Welcome home to 175 defenders of Ukraine, who returned from russian captivity today! ❤️🩹❤️🩹❤️🩹
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 10:21 AM
The other shoe dropped in the Trump administration pulling out of their support for the investigation of Russian war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine. And that shoe is obstruction of justice.
it appears the trump administration has deleted a database of kidnapped ukrainian children out of spite
www.nytimes.com/2025/03/18/u…
— QuoProQuid (@quoproquid.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 11:22 AM
From The New York Times: (emphasis mine)
The State Department has ended funding for the tracking of tens of thousands of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia, and American officials or contractors might have deleted a database with information on them, according to a letter U.S. lawmakers sent to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday.
The work on the abducted children by the Yale School of Public Health Humanitarian Research Lab was frozen when President Trump signed an executive order in late January halting almost all foreign aid spending. Since then, Mr. Rubio and an official under him, Pete Marocco, have ended the vast majority of foreign aid contracts, including the one to the Yale lab.
The bipartisan congressional letter, signed by 17 lawmakers and organized by Representative Greg Landsman, Democrat of Ohio, said that “the foreign aid freeze has jeopardized, and may ultimately eliminate, our informational support of Ukraine on this front.”
The State Department and the Yale center “had been preserving evidence of abducted children from Ukraine it had identified, to be shared with Europol and the government of Ukraine to secure their return,” the letter said, according to a copy obtained by The New York Times. Europol is the main law enforcement agency of the European Union. The letter was also addressed to Scott Bessent, the Treasury secretary.
“We have reason to believe that the data from the repository has been permanently deleted,” it said. “If true, this would have devastating consequences. Can you please update us as to the status of the data from the evidence repository?”
A person familiar with the Yale center’s work said the details in the letter were accurate.
The Yale lab was one of several recipients of $26 million in congressional funding over three years through the State Department to track war crimes committed by Russian forces in Ukraine. That work began in 2022 under a program called the Conflict Observatory, which also documented atrocities in Sudan. Pages on the Conflict Observatory have been removed from the State Department website under Mr. Rubio, though its findings have been saved elsewhere online.
The department said in a statement after this article was published on Tuesday that it had ended the Yale lab’s award for work with the Conflict Observatory and that it did not hold data for the observatory. It referred questions to a nonprofit contractor, the MITRE Corporation, that it said owns the platform where the data resides.
The nonprofit does work for U.S. intelligence agencies and is the main contractor for the Conflict Observatory. The Yale lab has a contract under it. The MITRE Corporation said in a statement on Wednesday afternoon that the State Department formally terminated all work at the Conflict Observatory on Feb. 26.
“To the best of MITRE’s knowledge and belief,” it said, “the research data that was compiled has not been deleted and is currently maintained by a former partner on this contract.”
The Yale lab did research into abducted children and the “filtration sites” they and others were taken to in Russian-occupied Ukraine, where Ukrainians were interrogated and prepared for deportation to Russia. The researchers used open-source information and commercial satellite imagery.
The Yale researchers have not been able to work on the project and gain access to the database since the funding freeze began in late January. When the U.S. government halted weapons aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine after President Trump berated the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, at the White House on Feb. 28, the Yale researchers lost access to satellite imagery.
More at the link.
President Zelenskyy had a very busy day today and did not make an address. He did do another of other events. Here’s his joint press conference with Finnish President Alexsander Stubb:
First Lady Zelenska had meetings with First Lady of Finland Stubbs and the Finnish Minister of Health. They toured a school.
Finally, President Zelenskyy also did another digital press briefing today as well:
News: Zelensky tells me @FT tonight on zoom it was NOT all 4 of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants he and Trump were talking about US owning but “the one under temporary [Russian] occupation,” referring to Zaporizhzhia plant, that the US could potentially control if it is able to be “recover[ed].”
— Christopher Miller (@christopherjm.ft.com) March 19, 2025 at 5:28 PM
“It looks very strange. If Putin ‘does not intend to continue fighting against Ukraine and wants peace,’ then why is he demanding that we weaken our army?” – Zelenskyy.
t.me/c/1377735387…— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 9:14 AM
Georgia:
On the 112th day of continuous protests in Tbilisi, Rustaveli Avenue is still full of protesters. The demands remain the same: rerun the parliamentary elections and free all those detained for participating in the protests.
