AFU = Armed Forces of Ukraine
From Strategic Stability
Report # 100. The USA de facto kills civilians in Ukraine
July 12, 2022
1. Novaya Kakhovka has been heavily shelled by AFU who used U.S. HIMARS
Novaya Kakhovka located in Kherson Region has been heavily shelled by Ukrainian war criminals in the evening July 11th. A local official said that during this terrorist attack five people were killed and at least 90 injured. Some people are said to have been buried under the rubbles.
A kindergarten, hospital, church and a market place were also damaged. a fertilizer storage depot detonated due to the shelling.
The city is controlled by Russian forces.
Local officials claimed that Ukrainian troops used US-delivered HIMARS multiple rocket launchers to attack Novaya Kakhovka. Local officials labelled such barbaric act as an act of terrorism.
AFU also shelled settlements located not far away from Zaporozhiye Nuclear Power Plant.
My comment: any direct or unintentional attack at this active NPP can cause severe tragedy not only to Ukraine and Russia, but may also affect many European nations.
2. Humanitarian situation
The Russian Federation’s Joint Coordination Headquarters for Humanitarian Response continues to record the Kiev regime’s criminal actions against civilians.
It has been reliably established that Ukrainian nationalists are preparing yet another cynical provocation with civilian deaths in Slavyansk in Donetsk People’s Republic to accuse the Russian Armed Forces of carrying out indiscriminate strikes against civilian targets. For this purpose, residents of nearby residential quarters are being held in the building of the Vocational Agrarian Lyceum (Nauka Street) under the pretext of allegedly ensuring security. At the same time, the building is mined and the militants plan to blow it up when Russian troops launch artillery strikes on military targets in the city.
Russia warned that the provocation about “Russian atrocities” is to be widely disseminated by the Kiev regime in the Ukrainian and Western media.
In addition, Ukrainian Armed Forces, as usual, continue to use educational institutions and social facilities for military purposes:
a) in Kharkov, AFU units and Polish mercenaries are based in the premises of the National Technical University (Poltavskyi Shlyah Street), artillery and MLRS are deployed, and there has been no deliberate evacuation of residents from nearby houses;
b) in Nikolaev, AFU units and territorial defence are deployed in kindergarten No. 126 (Mira Avenue) and school No. 11 (Kitoboyev Street);
c) in Pevnichnoye in Donetsk People’s Republic, a stronghold with barracks has been equipped in kindergarten No. 10 (Novaya Street) to house fighters of Ukrainian armed formations and foreign mercenaries; the approaches to the building are mined, but the local population is deliberately not informed of this;
d) in Shirokolanovka, Nikolaev Region, nationalists placed heavy weapons and armoured vehicles on the territory of the vocational school (Tsentralnaya Street) and placed sniper positions and MANPADs on the roofs.
Such actions by Kiev once again demonstrate an inhuman attitude towards the fate of the Ukrainian citizens and show a complete disregard for all norms of morality and international humanitarian law.
Russia emphasized once again that in carrying out the tasks of the special military operation, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation treat the local population extremely humanely and do not strike at civilian infrastructure facilities, unlike the Ukrainian armed formations.
In total, since the beginning of the special military operation, 2,481,664 people have already been evacuated to Russia according to their will and desire, of which 390,578 are children.
More than 9,500 temporary accommodation centres continue to operate in the regions of the Russian Federation. The refugees are dealt with on an individual basis and are promptly assisted with various pressing issues relating to onward accommodation, employment assistance, places for children in kindergartens and educational institutions, and the provision of entitlements to social benefits.
3. Humanitarian aid distribution
So far, more than 45,000 tons of basic necessities, food and medicines have been prepared at the collection points. Since March 2, 2022, 42,450.9 tons of humanitarian cargo have already been delivered to Ukraine, 1,292 humanitarian actions have been carried out, including 3 actions in Zaporozhye Region, as well as in Donetsk People’s Republic, during which 215.2 tons of basic necessities, medicines and food were transferred to the civilian population of the liberated areas.
On July 11, 5 humanitarian actions have been planned and are currently being carried out in Kharkov region, in Donetsk People’s Republics, during which 272 tons of basic necessities, medicine and food will be distributed.
4. Situation in the Back Sea
There are no significant developments in this section. Situation remains the same. Kiev does not want to deactivate and remove sea mines from sea zones it has placed to block shipping of goods in both directions from Odessa and other sea ports controlled by Kiev – to Ukraine and from Ukraine, including Ukrainian grain abroad.
