[Korrespondent] 22:37 The President of Ukraine is finishing his European tour of the capitals of Kiev's key partners. The main topic of the talks is the strengthening of military assistance, up to the transfer of fighter jets. About what was achieved during these negotiations - in the material Results of Zelensky 's European tour .
22:06 A group of Ukrainian military personnel arrived in Belgium as part of the EUMAM training mission to learn how to work with underwater drones, said Defense Minister Ludivine Dedonder.
21:24 The prosecutor's office in The Hague accused Putin of involvement in the plane crash, but despite this, the investigation into the MH17 case was stopped. More details in the material Strong signs .
21:17 Slovakia will do everything possible to transfer its MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine, Prime Minister Eduard Heger said. Zelensky asked him to provide planes for the EU summit in Brussels. We are talking about 11 or 12 aircraft that Slovakia currently has. Heger replied that Bratislava would do everything possible to comply with this request.
20:46 Head of the Ministry of Digital Development Mikhail Fedorov said in a commentary to the UE that there are currently no problems with the operation of Starlink terminals in Ukraine: “Now there are no problems with the operation of Starlink terminals in Ukraine. Today we received the first several thousand Starlinks as part of a new batch of 10,000 terminals from the German government."
At the same time, Fedorov called Elon Musk "one of the largest private donors to our future victory" and noted that Starlinks help save thousands of lives, support the operation of the energy infrastructure, allow doctors to perform operations and provide the Internet with Invincibility Points. "SpaceX's contribution, according to our estimates, is more than $100 million. We hope for further stable work of Starlinks in Ukraine," the minister added.
20:09 Podolyak is convinced that in 2023 Ukraine will receive "all the necessary tools to end the war, including long-range missiles and attack aircraft." According to him, there is a complete understanding in Europe that it is necessary to speed up the end of the war so that Russia cannot turn it into a protracted stage.
19:47 The head of the Lugansk OVA, Sergei Gaidai, said that the Russians had actually launched an offensive in the Lugansk region. According to him, they have concentrated their main efforts on the Kremensky direction, but they have not been successful. In the Svatovo-Kupyansky direction and in Belogorovka, the situation is "absolutely controlled," Gaidai added.
19:30 Over the past week, the pace of hostilities along the Svatovo-Kremennaya line in the west of the Lugansk region has increased significantly. And this, according to the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW), indicates the beginning of the previously announced major offensive by the Russian army. The Ukrainian military confirms the ISW information and says that the invaders are trying to attack in several more directions. But the territory where the Russians are "pressing" is currently limited only to the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. For more details, see the material The Great Offensive of the Russian Federation has begun .
19:06 In Kiev, Victory Avenue was renamed into Beresteisky Avenue, Victory Square - into Galician Square. In total, the Kyiv City Council has today renamed 31 streets, lanes, avenues and boulevards, the names of which are associated with Russia and the Soviet past.
19:04 The Russian army continues to focus its main efforts on conducting offensive operations in the Kupyansky, Limansky, Bakhmutsky, Avdeevsky and Novopavlovsky directions, the General Staff said in an evening summary.
According to the General Staff, in order to hide the number of deaths on the territory of the Pridneprovskaya BioTES enterprise in the occupied Tokmak, Zaporozhye region, the Russians have equipped a mobile crematorium. Local residents complain about the constant putrid smell in the southeastern area of the city, especially at night.
18:43 The leaders of the EU states during the summit in Brussels did not give Zelensky obligations to supply combat aircraft, Bloomberg reports citing a European official. According to him, European leaders have made it clear to Zelensky that they are ready to provide more military assistance to Ukraine, "but so far no one has committed to transfer fighter jets."
18:30 Shoigu pushed Prigozhin aside from recruiting prisoners. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation is forming “penal battalions” on new conditions: they promise not to execute without trial and do not take anyone under the age of 21, Olga Romanova, the founder of the human rights organization Rus , told the channel We Can Explain . According to her, so far the military takes prisoners only voluntarily. Since the beginning of autumn, Prigozhin has been urging prisoners to sign up for the Wagner PMC, because then the Ministry of Defense will come "and they will take everyone by force."
