Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 03-19-2024

Putin opponents gathered in Kyiv this week to discuss future action after Putin’s sham election.

With Putin’s election comes the opportunity to explore the varied ways that the Russian opposition approached it.

Yulia Navalnaya, who has been a more prominent voice for the Russian political opposition since her husband’s death, called on her countrymen to join in anti-Putin flash mob protests by forming long queues outside voting stations exactly at noon on March 17 – and then to vote for any candidate except Putin – or to spoil a ballot and write in “Navalny.”   

Among the Russian military equipment destroyed by the Ukrainian Special Operations attack were two self-propelled artillery pieces and two towed howitzers.

Ukrainian Special Operations Forces (SSO) reported via Telegram the successful destruction of a dozen Russian military vehicles in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Considering how much kerchief-twisting there was about it in the first place, and how they are doing in the war right now, handing over top-end NATO tanks to Ukraine doesn’t look like a great idea.

By a long shot, the enduring image of a NATO-standard modern main battle tank in the Russo-Ukraine War is a video of a stopped vehicle getting hammered by cheap FPV drones, before it gets set on fire and burns down to a six-million-dollar hulk.

Combat video posted by the 79th Air Assault Brigade on Tuesday, reportedly from the eastern Avdiivka sector, was typical, showing a stationary US-made M1A2 Abrams tank hit with a detonation in the back of the turret, probably by a Russian FPV drone.

Tallinn protested against what it termed as Moscow’s “anti-security hybrid operations” against Estonia and expelled a Russian diplomat over “interference” in judicial processes.

Estonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared a Russian diplomat persona non grata over what it called “interference by Russia in Estonia’s internal matters” and “anti-security hybrid operations.”

The Estonian ministry reportedly summoned the Russian Embassy’s charge d’affaires on Tuesday, March 19, and handed over a diplomatic note to formally inform the diplomat of Tallinn’s decision, according to the Estonian news outlet ERR. The ministry’s social media channel also confirmed the incident.

Facing a difficult situation on the front lines, Kyiv has responded with an increasing number of incursions and attacks on Russian territory bordering Ukraine.

Russia said Tuesday, March 19, that its troops had made gains in eastern Ukraine, building on recent advances against Ukrainian forces in critical need of Western aid.

Facing a difficult situation on the front lines, Kyiv has responded with an increasing number of incursions and attacks on Russian territory bordering Ukraine.

The conclusion is that the West is failing to arm and finance Ukraine sufficiently to win the war and to sanction Russia to halt its war on Ukraine. Sanctions are, therefore, failing, Ash writes.

The UK has just published a summary sanctions strategy document, see link below. It includes a review/explainer on a range of sanctions regimes ranging from Russia, to Iran to North Korea.

While it is obviously good to have such a concise document/explainer, in respect to sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, the prior annexation of Crimea a decade back, but also a long track record of Russian malign action against the West, the reality is that Putin continues his attacks and aggression against Ukraine, and the West.

Moldova said it had declared a Russian diplomat persona non grata following Moscow’s siting six polling stations in breakaway Transnistria during the Russian presidential election.

Moldova’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has declared a Russian diplomat persona non grata over Moscow’s establishing six polling stations in the breakaway region of Transnistria during the Russian presidential election that ran between March 15 and 17.

Mihai Popșoi, Moldova’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, said the ministry had summoned Russian Ambassador Oleg Vasnețov in protest of the incident and informed him of Chișinău’s decision.

Mercenaries have been frequently involved in conflicts in Africa since the 1960s to support or attack one side or another in struggles for power, especially during the cold war era.

Ukrainian special forces soldiers engage Russian Wagner mercenaries from a distance using FPV drones, subsequently ambushing them with small arms. Ukrainian Intelligence captures three contractors alive and films their interrogation as they kneel on the ground. One speaks Russian, while two are African guns for hire.

One might assume this is occurring in Ukraine, but in fact, Ukrainian SF and Wagner fighters, now rebranded as the “Expeditionary Corps” by Moscow, are battling on African soil, specifically in Sudan. The mercenaries have arrived from the Central African Republic, and their Ukrainian interrogators are informed, matter-of-factly, of their mission to overthrow the Sudanese government.

The statement from ground army chief of staff General Pierre Schill comes after President Emmanuel Macron said he would not rule out dispatching ground troops to help Ukraine fight Russia.

French land forces are ready to respond to any threat as they prepare for even "the toughest engagements", their commander said in remarks published Tuesday.

The statement from ground army chief of staff General Pierre Schill comes after President Emmanuel Macron said he would not rule out dispatching ground troops to help Ukraine fight Russia.

Russian “Mir” payment cards have been sanctioned by much of the world. Now cards issued by an Armenian subsidiary of Russia’s VTB Bank will face issues.

VTB Armenia, a subsidiary of VTB Bank in Russia, said cardholders of its Russian-issued “Mir” payment cards “may have restrictions” starting March 30 when using the card to pay for services or withdrawing funds through terminals and ATMs from other banks.

