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Imminent Russian offensive
3:15 pm | The Russian takeover of Soledar symbolizes a major offensive in the spring. So says BNR foreign commentator Bernard Hammelburg, referring to a recent New York Times article.
‘In it, Lara Jakes and Steve Erlanger, journalists who really know what they’re talking about, write that a major Russian spring offensive is coming. And in that context, small victories like in Soledar are important, because they allow for a huge amount of extra troops and tanks. It’s getting harder and harder for Ukraine.’
Russia claims capture of Soledar
12:15 | The Russian Defense Ministry says the Ukrainian city of Soledar was captured last night. This was written by the Russian state news agency, reports the Reuters news agency. It is not yet possible to verify whether the city actually fell, according to Reuters. There has been heavy fighting in the place for days.
The owner of the Russian group Wagner said on Wednesday that its mercenary army had taken control of Soledar, but has since been recalled by the defense ministry. Moscow has acknowledged that the battle has been hard and difficult and that Ukraine has put up a stiff resistance. On Thursday, Kiev reported that both sides had sent reinforcements to the Donetsk region. This troop buildup is not only intended for Soledar, but also for the battle for nearby Bachmoet. That city is slightly larger and has also been under siege for months by Russian troops.
The Russian Defense Ministry is now claiming Soledar. The conquest would be important because the roads to Bachmoet could be blocked.
Ukraine is already a ‘de facto’ member of NATO, according to the defense minister
09:15 am | In the eyes of that country’s defense minister, Ukraine is already a ‘de facto’ member of NATO. In an interview with the BBC, Oleksi Reznikov says that his country is part of the alliance “because we have weapons and we know how to use them”.
It speaks of a de facto membership, ‘non de jure’ (by law). If Ukraine were indeed a member of NATO, the other member states would have to intervene in the war due to Article 5 of the treaty. This states that an armed attack on one is considered an attack on all member states. This would mean that all thirty member countries are at war with Russia.
In Russia, the war in Ukraine is often described as a fight against NATO, due to the numerous supplies of weapons to Kiev from the West. But as governments fear further escalation and the entire alliance being drawn into war, they are periodically reluctant to send even heavier weapons. For example, the supply of tanks is currently under discussion, but Germany has yet to be convinced. Reznikov now sees that process as near-standard procedure. “This concern about further escalation is, in my view, a kind of protocol.”
In 2008, NATO promised Ukraine that it would be allowed to join in the future, without a specific date. This prospect was one of the reasons Russian President Vladimir Putin decided in February to invade Ukraine. He has asked for a “neutral” status for his neighbor. In late September, Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky called for accelerated membership. In any case, Reznikov is convinced that his country will become a legal member of NATO “in the near future”.
BBC: British Royal Mail hacked by Russian criminals
01:00 | The cyber attack that shut down the computer systems of the British postal company Royal Mail is, according to the BBC, the work of Russian criminals. As a result, international mail and parcel traffic from England was largely disrupted. Until a solution is found, Royal Mail urges Britons not to send mail overseas.
A BBC reporter reports that the company of more than five hundred years has been asked for a ransom. The amount involved is not known, but the British broadcaster expects it to be in the millions. “Your data has been stolen and encrypted,” the Russian criminals reportedly told the company.
Royal Mail is part of the “critical national infrastructure” in England and is crucial to the British economy, according to the BBC. The ransomware, ‘Lockbit’, used in the attack according to a source familiar with the investigation, blocks the system used to send shipments overseas.
Overseas parcels arrive in the UK, although Royal Mail warns it can sometimes take longer. UK domestic mail delivery is unaffected by the cyberattack.
Ukraine sends reinforcements to Soledar and Bachmut
00:00 | Ukrainian soldiers defending the towns of Bachmut and Soledar can count on reinforcements, ammunition and supplies, President Volodimir Zelensky promises. They have long been fighting Russian troops in strategic places in the eastern Donetsk region and, according to Zelensky, they will receive everything they need in time. Despite reports that Russian Wagner mercenaries have taken Soledar, the bloody battle continues.
The Ukrainian defense ministry said on Thursday that Russia had sent more troops to the area. After consulting with the army command, Zelensky announced that Kiev is also sending more people and equipment to the region. In his daily video address later Thursday, Zelensky said that Ukrainian forces are capable of holding their positions at Soledar and even inflicting significant casualties on the Russians.
Both sides suffered heavy losses in the battle for Soledar and Major Bachmut. The Kremlin on Thursday praised the “heroic” actions of Russian troops at Soledar and elsewhere. A new commander had been appointed a day earlier to lead military operations in Ukraine, which observers say is the result of battlefield problems.
From the Russian point of view, the conquest of the area would be an important step in taking control of the entire eastern region of Donbass, as envisaged by the Kremlin. The British Defense Ministry expects Russia to deploy paratroopers.