The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation emphasizes that they will not have extrajudicial executions, and this is important for prisoners, since such executions scared everyone very much, Romanova notes. As in PMCs, the Ministry of Defense promises a pardon and removal of a criminal record.
18:21 Zelensky said in an interview with Spiegel that keeping Bakhmut helps buy time for new arms deliveries: "We are currently acquiring time for arms deliveries so that our army is strengthened."
18:02 Ukroboronprom announced that, together with a NATO member country, it began to produce 120 mm mines for mortars. Manufacturers guarantee the destruction of targets by fragments from 25 to 60 meters, with a spread of up to 250 meters. Soon the first batches will go to the front.
17:57 Zelensky said at a press conference in Brussels that some EU leaders announced their readiness to provide Ukraine with all the necessary weapons, including combat aircraft: "Of course, I am inspired by statements that Europe will be with us until victory. And Today I heard from the leaders of some European states about their readiness to provide us with the necessary weapons, including aircraft."
The President added that later today he will hold a series of bilateral meetings in Brussels, "where the topic of combat aviation will be given the necessary attention."
17:54 Putin once again stated that Russia "did not start any hostilities, but is trying to finish them." According to him, it was Ukraine that allegedly started them eight years ago on the territory of the "DNR" and "LNR", "they exterminated the people as much as they could endure."
17:49 Iran is modifying drones that it supplies to Russia so that explosive warheads cause maximum damage to Ukrainian infrastructure, CNN reports. Thus, studies of the unexploded Shaded-131 warhead showed that, in addition to fragments, 18 more smaller charges are located around the warhead, which, when melted by an explosive wave, are capable of penetrating armor and creating a kind of 360-degree explosive effect.
17:45 Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleksiy Danilov said in an interview with Report's Eastern European Bureau that Ukraine does not use Western weapons to strike Russian territory: "As for weapons of our own production, we have every right to destroy those objects that pose a threat to the security of our citizens. we have our own missiles, complexes, UAVs that can perform these functions."
Answering a question about Bayraktars, Danilov noted that they "do a great job", which is better not to talk about now. According to him, at the beginning of the war, these drones were key, since Ukraine had no other weapons. It was Bayraktar drones that played an important role in the destruction of Russian military personnel in the first days of the war.
Danilov expressed confidence that Western tanks would arrive ahead of schedule. In particular, "this will happen much earlier than the summer."
The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council also said that now there is a big undercover work of "some figures" who will seek to offer Kyiv a Korean version, the so-called 38th parallel. "Today, the Medvedchuks, representatives of the opposition platform and the internal front, who call themselves political technologists, have become more active. They are trying to deal with this issue, negotiate, hold meetings. I can say: this will not happen, we will not go for it. Our society will never agree to the division of the country According to our Constitution, it is single, unitary and will remain so," Danilov emphasized. He added that Ukraine will return "all of its historical territories."
As for the Russian offensive, according to Danilov, the Russian Federation does not have the strength to capture Kyiv. "As for the western regions, they will try to cut off our arms supply routes. We are ready for such a scenario, we understand what is happening, and we will give a worthy rebuff," the NSDC secretary assured.
17:19 Last year, according to the results of internal audits, 621 officials from the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defense were held accountable, Reznikov said. Of these, 497 officials were held liable, 124 - disciplinary. .
16:42 Lithuania will give Ukraine new anti-aircraft missile launchers to destroy kamikaze drones, Defense Minister Arvydas Anushauskas said during a visit to Odessa. He also said that 15 Ukrainian instructors have already been trained, so now they can work with the new air defense systems.
16:27 Zelensky addressed the participants of the European Council meeting: “Thank you for the fact that we have jointly prepared for Ukraine to receive the status of a candidate for joining the European Union. For the fact that we are jointly preparing a positive assessment of our transformation on the way to the European Union. Thank you for that the opening of negotiations on membership for Ukraine in the European Union this year will become another strong pillar of our common security."