#GeorgiaProtests
📸 Mariam Qavshbaia/Publika— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 2:17 PM
Day 112. Protesters have a reminder banner that the Georgian Dream is allied with Iran. #GeorgiaProtests
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Day 112 of #GeorgiaProtests. Visual illustration of my post below. The banner says “F*ck whoever might take part in the local elections.”
📷 Ana Kurashvili— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:58 PM
This is Marizi Kobakhidze, mother of Tornike Goshadze, who was arrested for participating in the protests. She was fined 5,000 GEL ($1,800) for ‘illegally blocking a road’. The parents Zviad Tsetskhladze were also fined 5,000 GEL each, a total of 9 times.
📸 Sopo Aptsiauri/64 Project
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Look at that good protest pup!
Yesterday, on March 18 Tbilisi City court denied Temur Katamadze’s international protection claim. International protection includes refugee, humanitarian, and subsidiary status.
#TerrorinGeorgia
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:08 PM
1/ The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) has released an assessment on the employees dismissed from public institutions, including the Ministry of Defense. They argue that the dismissal process is unlawful and constitutes political repression of public servants.
#TerrorinGeorgia
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:06 PM
2/ 💬 “Most of those fired believe they were dismissed on discriminatory grounds, as they were signatories of statements in support of the European integration process and/or openly expressed their views on the country’s political course within the authorities”.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:06 PM
3/ Georgia’s Ministry of Defence is one of the institutions where employee dismissals occurred after the Georgian Dream government suspended EU negotiations.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:06 PM
4/ Several of those dismissed had signed a pro-EU statement condemning the government’s decision leading them to believe that their dismissal was a form of punishment for speaking out.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:06 PM
5/ Following pro-European demonstrations, new legislative amendments were introduced to simplify the reorganisation process in public sector bodies. The exact number of people dismissed during this process remains unclear.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:06 PM
A long but necessary insight on what’s next in Georgia:
On March 31, the anniversary of the referendum on Georgia restoring its independence, a grand rally is announced. It is expected that the democratic forces will make a statement to the public. 1/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Yesterday, the families of regime prisoners met with opposition to hear about their vision for the future months. The families wanted a guarantee that opposition parties would not participate in the scheduled local elections in October if nothing changes for the better, politically, until then. 2/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Important public figure and civic activist Nanuka Zhorzholiani posted today that families informed her that numbers 9 and 25 (Strong Georgia coalition centered around Lelo and Gakharia – For Georgia) did not respond a firm no regarding participation in the local elections. 3/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
She also noted, rather correctly, that the public has time until the March 31 gathering to make known to politicians what they think about the local elections. 4/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
It must be noted that a large part of the public does not even want to hear a word about the local elections, and another part simply needs more information on why it’s right what’s right. 5/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
It must also be noted that in February, Council of Europe’s Bureau of Congress of Local and Regional Authorities warned against holding of the upcoming local elections under the current political climate, emphasizing that holding elections in these conditions could exacerbate existing tensions. 7/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
“Without a substantive change in the political environment, those elections should be postponed,” the statement read. 8/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
I personally am convinced that we must not participate in the local elections, and for several reasons:
Participation means that the problem is not the dictatorship, the problem has been not having perfect candidates, someone as pure and likable as the second incarnation of Christ, or something; 9/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
A large part of the public simply would not vote, and I would have no right to tell anyone to go vote. I myself would not vote either, because it’s participation in a fraud; 10/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Low turnout coupled with fraud? Why on Earth would we want another loss, to scream “cheater” at the “cheater” and to demonstrate the weakness of the opposition to the general public? 11/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Even IF somehow we won some cities, municipalities cannot even pour a cup of coffee on their own without the central government’s approval. Fast-forward to summer 2026 in Tbilisi: the infrastructure is crumbling, the streets are filled with garbage, 12/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
and people start missing the regime rule in the city simply because the central authorities did not give a penny to the City Hall. This is why “the Turkish model” (of bottom-up change) is completely inadequate for Georgia, no matter how some people want to push for it. 13/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
We can use the local elections as a leverage to hold new, free and fair Parliamentary elections, and we should. 14/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Participation would be a desperate move to “maybe somehow, through God’s help, have some unexpected outcome somewhere in any municipality and then we’ll see what happens,” instead of a power move. 15/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
This is a zero-sum situation anyway, so why don’t we try being proactive in our political agenda instead of fitting the dictator’s agenda and start petty budgeting with him that is doomed to fail anyway? 16/
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Fingers crossed, we’ll have a good decision on March 31 which will also mean that the street will get the much-needed political process umbrella. 17/17.
