Ukraine Invasion: Part 48

[MagicFox]

That last one went quickly! Welcome to thread 48. Thanks as usual to all for the information, guidance and solidarity.

**
Agreed thread guidance:


A. The agreed purpose of the thread is for the sharing of information and commentary on current events

B. If you post a link please tell us where it leads/give a precis of the content

C. Discussion and debate is welcome, but please keep it respectful

[Natsku]

Checking in so I don't lose you all, as I lurk quietly.

[DancesWithDucks]

Thanks @MagicFox

[DancesWithDucks]

Kyiv Independent Telegram Highlights


⚡️Air Force: Ukraine attacks https://kyivindependent.com/air-force-ukraine-attacks-russian-planes-at-distance-of-over-150-km/ Russian planes at distance of over 150 kilometers.
The recent uptick in the number of downed aircraft led to a "significant" reduction in the number of Russia’s guided bomb strikes, Air Force Commander Mykola Oleschuk said. [how? Even seen a suggestion that it's because Ukraine is using elements of the Iron Dome system now, tho that seems far-fetched]

Czech official: Allies yet to collect full funding for 800,000 shells earmarked for Ukraine.
Czech National Security Advisor Tomas Pojar placed doubt on President Petr Pavel’s statement about aquiring all the funds needed to purchase 800,000 artillery shells for Ukraine, Czech outlet Denik reported on March 8.
Pavel said in February that Prague had identified 500,000 155mm shells and 300,000 122mm shells outside Europe that could be bought and sent to Ukraine after the necessary funds were allocated to the initiative.

⚡️Luxembourg joins https://kyivindependent.com/luxembourg-joins-czech-led-ammunition-initiative/ Czech-led ammunition initiative for Ukraine.
Luxembourg's Defense Minister Yuriko Backes also said that the defense ministry had recently delivered 6,000 155mm shells to Ukraine

⚡️Estonian FM announces imminent signing of security agreement with Ukraine.

Belarus Weekly: Warsaw calls for EU sanctions on Belarusian, Russian agricultural imports following Ukrainian investigation https://kyivindependent.com/belarus-weekly-warsaw-calls-for-eu-sanctions-on-belarusian-russian-agricultural-imports-following-ukrainian-investigation/

Explainer: What we do and don’t know about the number of Ukrainian troops killed  https://kyivindependent.com/explainer-what-we-do-and-dont-know-about-the-number-of-ukrainian-troops-killed/
President Zelensky announced recently that 31,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed in the war against Russia.
The figure is significantly lower than some recent estimates published by sources outside the government in the absence of official data.

⚡️Ukraine signs agreement with Turkey simplifying bilateral trade.
Ukraine and Turkey signed a bilateral agreement on establishing an electronic preliminary information exchange system regarding goods and vehicles moved between the two states, the President’s Office’s press service reported on March 8.

⚡️Russia claims to have shot down https://kyivindependent.com/russia-claims-to-have-downed-47-ukrainian-drones-overnight/ Ukrainian 47 drones overnight.

Ukraine's UN envoy: Russia trying https://kyivindependent.com/ukraines-un-envoy-russia-trying-to-block-maritime-corridor-through-strikes-on-odesa/ to block maritime corridor through strikes on Odesa.
Russia is trying to disrupt Ukraine's maritime corridor through constant strikes on Odesa, Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations Sergiy Kyslytsya said on March 8.

⚡️Polish protestors to temporarily unblock traffic https://kyivindependent.com/polish-protestors-to-temporarily-unblock-traffic-at-border-crossing/ at one border crossing.
Polish protestors on the border with Ukraine plan to temporarily unblock traffic at the Korczowa-Krakovets crossing, Andriy Demchenko, spokesperson of Ukraine's State Border Guard Service said on air on March 9.

Between life and death in front-line Krasnohorivka *
Running shops just a kilometer from Russian forces, living entirely off humanitarian aid, and surviving one day at a time in basements after direct hits to their apartment: this is how the remaining Ukrainian civilians live in the front-line city of Krasnohorivka, just 15 kilometers west of the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk.

⚡️Zelensky urges Erdogan to bring Crimean Tatars back from Russian captivity.
Russia has illegally imprisoned 116 Crimean Tatars as of February 2023, including activist Nariman Dzhelialov, who served as the First Deputy Chairman of the Mejlis, a representative body of the Crimean Tatar people.