However, the bank said in a press release that it “continues to service Mir cards in its infrastructure in full,” though cardholders are limited to services provided by VTB Armenia only – namely the 53 branches in Armenia, 22 of which are located in the capital Yerevan.

NBU surprises with a rate cut.

Bonds: Investors’ interest shifts to longer maturities

Demand in the primary bond market partially shifted to longer maturities last week. In the secondary bond market, investors mainly purchased instruments maturing in January 2025, and beyond.In the primary bond market, demand was up approximately by a third compared with previous weeks. Expectedly, demand was the largest for a 12-month paper. Bids for two-year bills rose six-fold and four-fold for three-year notes, and they provided the state budget with more than half of last week's proceeds. See details in the auction review.In the secondary bond market, the most traded UAH paper was the one due in July 2027, with a 25% share in total UAH bond deals, while just 22% of deals were with bills due this year. Among FX-denominated bills, most trades were in paper due this September.

The commander of Russia's Northern Fleet, Alexander Moiseyev, has been appointed as acting commander-in-chief of naval forces, replacing Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov.

The Kremlin has replaced the head of its navy, state media confirmed on Tuesday, March 19, after reports the previous naval chief had been sacked after being held responsible for the heavy losses of Black Sea warships to Ukrainian attacks.

Alexander Moiseyev, the current head of Russia's Northern Fleet, has been appointed to be the acting commander-in-chief.

The hacker group was born out of a call 48 hours into Russia's invasion by Ukraine's Digital Transformation Minister Mikhailo Fedorov for Kyiv to create an "IT army".

When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Artem knew that he would not "sit idly by".

With no military experience, he took up arms in a different way: in cyberwarfare, fighting on what he calls the "digital front".

Australia deployed an RAAF E-7A Wedgetail AWACS aircraft to monitor threats to aid supply routes for Ukraine for six months in October after a US request.

It was reported on Tuesday, March 19 that Australia was withdrawing a surveillance aircraft that has been providing oversight for the protection of deliveries of humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine. Contrary to some suggestions in the media, this is not the result of Canberra scaling back on its support to Kyiv but is simply the completion of the originally agreed mission.

The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) E-7A Wedgetail, which is based on a Boeing 737-700 airframe, was deployed at the request of the US to assist in monitoring threats to supply routes for aid destined for Ukraine since October. It is based at the US Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

If passed, the EU legislation would provide a mechanism for Ukraine to receive money from frozen Russian assets in July.

The European Union prepared legislation that would create a mechanism for Ukraine to get profits from frozen Russian sovereign assets in July, Bloomberg reported.

This week EU leaders are to discuss the proposal in Brussels, which would first require their backing. If approved, the plan would send an estimated €3 billion ($3.3 billion) per year, generated from taxes on profits from frozen Russian assets, to help finance Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s ongoing full-scale invasion.

The move follows recent calls to restrict Russian and Belarusian farm imports from some of the bloc’s eastern members and would see tariffs imposed on cereals, oil seeds and their derivatives.

The European Commission is set to impose tariffs on Russian and Belarusian imports, with a €95-per-tonne duty on cereals and 50 percent tariffs on oil seeds and derived products following calls from some EU member states to restrict said imports.

Unnamed officials said the tariffs would increase prices by at least 50 percent, thus eradicating the demand as reported by the Financial Times (FT). However, the European Commission declined to comment in an FT inquiry.

Washington announced $300 million in assistance for Ukraine last week, but Austin said it was only possible due to savings on recent purchases by the Pentagon.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin promised Tuesday that the United States will not let Ukraine fail, even as further aid remains stalled in Congress and Kyiv's forces face shortages of munitions.

The Republican-led House of Representatives has been blocking $60 billion in assistance for Ukraine, and the United States has warned that a recent $300 million package would only last a few weeks.

Putin has been confirmed as the country's leader until 2030 - having secured almost 88 per cent of the vote, according to the Central Election Commission. Europe's press discusses what the vote means.

The presidential elections in Russia have ended with the expected result: Vladimir Putin has been confirmed as the country's leader until 2030 - having secured almost 88 percent of the vote, according to the country's Central Election Commission. Observers reported well over 1,000 cases of irregularities, and opposition candidates were not allowed to stand. Europe's press discusses what the vote means.

Putin beats Putin

Ukraine’s future accession to the bloc will bring more benefits than costs, and EU member states should approve the next formal steps later this week, the country’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.

Ukraine’s future accession to the bloc will bring more benefits than costs, and EU member states should approve the next formal steps later this week, the country’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told Euractiv.

“We are waiting and wishing to have approval by the European Council at their closest meeting [this week], and believe we can begin accession negotiations in the first half of this year,” Shmyhal said.

Finally, a European leader has woken up to challenge Putin by reminding him that Russia is not the only nuclear power on the continent. With the US in hibernation, Europe must now lead the way.

