9 votes

Megathread for news/updates/discussion of Russian invasion of Ukraine - April 20-21

This thread is posted Monday/Wednesday/Friday - please try to post relevant content in here, such as news, updates, opinion articles, etc. Especially significant updates may warrant a separate topic, but most should be posted here.

If you'd like to help support Ukraine, please visit the official site at https://help.gov.ua/ - an official portal for those who want to provide humanitarian or financial assistance to people of Ukraine, businesses or the government at the times of resistance against the Russian aggression.

19 comments

  1. cfabbro
    Link
    Russia tests nuclear-capable missile that Putin calls world's best

    Russia tests nuclear-capable missile that Putin calls world's best

    In a show of strength two months into its assault on Ukraine, Russia test-launched a new nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile which President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday would make Moscow's enemies stop and think.

    Putin was shown on TV being told by the military that the long-awaited Sarmat missile had been test-launched for the first time from Plesetsk in northwest Russia and hit targets in the Kamchatka peninsula, nearly 6,000 km (3,700 miles) away.

    "The new complex has the highest tactical and technical characteristics and is capable of overcoming all modern means of anti-missile defence. It has no analogues in the world and won't have for a long time to come," Putin said.

    "This truly unique weapon will strengthen the combat potential of our armed forces, reliably ensure Russia's security from external threats and provide food for thought for those who, in the heat of frenzied aggressive rhetoric, try to threaten our country."

    4 votes
  2. [6]
    skybrian
    Link
    West sends Ukraine fighter jets, heavy weapons as fighting intensifies in Donbas (Washington Post) [...]

    West sends Ukraine fighter jets, heavy weapons as fighting intensifies in Donbas (Washington Post)

    President Biden approved a new $800 million aid package last week that dramatically expanded the scope of weapons Washington has supplied to Kyiv. The package included 155 mm howitzers — a serious upgrade in long-range artillery to match Russian systems — 40,000 artillery rounds and 11 Soviet-designed Mi-17 helicopters.

    [...]

    Ukraine has also received fighter aircraft and related parts from other nations, Kirby said. He declined to specify what kind of aircraft has been supplied or which countries have provided them.

    3 votes
    1. [4]
      vektor
      Link Parent
      What? Are we doing "ooops, how did Polish MiGs get into Ukraine? We shall never know!" now? Let me guess, they were training Ukrainian pilots on those in Poland, "just in case", and when all the...

      Ukraine has also received fighter aircraft and related parts from other nations, Kirby said. He declined to specify what kind of aircraft has been supplied or which countries have provided them.

      What? Are we doing "ooops, how did Polish MiGs get into Ukraine? We shall never know!" now? Let me guess, they were training Ukrainian pilots on those in Poland, "just in case", and when all the pilots were airborne at the same time, they just shuffled over the border whistling?

      4 votes
      1. [2]
        skybrian
        Link Parent
        I know we've gotten used to getting lots of information about the war when it happens, but secrecy is not that unusual in war and there are good reasons for it. Eventually the story will come out,...

        I know we've gotten used to getting lots of information about the war when it happens, but secrecy is not that unusual in war and there are good reasons for it. Eventually the story will come out, but there's no reason to give the Russians clues about where to look.

        Possibly some of Zelensky's complaints are cover.

        7 votes
        1. vektor
          (edited )
          Link Parent
          Ohh, I'm not complaining about them keeping it quiet. I'm just making jokes because it's a bit close to the "little green men"(not that I mind, fight fire with fire!), and it's also relatively...

          Ohh, I'm not complaining about them keeping it quiet. I'm just making jokes because it's a bit close to the "little green men"(not that I mind, fight fire with fire!), and it's also relatively obvious there's a quiet part to that statement.

          I don't expect them to tell us exactly who's jets those are and how they got there. Under-the radar flight into Transcarpathia, so as to be unobservable by Russia?

          Possibly some of Zelensky's complaints are cover.

          Good point. With how relatively transparently we handle these arms shipments usually, it's probably a nightmare for military planners. They'd rather have some toys the Russians are unaware of. Logically, then, it would behoove us to send them stuff on the down low at least some of the time. But of course everyone has to then do this silly song-and-dance where Ukraine goes "fuck off, we're dying for your freedom over here, now give me your aircraft carriers." and the west goes "sorry, really can't do that".

          Unfortunately that thought alone is dangerous if we assume our governments are secretive instead of incompetent or inactive.

          3 votes
      2. dootdoot
        Link Parent
        These Polish MiGs can be bought at any army surplus store!

        These Polish MiGs can be bought at any army surplus store!

        4 votes
    2. cfabbro
      Link Parent
      From the verified official Ukrainian Air Force account on twitter: https://twitter.com/KpsZSU/status/1516686129642233859 I wonder if they mean Officially or "Officially" <wink>?

