(Image by NEIVANMADE)
Myrnohrad, Sumy, and Kryvyi Rih. Overnight, russian attacks destroyed residential buildings in three Ukrainian cities.
In Myrnohrad, 2 people died. 4 people died and more than 50 were injured in Kryvyi Rih. 8 residents were injured in Sumy, 3 people are considered missing.
The… pic.twitter.com/TzbhmttqTa
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) March 13, 2024
Myrnohrad, Sumy, and Kryvyi Rih. Overnight, russian attacks destroyed residential buildings in three Ukrainian cities.
In Myrnohrad, 2 people died. 4 people died and more than 50 were injured in Kryvyi Rih. 8 residents were injured in Sumy, 3 people are considered missing.
The world must see the consequences of russian terror. The world has to support Ukraine in our fight against russian evil.
Sumy: the third residential building hit by Russia overnight. Whole entrance collapsed from a Shahed drone strike. The number of victims remains unknown. pic.twitter.com/Iw4Z3T2THC
— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) March 13, 2024
Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump.
It is very important that our people are not left alone with pain and problems after Russian strikes – address by the President of Ukraine
13 March 2024 – 22:30
Dear Ukrainians!
Briefly about this day.
Reports from the regions of our country on the elimination of the consequences of Russian strikes and on providing assistance to the victims. Sumy – a “Shahed” drone hit a residential building, Kryvyi Rih – the aftermath of a Russian missile attack, Donetsk region, in particular the city of Myrnohrad – a Russian strike, an air bomb directly hit a residential building. Each of these strikes took lives. My condolences to all those who have lost loved ones. Today we also had a separate conversation about Odesa – about helping people after the destruction of a house on Dobrovolskoho Avenue. As agreed, the regional authorities and the Cabinet of Ministers are helping with new housing and other similar issues. In general, after each Russian attack, all services respond promptly, all necessary resources are involved: from the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, regional authorities, utilities, and the National Police.
I would like to once again thank everyone involved in the rescue operations, working to clear the rubble, helping and supporting people who have lost their loved ones. It is very important that after the Russian strikes our people are not left alone with pain and problems. And it is the responsibility of local authorities, all state and municipal services, and if necessary, the central government, including the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, to respond and handle all situations so that people truly feel that Ukraine always helps. And no matter what happens, there will be support in every corner of our country. This is exactly what is needed.
I would especially like to recognize the employees of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Sumy region. Sergeants Oleh Sakhnenko and Ivan Vorozhko, Master Sergeant Volodymyr Ponomarenko, Captain Oleksandr Moyseyenko and Colonel Volodymyr Prokopchuk. I would also like to recognize the staff of the State Emergency Service in Dnipropetrovsk region, in particular those who work in Kryvyi Rih and help safeguard people’s normal life. Sergeant Maksym Zaliznyi, Master Sergeant Oleksandr Makhno, Senior Lieutenant Illia Mustiatsa, Captain Volodymyr Havryliuk and employees of the State Mining Rescue Unit of the State Emergency Service Pavlo Doroshenko and Yevhen Konovalov. I am grateful to you guys and all your colleagues!
A few more things.
I held several meetings on our international work. First, the European Union. Next steps towards full membership. Yesterday, the European Commission finalized the Negotiating Framework. Next, we are waiting for the decision of European leaders on its approval. It will be an important and strong signal for both Ukraine and the entire European community to do everything possible to start negotiations as early as during the Belgian presidency in the first half of this year. This should be our common pace, both for Ukraine and the EU. We have a clear sequence of steps and I am confident that we can achieve the result.
I also held a more strategic meeting on the American vector of our policy. We discussed how to give more proper impulses to our work with partners and joint pressure on the Russian state throughout this year. Winning here in Ukraine in this confrontation with Russian terror is a matter of survival for democratic systems, a matter of what democracies are capable of. Ukraine is capable of defending itself, given sufficient support. And having defended ourselves, we can ensure that no other international criminal will be tempted by aggression like Putin. We can protect life and we must do so.
Glory to everyone who fights and works for Ukraine! Glory to our people!
Thank you to everyone who stands with Ukraine.
Glory to Ukraine!
Good job Republican members of the House and Senate!
Putin: “It would be ridiculous for us to start negotiating with Ukraine just because it’s running out of ammunition.”
Republican leadership of the House cutting off military supplies to Ukraine has made Putin drop his pretense about desiring peace talks. He wants it all. pic.twitter.com/rlcmtaJz9U— Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) March 13, 2024
You can’t shame the shameless.
Polish PM Donald Tusk with some pretty blunt words for @SpeakerJohnson re: Ukraine aid (quotes via @Marekwalkuski) pic.twitter.com/juBBdlFm2z
— Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) March 12, 2024
Secretary of State Blinken met with EU High Representative Borrell today.
Borrell: You are doing a lot. We are doing a lot. I think we can do still more in order to support Ukrainians in these very challenging times.
