Thursday, April 6

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses the attendees inside the courtyard of the Royal Castle, on April 5, 2023, in Warsaw, Poland. (Photo by Stringer/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Zelensky: Situation in Bakhmut remains ‘complicated.’ The situation in Bakhmut remains “complicated’ and is subject to change on a daily basis, President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a press conference in Warsaw on April 5.

CNN: Kremlin likely struggling to increase number of soldiers. Russia is struggling to attract more military manpower and provide them with sufficient training, unnamed western officials told CNN on April 5.

Military spokesperson denies reports of Russia’s ammunition shortage in eastern Ukraine. Russian troops have not experienced ammunition deficits in Ukraine’s east despite Wagner Group’s statements about the lack of projectiles on the front line, Serhii Cherevatyi, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Eastern Military Command, said on April 5.

Ukraine’s ‘Drone Army’ procures 3,200 drones in first 9 months. Ukraine’s “Drone Army” acquired 3,200 drones for the military in the first nine months of the initiative, Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov reported.

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Financial Times: Ukraine’s official says Ukraine may be willing to negotiate on Crimea. Andriy Sybiha, deputy head of the President’s Office, said that Kyiv may negotiate with Russia on Crimea if Ukraine is successful in its much-anticipated spring counteroffensive, the Financial Times reported.

Ex-head of Antonov company charged with negligence in case of Mriya aircraft destruction. The former director of Antonov State Enterprise, Serhii Bychkov, was charged with official negligence leading to the destruction of the world’s largest cargo aircraft AN-225 Mriya, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) reported on April 5.

Poll: 94% of Ukrainians have negative view of Russia, Belarus ranks second worst. Dislike towards Russia was expressed by 97% of residents of Central Ukraine and 90% of residents of Eastern Ukraine. These views are also held by 95,5% of respondents who use Ukrainian as a primary language and by 88% of those that communicate primarily in Russian.

NABU searches offices of Kharkiv regional administration. Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) reported conducting searches at the premises of the Kharkiv Oblast Military Administration on April 5.

Zelensky’s trip to Poland

Zelensky announces new military aid package from Poland. “Today we are signing a document on the supply of Polish Rosomak armored personnel carriers, Rak self-propelled mortars, air defense systems, in particular the very effective Piorun,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said during his April 5 visit to Warsaw.

Duda: Poland to provide Ukraine with at least 14 MiG-29 fighter jets. Polish President Andrzej Duda said that his country has already transferred four MiG-29 jet fighters to Ukraine, has prepared to transfer four more, and is preparing six more that “can be transferred quite soon,” bringing the total number pledged to Kyiv to 14.

Poland and Ukraine sign joint memorandum on reconstruction and munitions production. The document was signed during Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s April 5 visit to Warsaw, where he met with both President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.

Zelensky: ‘Russia cannot win in Europe when a Ukrainian and a Pole stand side by side.’ Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky delivered a speech before Poles and Ukrainians at Castle Square in Warsaw on April 5.

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Upcoming elections can change where Turkey stands on Russia’s war

As Turkey reels from an economic crisis and a devastating earthquake, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces the most nail-biting election in decades.

Photo: Adem Altan/ AFP via Getty Images

Ukraine war latest: Poland pledges new military aid to Ukraine during Zelensky’s visit

Poland will provide Ukraine with additional military assistance, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced during his visit to Warsaw on April 5.

Photo: Ukraine’s Presidential Office

Human cost of Russia’s war

Mine explosion in Kharkiv Oblast injures 16-year-old boy. A 16-year-old boy was wounded by a mine explosion in the village of Novoosynove, located in the Kupiansk district of Kharkiv Oblast, on April 5, the State Emergency Service reported.

Russia launches multi-weapon attack against 8 oblasts over past 24 hours. Four people were killed and 14 were injured from Russian attacks across eight oblasts over the past 24 hours, the Defense Ministry reported via the Military Media Center on April 5.

General Staff: Russia has lost 176,240 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. According to the report, Russia has also lost 3,629 tanks, 7,005 armored fighting vehicles, 5,573 vehicles and fuel tanks, 2,707 artillery systems, 532 multiple launch rocket systems, 280 air defense systems, 306 airplanes, 291 helicopters, 2,283 drones, and 18 boats.

International response

China’s ambassador to EU: ‘No limit’ friendship with Moscow ‘nothing but rhetoric.’ China’s Ambassador to the European Union Fu Cong downplayed the Russo-Chinese partnership in an interview with the New York Times on April 5.

Latvia reinstates mandatory military service. The Latvian parliament has officially passed the National Defence Service Law mandating men between the ages of 18 and 27 to serve in the military, media outlet Delfi reported on April 5.

Spain postpones Leopard 2 tank transfer to Ukraine. Six of Spain’s Leopard 2A4 tanks promised to Ukraine will leave the country in the second half of April, Spanish defense minister Margarita Robles said on TVE on April 5, as cited by Reuters.

Czechia to send $30 million worth of military aid to Ukraine. The Czech Republic will provide Ukraine with $30 million worth of military equipment that is currently in storage and “not needed” for the country’s defense. All military hardware currently sent to Ukraine can be replaced, Czech defense minister Jana Černochová told media on April 5.

Stoltenberg: China’s provision of lethal aid to Russia would be ’historic mistake.’ NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg cautioned China against supplying Russia with lethal weaponry, saying the move would be a “historic mistake with profound implications,” Euronews reported on April 5.

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