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 5:59 AM
1/ The 5th President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili states that as part of coordination with opposition parties, a joint letter will be sent to European leaders who will gather for the European Council session in the next two days.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:00 PM
2/ Zurabishvili said that Georgia is not on the session’s agenda. According to her, the current situation in Georgia cannot be discussed as a “closed political crisis.”
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:00 PM
3/ The letter reads:
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:00 PM
4/ “We urge you to give due consideration to this challenge and examine all possibilities to engage with the opposition and the ruling authorities a high-level discussion on the organization of new elections in Georgia”.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:00 PM
5/ “Meanwhile we need your direct support to the most exposed segments of the civil society: Conscience prisoners, regional and central media”
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:00 PM
6/ “Europe has to stand up, when America leaves, not only on Defense issues, but for supporting the civil society and the essential freedoms. We firmly support the call for a “Voice of Europe” to take the succession in the fight for freedom and promote European values”
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:00 PM
7/ “We urge you to consider including Georgia’s item in the agenda of the Next European Council and I together with the pro-European parties stand ready to testify in front of the European Parliament on the ongoing developments in advance of such session”.
— Publika.ge (@publikage.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:00 PM
The US:
Are Americans discovering yet that Putin isn’t interested in peace, or am I being too naive?
— Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 (@marikamikiashvili.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 9:17 AM
It’s really not Americans, just Trump, his employer/owner Musk, Trump’s natsec team, a group of GOP members of the House and Senate, and a bunch of “conservative” commenters.
Critics say the main flaw in Donald Trump’s approach is his failure to understand the complexities of the players involved and his overconfidence that he can rapidly change the dynamic on the ground. Here’s how his peace efforts have unravelled: www.ft.com/content/7180…
— Financial Times (@financialtimes.com) March 19, 2025 at 7:30 AM
From The Financial Times:
Donald Trump put a brave face on his call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, saying a “contract for peace” to end the war in Ukraine was on course and the “process” for a settlement was “in full force”.
But the US president’s assessment of the conversation clashed with the blunt reality of what he had failed to accomplish a few hours earlier.
During the lengthy discussion between the leaders, Putin rebuffed Trump’s push for the full ceasefire the US had agreed with Ukraine last week, consenting only to a limited truce on attacking energy and infrastructure assets.
The outcome of the call — the second with the Russian president since Trump returned to office — underscored his difficulty in translating his vision of a quick peace in Ukraine into a workable pact palatable to both Moscow and Kyiv.
Having repeatedly cast himself during last year’s US presidential campaign as an agent of global peace, Trump is now struggling to end the brutal wars he vowed to stop.
The call with Putin came just hours after the collapse of a ceasefire deal in Gaza brokered between Israel and Hamas by Trump allies and officials from Joe Biden’s administration in January.
The renewed conflict in Gaza came just after the US launched its own air strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen and issued a number of warnings to the group’s backers in Iran.
“Donald Trump is not going to be able to reconcile his self-image as a great negotiator with the grim realities of these conflicts,” said Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
“Personality, which in Trump’s world plays such a central role in everything, isn’t working.”
The call with Putin also revealed the extent to which Trump’s pressure campaign on Kyiv over the past month — including a public rebuke of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the White House — had handed so much leverage to Moscow.
“Putin has managed to give a small concession to Trump without really conceding anything,” Fiona Hill, a former senior director for Russia on the US National Security Council during Trump’s first term, said after the call.
“Putin has not shifted anything, and the US is negotiating with itself all over the place,” Hill said. “He wants to win the war.”