— Laura Rozen (@lrozen) March 13, 2024
This is a very good question:
🎙️AMERICA FIRST… Europe alone?
☂️Since 1945 the US has extended its security umbrella over Europe. Could Trump 2.0 upend that?
🇺🇸We asked @BrunoTertrais & @shashj how reliant Europe is on the US, and whether it is ready to stand alone
👂FULL EPISODE👉https://t.co/iqTyB8riQ1 pic.twitter.com/L8nEbYPQCY
— Uncommon Decency (@UnDecencyPod) March 13, 2024
This seems like it could be a positive development:
Really good news: on Friday, Scholz, Macron, and Tusk will meet, revive the Weimar Triangle, and sketch out a joint strategy on Ukraine. Let’s hope this will end Franco-German disagreement and will be understood in Moscow as a clear message : no way we will let Ukraine down!
— Wolfgang Ischinger (@ischinger) March 13, 2024
We have to wait to see what, if anything results.
Polish FM on Ukraine's negotiations with Russia: No shortage of ‘pocket Chamberlains’ ready to sacrifice someone else's territory for sake of their comfort. pic.twitter.com/fp0y7kfBkH
— UNITED24 Media (@United24media) March 12, 2024
In case you’ve seen the AP reporting on Putin’s remarks regarding the use of nukes, here’s what he said:
“From the military-technical point of view we are, of course, prepared,” Putin said. “[The US is] developing their components. So are we. That doesn’t mean, in my view, that they are prepared to start this nuclear war tomorrow. If they are — what can we do? We’re prepared.” https://t.co/ChUnIfSuzc
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) March 13, 2024
Putin likes trotting these nuclear threats out when he feels like it's a good time to pressure the west and stop it from giving Ukraine more support.
But as @xtophercook and I reported, what he's talking about means a very low nuclear threshold:https://t.co/qAV5yA5nju
— max seddon (@maxseddon) March 13, 2024
And here’s what’s really going on.
Russia threatens nuclear weapons on a weekly basis now.
This isn’t breaking news, @AP, this is Vladimir Putin being terrified of his country failing. https://t.co/ez41myGnCZ
— Julien Hoez (@JulienHoez) March 13, 2024
Sorry, what's BREAKING about this?
Other than the fact that Putin is again starting a new wave of global nuclear blackmailing and extortion in his war propaganda, of course.
Previous attempts to scare the West off from providing Ukraine with all appropriate tools to curtail… https://t.co/rMzTtYUSJX
— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) March 13, 2024
Sorry, what’s BREAKING about this?
Other than the fact that Putin is again starting a new wave of global nuclear blackmailing and extortion in his war propaganda, of course.
Previous attempts to scare the West off from providing Ukraine with all appropriate tools to curtail and end Russia’s invasion were quite successful — so why not carry on and extort more — and then more, and more, and more?
My question is if the media realize that with such BREAKING headlines, they only help the Kremlin play its “Give me this and that and kneel to me because otherwise, it’s NUKES” card.
It’s not that we spent two years beating our heads against the wall and trying to make it clear that you can’t encourage warmongering dictators by backing down to their nuclear intimidation — this would inevitably only make things worse.
Ukraine has gone on the hunt in response to Russia’s bombardment of civilian targets.
The difference between Russia & Ukraine illustrated in today’s attacks – Kyiv targeted 3 oil refineries & the Russians blew up 3 apartment blocks murdering 6 civilians.
Ukraine is fighting a defensive war according to international law while Russia indiscriminately slaughters.
— Oz Katerji (@OzKaterji) March 13, 2024
Over 60 drones were spotted overnight and this morning across different regions of Russia. Drone attacks have been reported in Ryazan, Voronezh, Bryansk, Kursk, Leningrad, and Belgorod regions. This makes the largest drone attack deep inside Russia so far pic.twitter.com/06D50W3sFR
— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) March 13, 2024
/2. Moment of the drone strike on Ryazan oil refinery pic.twitter.com/wf70WqdD6L
— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) March 13, 2024
The Financial Times has the details:
Ukraine has stepped up drone strikes on oil refineries deep inside Russia, in what officials depict as an intensifying effort to hit the country’s economy.
In the second consecutive day of assaults on Russian energy infrastructure, explosions were confirmed on sites in the country’s heartlands such as Ryazan, Kstovo and Kirishi.
The damaged facilities, which are all hundreds of kilometres away from the border with Ukraine, account for about 10 per cent of Russia’s total oil processing capacity.
A Ukrainian official with knowledge of the attacks said the state security service used drones overnight in “a series of special operations against enemy oil refineries”.
The official added that Ukraine was “systematically implementing a detailed strategy . . . to deprive the enemy of resources and reduce the flow of oil money and fuel”.
Kyiv and Moscow have both stepped up drone attacks in recent months as Ukrainian forces struggle to repel their better-armed Russian foes on the battlefield.
The targeting of oil refineries comes amid growing frustration in Ukraine with the hesitant approach western powers have taken to targeting Moscow’s energy revenues.
