Russian troops are attacking more in the south and east

Dusseldorf In the sixth week of the Ukraine war, Russian invading forces are withdrawing from the north-western outskirts of the capital Kyiv and stepping up their attacks in the east and south of the country. There are air strikes on the cities of Mariupol and Kharkiv, said presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych on Ukrainian television on Saturday. The city of Chernihiv northeast of Kyiv was also attacked.

According to British intelligence information, Ukrainian troops were pursuing Russian units that were withdrawing from the suburbs of Irpin, Bucha and Hostomel northwest of Kyiv. The invading troops also withdrew from the Hostomel cargo airport, which had been fought over since the beginning of the war on February 24. Arestovych said Ukrainian troops had recaptured more than 30 villages around Kyiv.

The Ukrainian General Staff announced that Russian troops would also be withdrawn from the exclusion zone around the former Chernobyl nuclear power plant and from adjacent areas in Belarus. They were apparently to be transferred to the Russian Belgorod region in order to advance from there to Kharkiv. Referring to the troop movements, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a new video address that he expected heavy attacks in the east. “Russian soldiers are being brought to the Donbass. Likewise in the direction of Kharkiv.”

A spokesman for the ministry said that a total of 67 military objects were destroyed within one day, including ammunition depots. Like all reports from the combat zones, the information was not independently verifiable. Despite the rocket attacks – some from airplanes – the Ukrainian Air Force claims to maintain control of the airspace. As with all reports from contested areas, it was not possible to independently verify this information.

Zelensky called on the population in the Russian-occupied south not to accept positions for the occupation regime. “My message to you is simple: the responsibility for collaboration is inescapable,” the President said. According to Ukrainian information, Russia is trying to set up pro-Moscow administrations in the occupied territories.

Zelensky warns of landmines and shelling after Russian withdrawal

According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian forces left “a complete disaster” in their wake in the north of the country. He warned residents, including towns on the outskirts of Kiev, of further Russian shelling and landmines.

“They’re mining the entire area, they’re mining homes, equipment and even the bodies of people who have been killed,” he said in his late-night video address to the nation late Friday.

He urged residents to wait until they were reassured that the mines had been cleared and the threat of shelling had passed before resuming their normal lives.

Parallel to the fighting, other negotiations between the warring parties were also going on in the background. The delegations did not have any information on the status of the talks, which usually take place via video link.

While the Polish government spoke out in favor of further tightening the EU sanctions against Russia, Moscow threatened to end cooperation on the International Space Station ISS. If the United States and other Western countries do not lift their sanctions against Russia, the Moscow leadership will soon propose deadlines for ending the cooperation, said the head of the space agency, Dmitry Rogozin, via Telegram.

Ten buses are to be used to evacuate Mariupol on Sunday

In the badly damaged city of Mariupol, which had been under siege for weeks, many of the estimated 100,000 remaining residents were hoping for a new attempt by the Red Cross to be evacuated by bus. A team of nine helpers left the city of Zaporizhia, according to a spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Geneva.

Ten buses are to be used this Sunday to save around 500 people, according to a citizens’ initiative on the Telegram news channel. In parallel, according to Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk, it was planned to take people out of Mariupol in private cars. There should be similar escape corridors in other embattled cities, including Berdyansk, west of Mariupol.

Five corridors led to the city of Bakhmut from embattled areas in the east of the country, Vereshchuk wrote on her Telegram news channel. The routes are announced anew for each day. Russia and Ukraine repeatedly accuse each other of sabotaging the evacuation of towns and cities.

Ukraine expects economic downturn

The Ukrainian Ministry of Economic Affairs expects the economy to slump as a result of the Russian attack. The ministry announced that economic output would be at least 40 percent lower. In the first quarter alone, economic output fell by 16 percent. “The sectors where home office is not possible have suffered the most.”

The situation is particularly critical for farmers, whose harvests form a crucial part of global exports in many areas. For example, Ukraine is an important producer of wheat, mustard seed and sunflower seeds. In view of the war, the forthcoming sowing and later harvests are likely to be far smaller than before.

Other current reports on the crisis:

Almost 300,000 refugees have now arrived in Germany

According to the Federal Police, around 5,300 other refugees from Ukraine arrived in Germany within one day. As the Federal Ministry of the Interior announced on Twitter on Saturday, the police have recorded almost 300,000 war refugees since the start of the Russian war of aggression on February 24. The exact number was given as 299-823. The majority are women, children and the elderly.

It is believed that the actual number of refugees is significantly higher because there are no fixed controls at the borders and people with Ukrainian passports can stay in the EU for 90 days without a visa. Most of the war refugees from Ukraine are staying in neighboring Poland: more than 2.4 million people.

Pentagon hands Ukraine another $300m for arms

The US Department of Defense wants to send Ukraine more weapons worth 300 million dollars (270 million euros). Among other things, the new package should include various drones, missile systems, armored vehicles, ammunition, night vision devices, secure communication systems, machine guns, medical supplies and the provision of commercial satellite images, as the Pentagon announced on Friday evening (local time).

According to a media report, the United States and allies also want to deliver Soviet-made tanks to Ukraine. These should strengthen the defense in the Donbass region, writes the New York Times, citing a US official. The tanks were to be taken there soon.

The official quoted did not say how many tanks are involved and what country they are from. The US Department of Defense declined to comment, and the US Presidential Office initially declined to comment.

The US government has already pledged $1.65 billion worth of military aid and arms supplies to Ukraine since the war began. Since the beginning of last year, US aid has totaled $2.3 billion.

However, the new weapons deliveries announced by the Pentagon should take a little longer. The process is not about handing over weapons and systems already in US possession, but about orders to the manufacturers. The move “represents the beginning of a process to provide the Ukrainian armed forces with new capabilities,” it said.

At the same time, work will continue with the allies in order to send further arms deliveries to Ukraine. “The United States will continue to use all available means to support Ukrainian forces in the face of the Russian attack,” the Pentagon said.

The US Congress passed a budget in March that earmarked $13.6 billion in humanitarian, economic and military aid for Ukraine by the end of September.

Pope considers trip to Kyiv

During a visit to Malta, Pope Francis condemned the war in Ukraine but avoided direct criticism of Russia. The head of the Catholic Church spoke of “a few powerful people” who fueled conflicts. Before landing, Francis spoke of a possible trip to Kyiv: “That’s on the table.”

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