⚡️Russian missile hits 300-400 meters https://kyivindependent.com/russian-missile-hit-300-400-meters-away-from-zelensky-and-greek-pm-president-says/ away from Zelensky and Greek PM, president says.

Here are 3 Ukrainian female tech leaders worth getting to know  https://kyivindependent.com/here-are-3-ukrainian-female-tech-leaders-worth-getting-to-know/


Ragnar Bjartur Gudmundsson 🇺🇦 

• MAR 9, 2024

■ Engagements down but strikes above 7-day average
■ Daily casualties below avg; weekly +13%
■ Equipment losses well above avg; weekly +30%
■ Most vehicles destroyed in 2024
■ KIU: +52 🇷🇺 officers >6 per day in the last 4 weeks

[WinterMorn]

Thank you ☺️

[MissConductUS]

Thanks, MagicFox.

[DancesWithDucks]

UNITED24 Media Telegram


Prime Minister of the Czech Republic clarified that funds were raised to purchase the first batch of 300,000 artillery rounds for Ukraine.
"We are grateful to all the countries that joined the Czech initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine. We have managed to raise enough funds to buy the first batch of 300,000 artillery shells," said Prime Minister Petr Fiala.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis appealed to Russia after witnessing the attack on Odesa.
"You will not intimidate us, we will continue to support Ukraine and its great citizens for as long as it takes. And, of course, we will remain completely united in this decision," Mitsotakis said.

🇹🇷 Zelenskyy announced that he is starting negotiations with Turkish President Recep Erdogan.
He thanked Türkiye "for reliable support of Ukraine" and noted that one of the topics of discussion was the creation of conditions for "unconditional security" of shipping in the Black Sea.

Erdogan again offered Türkiye as a platform for peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow, including a "peace summit" with the participation of Russia.

Zelenskyy has signed a decree naming the Ada-class corvette manufactured by Türkiye for Ukraine as "Hetman Ivan Vyhovsky".
The President visited a shipyard in Istanbul, where he was shown the construction of an Ada-class corvette for the Ukrainian Navy.
The contract for the construction of two corvettes for Ukraine was signed with Türkiye in September 2021. The first corvette, the "Hetman Ivan Mazepa," was launched in October 2022, and the keel of the "Hetman Ivan Vyhovsky" was set in August 2023.
The Ukrainian Navy said that the second corvette will be armed with MICA VL anti-aircraft missile systems, 76- and 35-mm guns, anti-ship cruise missiles (8 launchers) and Murene 90 Impact torpedoes.

French defense companies to build military equipment on Ukrainian soil, — French Defense Ministry.
"Three French companies will be setting up partnerships with Ukrainian companies, in particular in the drone and land equipment sectors, to produce spare parts on Ukrainian soil, and perhaps ammunition in the future. The idea is to have the first production units running this summer", said the French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu.
He hinted the companies involved would include tank maker KNDS, the holding structure formed by France's Nexter and Germany's Krauss-Maffei-Wegmann.

At the CENTAC combat training center in Mailles-les-Camps in the east of the country, French forces are preparing for a high-intensity conflict against an enemy that may have a similar level of firepower, — Politico.

The presence of NATO troops in Ukraine is not something unthinkable, — the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland, Radosław Sikorski.
"I appreciate the initiative of French President Emmanuel Macron, because it says that Putin should be afraid of us, not us Putin," the diplomat said.
He emphasized that NATO should return to its "primary role", since Russia has proved to be civilizationally incapable of accepting Western values  and cannot peacefully coexist with its neighbors.

🇸🇰 The leader of the far-right Slovak People's Party (SNS), which is part of the government coalition, Andriy Danko said that Russia "is not the aggressor" in a full-scale war against Ukraine, but is "protecting its interests”


In the center of Warsaw, Ukrainian women, giving flowers, thanked Polish women for their solidarity and support.

The head of the Kherson regional military administration, Prokudin, showed what a house in Kherson looked like after the Russian Federation was hit by an aerial bomb.