15:44 European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the EU will find a way to hold Russia accountable for the crime of aggression against Ukraine: "We have the political will to bring those responsible to justice, including for the crime of aggression. And if we have political will, we will find ways."
15:37 In Kherson, one person was injured due to Russian shelling, two more people were hospitalized after they exploded on a Russian mine in the village of Novaya Kamenka, Beryslav region, the IVA reported.
15:23 Russia has developed a plan to destroy the political situation in Moldova, Zelensky said: "Recently, I spoke with the President of Moldova, Ms. Sandu, and informed her that we managed to intercept our intelligence. The detailed Russian plan is to destroy the political situation in Moldova. Russian a document that shows who, when and as a result of what actions are going to break Moldova, break the democratic order in this country and establish their control over it.”
15:18 The occupying authorities of Crimea are preparing for the Ukrainian operation to liberate the peninsula. In particular, according to the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, the Russian occupation administration of Crimea and the local branch of the FSB decided to establish a "high (yellow) level of terrorist threat." The decision says that the units of the FSB of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation need to strengthen control over the movement of vehicles on the peninsula. The control over the movement of Russian citizens and foreigners and the registration of a temporary place of residence is being strengthened.
Emergencies Ministry units are instructed to revise specialized equipment for "rescue operations", and local administrations must provide places for "temporary accommodation of people." The Ministry of Health has an obligation to prepare facilities for emergency care and medical evacuation.
According to Ukrainian military intelligence, such security measures by the occupiers are a sign of preparations for the start of the operation to liberate Crimea by the Ukrainian defense forces. It may also indicate the possibility of provocations by the Russian special services against the civilian population of the peninsula, with the subsequent shifting of responsibility to Ukraine.
15:13 Yermak said that Zelensky in the European Parliament dwelled on the sanctions against Rosatom: "Ukraine introduced them, then a step for the EU. It looks like everything will be ok." In addition, according to him, the majority support anti-Russian sanctions, as well as a tribunal for Russian criminals. The issue of using the frozen assets of the Russians in the interests of Ukraine is also on the agenda, Yermak added.
14:48 The Hungarian government will not ratify Ukraine's accession to the EU until Kiev "improves" the position of the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia. At the same time, Budapest generally supports Ukraine's accession to the European Union, said Gergel Gulyash, head of the Prime Minister's Office. As for Ukraine's accession to NATO, this, according to him, would now lead to a world war.
14:44 Yermak said that the issue of long-range weapons and fighter jets for Ukraine "looks like it can be resolved, details a bit later."
14:42 Macron said that the transfer of fighters to Ukraine was not discussed at yesterday's meeting with Zelensky and Scholz in Paris, "because the next few weeks or months will be decisive, so we have to look at what is achievable in the short term."
14:25 The Russians have already hit Marganets in the Dnipropetrovsk region twice from heavy artillery today. As a result, three people were injured, including a 12-year-old child, the OVA said.
14:22 London will not immediately supply fighter jets to Ukraine, said British Defense Minister Ben Wallace. According to him, air support for the troops can be provided through long-range missiles and UAVs. Wallace noted that it would be "more realistic and productive" to assume that Britain would provide Ukraine with aircraft in the long term to ensure its security after the end of the war with the Russian Federation.
14:18 Italian Prime Minister George Meloni expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that Macron and Scholz received Zelensky the day before he was to arrive in Brussels: "I think that our strength in this matter is community and unity, and I understand domestic political issues , but there are times when the preference for internal political issues is detrimental to the cause, and it seems to me that this was one of those cases.
14:14 Ukraine is negotiating with the German concern Rheinmetall on the supply of KF51 Panther tanks, the company's CEO Armin Papperger said in an interview with Handelsblatt. In addition, according to him, Kyiv is interested in the new Lynx infantry fighting vehicles.
The Panther is the most advanced German tank that Rheinmetall presented at an exhibition in Paris last summer. Then it was called the most powerful battle tank in the world. Ukraine may become the first country to acquire these machines. Papperger noted that deliveries could begin in 15 to 18 months. They also need to be approved by the German government for export, as was the case with the Leopard.