5. Developments on the battlefield
High-precision Iskander land-based missiles near Berezan in Odessa Region have destroyed launchers of the US-made Harpoon anti-ship missile system.
High-precision air-based missile strike near Artemovsk in Donetsk People’s Republic has destroyed 180 servicemen and 26 pieces of military equipment of 30th mechanized brigade of AFU.
In addition, high-precision weapons used of the Russian Aerospace Forces have destroyed 12 areas of AFU manpower and military equipment concentrations, 4 amunition depots of the 79th Airborne Assault Brigade near Matveevka, NIkolaev Region, and AFU armoured vehicle repair and recovery facility near Seversk.
As part of counter-battery fighting, 2 platoons of Grad multiple-launch rocket systems and 2 artillery platoons of Hyacinth-B howitzers have been destroyed at firing positions near Dzerzhinsk, Donetsk People’s Republic.
Operational-tactical and army aviation, missile troops and artillery have neutralised 3 AFU command posts, 3 ammunition depots, 97 areas of Ukrainian artillery units at firing positions, as well as 111 areas of manpower and military equipment concentration.
In addition, 12 rockets of Uragan multiple-launch rocket system have been intercepted near Lisichansk in Lugansk People’s Republic, Brazhkovka in Kharkov Region and Novaya Kakhovka in Kherson Region.
In total, 243 Ukrainian airplanes and 137 helicopters, 1,513 unmanned aerial vehicles, 354 anti-aircraft missile systems, 4,046 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 741 multiple launch rocket systems, 3,135 field artillery and mortars, as well as 4,165 units of special military vehicles were destroyed during the operation.
6. The fate of foreign “wild geese” in Ukraine
Russian Defence Ministry monitors and records by name all foreign mercenaries who have arrived in Ukraine to take part in combat operations.
As it has already mentioned, contrary to the false claims of the Kiev regime about allegedly 20,000 of foreign mercenaries arriving to Ukraine, their actual number is much lower. Moreover, it is steadily declining.
Over the past three weeks, the number of mercenaries in Ukraine has decreased from 3,221 to 2,741 as a result of the offensive actions of the units of the Russian Armed Forces and people’s militia of Lugansk and Donetsk Republics.
During this time, despite the arrival of another 151 mercenaries, 391 militants have been killed. Another 240 “wild geese” rushed to flee outside Ukraine.
Poland again tops the list in terms of the speed and number of fighters killed during the period, with 166 Polish fighters killed.
Among the Georgian representatives, 50 “soldiers of fortune” were killed, the UK lost another 23 mercenaries in Ukraine. Also, 21 Romanian and 15 Canadian fighters were killed in three weeks.
Updated data on the count of foreign mercenaries currently in Ukraine has been published on the Russian Defence Ministry’s information resources on the Internet.
Once again, the Russian Armed Forces are identifying foreign mercenaries even as they prepare to enter Ukraine.
E.g., on July 6, two British citizens, Colin Scott and Adrian Davis, and three US citizens, Michael Vujkovic, Andrew Fox and Oliver Short, arrived at the foreign mercenary collection and accommodation centre located at 1 Kozmian street in Poland’s Zamosc city. Russian MoD advised these citizens to come to their senses and return home alive.
Russian MoD reminded that under International Humanitarian Law, all foreign mercenaries are non-combatants and are not considered as POW. The best option that awaits them if captured alive is a trial and maximum terms of imprisonment.
The DPR has lifted off a moratorium on death penalties. Its Criminal Code is tougher than that of the Russian Criminal Code.
7. Some other views in the USA
According to the U.S. correspondent Mike Glenn (The Washington Times, Sunday, July 10, 2022), while Ukraine gets more than $ 8 billion of U.S. war supplies since the start of the Biden administration, analysts ask how long it can go on.
The amount of military hardware sent to Ukraine pales in comparison to the $2 trillion that was spent in Afghanistan propping up a government in Kabul that collapsed in days once the U.S. military support dried up.
So far, the U.S. has provided Ukraine with 12 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and ammo; 126 M-777 howitzers of 155mm and more than 400,000 rounds; 20 Soviet-era Mi-17 helicopters; more than 6,500 Javelin anti-armor missiles; and more than 700 Switchblade tactical unmanned aerial systems.
My comment: 20 Soviet-era Mi-17 helicopters has been stolen by the USA from Afghanistan in violation of the relevant Afghan-Russian contract that prohibited to use these choppers by other states.
Mike Glenn quoted a number of the U.S. citizens who put some unpleasant questions to the current U.S. Administration.