[DancesWithDucks]

Live: Ukraine Telegram Highlights


President Volodymyr Zelensky and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a press conference following the meeting. Main points:
◾️Ukraine has handed over to Türkiye a list of Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars who are held captive by Russians or in captivity. Zelensky counts on Erdogan to return the Crimean Tatars.
◾️The presidents signed an agreement to facilitate trade between the two countries.
◾️Zelensky met with representatives of the Turkish defense industry and businesses. There will be joint projects.
◾️Ukraine and Türkiye will work on food security and security of the Black Sea region.
◾️Zelensky and Erdogan discussed the Ukrainian Peace Formula and the Global Peace Summit in Switzerland. Türkiye is ready to host a peace summit with the participation of Russia.
◾️The parties also signed several important documents at the level of the defense ministries.

🇺🇸 Republicans in the US are preparing their version of the Ukraine aid bill. NBC News writes https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/house-republicans-consider-loan-program-ukraine-aid-rcna142562** that it proposes to treat part of the non-military aid as a loan
Confiscated Russian assets could be used as collateral. This plan is still in its early stages, but it may convince those Republicans who oppose funding for Ukraine. At the same time, the plan has some drawbacks, and the best option remains the $61 billion package that is stuck in Congress.

On 8 March 2014, thousands of women came out across Crimea to protest the illegal occupation of the peninsula by Russian armed formations https://t.me/liveukraine_media/18903
10 years...

[blueshoes]

Hello again

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-8-2024

Key Takeaways:

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reiterated that a ceasefire in Ukraine would allow Russia to rebuild its forces and means for future offensive operations, as Russia previously did following the start of Russia’s 2014 invasion.
• Some Russian forces may have improved their tactical capabilities and leveraged limited tactical surprise during the final weeks of the Russian effort to seize Avdiivka, suggesting that select elements of the Russian military may have internalized tactical adaptations from conducting offensive operations in Ukraine.
• Ukrainian Air Force Commander Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk stated on March 8 that Ukrainian forces are regularly targeting Russian fighter aircraft.
• Ukraine’s European partners continue efforts to send additional aid and materiel to Ukraine.
• The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors approved a resolution calling for Russia’s withdrawal from the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), undermining Russian efforts to use the IAEA and other international organizations to legitimize its occupation of the plant.
• Ukrainian efforts to encourage women to serve in the Ukrainian armed forces continues allowing Ukraine to tap into a wider mobilization base for its war effort.
• Russian information space actors are intensifying their focus on covering recent events surrounding the governor of the pro-Russian Moldovan autonomous region Gagauzia, Yevgenia Gutsul, and are amplifying Kremlin narratives aimed at destabilizing Moldova to a wider audience.
• A recent Russian state-run poll suggests that the Kremlin aims for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s predetermined “support level” to be around 80 percent in the upcoming March 17 presidential election in an effort to portray Putin as legitimately popular and use the March election to legitimize Putin’s next term.
• Russian forces recently made confirmed advances near Avdiivka amid continued positional engagements along the entire line of contact on March 8.
• BBC Russian Service and Russian opposition outlet Mediazona published a joint report on March 8 that at least 46,678 Russian soldiers have died in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, including at least 1,555 confirmed killed in the past two weeks.
• Unspecified actors, likely Ukrainian partisans, assassinated a Russian occupation official in occupied Berdyansk, Kherson Oblast on March 6.

[Efacsen]

Thanks

[blueshoes]

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-9-2024

Key Takeaways:

• Ukrainian forces reportedly conducted drone strikes targeting Rostov Oblast overnight on March 8-9 and may have struck a Russian aircraft plant refurbishing and modernizing Russian A-50 long range radar detection aircraft.
• Russian sources widely circulated footage of a Russian strike on March 9 to claim that Russian forces destroyed a Patriot air defense system in eastern Ukraine, although there has yet to be any confirmation of these claims.
• US officials reportedly told CNN that Russia considered using “tactical or battlefield” nuclear weapons in Ukraine in 2022 – during the same time Russia conducted an intense information operation aimed at the West about Russia potentially using a nuclear weapon against Ukraine to deter Western support for Ukraine.
• Senior Armenian officials stated that Armenia is considering seeking membership in the European Union (EU), against the backdrop of deteriorating Russian-Armenian relations.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine would be open to negotiations with Russia only after Ukraine and its partners develop a peace plan and as Turkey continues to promote its own negotiation platform for the war in Ukraine.
• Russian forces recently made confirmed advances near Kreminna and Avdiivka amid continued positional fighting along the entire frontline on March 9.
• Open-source researchers analyzed satellite imagery and assessed that Russia has reportedly removed 25 to 40 percent of its tank strategic reserves, depending on the model, from open-air storage facilities, although ISW cannot independently verify this report.

