Powerful Russian military convoy threatens Kyiv

Ukraine accuses Russia of war crimes. She fears a broad Russian offensive on major Ukrainian cities. Military vehicles are ready at a distance of about 60 kilometers from Kyiv. The current developments.

Satellite images taken on Monday show a 60-kilometer Russian military convoy northwest of the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv. The convoy “stretched from the area around Antonov Airport – about 25 kilometers from central Kiev – in the south to the area around Prybirsk in the north,” the US satellite imagery company Maxar said. Images of the convoy show dozens of vehicles lined up on roads in the Ukrainian countryside.

Some of the vehicles are “very far apart,” Maxar said. Others are grouped “in twos and threes”. Some of the images show smoke from buildings that are believed to be on fire. The US company also released images showing new troop deployments from attack helicopters and vehicles in Belarus, less than 30 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

Since the start of the Russian offensive on Thursday, the Ukrainian armed forces have said they have repelled several attacks by Russian forces on Kyiv. There was major fighting around Antonov Airport on the outskirts of the capital. According to Western military officials, Ukrainian resistance “slowed down” Russia’s war of aggression. However, Russia was massing more and more troops around the country’s larger cities and, according to Ukrainian sources, fired at them with rockets.

Only 25 kilometers left

As the AFP news agency learned from diplomatic and defense circles, Moscow was preparing on Tuesday night for an imminent new military attack. On Monday, the main Russian column had advanced “about five kilometers” towards Kyiv and was “about 25 kilometers” from the city, according to a senior US Defense Department official.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian Army said on Facebook on Tuesday that Russian forces had regrouped over the past 24 hours, accumulating armored vehicles and artillery “mainly to encircle and take control of Kyiv and the other major cities of Ukraine “.

Serious allegations in the UN Security Council

Ukraine has accused Russia of war crimes at the UN Security Council. At an emergency meeting, Ukrainian ambassador to the UN Serhiy Kyslytsia spoke of Russian attacks on kindergartens, orphanages and hospitals. Russia is taking action against mobile medical aid brigades with shelling and sabotage squads. Kyzyzja said these are not the files of a state with security concerns: “These are the files of a state that is determined to kill civilians. There is no debate: these are war crimes.” Regardless of the specific allegation, the UN Criminal Court in The Hague announced investigations.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a country that has committed war crimes cannot be a permanent member of the UN Security Council. He accused Russia of intensifying the shelling during the negotiations, which were adjourned after five hours.

Zelenskyj demands no-fly zone

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is pushing for a no-fly zone for Russian aircraft over his country. “We must deny this state access to all ports, all canals and all airports in the world,” he said on Facebook. He called on the international community to “consider a complete closure of the airspace to Russian missiles, planes and helicopters.” Zelenskyi does not say how such a zone should be implemented. He pointed out that the Russian military had fired 113 cruise missiles and 56 missiles at Ukraine since the beginning of the invasion.

The US government opposes establishing a no-fly zone over Ukraine. President Joe Biden has made it very clear that he has no intention of sending US troops into a war with Russia, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. A no-fly zone would be a step in this direction, because it would have to be implemented accordingly. “It would require the deployment of US military forces to enforce it, which would mean direct conflict, potentially direct conflict and potential war with Russia, which we do not want to engage in.” The British government also opposed such a zone and stressed that his country would not enforce such a ban.

Ukraine: Russia detonated banned vacuum bomb

Ukraine also alleges that Russia used a so-called vacuum bomb on Monday. “Today they detonated the vacuum bomb that is banned by the Geneva Convention,” Ukraine’s Ambassador to Washington Oksana Markarova told the US Congress.

On Saturday, reporters from the US television channel CNN documented the presence of a corresponding Russian weapon system in Ukraine. Compared to conventional explosives, vacuum bombs generate greater heat and an immense pressure wave that can cause fatal lung injuries. Russia has not yet responded to the allegations.

Politico: Ukrainian pilots get fighter jets

According to a report by the US magazine Politico, pilots from the Ukrainian Air Force have arrived in Poland to receive fighter jets provided by EU countries. At the weekend, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell announced a transfer of combat aircraft. The Ukrainian parliament announced on Twitter that it would receive 70 aircraft from several EU countries.

According to Politico, there were initially no concrete confirmations from the countries listed in the tweet – Bulgaria therefore rejected a Ukrainian request. The machines listed are older examples from Russian production, which are also common in the Ukrainian Air Force.

More western pledges of aid

Meanwhile, the US administration of President Joe Biden has asked Congress for a $6.4 billion aid package for Ukraine. This should include humanitarian aid, economic aid and military aid for Ukraine’s self-defense, said the majority leader of Biden’s US Senate Democrats, Chuck Schumer.

Australia also wants to support Ukraine with military equipment and humanitarian aid amounting to 105 million Australian dollars (68 million euros). Prime Minister Scott Morrison said two-thirds of the money would be used for “defence equipment, both lethal and non-lethal”.

“Starlink” arrived in Ukraine

According to the Ukrainian government, the “Starlink” terminals promised by Tesla founder Elon Musk have arrived. These are Internet nodes that communicate with satellites and are therefore independent of the infrastructure on the ground. However, senior researcher at the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab project, John Scott-Railton, tweeted that data streams handled by the terminals could help Russia locate targets.

Russia and Ukraine report opposing losses

Both Russia and Ukraine have provided new information on the military casualties of their respective opponents. The Ukrainian military said more than 5,000 Russian soldiers had been killed and 191 tanks destroyed since the Russian attack began. There would also be 29 Russian helicopters and planes. The information cannot be independently verified. Russia admitted its own losses without citing the number of deaths.

The Russian Ministry of Defense in Moscow said that since the start of the so-called “special operation” it has destroyed more than 1,000 Ukrainian military infrastructure objects, including more than 300 tanks. In addition, Russian troops have advanced another 16 kilometers in the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk. This information is also not independently verifiable.

According to the US Department of Defense, Russian troops are making slower progress than expected. The invasion is more difficult for them than the Kremlin expected.

Meanwhile, Ukraine also awaits the official entry of Belarus as a warring party alongside Russia. “Some units of the most combat-ready formations of the Belarusian Armed Forces have begun to move to the state border of Ukraine in the direction of Volhynia,” the Ukrainian General Staff said.