In a statement on Friday that appeared to indicate more limited targets, the Russian Defense Ministry said that the first phase of its operation was largely completed and would now focus on the Donbass region bordering Russia, which has pro-Moscow separatist enclaves. . read more “The combat potential of the Ukrainian Armed Forces has been significantly reduced, which … makes it possible to focus our main efforts on achieving the main goal, the liberation of Donbass,” said Sergei Rudsoi, Russia’s chief of staff. Business Management. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register The Russian-backed separatist forces have been fighting Ukrainian forces in Donbas and the neighboring Luhansk region since 2014. They declared their independence with Moscow’s blessing – but were not recognized by the West – shortly before the February 24 invasion. Rethinking Russia’s goals could make it easier for President Vladimir Putin to claim a life-saving victory, military analysts have said. read more Moscow has said the targets for what it calls a “special operation” include demilitarizing and “rewarding” its neighbor. Western officials have dismissed it as an unfounded pretext for a war they say is aimed at overthrowing the Zelensky government. Weeks of ongoing peace talks have failed to make significant progress. In a video speech late Friday, Zelensky said resistance from his troops had dealt “severe blows” to Russia. “Our defenders are leading the Russian leadership to a simple and logical idea: we must speak, we must speak meaningfully, urgently and fairly,” Zelensky said. In what officials described as a keynote speech in Poland, US President Joe Biden on Saturday “will make remarks about the united efforts of the free world to support the people of Ukraine, hold Russia accountable for its violent war and defend a future that has its roots. in democratic principles, “the White House said in a statement. read more MADE WASTE Faced with fierce resistance, Russian troops failed to capture and hold any major cities a month after the invasion of Ukraine. Instead, they have bombed cities, deserted urban areas and evicted a quarter of Ukraine’s 44 million people. More than 3.7 million of them have fled abroad, half to neighboring Poland in the west, where Biden on Friday met with troops from the 82nd US Airborne Division strengthening the east side of the NATO alliance. read more “Hundreds of thousands of people are being cut off from aid by Russian forces and besieged in places like Mariupol,” Biden said. “It’s like something out of a science fiction movie.” Silhouette of a member of the Kiev territorial defense with a Kalashnikov rifle in his hands, as the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine, March 25, 2022. REUTERS / Mikhail Palinchak read more Footage from the southeast port, home to 400,000 before the war, showed damaged buildings, burned vehicles and shocked survivors rushing out for water and supplies. Residents have buried the victims in makeshift graves as the ground melts. Local officials, citing witnesses, said they estimated that 300 people had been killed in the March 16 bombing of a theater in Mariupol. The city council had not previously issued tolls and made it clear that an exact number could not be determined after the incident. Russia has denied that it bombed the theater or targeted civilians. read more COUNTERFEITS AROUND KIEV The battle lines near Kyiv have been frozen for weeks with two main Russian armored columns glued northwest and east of the capital. A British intelligence report described a Ukrainian counterattack that had pushed the Russians to the east. “Ukrainian counterattacks and Russian forces retreating to overly extensive supply lines have allowed Ukraine to retake cities and defenses up to 35 km (22 miles) east of Kiev,” the report said. Volodymyr Borysenko, mayor of Boryspol, an eastern suburb where Kiev’s main airport is located, said 20,000 civilians had been evacuated in response to a clearing call for Ukrainian troops to retaliate. On the other main front outside Kyiv, northwest of the capital, Ukrainian forces are trying to encircle Russian troops in the suburbs of Irpin, Bucha and Hostomel, which have been devastated by heavy fighting. The cities of Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Sumy north and east of Kiev have also been devastated by bombardment. Chernihiv was effectively surrounded by Russian forces, his governor said. Britain has said it will fund μή 2m ($ 2.6m) worth of food supplies to areas besieged by Russian forces at the request of the Ukrainian government. read more The United Nations has confirmed 1,081 civilian deaths and 1,707 injuries in Ukraine since the invasion, but says the actual toll is likely to be higher. The Russian Defense Ministry announced that 1,351 Russian soldiers were killed and 3,825 wounded, Interfax news agency reported. Ukraine says 15,000 Russian soldiers have been killed. Reuters could not independently verify the allegations. Thousands of miles from Ukraine, Russia has been conducting military exercises on Tokyo-claimed islands, Japanese media reported on Saturday, days after Moscow cut off peace talks with Japan over sanctions for invading Ukraine. read more Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Reports by Reuters reporters in Mariupol and Bucha, Natalia Zinets and Maria Starkova at Lviv and Reuters offices worldwide. Lincoln Feast writes. Edited by William Mallard Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