On March 7, Joseph Biden, the President of the United States and supposedly the leader of the Free World, began his State of the Union address to Congress by touching on the most important issue of them all – Ukraine.

He stated that this heroic and embattled nation was in dire need of financial and military assistance in its lonely struggle to defend this Free World from the Rashist horde. He correctly compared Putin to Hitler and then pivoted to remind the audience of his esteemed predecessors who had delivered speeches in the very same room: Franklin D. Roosevelt, who defeated Nazism in Germany, and Ronald Reagan, who crushed that other Evil Empire – Soviet communism.

A $60 billion aid package for Kyiv has been blocked in the Republican-led House of Representatives as Speaker Mike Johnson insists the funds must be linked to more action against illegal immigration.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that a swift decision by the US Congress on billions of dollars of military aid for Ukraine was "critically important," during a meeting with US Senator Lindsey Graham.

"It is critically important for us that the Congress soon completes all the necessary procedures and makes a final decision... which will strengthen the Ukrainian economy and our armed forces," Zelensky was quoted as saying in a presidential office statement.

Two Ukrainian EdTech startups have made it to the “Top 100 Next Unicorns” list that showcases Europe’s most promising startups with a prospect of reaching $1 billion in value.

Headway and Preply, two educational technology (EdTech) startups from Ukraine, have made it to Viva Technology’s “Top 100 Next Unicorns” list that showcases European startups with the potential of reaching the “unicorn” status.

“Unicorn” is a term in the financial world that refers to privately owned startups valued at more than $1 billion without being listed on the stock market.

In power since the last day of 1999, he is now on course to become the longest-serving Russian leader in more than two centuries.

President Vladimir Putin on Monday hailed the "return" to Russia of annexed Ukrainian territories, after winning an election slammed as illegitimate by Western powers.

The ex-spy won over 87 percent of the vote in a three-day ballot that included voting in parts of Ukraine held by Russian forces.

A video from a drone captured the exact moment artillery struck the building housing ammunition, the ensuing fire, and the explosive detonation of the munitions inside.

Russian volunteer forces aligned with Kyiv claim to have successfully destroyed another Russian Armed Forces’ ammunition warehouse in the village of Tyotkino, in Russia’s Kursk region, which they had previously reported as captured.

The precise moment of the warehouse's destruction was captured by a drone camera and shared on the official Telegram channel of the Freedom of Russia Legion (LSR).

Kyiv Post’s overnight supplement to War in Ukraine Update for March 19.

• Kyiv’s drones continue to hit Russian oil refineries amid Moscow’s oil export ban
• Athens provides security assistance package to Kyiv after Greek Prime Minister’s visit to Odesa

More than a dozen Russian oil refineries and a liquid natural gas (LNG) terminal have been struck by suspected Ukrainian drones since the beginning of the year, leading to a Kremlin decision to suspend oil exports for six months as of the beginning of March.

Over the past decade, oil and gas exports have accounted for about 30-50 percent of Russia’s state revenues, according to Oxford Energy in Britain.

The US multi-platform publisher The Atlantic cites an unnamed Ukrainian military source who suspects that Russia is selecting cruise missile targets using US satellite imagery.

An article in The Atlantic mentions the frustration voiced by President Volodymyr Zelensky about the recent drop in deliveries of US air defense missiles. This followed the March 2 strike on Odesa that killed 12 people, including five children.

The article says that irritation is even worse among Ukraine’s military, who believe there is strong evidence that Russia is using US commercial satellite imagery to plan and guide its missile attacks.

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from the ISW:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin illegally annexed occupied Crimea 10 years ago, setting conditions for the full conquest of Ukraine Putin still seeks.
• Russian occupation authorities have consistently oppressed Ukrainians on the peninsula — the same charge of which Putin accused the Ukrainian government to justify his invasion — and Russia has since militarized Crimea to support its broader territorial ambitions against Ukraine.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin is attempting to use claimed record levels of voter turnout and support for his presidential candidacy to set informational conditions for a protracted war in Ukraine.
• Putin responded to French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent proposals to send Western troops to Ukraine by claiming that NATO personnel are already in Ukraine.
• Putin reemphasized the idea of a “sanitary zone” in Ukraine in a manner congruent with Russian Security Council Deputy Chair Dmitry Medvedev’s recent call for the total elimination of Ukrainian statehood and absorption into the Russian Federation.
• Putin admitted that the all-Russian pro-Ukrainian volunteer forces are comprised of Russian citizens amid the continuation of cross-border raids into Belgorod Oblast on March 18.
• Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Spokesperson Maria Zakharova baselessly accused Ukraine of conducting the reported March 17 drone strike against a military base in Transnistria, the pro-Russian breakaway republic of Moldova, likely as part of an ongoing Kremlin hybrid operation aimed at destabilizing Moldova.
• Russian forces recently made a marginal confirmed advance in western Zaporizhia Oblast.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia needs to form a veteran-led Russian “Administrative Corps” as part of the “Time of Heroes” initiative, which will incorporate Russian veterans into the Russian workforce.