[Surplus2requirements]

Thank you for the new thread. I've just realised that notifications sometimes misses some posts. This is the 2nd time I've missed the new thread link.

[DancesWithDucks]

Kyiv Independent Telegram Highlights


Pope Francis says Ukraine should have 'courage' to negotiate https://kyivindependent.com/pope-francis-says-ukraine-should-have-courage-of-white-flag-to-negotiate-with-russia/ peace with Russia.
"Don't be ashamed to negotiate before things get worse," Pope Francis said in an interview when asked whether Ukraine's potential negotiations with Russia would legitimize the aggressor. [unbelievable.]

⚡️Media: Next Ramstein summit to be held on March 19 https://kyivindependent.com/media-next-ramstein-summit-to-be-held-on-march-19-in-germany/ in Germany.
The UDCG comprises over 50 countries, including all 31 NATO members, and has been meeting regularly since April 2022 to coordinate military support for Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression.
House Republicans are working on their own version of an aid bill to Ukraine to speed up the delivery of assistance to the country, with one version including treating nonmilitary aid to Ukraine as a loan, NBC reported on March 9.
https://kyivindependent.com/house-republicans-float-idea-of-new-ukraine-aid-package-as-a-loan/

⚡️Armenia considering https://kyivindependent.com/armenia-considering-applying-for-eu-membership-amid-growing-tensions-with-russia/ applying for EU membership amid growing tensions with Russia.
Traditionally aligned with Russia in its regional conflict against Azerbaijan, Armenia has experienced heightened tensions with Russia after Russian "peacekeepers" did nothing to prevent Azerbaijan's September 2023 offensive into Nagorno-Karabakh.

⚡️Tusk meets Polish farmers, no agreement https://kyivindependent.com/tusk-meets-polish-farmers-says-no-plans-on-closing-border-with-ukraine/ on ending border protests reached.

⚡️Orban meets Trump in US https://kyivindependent.com/orban-meets-trump-in-us-urges-him-to-come-back-and-bring-us-peace/ urges him to ‘come back and bring us peace.’
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban met with Donald Trump, who is set to become the Republican nominee for the general U.S. presidential election, during his trip to the U.S. on March 8, and supported Trump’s presidential bid.

⚡️Trump calls Orban 'fantastic leader' https://kyivindependent.com/trump-lauds-orban-as-fantastic-leader-during-his-us-trip/ as they meet in Florida.

⚡️CNN: US prepared 'rigorously' https://kyivindependent.com/cnn-us-prepared-rigorously-for-potential-russian-nuclear-strike-in-ukraine-in-2022/ for potential Russian nuclear strike in Ukraine in 2022.
Washington was "preparing rigorously" for a possible Russian nuclear strike in Ukraine in late 2022, which would have been the first nuclear attack in a war since the Hiroshima and Nagasaki 1945 bombings, CNN reported on March 9, citing two unnamed U.S. officials.

⚡️Governor: Fire breaks out https://kyivindependent.com/governor-ukrainian-drone-shot-down-over-kursk-oblast/ at oil depot in Russia's Kursk Oblast.
A fire broke out at an oil depot in Russia's Kursk Oblast after a Ukrainian drone was shot down over its grounds, Roman Starovoit, the region's governor, claimed on March 10.

️Russian student jailed https://kyivindependent.com/russian-student-jailed-for-renaming-wi-fi-network-to-pro-ukraine-salute/ for renaming Wi-Fi network to pro-Ukraine salute.
A student at Moscow State University received a 10-day jail sentence for renaming a Wi-Fi network name to "Slava Ukraini" - a Ukrainian national salute that means “Glory to Ukraine," Moscow court documents revealed on March 9.

⚡️City official: 10 injured https://kyivindependent.com/city-official-10-injured-in-russian-missile-attack-on-myrnohrad-in-donetsk-oblast/ in Russian missile attack on Myrnohrad in Donetsk Oblast.