“A military analyst with Defense Priorities think tank said merely shipping billions of dollars of equipment to a war zone is not a strategy. “How does that tie into what the Ukraine military’s plans are? What is the end result of this? What are the expected consequences of this?” said retired Army Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis, a senior fellow with the libertarian-leaning think tank. “I can tell you that there are no answers to this. When you look at the cumulative total of all of it, it’s not a fraction of what Ukraine needs.”
Senator Mike Lee, Utah Republican noted: “We must always make sure Congress maintains its constitutional role of directing engagement in conflict and ensure that we are not spending unnecessary funds while in a time of historic inflation and ballooning national debt,” Mr. Lee said in a statement.
Senator John Kennedy, Louisiana Republican, introduced a bill that would establish a special inspector general for Ukraine to oversee the humanitarian, economic, and security assistance funding provided by the U.S. government. “Congress has already supported [Ukraine] with billions and billions of dollars in aid and military equipment,” Mr. Kennedy said. “America’s taxpayers deserve to know that their money is helping Ukraine beat back Russia effectively, and Congress needs to guarantee that oversight.”
A retired Marine Col. Mark Cancian, a senior adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, stated: “We’ve been sending a lot of equipment and we’re in the process of sending a lot of financial aid,” he said. “Ukraine is still a very inefficient, corrupt country. If people start seeing evidence of corruption – oligarchs buying yachts with American money – that would undermine support.”
My comment: the price tag of the U.S military aid to Ukraine cannot be compared with the much larger expenses the USA and the EU have already inflicted to themselves due to illegal economic sanctions and manipulations with natural energy resources
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Report # 101. Ukrainian Army is fighting with civilians and cities
July 14, 2022
1. AFU terrorize civilians in Donbass
The DPR has completed collecting recent data on the dead and injured civilians on the territory it controls since February 24 till mid-July 2022: 247 civilians have been killed, including 16 children, and 1,493 civilians, including 83 children, have been wounded after indiscriminate and barbaric fire by cowardly Armed Forces of Ukraine actively sponsored by the USA and NATO.
AFU also damaged in the DPR: 5452 residential houses; 1218 civil infrastructure facilities, including 72 medical facilities, 237 educational buildings, 445 social security assets, 32 critical infrastructure facilities, 432 electricity, water and gas supply facilities, and 667 vehicles.
In total, 5823 facts of shelling were recorded, 5494 of them with the use of heavy weapons – in many cases suoolied by the USA and NATO countries.
Against the DPR AFU fired 48,487 ammunition of various calibers, including 31 missiles from the Tochka-U missiles (each having 15,000 bomblets), 14 BM-30 Smetch missiles, 149 BM-27 Hurricane MLRS missiles and 8,480 BM-21 Grad MLRS missiles.
The LPR reported about 291 civilians became victims of the AFU aggression, of which 72 people were killed and 219 were injured. As a result of the shelling, three children were killed and 19 children were injured.
The LPR recorded: 1030 attacks on the territory of the Republic by AFU using heavy weapons. In total, AFU used 10389 ammunition of various calibers, including missiles of the “Tochka-U” (33 missiles) and the American MLRS M142 HIMARS (21 missiles), MLRS (BM-21 “Grad”, BM-27 “Uragan” (“Hurricane”), and BM-30 “Smerch”) – in all cases 2153 shells.
In Novaya Kakhovka, hit by AFU heavy weapons July 11th, totally 65 houses, 3 factories and almost 250 shops were damaged by the shelling, the region’s military and civil Administration reported. The American satellite Worldview-2 was spotted over Novaya Kakhovka three days before the AFU made such barbaric strike.
Every day AFU fire 250-450 shells against peaceful, non-military areas in Donbass, waging war against its citizens and Russians, against cities.
Comment: all these attacks are considered as acts of terrorism and genocide according to international law. Such cruel attacks clearly testify that AFU is not fighting with the Russian Armed Forces, but rather with armless and innocent civilians. All these facts also prove that Moscow made a just and a right decision last February to save people in Donbass from the third Ukrainian aggression. AFU should be renamed as “BFU or Barbaric Forces of Ukraine”.
2. AFU attempted to attack Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (NPP)
AFU used of the kamikaze drone near operational Zaporozhye NPP – the biggest in Europe, controlled by Russian troops. In addition, one more drone was eliminated by the Russian air defense systems near the heating water utility in the city of Energodar, military-civilian Administration spokesman said later in the day (July 12).