The Kremlin’s readout made it clear that Putin had not relinquished any of his hardline demands to end the war. The Russian president’s agreement to temporarily halt attacks on energy infrastructure and work on a maritime security deal in the Black Sea would mark a return to deals Moscow made earlier in the conflict.
Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, meanwhile, denied last month that Russia was attacking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure at all.
Trump’s push for a quick deal had emboldened Putin, said Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center in Berlin. “Trump has done very little to build leverage on Russia but has put a lot of pressure on Ukraine. The result shouldn’t be surprising,” he said.
Speaking to Fox News on Tuesday evening after the call, Trump conceded the difficulty in negotiating with Putin. “Right now, you have a lot of guns pointing at each other. And the ceasefire, without going a little bit further, would have been tough. Russia has the advantage, as you know,” he said.
The president’s top officials and prime supporters on Capitol Hill insist that he remains on course to secure his foreign policy goals even if it is taking longer than he promised during the campaign trail.
“President Trump is proving he is a president that says what he means and means what he says. He will lead and drive this war, that has gone on for over three years, to a conclusion,” Keith Kellogg, Trump’s Ukraine envoy, wrote on X on Tuesday afternoon.
But some critics say there is a flaw in Trump’s approach to foreign affairs that is shining through due to his failure to understand the complexities of the players involved, and the belief that he can rapidly change the dynamic on the ground.
“Negotiating the end of wars is extremely complex and tedious — that requires tremendous patience and creativity to find relatively acceptable proposals,” said Max Bergmann, director for Europe, Russia and Eurasia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“The Trump administration looks impatient when it comes to Ukraine and seems to simply want to walk away from the conflict,” he added.
A separate criticism of Trump’s overall approach is that his badgering of crucial US allies — including on trade — has reduced America’s reach and diplomatic clout.
“He is more concerned about pushing our allies and partners away and by doing that it means we have less power in the world,” said a former senior state department official. “And if we have less power in the world then we are unable to make the kinds of deals that he would like to see.”
Trump’s struggles have also vindicated Putin’s hardline stance, say analysts.
“[Putin] was waiting to see if there would be a major change. He thought the Europeans would probably fold, or Ukraine would collapse. And instead, it’s been the US suddenly and rather dramatically switching sides,” said Hill.
Bergmann worried about what further concessions Trump would make to Putin to secure a final agreement. “Any ceasefire that results in the US stopping weapons deliveries to Ukraine is a huge win for Putin because China, North Korea and Iran are not stopping their support,” he said.
More at the link.
Ineptitude or malevolence, perhaps both. And Congress asleep at the wheel.
“Several U.S. national security agencies have halted work on a coordinated effort to counter Russian sabotage, disinformation and cyberattacks, easing pressure on Moscow” www.reuters.com/world/us-sus…
— Shashank Joshi (@shashj.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 9:44 AM
From Reuters:
NEW YORK/BERLIN, March 19 (Reuters) – Several U.S. national security agencies have halted work on a coordinated effort to counter Russian sabotage, disinformation and cyberattacks, easing pressure on Moscow as the Trump Administration pushes Russia to end its war in Ukraine.
Former President Joe Biden last year ordered his national security team to establish working groups to monitor the issue amid warnings from U.S. intelligence that Russia was escalating a shadow war against Western nations.
The plan was led by the president’s National Security Council (NSC) and involved at least seven national security agencies working with European allies to disrupt plots targeting Europe and the United States, seven former officials who participated in the working groups told Reuters.
Before President Donald Trump was inaugurated, his incoming administration was briefed by Biden officials about the efforts and urged to continue monitoring Russia’s hybrid warfare campaign, the former U.S. officials said.
However, since Trump took office on Jan. 20 much of the work has come to a standstill, according to eleven current and former officials, all of whom requested anonymity to discuss classified matters.
Reuters is the first to report on the full extent of the Biden administration effort and how multiple different U.S. agencies have since paused their work on the issue.
Regular meetings between the National Security Council and European national security officials have gone unscheduled, and the NSC has also stopped formally coordinating efforts across U.S. agencies, including with the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department, the current and former officials said.