Ragnar Bjartur Gudmundsson

• MAR 10, 2024

■ More 🇷🇺 strikes, fewer engagements
■ Weekly casualties 4% above previous week
■ New weekly record for equipment & vehicles losses
■ Weekly artillery losses also at a record level
■ Oryx: 62 🇷🇺 14 🇺🇦; 30-day ratio up to 2.3x

[DancesWithDucks]

UNITED24 Media Telegram Highlights


Ukraine needs unlimited supplies of military aid. The "drop by drop" aid strategy no longer works, said Dmytro Kuleba, the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
According to the head of Ukrainian diplomacy, the era of peace in Europe is over. And now "weak decisions" will lead to "big wars", and "strong" — to their end.

Great Britain offers Germany a circular supply of weapons to provide Ukraine with long-range Taurus missiles, — Süddeutsche Zeitung.

According to Oleksandr Karasevich, the ambassador of Ukraine to the Netherlands, Russia has deployed chemical weapons against the Ukrainian military on 346 occasions. As of February 2024, Ukrainian healthcare institutions have recorded 946 cases of providing medical assistance to Ukrainian servicemen who were poisoned by an unknown substance in combat zones.

Russia is trying to block the sea corridor created by Ukraine, but these attempts are unsuccessful, — Serhiy Kyslytsia, the Ambassador of Ukraine to the UN.

The head of the British Foreign Ministry, David Cameron, has spoken out against sending Western troops to Ukraine, even for training purposes.

Some would say that it’s the best infantry fighting vehicle ever made, and while others would disagree, we are on a mission to find out how the Swedish CV90 or Stridsfordon-90 performs on the Ukrainian battlefield from the crew.

The United States has threatened Austria's largest bank, Raiffeisen Bank, with sanctions for doing business in Russia.
EUOberver reports this with reference to a document from the US Treasury Department. It warned that Raiffeisen Bank International risks "being cut off from the U.S. financial system" if it continues to service trade transactions related to the Russian military-industrial complex. As the resource writes, RBI is one of the eight leading EU banks still operating in Russia. The rest: the Dutch ING, the German Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank, the Hungarian OTP Bank, the Italian Intesa SanPaolo and Unicerdit and the Swedish SEB.

Türkiye and the United States held talks, one of the topics of which was Ukraine — Reuters.
The officials discussed, in particular, ways to stop Russia's invasion of Ukraine. According to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Türkiye did not notice that Kyiv and Moscow were ready for this

The Vatican clarified Pope Francis's remarks made during an interview with Swiss radio and television, emphasizing that the Pope's call for a ceasefire and the resumption of negotiations did not imply a call for surrender by Ukraine.

The head of the Polish Foreign Ministry has urged the Pope to address President Putin directly, calling for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine.

🇺🇦Another 10 children who were under occupation were returned to Ukraine. During the occupation the children were forced to attend a Russian school, sing the Russian national anthem and watch movies about the "greatness" of the aggressor country. Children were threatened with lower grades for any refusal.

🇺🇦🥇Ukrainian Ilya Kovtun became a gold medalist at the stage of the Gymnastics World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan.

[DancesWithDucks]

Live: Ukraine Telegram Highlights


▪️Earlier, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that Armenia had effectively frozen its participation in the CSTO

🇵🇱 Polish farmers and Prime Minister Donald Tusk have not reached an agreement — on March 20, farmers have announced a new major protest and promise to shut down the entire country.
Tusk said he was not going to close the border with Ukraine, but would try to convince the European Commission about the Green Deal, which imposes restrictions on farmers. He offers farmers support from the budget. They are not satisfied with this.
The next meeting in the government-farmers format is scheduled for Monday.

At night, a gas pipeline near the village of Lykhma in the Khanty-Mansiisk district burned in Russia (video). It is not known why
In Kursk, a drone crashed into the territory of an oil depot, which also led to a fire, according to local authorities. https://t.me/liveukraine_media/18944

A captured Russian who executed a Ukrainian POW on January 6 2024 will be tried for war crime

[DancesWithDucks]

Can't remember if I said this before but it's clear (to me at least) that Orban wants Hungary to become a dictatorship.