13:49 Zelensky arrived at a meeting with the leaders of the EU countries, the negotiations will be held behind closed doors.
13:27 The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, during a speech at the Kiev mayor's office, opposed the participation of Russians in the Olympic and Paralympic Games to be held in the French capital: "As long as Russian troops continue to bomb you, target your civilian population and your infrastructure, occupy your territory "I do not want Russian athletes to participate in sports competitions. This is my conviction as a mayor, as a political leader, as a convinced European. I have no doubt that the International Olympic Committee will be able to support this position."
13:19 Yermak, who is in Brussels with Zelensky, announced "good news" and "pleasant surprises." He said that on the way to Brussels, Zelensky continued to communicate with Macron, as well as with allies. Yermak himself spoke, in particular, with the political adviser to the French leader Emmanuel Bonn, as well as with the French diplomat Isabelle Dumont. "We have excellent communication between the teams and everyone has a common goal - victory over the Russian Federation," the head of the President's Office said.
13:11 Zelensky addressed the European Parliament. In his speech, he said that for each of the 27 EU countries there is a danger: "The danger is that there is a dictator with huge stockpiles of Soviet weapons and weapons from other dictatorships, in particular, the Iranian regime."
"Europe! We are defending ourselves against the biggest anti-European force of the modern world. We - Ukrainians - are defending ourselves on the battlefield together with you. Only our victory will guarantee the preservation of our common values," the President of Ukraine said.
Zelensky also said that Russia views its people as vessels for the transport of weapons, "the Russian regime hates any social justice and diversity, invests in xenophobia, today it is trying to bring to life the inhuman realities of the 1930s and 1940s."
13:05 Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo visited Kyiv for the second time during the full-scale war and today spoke in the session hall of the Kyiv City Council, Klitschko said. The delegation headed by her handed over ten generators to the Ukrainian capital.
12:58 President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola at a special meeting with the participation of Zelensky called on the EU countries to provide Ukraine with long-range weapons and combat aircraft as soon as possible.
12:37 Poland is ready to transfer fighter jets to Ukraine, but "not in the forefront," said Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. According to him, the countries with more aircraft should come first.
12:13 Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia, NATO allies have provided Ukraine with military, humanitarian and financial assistance totaling about $120 billion, Stoltenberg said. He added that the United States is playing an “indispensable role,” but Europe and Canada have also stepped up, providing more than half of the total aid, including tanks and advanced air defense systems, and taking in almost 5 million Ukrainian refugees.
12:04 The Russian missile blitzkrieg failed, but the enemy will continue to strike, Andriy Yusov, a spokesman for the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, predicts: “The missile blitzkrieg has already lost its meaning, because the Ukrainian energy system survived, despite huge losses. In an emergency, everything is being repaired, the whole world is helping us with equipment and generators, so we will hold out. We see that spring is coming soon. That is why the missile blitzkrieg failed."
At the same time, Yusov added that Russia would continue terrorist attacks because they had no other methods left: “It’s another matter that the number of high-precision missile weapons they have is rapidly declining, and there are no opportunities to replenish from the workshop to the front in adequate quantities. Therefore, we "We don't see frequent shelling now. The number, intensity and intervals between shelling are changing. But they still have a lot of missiles and a lot of obsolete missile weapons, in particular S-300 missiles. This means that our front-line cities remain under serious threat." According to Yusov, Ukrainians should not only shoot down Russian missiles, but also destroy their launchers.
12:00 As a result of yesterday's Russian air strike on an industrial building on the territory of a branch of the Irvantsevo peat plant of the State Enterprise Chernigovtorf in the village of Kuty Vtorye, Novgorod-Seversky District, two people were killed and two more were injured, the head of the Chernihiv OVA Vyacheslav Chaus said. As of the morning of February 9, the rubble was cleared.
11:55 Orban said that Hungary will continue to provide humanitarian and financial support to Ukraine, but not military: "We support an immediate ceasefire to prevent further loss of human lives. Hungary belongs to the peace camp."