Reuters could not determine whether the president has ordered the administration to halt all its work monitoring and combatting Russia’s campaign, whether agencies were still working to hire additional staff, or if they are making their own policy decisions independent of the White House.
Some officials involved in the working groups said they are concerned that the Trump administration is de-prioritizing the issue despite intelligence warnings. The change follows the unwinding of other Russia-focused projects launched by Biden’s administration.
The FBI last month ended an effort to counter interference in U.S. elections by foreign adversaries including Russia and put on leave staff working on the issue at the Department of Homeland Security.
The Department of Justice also disbanded a team that seized the assets of Russian oligarchs.
The White House has not told career officials who’d previously participated in the effort whether it will recreate the cross-agency working groups, according to the current U.S. officials.
It is unclear to what extent the U.S. is still sharing intelligence related to the sabotage campaign with European allies. UK government officials said that routine intelligence sharing between the United States and the British government continues.
When asked for comment about the suspension of the coordinated efforts, the White House deferred to the NSC.
Brian Hughes, spokesperson for the National Security Council, said that it coordinates “with relevant agencies to assess and thwart threats posed to Americans.”
“President Trump has made it abundantly clear that any attack on the U.S. will be met with a disproportionate response,” he said.
A senior U.S. official at NATO said the U.S. was still coordinating with its allies on the issue but declined to offer more detail. The CIA, FBI and the State Department declined to comment.
Anitta Hipper, EU Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said she had no specific information to share when asked about the suspension of some intelligence-sharing meetings. She said the EU was coordinating with NATO on countering hybrid threats, which span everything from physical sabotage of critical infrastructure to disinformation campaigns.
Some analysts told Reuters that reducing work to counter Moscow’s hybrid war tactics would prove dangerous for the U.S.
“We’re choosing to blind ourselves to potential acts of war against us,” said Kori Schake, the director of foreign and defense policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington-based think tank, who has been critical of Trump’s engagement with Putin, opens new tab.
Over the last three years, Russia has recruited criminals in European countries for sabotage operations across the continent – including arson, attempted assassinations and planting bombs on cargo aircraft.
Russia has also used influence campaigns and cyber operations to erode support for Ukraine, Western intelligence officials told Reuters.
The intelligence officials said the number of sabotage acts by Russia declined at the end of 2024, but warned that they expect Moscow to continue its hybrid warfare while Western support for Ukraine continues.
More at the link.
Germany:
German politicians are definitely getting more vocal on the US administration, here with defence minister Pisterius calling the results of the Trump-Putin call a ‘complete flop’ (“Nullnummer”)
— Nicolai von Ondarza (@nvondarza.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 4:10 AM
The German government, which is stepping down, will provide Ukraine with additional military aid amounting to three billion euros, reports Reuters.
From 2026 to 2029, the country’s government plans to approve more than eight billion euros for Kyiv.
www.reuters.com/world/europe…— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 12:47 PM
From Reuters:
BERLIN, March 19 (Reuters) – Germany’s outgoing government has agreed to release additional 3 billion euros ($3.3 billion) in military aid for Ukraine this year after lawmakers passed plans for a fiscal overhaul, a finance ministry document seen by Reuters on Wednesday showed.
The move is widely seen as a breakthrough after outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz had insisted on making the easing of borrowing rules a prerequisite for the additional aid.
As uncertainty grows about the future of U.S. security guarantees under President Donald Trump, European states are under increasing pressure to show their commitment to Ukraine in its war with Russia, including with military spending.
Finance Minister Joerg Kukies has informed parliament’s budget committee that the requirements for authorisation of the extra funds have been met, according to a submission to the committee from his ministry.
In the letter, the ministry agreed to additional spending of 2.547 billion euros for this year. Together with other amounts, including a reimbursement from the European Peace Facility, Germany will make 3 billion euros available.
For the years 2026 to 2029, Kukies plans to authorise commitments of 8.252 billion euros for military aid to Ukraine, bringing the total to more than 11 billion euros.
The budget committee is expected to approve the funds on Friday provided the Bundesrat upper house passes the constitutional reform.
On Tuesday, the Bundestag lower house of parliament approved the seismic shift in German fiscal rules aimed at boosting military spending and reviving economic growth.
