Thursday, April 11

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) and Lithuania’s Defense Minister Laurynas Kasciunas meet in Kyiv on April 10, 2024. (Presidential Office)

Russian forces launch large-scale attack across Ukraine. The attacks damaged energy facilities in Kharkiv, Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Lviv oblasts in the early hours of April 11.

Poll: Almost half of Ukrainians would support military representatives in politics. Almost half of Ukrainians would entrust the government in the post-war period to a political party founded by representatives of the country’s military, according to a survey by the Razumkov Center published on April 10.

Parliament passes in 1st reading bill allowing military service of citizens convicted of minor offenses. Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, passed on April 10 in the first reading a bill permitting military service of citizens convicted of minor offenses, said lawmaker Oleksii Honcharenko, one of the bill’s authors.

Russian Defense Ministry says Mi-24 helicopter crashes off Crimea. A Russian Mi-24 helicopter crashed into the Black Sea off the coast of Crimea, Russian state-controlled news agency RIA Novosti reported on April 10, citing the Russian Defense Ministry.

Parliament starts considering updated mobilization bill in 2nd reading. Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, has begun the consideration of an updated mobilization bill in its second reading, lawmaker Oleksii Honcharenko said on April 10.

SBU: Ex-lawmaker of pro-Russian party detained while attempting to flee Ukraine. A former lawmaker of the banned pro-Russian Party of Regions, who is suspected of financially contributing to Russian aggression, was detained by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) while attempting to flee the country, the SBU said on April 10.

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UK Defense Ministry: Russia aims to recruit 400,000 contract service personnel in 2024. Russia will attempt to recruit an additional 400,000 contract service personnel in 2024 to sustain its forces in Ukraine after severe losses in an all-out war, according to the U.K. Defense Ministry’s intelligence report from April 10.

Kuleba: Ukraine aims to obtain 7 Patriot batteries in near future. Ukraine aims to obtain an additional seven Patriot air defense batteries as soon as possible and has offered countries to loan the systems to Kyiv, Kuleba told the Washington Post (WP) in an interview published on April 10.

UPDATED: Russian military helicopter crashes in Black Sea after explosion, Ukrainian Navy says. A Russian Ka-27 helicopter was downed over Russian-occupied Crimea, Ukrainian Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk said on April 10.

Russia attacks energy infrastructure in Odesa, Mykolaiv oblasts. Russia carried out an overnight attack on energy infrastructure in Odesa and Mykolaiv oblasts, Ukraine’s Southern Defense Forces reported on April 10.

Military denies Russia gained foothold in Robotyne. Russian units reportedly entered Robotyne and tried to gain a foothold there “but had no success,” Ukraine’s Southern Forces said on April 10.

Read our exclusives

Ukraine war latest: Parliament starts considering updated mobilization bill

Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, has begun considering an updated mobilization bill in the second reading, lawmaker Oleksii Honcharenko said on April 10.

Photo: Jose Colon/Anadolu

UK government, BAE Systems sign agreements to repair equipment in Ukraine

The British government and BAE Systems, the U.K.’s largest arms company, announced on April 10 that they had signed agreements to support Ukraine’s defense industry.

Photo: UK Embassy Kyiv

Human cost of war

Governor: Russian missile attack on Odesa kills 4, including 10-year-old girl. Russian forces struck the Odesa area on the evening of April 10, killing four people, including a 10-year-old girl, and wounding another 14, according to the latest update by Odesa Oblast Governor Oleh Kiper.

UN says more than 600 Ukrainian civilians killed or injured in March, up 20% from February. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the HRMMU said that at least 10,810 civilians have been killed and at least 20,556 injured.

UPDATED: Russian attack on Kharkiv Oblast kills 3, including child, injures 3.

Russia struck the villages of Lyptsi and Mala Danylivka and the city of Vovchansk in Kharkiv Oblast, killing a child and injuring at least three people, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported on April 10.

Update: Russian attack on Kostiantynivka on April 9 kills 3, including child. Ukraine’s State Emergency Service retrieved two more bodies under the rubble of an apartment building following a Russian strike on the city of Kostiantynivka on April 9 in Donetsk Oblast, raising the death toll to three, the service said on April 10.

General Staff: Russia has lost 450,080 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. This number includes 830 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

International response

German state-owned gas trader considering storing natural gas in Ukraine again. Ukraine has been encouraging foreign traders to store gas in its vast underground gas storage (UGS) facilities, the majority of which are located in western Ukraine.

US general says Ukraine will soon run out of shells, anti-air missiles without US aid. General Christopher Cavoli said that Russian forces were firing five shells for every one shell that Ukraine fired, a disparity which he warned could increase to 10 to one in coming weeks.