11:34 Zelensky arrived in Brussels for the EU summit. The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, said that he will address the European Parliament this morning.
11:25 Power shortage in the power system persists, most of all - in the evening hours. In Odessa and the Odessa region, the situation is improving, and large volumes of electricity are being gradually supplied, Ukrenergo reported.
Consumption limits were not transferred to Kharkiv, Kherson, Khmelnytsky regions, where measurements of actual consumption are scheduled today. The rest of the oblenergos have been brought consumption limits valid during the day.
11:13 To date, 17 thousand people have applied to the Offensive Guard: 10.5 thousand through the website, 6.5 thousand through the TsNAP. In addition, 3,500 citizens were consulted on the hotline, Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said. According to him, the average age of candidates is 33 years old, the oldest is 69 years old. 600 women have also registered - they will be able to work in medical, logistics units, and intelligence brigades. At the same time, 60% of all volunteers apply to the brigades of the National Guard.
10:27 More than 20 Russian generals were killed in the war in Ukraine, Nikkei reports, citing Japanese intelligence data obtained in cooperation with the United States and European countries.
10:22 During the offensive, the Russians may try to land troops in the north or south of Ukraine, Andrey Yusov, a spokesman for the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, said: "If we are talking about a classic landing operation, then such a threat is also always present - either from the Belarusian direction, or amphibious assault, if we talking about Odessa.
At the same time, Yusov added that such a decision would be suicidal for the Russians: "Such a landing force will be destroyed very quickly on the territory of Ukraine. Just like there were colossal losses during the start of a full-scale invasion at the Gostomel airport, when the Ukrainians inflicted crushing losses on the invaders" .
10:00 Mobile firing groups have been set up in subdivisions of the Grouping of Forces and Means of Defense of Kiev to counter the Shaheds. Trained crews in off-road cars are armed with heavy machine guns and are equipped with thermal imaging sights, as well as other devices for identifying targets and laser target designation, the KGVA said.
Firing positions for mobile groups are determined so that the crew arrives at the scene as quickly as possible. Preparing the crew for combat takes no more than one minute. The number of mobile groups is constantly increasing, and work is underway to improve their technical equipment. A mobile fireteam can destroy cruise missiles and other airborne targets.
09:29 In the Kherson region over the past day, three people were killed due to Russian shelling, four more were injured, among them a 15-year-old teenager, the IVA reported.
09:27 In the Donetsk region over the past day, as a result of Russian shelling, two people were killed - in Bakhmut. Seven more residents of the region were injured, said the head of the OVA Pavel Kirilenko.
09:24 British intelligence notes that the weather continues to play a significant role in the course of the war in Ukraine. Now the ground in the east of the country is frozen, but warming is expected in the coming week, so the conditions for moving on rough terrain will worsen.
Analysts predict that cross-country driving conditions are likely to be at their worst due to muddy weather in mid to late March. Commanders on both sides will likely try to avoid planning major offensives at this time. However, perceived political or operational capabilities may outweigh these concerns, as the Russian invasion in late February 2022 showed, the intelligence said.
09:13 SpaceX has restricted Ukraine's use of the Starlink Internet to control drones, as the service "was never intended to be used as a weapon," CEO Gwynn Shotwell said. According to her, the contract with the Ukrainian government was for humanitarian purposes. "We know that the military uses satellites for communications, and that's fine. But we never wanted them to use it offensively," Shotwell said.
09:04 Prigozhin announced that the recruitment of prisoners to the Wagner group has been completely stopped. Earlier, oppositional Russian media reported that recruiters from Wagner come to the colonies in the second round, but there are fewer and fewer people who want to join PMCs.
08:58 Russian media report, with reference to the special services, about the detention of an allegedly Ukrainian DRG, which was preparing the murders of the deputy mayor of Berdyansk, the deputy head of the traffic police, an attempt on the city's commandant and an explosion near the center for issuing humanitarian aid. In addition, an attempt on the life of ex-SBU officer Prozorov, who "exposed the activities of the SBU" in 2014-2018, was allegedly prevented. The alleged leader of a Ukrainian sabotage group that committed five terrorist attacks on the territory of Berdyansk "on the instructions of an employee of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine" was also identified.