On Tuesday, July 12, Ukrainian neo-Nazis with the use of unmanned aerial vehicles struck two 120mm mines on buildings located in the immediate vicinity of the Zaporozhye NPP, – said the head of the National Defense Control Center of the Russian Federation, Colonel-General Mikhail Mizintsev. This is not the first cynical provocation of the Kiev regime at radiation-hazardous facilities. It endangers millions of Ukrainian citizens, and not only them.
Comment: The purpose of the attack was to prevent the visit the IAEA delegation to the Zaporozhye NPP or to create a radioactive disaster in Europe.
Russian experts found extra nuclear material not to be used by this NPP for routine operation.
While the Kherson Region in south Ukraine has been completely liberated, while in the Zaporozhye Region, about 27% of the territory is still under the control of Kyiv.
3. Biden reveals U.S. goal in Ukraine
Moscow must suffer “a strategic failure” during its military campaign in Ukraine, US President Joe Biden has said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “assault on Ukraine is a challenge to the peace and stability everywhere in the world,” Biden told reporters during his trip to Jerusalem on July 14.
Biden has also promised to continue supporting Kiev. But will this irrelevant step help to defuze the crisis? Never.
The Israeli government announced this week that it would send helmets, flak jackets, gas masks and other protective gear to Ukraine. Israel, however, has so far refused to supply Kiev with offensive weapons or impose sanctions on Moscow.
Washington has not only supplied long-range High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) to Kiev, but is providing intelligence on targets in Donbass and has even “unofficially” sent instructors to Ukraine to help with the hardware, the Russian Foreign Ministry claimed on July 14.
Two civilians have lost their lives, with another six sustaining injuries, as a result of Ukrainian shelling of the city of Donetsk, local authorities reported on July 14. The leader of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), Denis Pushilin, said that the Ukrainian military had hit a bus terminal. Among the victims are a young woman “who was going home from work” and a bus driver, the official revealed. Two civilians have lost their lives, with another six sustaining injuries, as a result of Ukrainian shelling of the city of Donetsk, local authorities reported the same day.
Pushilin added that a US-supplied М777 howitzer had been used in the attack against an area where there are no military installations.
One such howitzer has been captured during the fight. It will be carefully studied in Moscow..
4. Russia-Ukraine grain talks outcome revealed
Moscow and Kiev have agreed to create a “coordination center” on grain exports in Istanbul, Turkey who arrange the venue for the relevant talks at Turkish military base has said.
Russia and Ukraine have agreed to establish a joint coordination center on grain exports in Istanbul that will include representatives from all parties, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar told local media following the four-way talks that also involved Turkey and the UNO.“An agreement has been reached on technical issues such as joint controls at the destination points and … the safety of navigation on the transfer routes,” Akar told journalists. Russian and Ukrainian delegations “should meet again in Turkey next week,” he said, adding that the parties would “review all the details once again” during that meeting.
5. Situation on the battlefields
The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the special military operation in Ukraine. The enemy suffers significant losses in all directions.
High-precision air-based missiles destroyed over 350 AFU soldiers and 20 units of military equipment of Kakhovka task force reserve at a shipyard in Nikolaev city.
As a result of high-precision weapons strike of the Russian Aerospace Forces on a temporary deployment point of artillery battalion of 59th Motorized Infantry Brigade in the eastern Nikolaev city, up to 70 servicemen of AFU artillery units, 10 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzers and over 10 units of vehicles and special equipment were destroyed.
Sabotage and reconnaissance group of 242nd battalion of 241st Territorial Defence Brigade transferred from Kiev has been eliminated near Dementiyevka, Kharkov region. Five militants killed on the spot and 10 more Ukrainian servicemen captured.
Over the past 24 hours, Russian Aerospace Forces destroyed 2 command posts near Bereznevatoye in Nikolaev region, 1 ammunition depot near Seversk, as well as 7 armoured vehicles of 60th Mechanized Brigade of AFU near Bilogor’e, Zaporozhye Region.
As part of counter-battery fighting, 1 platoon of Uragan multiple rocket launchers have been destroyed at firing positions near Kostantinovka in Donetsk People’s Republic.
Operational-tactical and army aviation, missile troops and artillery have neutralized 11 command posts, 102 areas of artillery units at firing positions, as well as 123 areas of AFU manpower and military equipment concentration.
Russian fighters have shot down 3 aircraft of Ukrainian air force in the air: 1 Su-25 and 1 Su-24 near Novoukrainka and Barvenkovo in Donetsk People’s Republic, as well as 1 MiG-29 near Bashtanka in Nikolaev region.