EU leaders meet on Thursday and Friday and among topics they will discuss is aid for Ukraine.
The EU:
An important moment. “Arms companies from the US, UK and Turkey will be excluded from a new €150bn EU defence funding push unless their home countries sign defence and security pacts with Brussels.” www.ft.com/content/eb9e…
— Shashank Joshi (@shashj.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 1:15 PM
If there’s no EU-UK security/defence pact, this could well tip the balance in UK towards those who would want to double down on US defence ecosystem, despite political risks, on the basis that it is still the source of the most advanced defence technology. bsky.app/profile/shas…
— Shashank Joshi (@shashj.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 1:17 PM
The foreign ministers of Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia have jointly addressed the European Commission, urging it to accelerate Ukraine’s EU accession process.
www.politico.eu/article/nort…— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 11:53 AM
“It is natural that Russia’s neighbors are the most concerned about Russia – that goes without saying. But it is important for everyone to be concerned, for everyone to understand that this is a collective threat.” – said the President of the European Council, António Costa.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 8:38 AM
Serbia:
Serbia’s government, led by Prime Minister Miloš Vučević, resigned today, with President Aleksandar Vučić saying he may call fresh elections in early June.
— POLITICO Europe (@politico.eu) March 19, 2025 at 8:39 AM
From PoliticoEU:
Serbia’s government, led by Prime Minister Miloš Vučević, resigned Wednesday, with President Aleksandar Vučić saying he may call fresh elections in early June.
Although Vučević announced his intention to resign in late January, the Belgrade parliament confirmed the resignation only weeks later, shortly after the country saw its largest protests in decades.
Vučić said Sunday that if a new government is not formed within 30 days of Vučević’s resignation, he will call early elections, likely to be held on June 8 — just a year and a half after Serbia’s last general election.
Vučić has taken several steps to deflect the pressure of the public outcry following the collapse of Novi Sad’s recently renovated train station last November, which caused 15 deaths.
Protesters believe the collapse was caused by corruption, poorly drafted contracts and a lack of expert supervision in the modernization of the station as part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
At least 100,000 people from across the country poured into Serbia’s capital on Saturday to demand that the government take corruption more seriously. Vučić claims the movement is aimed directly at him, even though it’s a long shot whether the president could be toppled.
But even though several local and national officials, including now the entire Serbian government, have resigned in the wake of the public outrage, protesters remain unconvinced by Vučić’s steps, as their demand to release the full documentation of Serbia’s railway renovation program has only been formally met with heavily redacted files.
Members of the European Parliament have urged European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to reconsider her upcoming meeting with Vučić amid Serbia’s worsening political crisis. In a letter sent Wednesday, MEPs expressed deep concern and accused the EU of overlooking democratic backsliding in Serbia.
“The EU keeps doing business as usual with Vučić as if nothing happened, ignoring hundreds of thousands Serbs on the streets,” Slovenian Green MEP Vladimir Prebilič told POLITICO. “We ask why there are no EU flags on the protests — but we have not shown support for those asking for democracy, accountability and the rule of law.”
MEPs from the S&D, the Left, the Greens and Renew called on von der Leyen to instead deliver a clear message demanding a transitional government to ensure free elections, arguing this is essential for restoring public trust and protecting EU credibility.
Back to Ukraine.
Bloomberg: Zelensky agrees to halt strikes on Russian energy infrastructure during call with Trump
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Air Force says Russian drones are already in the air, heading for Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, and Zaporizhia. Maybe just to bomb hospitals?— Euan MacDonald (@euanmacdonald.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 1:31 PM
The Russians have also been using glide bombs today, in Donetsk and Sumy oblasts.
— Euan MacDonald (@euanmacdonald.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 1:39 PM
Nemesis unit chasing and destroying Russian assault group on motorcycles t.me/nemesis_412/…
— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Operators of the Darknode unit of the 412th NEMESIS Regiment have already destroyed more than 10 Russian Shahed-136/131 kamikaze drones using the ‘latest tool’.
The technology was developed in cooperation with Ukrainian manufacturers and costs about $5,000.
— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 11:35 AM
Dnipropetrovsk Oblast:
Early this morning, Russia attacked railway infrastructure in Dnipropetrovsk region with drones. As crews worked on repairs, Russia struck again.