08:51 The General Staff announced the approximate losses of the enemy as of the morning of February 9.
- personnel - about 135,010 (+910) people liquidated,
- tanks - 3255 (+2),
- armored combat vehicles - 6468 (+10),
- artillery systems - 2244 (+8),
- MLRS - 463 (+2),
- air defense systems - 232 (+4),
- aircraft - 295 (+0),
- helicopters - 285 (+0),
- UAV operational-tactical level - 1967 (+6),
- cruise missiles - 796 (+0),
- ships/boats - 18 (+0),
- automotive equipment and tank trucks - 5121 (+9),
- special equipment - 211 (+0).
08:25 The enemy, trying to take full control of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, continues to focus his main efforts on conducting offensive operations in the Kupyansky, Limansky, Bakhmutsky, Avdeevsky and Novopavlovsky directions in the Kremennaya, Bakhmut, Avdeevka, Experienced, Marinka and Vugledar areas. It actively uses operational-tactical and army aviation to strike at the positions of Ukrainian troops, the General Staff said in a morning summary .
Over the past day, units of the Defense Forces repelled the attacks of the invaders in the areas of the settlements of Stelmakhovka, Belogorovka, Luhansk region; Vyemka, Fedorovka, Bakhmut, Krasnaya Gora, Paraskoveevka, Ivanovskoye, Chasov Yar, Novokalinovo, Vodyanoye, Pervomayskoye, Vesele, Krasnogorovka, Avdeevka, Maryinka, Bogoyavlenka and Prechistovka of Donetsk region and Novoandreevka of Zaporozhye region.
07:33 The American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports that over the past week, the pace of Russian operations along the Svatovo-Kremennaya line in the west of the Luhansk region has increased. The invaders are moving northwest of Svatovo. The military command of the Russian Federation attracted units of the regiments of the 144th and 3rd motorized rifle divisions (20th combined arms army, ZVO), a regiment of the 90th tank division (TsVO), supported by units of the 76th Airborne Division and unidentified units of the Southern Military District.
The Russian offensive has already begun, military analysts say, but Ukrainian forces are preventing the enemy from making significant gains. The ISW notes that the Russians in the Luhansk region are trying to seize the initiative, but this could lead to a climax on the Svatovo-Kremennaya line without achieving the goals of capturing the entire Luhansk and Donetsk regions. This will give Ukrainian forces the opportunity to launch a counteroffensive.
03:01 Foreign Policy reports, citing an unnamed Ukrainian military official, that Russia has prepared 1,800 tanks, 3,950 armored vehicles, 2,700 artillery systems, 810 Soviet-era multiple launch rocket systems, such as Grad and Smerch, 400 fighters and 300 helicopters.
The number of Russian troops in Ukraine has already exceeded 300 thousand people. Thus, now the Russian presence in Ukraine significantly exceeds the invasion force in February 2022, and this time they are all concentrated in the east of Ukraine.
According to a senior US military official, the Pentagon called the Russian troops, which have already been deployed to the battlefield, "poorly equipped, poorly trained and hasty."
02:48 Macron said during a joint press conference with Zelensky and Scholz that the war that the Russian Federation unleashed against Ukraine concerns the future of all of Europe, therefore "Russia cannot and should not win." "While Putin attacks, we will need to continue the military support necessary to preserve Ukraine," Macron said. He also assured that Kyiv can count on the help of Paris in the "development of the world." According to him, the peace plan proposed by Zelensky is "the basis for discussing this path."
Macron awarded Zelensky with France's highest award, the Order of the Legion of Honor.
00:32 A small town in the Donetsk region has been at the center of an epic battle for half a year and continues to hold on. About what is happening around Bakhmut - in the material The task is to grind .
00:19 Great Britain will act as organizers of the Conference on the restoration of Ukraine, which will be held in London on June 21-22, follows from the British-Ukrainian declaration published on February 8.