Russian air defence means have shot down another Su-25 of Ukrainian air force near Shirokoye, Nikolaev region.
Also, air defence means have shot down 9 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles near Dibrovnoye, Glubokoye, Luk’yantsy, Brazhkovka, Liptsy, Peschanoye in Kharkov region, Snegirevka in Nikolaev region and Karpovka in Donetsk People’s Republic.
5 Ukrainian Tochka-U ballistic missiles have been intercepted over Veselaya Tarasovka, Pokrovskoye, Konstantinovka, Lisichansk in Lugansk People’s Republic and Kostyrka in Kherson region.
18 Uragan multiple-launch rocket launchers have been shot down in the air near Topolskoye, Dolgen’koye, Suligovka in Kharkov region, Khartsyzsk, Avdeevka, Karpovka in Donetsk People’s Republic, Rodakovo, Smeloye, Zimogor’e, Lotikovo in Lugansk People’s Republic and Lugansk city.
High-precision strikes near Bereznegovatoye, Nikolaev Region, Konstantinovka and Kramatorsk, Donetsk People’s Republic, hit temporary deployment points of units of 35th Marine Brigade, 54th Mechanized Brigade, 81st Airmobile Brigade and 109th Territorial Defence Brigade.
As a result of the strikes, the total losses of these formations amounted to up to 1,000 personnel and more than 100 pieces of military equipment.
High-precision weapons of the Russian Aerospace Forces hit temporary deployment point of 14th Mechanized Brigade battalion manned by nationalists and foreign mercenaries near Chasov Yar, Donetsk People’s Republic. The attacks have resulted in the destruction of 43 militants and about 170 injured.
Russian army aviation hit temporary deployment point of 97th Battalion of 60th Mechanized Brigade of AFU near Malaya Tokmachka, Zaporozhye Region, with high-precision missiles. The attacks have resulted in the destruction of 30 militants and about 37 injured.
Conflicts and clashes with the use of weapons have increased among nationalist fighters.
On July 13, more than 200 fighters of the 226th Kraken nationalist formation refused to follow the command’s order to move to the Kramatorsk area and claimed a “transfer” to the Kharkov city’ territorial defence. During the ensuing fight with the commanders and the ensuing gunfight, six militants were killed.
High-precision sea-based Kalibr missiles destroyed multiple rocket launcher vehicles of 45th Artillery Brigade of AFU hidden in hangars at the high voltage equipment plant in Zaporozhye city.
In addition, high-precision weapons of the Russian Aerospace Forces destroyed 4 command posts, including those of 61st Infantry Jaeger Brigade of AFU near Bereznegovatoye in Nikolaev Region and 80th Airborne Assault Brigade near Kramatorsk, 3 ammunition depots near Soledar, Tat’yanovka in Donetsk People’s Republic and Nikolaev, 1 fuel storage facility for military equipment near Kharkov, and 21 areas of manpower and military equipment concentration.
As part of the counter-battery fighting, 1 battery of multiple rocket launchers near Slavyansk, one platoon of MLRS near Nikolaevka in Donetsk People’s Republic, and one artillery platoon of US-made M-777 howitzers at firing positions in Pervomaiskyi in Kharkov Region were destroyed.
Operational-tactical and army aviation, missile troops and artillery hit 19 command posts, 78 areas of artillery units in firing positions and 232 areas of AFU manpower and military equipment concentration.
Russian Aerospace Forces fighters have shot down 2 aircraft of Ukrainian air force in the air: 1 Su-24 near Slavyansk and 1 MiG-29 near Troitskoye, Donetsk People’s Republic.
Russian air defence means destroyed 12 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles near Balakleya, Izyum, Lozovaya, Shchurovka in Kharkov Region, Snegirevka, Novaya Kakhovka in Nikolaev Region, Belogorovka, Karmazinovka, Slavyanoserbsk, Mikhailovka in Lugansk People’s Republic and Derilovo in Donetsk People’s Republic.
In addition, 2 Tochka-U ballistic missiles and 6 rockets of Uragan multiple-launch rocket system were intercepted near Novaya Kakhovka in Nikolaev Region.
In total, 249 Ukrainian airplanes and 137 helicopters, 1,534 unmanned aerial vehicles, 354 anti-aircraft missile systems, 4,050 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 744 multiple launch rocket systems, 3,145 field artillery and mortars, as well as 4,292 special military vehicles were destroyed during the operation
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