He's signed a deal with China so that Chinese police will be on the streets in Hungary working with the local policemen, he signed a deal with Iran for something, he's more than clearly working with Putin and he's working with Trump.

The EU needs a lot stronger leadership than it's got to remove Hungary while it's being run like this.

[MagicFox]

Yes did you see the gross video of Trump saying what an amazing leader Orban is because what he says goes? 🤢 A sign of what's to come for America if he's voted in

[MMBaranova]

Thanks for the new thread.

[DancesWithDucks]

20 Days in Mariupol won Best Documentary at the Oscars.

[MagicFox]

Orban says he spoke to Trump about his planning for ending the war in Ukraine:

"He has a very clear vision that is hard to disagree with. He says the following: first, he will not give a single penny for the Russo-Ukrainian war. That's why the war will end, because it's obvious that Ukraine cannot stand on its own two feet. If the Americans don't give money and weapons along with the Europeans, the war will end. And if the Americans don't give money, then the Europeans won't be able to fund this war alone. And then the war will end."

www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2024/03/10/7445822/

[Vaccances]

@DancesWithDucks

Can't remember if I said this before but it's clear (to me at least) that Orban wants Hungary to become a dictatorship.

He's signed a deal with China so that Chinese police will be on the streets in Hungary working with the local policemen, he signed a deal with Iran for something, he's more than clearly working with Putin and he's working with Trump.

The EU needs a lot stronger leadership than it's got to remove Hungary while it's being run like this.

I wouldn't worry about Orban, worry more about why the UK refuses to increase defence spending and why the Europeans cannot even provide sufficient munitions to Ukraine.

Once Trump is in the Whitehouse, Ukraine will not get any more military aid, the yanks aren't even providing it now, with Biden there.

The EU has no rules about expelling member states, its got nothing to do with "Leadership"

All they can do is stop giving Hungary any funds etc but then that will guarantee Hungary joining a Russian pact joining Belarus.

[MagicFox]

Hence why I'm voting labour when the election comes. They've promised to take defence very seriously and I though John Healey's speech was sincere

[blueshoes]

@MagicFox

Orban says he spoke to Trump about his planning for ending the war in Ukraine:

"He has a very clear vision that is hard to disagree with. He says the following: first, he will not give a single penny for the Russo-Ukrainian war. That's why the war will end, because it's obvious that Ukraine cannot stand on its own two feet. If the Americans don't give money and weapons along with the Europeans, the war will end. And if the Americans don't give money, then the Europeans won't be able to fund this war alone. And then the war will end."

www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2024/03/10/7445822/

Shame on Trump for gifting Ukraine to Putin and shame on Orban for quoting Trump to say what Orban always wished for. Truly despicable pair.

[blueshoes]

@MagicFox

Hence why I'm voting labour when the election comes. They've promised to take defence very seriously and I though John Healey's speech was sincere

Yes

[DesdamonasHandkerchief]

Thanks for the new thread Magicfox and to all the regular contributors, particularly Ducks & blueshoes for the roundups, still reading and lurking but feeling a bit despondent about the way things are going for Ukraine.

[blueshoes]

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-10-2024

Key Takeaways:

• A Ukrainian military official confirmed that Russian forces are conducting strikes in Ukraine with improved guided glide bombs.
• Russian sources reported that the Russian military command has replaced Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov with Northern Fleet Commander Admiral Alexander Moiseev as Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy.
• Russian occupation authorities opened early voting in occupied Ukraine for Russia’s presidential election on March 10 that will last until March 14.
• Chechen officials organized a march in Grozny, Chechnya, on March 10 in support of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s candidacy in the upcoming March presidential election.
• Over 1,000 civilian ships have transited Ukraine’s “grain corridor” in the Black Sea despite persistent Russian efforts to undermine international confidence in the corridor.
• The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) awarded a state honor to a prominent Russian ultranationalist — who is an active supporter of imprisoned former officer and ardent ultranationalist Igor Girkin — likely as part of an ongoing Kremlin campaign to coopt the critical milblogger community.
• Russian forces recently made confirmed advances near Bakhmut and Avdiivka amid continued positional engagements along the entire frontline on March 10.
• Prominent Russian ultranationalists praised Russian volunteers and mobilized personnel on March 10, likely to assuage continued concerns among these personnel in spite of their improper and inequal treatment in the Russian military.