Russia’s “pause” in energy strikes is just another lie.
— Maria Avdeeva (@mariainkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 2:14 AM
Krasnopillia, Sumy Oblast:
Two russian drones targeted a hospital in the Krasnopillia community of Sumy Oblast, igniting a fire. Five more drone strikes hit during the rescue operation, trapping 22 patients in a shelter. Rescuers successfully evacuated all 60 people, including 7 immobile patients, to safty
— Iryna Voichuk (@irynavoichuk.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 4:47 AM
Russia targeted a medical facility in Krasnopillia, Sumy region, with two drones tonight, following up with a second assault using five additional drones while firefighters were on the scene. Fortunately, there were no civilian casualties.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 7:59 AM
Witkoff explains that russians told him this morning that 7 of their drones were shot down by russian troops themselves. He is inclined to believe that Putin is acting in good faith..
Important information i can add is that THOSE 7 DRONES LANDED ON THE HOSPITAL FULL OF PEOPLE
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 10:37 AM
Witkoff is spreading uncut Russian misinformation:
Fascist Russia’s Sputnik propaganda agency is claiming Russia shot down its own drones after Putin agreed on a halt to energy infrastructure attacks. Also tries to blame Ukraine for breaking a non-existent ceasefire Kyiv never even agreed to.
— Euan MacDonald (@euanmacdonald.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 6:44 AM
Bilhorivka:
This is Bilohorivka—a village erased from existence. Russia leveled it so completely, it’s hard to believe it ever stood.
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 10:30 AM
Kharkiv:
Stupid russian drones in Kharkiv skies right now ‼️
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Scrap metal in Kharkiv:
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Sloviansk, Donetsk Oblast:
Scrap metal in Kharkiv:
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Kropyvnytsky, Kirovohrad Oblast:
This is Kropyvnytsky, home to over 300 thousand people. Tonight, russia turned it into a burning hell!
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 6:48 PM
Russian occupied Crimea:
A little more footage of deep drone strikes on targets in the Russian rear in Crimea.
— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 8:16 AM
/2. The video shows strikes on a number of very valuable Russian equipment, including many radars. Radars:
● 2x 48Ya6-K1 “Podlyot”;
● 2x 1L125 “Niobium-SV”;
● 3x 39N6 “Kasta 2E2”;
● 9S19 “Imbir”;
● “Niobi-SV”;
● S-300VM;
● “Niobi-M”;
● 59N6-E “Protivnik-GE”;
● “Mys” radar.— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 3:05 AM
/3. Other targets:
● S-300SV air defence system launcher;
● ST-68 radar command posts;
● 3x Pantsir-S1 air defence systems;
● Project S4236 transport and tug vessel;
● Fyodor Uryupin universal tug;
● Mi-8 helicopter.t.me/DIUkraine/5522
— 🦋Special Kherson Cat🐈🇺🇦 (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 3:06 AM
Toretsk:
“This is our home, b**ch!” – a battle between fighters of the “Safari” regiment of the National Police’s united brigade “Lyut” and a Russian assault group amid the ruins of Toretsk.
t.me/c/1377735387…— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 2:39 PM
The Kursk cross border offensive:
A HIMARS MLRS strike with an M30 DPICM cluster munition targeted the positions of three North Korean 170mm M1978 “Koksan” self-propelled guns of the Russian Armed Forces in the Kursk region, with targeting assistance from aerial reconnaissance of the 14th SBS Regiment.
— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 11:16 AM
Krasnodar Oblast, Russia:
Krasnodar oil depot is still happily burning 🔥
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 10:19 AM
Russian fuel in Krasnodar still burning beautifully
— Kate from Kharkiv (@kateinkharkiv.bsky.social) March 19, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Five more days until a new Jewish Ukrainian holiday.
I do not make the rules.
Kuban Oblast, Russia:
Kuban, oil refinery… BAVOVNA 🔥
— MAKS 24 👀🇺🇦 (@maks23.bsky.social) March 18, 2025 at 8:04 PM
That’s enough for tonight.
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War for Ukraine Day 1,119: Obstruction of JusticePost + Comments (22)