Minister: Nordic, Baltic nations call on NATO to increase support for Ukraine. The Nordic and Baltic countries support an increased role for NATO in aiding Ukraine’s fight against Russia, as well as Kyiv’s bid to join the European Union, Sweden’s Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom told reporters on April 10, according to Reuters.

Switzerland confirms it will host Ukraine’s peace summit in June. The Swiss government confirmed on April 10 that it would host a global peace summit on Russia’s war against Ukraine in June at the Burgenstock resort in the canton of Nidwalden.

Spanish PM Sanchez calls for increased EU defense spending in response to threats from Russia. While Spain has increased its military spending since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it stood at 1.26% of its GDP as of the end of 2023, far below the 2% benchmark for NATO members.

Russia announces investigation into Ukrainian company Burisma, linked to Biden’s son, for financing terrorism. Hunter Biden previously served on the board of Burisma from 2014-2019, which overlapped with Joe Biden’s second term as vice president.

Media: Almost 3 quarters of Germany’s arms exports in 2024 intended for Ukraine. From January 1 to March 27, the German government approved the export of military goods worth at least 4.89 billion euros (around $5.3 billion), with almost three-quarters of this amount intended for Ukraine, the German news agency DPA reported on April 10.

Reuters: EU finance ministers to discuss Ukraine reform plans this week. EU finance ministers will discuss this week a plan and an investment agenda submitted by Kyiv as it seeks to secure 50 billion euros (around $53.7 billion) from the European Union’s four-year Ukraine Facility, Reuters reported on April 10, citing sources in the German Finance Ministry.

Court in Russia rejects Google’s appeal over $50 million fine related to Ukraine content. Google’s legal problems with Russia preceded the full-scale war. The company was fined 7.2 billion rubles ($92.6 million) in December 2021 for failing to take down content that Russia has banned.

Germany delivers artillery shells, drones, armored vehicles to Ukraine. Berlin sent a new batch of military aid to Ukraine, containing artillery shells, drones, and armored vehicles, among other supplies, the German government said on April 10.

Switzerland plans to allocate $5.5 billion to help Ukraine’s economic recovery Switzerland plans to allocate 5 billion Swiss francs ($5.5 billion) to support Ukraine’s economic development and reconstruction by 2036, the Swiss Federal Council announced on April 10.

Ukrainian parliament ratifies updated Canada-Ukraine free trade deal. Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, ratified on April 10 the updated free trade agreement between Canada and Ukraine, lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak said.

Zelensky meets Lithuanian defense minister in Kyiv. President Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting with recently-appointed Lithuanian Defense Minister Laurynas Kasciunas in Kyiv, the Presidential Office said on April 10.

ISW: Russia challenges Yerevan’s sovereignty by detaining Russian citizen in Armenia. Russian military authorities detained Russian citizen Anatoly Shchetin in Armenia for allegedly avoiding mobilization, the Institute for the Study of War’s (ISW) report said, citing the international human rights organization Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly in Vanadzor, on April 9.

Ambassador: EU to provide lethal aid to Moldova. The European Union plans to provide lethal military aid to Moldova, EU Ambassador to Moldova Janis Mazeiks told reporters in Chisinau on April 10.

EU Court removes Russian oligarchs Fridman, Aven from sanctions list. The EU Court of Justice ruled on April 10 to lift sanctions against Russian business tycoons Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven, imposed in response to the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Presidential Office: Ukraine, Portugal to soon start negotiations on security deal. Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Ihor Zhovkva held a call with the Portuguese prime minister’s advisor Jorge Monteiro to discuss the expected bilateral security agreement, the Presidential Office said on April 9.

WSJ: Small US-made drones perform poorly in Ukraine. Drone company executives, Ukrainian officials, and former U.S. defense officials said that U.S.-made unmanned aircraft are often expensive, glitchy, and difficult to repair.

Austin: Ukraine’s attacks on Russian oil could threaten global energy market. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned that recent Ukrainian attacks targeting Russian oil refineries could have a “knock-on effect” on the global energy situation, Bloomberg said on April 9.

EU preparing 14th sanctions package against Russia this spring. “We have started preparing a 14th sanctions package, which should be adopted in spring,” Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said at the “Standing with Ukraine: European Parliament’s legacy for the sanctions regime” conference of the Socialists and Democrats parliamentary group in Brussels.

Zelensky: If Trump’s plan to stop war is to give up our territory, then it is primitive. President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with Bild on April 9 that he is skeptical about the U.S. ex-president Donald Trump’s alleged peace plan on giving part of occupied Ukrainian territories to Russia.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Elsa Court, Kateryna Hodunova, Martin Fornusek, Lili Bivings, Dinara Khalilova, Nate Ostiller, and Rachel Amran.

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