Monday, May 15

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and French President meet at the Élysée Palace in Paris on May 14, 2023. (Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images)

Military: Ukrainian forces capture over more than 10 positions near Bakhmut. 

Ukrainian forces have retaken more than 10 Russian-held positions on the northern and southern outskirts of Bakhmut, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said on May 14.

Zelensky: Ukraine ‘almost ready’ for successful counter-offensive. President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 14 that Ukraine has almost enough weapons to begin its long-anticipated counter-offensive and that Ukrainian soldiers are “almost ready for success.”

Zelensky before dinner with Macron: ‘Ukraine’s defensive and offensive capabilities grow with every visit.’President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed on the evening of May 14 that he would meet with French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, adding that “Ukraine’s defensive and offensive capabilities grow with every visit.”

ISW: Russian air campaign likely aims to degrade Ukraine’s counteroffensive capability. Russia’s recent drone and missile strikes likely aim to disrupt Ukraine’s counteroffensive operations, the Institute for the Study of War wrote in its May 14 report.

Zelensky meets German leaders, calls on Berlin to support Ukraine’s bid for fighter jets. President Volodymyr Zelensky on May 14 made his first visit to Berlin during Russia’s full-scale invasion and met German leaders, urging Germany to support Ukraine’s long-standing bid to receive Western fighter jets.

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Air Defense claims five Russian aircraft downed inside Russia, says Moscow did it.

Three Russian helicopters and two aircraft were allegedly shot down by Russia’s own air defense on May 13, Air Force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat said on national television. Ukraine regularly doesn’t acknowledge conducting military operations inside Russia, despite such operations performed deep inside the country.

UK Defense Ministry: Russian poorly trained, ill-equipped recruits hamper potential large-scale operation. Russian troops are now mostly poorly trained, mobilized reservists, and increasingly reliant on antiquated equipment, with many of its units severely under-strength, leading to very simple, infantry-based operations, the U.K. Defense Ministry reported on May 14.

Air Force downs 25 Russian drones, 3 missiles overnight. Air defense downed 18 Iranian-made Shahed drones, one Lancet drone, two Orlan-10, four unspecified drones, and three cruise missiles, Ukraine’s Air Force reported.

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2 Russian commanders killed in Bakhmut as Ukraine ramps up counterattacks near the city

The Defense Ministry said on May 14 that Ukrainian forces captured more than 10 Russian-held positions within a day on the northern and southern outskirts of Bakhmut, the epicenter of the war.

Photo: Muhammed Enes Yildirim/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Human cost of war

Update: 7-year-old child confirmed among injured in Russian strike on Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Four people have been injured in a May 14 Russian artillery strike on Prymorske in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, according to oblast governor Yurii Malashko.

3 injured in Russian rocket attack on Donetsk Oblast. Three civilians were injured when Russian forces attacked the town of Kurakhove in Donetsk Oblast with Uragan rocket systems, governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on May 14.

Governor: 2 civilians **killed by Russian shelling in Kharkiv Oblast.**A 59-year-old woman and a 65-year-old man were killed by Russian shelling in the northeastern Kharkiv Oblast, Governor Oleh Synyehubov said on May 14.

Governor: Russian artillery kills 64-year-old man in Kherson Oblast. A 64-year-old man was killed by Russian artillery in a village in the southern Kherson Oblast, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported on May 14. He said that the man was in his garden when he received the fatal injury. It occurred in the village of Respublikanets, located close to the Dnipro River.

Yermak: Mine kills 5 in Kherson Oblast. An unexploded device left behind by the Russian army exploded in Myroliubivka, a village in Kherson Oblast, on May 14, killing five people aged between 27 and 68, President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak reported.

Moscow says 2 Russian colonels killed in battle for Bakhmut. The Russian Defense Ministry on May 14 admitted that two commanders had been recently killed in the ongoing battle for Bakhmut, the epicenter of the war in Ukraine.

International response

Washington Post: NATO lacks consensus on Ukraine’s membership ahead of Vilnius summit. NATO will not issue a formal invitation for Ukraine to join the alliance at the upcoming Vilnius summit in July, according to official sources interviewed by The Washington Post.

FT: G7, EU to ban Russian gas import resumption. The G7 and the EU plan to ban Russian gas imports on routes where Moscow has cut supplies before, according to a document seen by the Financial Times.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Oleksiy Sorokin, Alexander Query, Oleg Sukhov, Asami Terajima, Francis Farrell, Anastasiia Malenko, and Olena Goncharova.

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