While the G7 and the EU have tried to limit how much Russia can sell its oil for, they have also sought to keep Russian barrels on the market to avoid a price spike ahead of the US presidential election in November.
Earlier this month, Russia implemented a ban on petrol exports in an effort to keep prices stable amid rising demand.
The Russian defence ministry on Wednesday claimed to have shot down more than 60 Ukrainian drones.
But videos posted on Russian social media showed several Ukrainian drones bypassing air defences and causing explosions.
Another Ukrainian official said Wednesday’s attack had caused “quite significant” damage on the targeted refineries.
One video showed flames and a huge plume of black smoke rising from the Ryazan oil refinery south-east of Moscow. Pavel Malkov, governor of the Ryazan region, said there were injuries but did not elaborate.
Ukrainian security forces also launched drone strikes on Wednesday against a Russian air force base in Buturlinovka and a military airfield in Voronezh, both about 200km from the Ukrainian border.
The previous day Ukraine had launched a wave of drone strikes against energy sites and oil refineries in at least seven Russian regions.
Ukraine-backed Russian paramilitary units opposed to President Vladimir Putin’s regime also launched cross-border incursions with tanks and armoured vehicles into Belgorod and Kursk regions on Tuesday.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv was responding to Russian aggression.
“We will inflict losses on the Russian state in response — quite rightly,” he said in an evening address on Tuesday. “Those in the Kremlin must get used to the fact that terror does not go unpunished for them.”
Russian missiles and attack drones, including Shahed drones made by Iran and supplied to Moscow for its war effort, often target Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure.
A Russian missile strike on Tuesday morning destroyed an apartment building in Zelenskyy’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih, in southern Ukraine, killing three people and injuring 30 more.
A Shahed drone attack on Wednesday morning also crushed an apartment building in Sumy, northern Ukraine. Ukrainian authorities said there were deaths and injuries but did not clarify how many.
At least four of 32 Russia’s major refineries have been attacked since the beginning of 2024. Some of them, including the Rosneft plant in Tuapse on the Black Sea coast that was attacked in January, have had to cease operations.
More at the link!
Well this is an amazing coincidence!
Yesterday, it was the Lukoil oil refinery that was attacked in the Nizhniy Novgorod region. Today, another top manager is dead at a fairly young age. pic.twitter.com/PlriBgKxsR
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) March 13, 2024
The Ukrainians, despite all they’ve been through, do this for the Russians despite the fact that the Russians do not do this for the Ukrainians.
Escorting a captured Russian soldier who confused Ukrainians from the 3rd Assault Brigade with "his own". pic.twitter.com/uemtWrrUcq
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) March 13, 2024
Kursk Oblast:
Fighters of the "Liberty of Russia" Legion "Apostol" and "Domovoy" state that the Russian unit is still in Tyotkyno, Kursk Oblast, despite claims by Russian officials that they've been knocked out with hundreds of losses. pic.twitter.com/g336541Iv0
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) March 13, 2024
Art of the wartime. pic.twitter.com/DC6YjmtQi4
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) March 13, 2024
Last night in the comments, Sister Inspired Revolver of Freedom asked:
Adam, Alison, this is a personal question, & I am fine if you choose not to answer it or comment. What do the 2 of you think of Jonathan Glazer’s Oscar acceptance speech? Despite being Jewish himself, he’s received an incredible amount of criticism for it. There’s been some praise too, but it doesn’t balance out.
I can’t speak for Alison, nor would I try. I do not watch the Oscars, not this year or ever. So I did not see the speech. My understanding is that it was initially misreported and misrepresented. From what I can tell from reading his full remarks, they do not bother me at all. I think they are nuanced, which was something that disappeared quickly after the 7 October attacks. As far back as I can remember we have had a group of “professional” Jews who purport to speak for all Jews and who also do boundary maintenance on what is and is not acceptable for Jews to say or do. Basically they think the Deity died and left them in charge. I don’t have any real issues with what Glazer said.
@ Adam. The right wing blogs I visit are full of speculation about the resignation of Victoria Nuland and what it might mean for the administration’s Ukraine policy. So I was just wondering, is it significant? Does it mean anything?
Most of Biden’s top nat-sec people have either stayed far longer than one would expect or have been quietly resigning and moving on for the past six to ten months. The burn out rate for these positions is quite high. The work days never really end. You’re always on call and never really off the clock. And the Biden administration inherited multiple major crises and wicked problems and, over the past two years, have had a number of others rise to the surface as a result of neglect by prior administrations, the lack of adjustment of American policy and strategy going back decades, or a combination of the two. I’m not surprised she’s stepping down. Nor do I think it’ll make any difference. Right now the two major issues affecting the Biden administration’s Ukraine policy is the failure to get the Ukraine supplemental through the GOP majority House of Representatives and the Biden nat-sec team’s seeming inherent risk aversion.
That’s enough for tonight.
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