Ukraine has laid thousands of anti-tank mines near its northern border with Belarus and Russia to fortify defensive lines and positions, Ukraine’s defense ministry said, citing a top commander.
(Bloomberg) — Ukraine has laid thousands of anti-tank mines near its northern border with Belarus and Russia to fortify defensive lines and positions, Ukraine’s defense ministry said, citing a top commander.
Leaked Pentagon documents reveal the extent to which Moscow’s intelligence services have been penetrated by the US, the New York Times reported, saying the material provides key insights into a “deeply compromised” Russian military. The source of the leaks remains unknown.
Russia has intensified efforts to evacuate civilians to Crimea from occupied areas of Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, Ukraine’s general staff said, in what appears to be in anticipation of a counteroffensive by Kyiv’s forces. “The occupiers are spreading information that the forced evacuation of civilians will begin in late April,” Ukraine said.
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(All times CET)
Poland Will Deliver 200 Rosomak APCs to Ukraine (9 a.m.)
Poland will ship 100 KTO Rosomak armed personnel carriers to Ukraine now and another 100 later, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Saturday in his nightly video address. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s office last week announced plans to sign a letter of intend between Zelenskiy and Morawiecki on APC deliveries.
Ukraine Fortifies Border With Belarus and Russia With Anti-Tank Mines (8 a.m.)
Ukraine has laid more than 6,000 anti-tank mines along its northern border with Belarus and Russia to fortify its defenses there, Lieutenant General Serhiy Nayev said in a statement posted on social media by Ukraine’s defense ministry.
“Anti-tank minefields are being created in tank accessible areas and probable paths of pushing the enemy deep into our territory which are roads, forest lanes, bridges, power lines, etc.,” Nayev said in a Facebook post.
Two Civilians Killed in Russian Strike on Zaporizhzhia (7 a.m.)
Two civilians — an 11-year-old girl and her father — were killed when a Russian missile hit a residential building in Zaporizhzhia overnight, state emergency services said. The wife and mother of the victims was pulled from the wreckage.
Two missiles destroyed one building and damaged dozens of others during the overnight strike, said city council secretary Anatoliy Kurtev.
Leaked Documents Show Russia’s Military Struggles: NYT (6 a.m.)
Leaked Pentagon documents reveal the extent to which Moscow’s security and intelligence services have been penetrated by the US, the New York Times reported, saying the material has provided key insight into a “deeply compromised” Russian military.
The documents portray a “battered Russian military” — as well as US assessments the struggles of Ukraine’s armed forces, the newspaper reported.
The source of the leaks remains unknown. The material, mostly dated from late February and early March, has appeared on social media sites in recent days. “The trove of documents offers perhaps the most complete picture yet of the inner workings of the largest land war in Europe in decades,” the New York Times said.
Ukraine Brings Back 31 Children from Russia (4:30 p.m.)
Ukraine is repatriating 31 children who were illegally deported to Russia, Mykola Kuleba, head of the NGO “Save Ukraine,” said during an online briefing. It was the fifth such mission and one of the largest since Russia’s invasion over a year ago. The kids are expected to arrive in Kyiv on Saturday.
Relatives of the children need to endure lengthy interrogations by the Russian security agency FSB before being allowed to pick up their children. Two other kids were unable to return after their grandmother, who traveled to bring them home, died during the trip.
Kuleba estimated 19,500 Ukrainian children are being held in Russia. The total number of Ukrainian children in Russia and in Russia-occupied territories may be as high as 1.5 million, he said.
Ukraine Says Russia Preparing to Evacuate Civilians to Crimea (4 p.m.)
Russia has intensified preparations to evacuate civilians to Crimea from the occupied parts of Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, Ukraine’s general staff said on Facebook.
Residents of the occupied cities of Melitopol and Skadovsk are being surveyed on personal details, from whether they hold a Russian passport to their level of education. “Buses with those willing to evacuate are reported to periodically depart,” the general staff said, and occupying officials “are spreading information that the forced evacuation of civilians will begin in late April.”
The efforts come ahead of a potential counteroffensive by Kyiv to recapture territory held by Kremlin forces since shortly after the February 2022 invasion. Russian President Vladimir Putin formally annexed the regions in October in defiance of international law.
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