2023-06-20 01:59:41
Britain said Russian forces were conducting “tactical” operations on the front in southern Ukraine it controls, while France announced it would supply Kiev with an advanced air defense system equivalent to the Patriot system.
According to the UK Ministry of Defense’s intelligence assessment of developments in Ukraine, over the past 10 days Russia may have begun mobilizing elements of the Dnieper forces on the east bank of the Dnieper to reinforce the Zaporozhye and Bakhmut regions.
That might include thousands of members of the 49th Army, which includes the 34th Independent Brigade, as well as airborne and marine units, the ministry’s assessment, posted on its Twitter account, added.
The assessment notes that the redeployment of Dnipro forces likely reflects Russian thinking that it is now less likely that Ukraine will launch a major offensive across the Dnieper following the collapse of the Kakhovka dam and the resulting floods .
Russian troops on mobilization in 2022 (Archyde.com)
Blinken’s concerns over ‘lethal weapon’
On the other hand, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken confirmed in Beijing on Monday, June 19, that China had reaffirmed its commitment not to supply Russia with lethal weapons for use in Ukraine. At the same time, he expressed concern regarding the actions of Chinese private companies.
“We and others have received assurances from China that it will not and will not provide lethal assistance to Russia for use in Ukraine,” Blinken told reporters.
The U.S. minister added that, as he put it, “we have not seen any evidence of a violation of that assurance. Our constant concern is that Chinese companies may provide technology that Russia might use to further aggression once morest Ukraine.”
According to Blinken, Washington has asked the Chinese government to be “highly vigilant” regarding this. He confirmed that China had made assurances on the issue “in recent weeks”, not just during his visit to Beijing.
SAMP/T system
Also on the armament front, French President Emmanuel Macron announced Monday that Ukraine has received and is using the Franco-Italian-made medium-range surface-to-air defense system SAMP/T, which comes following Paris pledged to award the Kiev system four. Happened a month later.
Paris had announced in early February that the system, which is equivalent to the US Patriot, would be transported to Kiev.
In a speech in Paris on European air and missile defense, Macron said, “I am pleased to inform you, together with my Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, that the French-Italian SAMP/T has been deployed and is operating in Ukraine, to protect critical facilities and save lives.”
SAMP/T System (Al Jazeera)
SAMP/T (MAMBA) is expected to help Ukraine counter attacks from Russian drones, missiles and aircraft.
For months, Kiev has called for strengthening its air defenses, especially following Russia launched an attack on its vital infrastructure in the fall of 2022 using Iranian-made drones.
Ramaphosa assesses work of African delegation
Addressing the conflict at the diplomatic level, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa praised Africa’s mission to bring peace to Ukraine following returning from Kiev and St Petersburg following holding talks with leaders from both sides of the conflict on Monday, saying it was “Historic”.
A high-level African delegation met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday before heading to Russia for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“This initiative is historic because it is the first time an African leader has conducted a peace mission outside the continent,” Ramaphosa said at a weekly news conference.
The delegation conveyed the voice of a continent deeply affected by the conflict in Ukraine, especially the high price of food, much of which is imported from the two warring nations, Russia and Ukraine.
Impact of peace initiatives on artillery fire (Al Jazeera)
10 points of advice
The delegation made 10 recommendations, including de-escalation, recognition of the sovereignty of the two countries, no hindrance to food exports across the Black Sea, and the return of prisoners of war and children to their countries of origin.
On Monday, Ramaphosa noted that the “positive reception” the mission had received from both sides was itself “one of the most important achievements”. He also said, “We found it encouraged and gave reasons for optimism that the proposal would be considered.” And according to Ramaphosa, Zelensky and Putin agreed to continue contacts.
The Kremlin, on the other hand, considers it “very difficult” to implement the principles, while Zelensky has ruled out talks with Moscow as long as Russian troops occupy parts of Ukraine.
Against this backdrop, the Kremlin said on Monday it would remain in touch with the African mediation mission, especially during the Russia-Africa summit scheduled for next month. It also added some suggested ideas that might be implemented.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that talks with the delegation would continue and that some of their proposals were possible in theory, but he did not mention specific ones. “Overall, the dialogue with Africans will continue,” he added.
Fierce battles on multiple fronts
On the battlefield, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that its forces had taken full control of the city of Novodonetsk in the Donetsk region.
The ministry said troops repelled the Ukrainian offensive and destroyed regarding 50 Ukrainian vehicles and tanks in the fighting. It released two video clips that it said showed its army’s control of the city and the loss of Ukrainians. .
On the other hand, Ukrainian troops have continued to advance toward Bakhmut over the past week despite Russian reinforcements in the region, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Anna Malial said. She added that Ukrainian forces had thwarted Russian attempts to advance towards Liman-Kupyansk, Avdiyivka and Malinka.
During two weeks of offensive operations in the direction of Berdyansk and Melitopol, the Ukrainian army recaptured eight towns and within two weeks advanced to a depth of regarding 7 kilometers in the area of Tavrian operations.
The Ukrainian military announced it had regained control of the town of Pyatakhatka, southwest of Zaporozhye, following two weeks of fighting, and released a video clip it said showed its soldiers standing in front of an official building in the town.
The Ukrainian counterattack has been going on for regarding two weeks, and the tempo of fighting is picking up, especially on the southern and eastern fronts.
Donetsk region (Al Jazeera)
The Battle-torn Southern Front
In related context, Ukrainian military authorities in Kherson said Russia bombed a bus stop, setting 10 buses on fire, while an emergency services facility in the Odessa region was also damaged by shelling.
Al Jazeera correspondents reported that a series of explosions were heard in Zaporozhye, in southeastern Ukraine, following monitoring the launch of the S-300 missiles.
On the other hand, the military junta in Odessa announced that the area was attacked by missiles from the Black Sea, to which the air defense system responded.
The Ukrainian air force said it detected the missile’s movement and moved toward Zaporozhye, Dnipro and Donetsk in southern and eastern Ukraine.
In the north, Ukraine shelled the village of Valujki, wounding seven people, the governor of Russia’s Belgorod region Vyacheslav Gladkov said. Meanwhile, nine residential buildings were damaged in an area bordering Ukraine.
In Donetsk, pro-Russian authorities reported that Ukrainian shelling of the city injured eight civilians and damaged seven residential buildings and three pieces of infrastructure.
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