for the chance to replace him with a more trusted agent.

  18. 18.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Carlo Graziani: the thing is there will come a moment, and this may not be that moment, when the Belarusian people will rise up- – I remember that they voted for Tsikhanouskaya over lukashenka in the most recent election- – and so at some point one can imagine that they would rise up and revolt, for example when Lukashenka dies and his regime is in chaos.   What I’m wondering is when Putin will be at his weakest and therefore the chance of such a revolt would be the greatest. It would have to be a national uprising, not just a coup. And obviously belarus’s neighbors would need to provide arms for the partisans involved.One would hopePoland and the other NATO countries have stockpiled small arms for that purpose.

  21. 21.

    Kelly

    @Alison Rose: If Lukashenko is dead, I’m not one to celebrate death but I sure as shit won’t shed any tears.

    Clarence Darrow : I have never killed anyone, but I have read some obituary notices with great satisfaction

  22. 22.

    japa21

    Germany has really been stepping up lately. Tells me that they have reason to believe Ukraine is in a stronger position than a lot of people think.

  23. 23.

    karen marie

    Two things I enjoy very much:  Russian aircraft falling out of the sky on fire and voiceover artists at work.

  24. 24.

    sab

    Adam Silverman:

    I think your posts on Ukraine have become like Mayhew/Anderson’s posts on healthcare. Most of us care a lot, but few of us know enough to comment intelligently. The rest of us just silently read. We are silent but we are reading every night. Thank you.

  32. 32.

    LNNVA

    Absolutely! I read your post almost every night. It means a lot to have someone tell us what is going on every day. Thank you.

  33. 33.

    Thor Heyerdahl

    I work an afternoon/evening shift. I read Adam’s posts almost every night after work and am very thankful for all the research and effort.

  35. 35.

    PJ

    @sab: well, I, for one, respecting all internet traditions, have never let my inability to comment intelligently impede me from freely sharing my ill-informed opinions at Balloon Juice.

  37. 37.

    ceece

    @sab: absolutely read every night, just later than most of you all.

    thanks to Adam for this amazing work

  41. 41.

    evodevo

    Fourth or fifth that…we were watching MSNBC a couple days ago and someone was on, commenting on the war, and I knew about everything they covered, because of this site…THANK YOU

  42. 42.

    Geminid

    German military commentator Tendar (@tendar) posted the latest UK Ministry of Defense assessment this morning, and commented:

       The latest military assessment regarding the state of the Russian Army is basically a military catastrophe waiting to happen. Especially the last paragraph is decisive when preparing to counter a looming offensive.

    Without an effective mobile reserve it is next to irrelevant how good your fortified positions are, considering the length of your front line. Any fortified position can be overcome, especially with precision guided munitions, which the Ukrainian forces have in many different types at their disposal. It is anyway impossible to man all those trenches and those mobilized are too incompetent and experienced for mobile warfare.

    Tendar goes on to say that he thought the Russian attacks on Vulhedar a few weeks ago were indicative of Russian capabilities in this area. Even with preparation, superior artillery resources and armored formations, the attacks were stopped dead in their tracks.

    Such attacks will be even more difficult on a fluid battlefield, and with drone surveillance surprise will be impossible. And judging from yesterday’s events in the skies over Bryansk, Russian counterattack might not have effective air support either.

  43. 43.

    PaulB

    Late to the party, and likely commenting on a dead thread, but definitely seconding what everyone above has said: I rarely comment, but always read.

    And thank you, Adam, for answering my recent question about the state of Russia’s missile resources. Your answer was prompt and thorough, and very much appreciated.

  44. 44.

    Bill Arnold

    This NYTimes OpEd by T. Snyder appears to not have been linked yet. (Paywalled, but stopping page load as soon as text appears (maybe a 200ms window) still works as a NYT Paywall bypass.)
    Putin Is Fighting, and Losing, His Last War (May 9, 2023, Timothy Snyder, NYTimes) (emphasis mine)

    When we understand that nuclear talk is itself the weapon, we can act to make the situation less risky. The way forward to strategic thinking is to free ourselves from our own anxieties and consider the Russian ones. The Russians talk about nuclear weapons not because they mean to use them but because they believe a large nuclear arsenal makes them a superpower. Nuclear talk makes them feel powerful. They see nuclear bullying as their prerogative and believe that others should automatically yield at the first mention of their weapons.

    Yes.
    [In my ethics] people who use unjustified mass fear as a weapon of conflict are extremely evil and should be treated as such. That includes many high-profile Russians, e.g. Dmitry Medvedev and some of the state propagandists.
    The only quibble is that nuclear war, including the possibility of unintended escalation to a civilization-damaging exchange needs to be a rigorous part of the risk calculations; the people who have devoted their careers to such calculations should have their inputs weighted strongly.

Comments are closed.