      From the verified official Ukrainian Air Force account on twitter:
      https://twitter.com/KpsZSU/status/1516686129642233859

      Officially
      Ukraine did not receive new aircraft from partners!
      With the assistance of the US Government, @KpsZSU received spare parts and components for the restoration and repair of the fleet of aircraft in the Armed Forces, which will allow to put into service more equipment.

      I wonder if they mean Officially or "Officially" <wink>?

      1 vote
  3. cfabbro
    (edited )
    Link
    Putin honors brigade accused of war crimes in Bucha (WaPo)

    Putin honors brigade accused of war crimes in Bucha (WaPo)

    In a presidential decree, Putin praised the 64th Motorized Brigade for “mass heroism and bravery, steadfastness and fortitude” and for “distinguishing itself in military action for the protection of the Fatherland and state interests.”

    The brigade was awarded the “esteemed honor” of becoming “guards,” upgrading its name to the “64th Guard Motorized Brigade.”

    Ukraine’s Defense Ministry this month accused the brigade of being “war criminals directly involved in committing war crimes against the people of Ukraine in Bucha.”

    3 votes
  4. [2]
    cmccabe
    Link
    Meet ‘Phoenix Ghost,’ the US Air Force’s new drone designed for Ukraine’s war with Russia...

    Meet ‘Phoenix Ghost,’ the US Air Force’s new drone designed for Ukraine’s war with Russia
    https://breakingdefense.com/2022/04/meet-phoenix-ghost-the-us-air-forces-new-drone-designed-for-ukraines-war-with-russia/

    The latest $800 million arms package for Ukraine includes a unique new item — the Phoenix Ghost tactical drone, a never-before revealed system designed by the US Air Force and tailored specifically to meet the battlefield needs of the Ukrainian military.

    3 votes
    1. vektor
      Link Parent
      I bet my silver dollar of nonfalsifiable hypotheses that: Since we're hearing about this in the press, the Russians already know everything in that article. Which is to say, this system was...

      I bet my silver dollar of nonfalsifiable hypotheses that: Since we're hearing about this in the press, the Russians already know everything in that article. Which is to say, this system was already in Ukrainian hands and has hit Russian targets before this article was released.

      4 votes
  5. [2]
    cfabbro
    Link
    2 Russian oligarchs were found dead one day apart alongside their wives and children, reports say (Business Insider)

    2 Russian oligarchs were found dead one day apart alongside their wives and children, reports say (Business Insider)

    Vladislav Avayev, the former vice president of Gazprombank, was found dead of a gunshot wound in his Moscow apartment on Monday, Russia's state-run Tass news agency reported.

    The Moscow investigations department did not name the victims in its public statement about the case, but Tass said an unnamed source confirmed their identities.

    Investigators wrote in their statement that they are prioritizing a theory that Avayev shot his wife and daughter, and then himself.

    More than 2,000 miles away, in Spain, another oligarch — Sergei Protosenya — was found hanged, with his wife and daughter stabbed to death, Spanish TV channel Telecinco reported. His body was found Tuesday, Spanish outlet El Punta Vui reported.

    He was found with a bloodstained knife and an ax at his side, Telecinco reported.

    Protosenya was the former vice president and chief accountant of Novatek, a major gas company with close connections to Gazprombank.

    3 votes
  6. cfabbro
    Link
    G20 members condemn Russia's war in Ukraine, after Yellen and others stage walkout (Reuters)

    G20 members condemn Russia's war in Ukraine, after Yellen and others stage walkout (Reuters)

    Top officials from Britain, the United States and Canada walked out on Russia's representatives at a Group of 20 meeting on Wednesday and many members spoke to condemn Moscow's war in Ukraine, exposing deep divisions in the bloc of major economies.

    U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told attendees she strongly disapproved of a senior Russian official's presence at the meeting before she walked out, two sources told Reuters.

    She was joined by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, and European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde.

    Ukrainian officials, in Washington seeking billions of dollars of additional funding, also walked out of the meeting, a source familiar with the meeting said.

    2 votes
  7. cfabbro
    Link
    Seven die in fire at Russia defence institute – reports (The Guardian)

    Seven die in fire at Russia defence institute – reports (The Guardian)

    Seven people have been killed after a huge fire broke out at a key Russian defence research institute in Tver north-west of Moscow, according to reports.

    Local authorities said 25 people had also been injured in Thursday’s fire, Tass news agency reported, citing emergency services, and that at least 10 people were missing.

    The fire erupted in an administrative building of the aerospace defence forces’ central research institute, which operates under the Russian defence ministry. It quickly engulfed the building’s upper three floors, forcing those inside to jump from windows and causing the roof to cave in.

    Photographs of the main building showed it completely gutted by fire. Video footage from the scene, which is about 160km (100 miles) north-west of Moscow, showed thick smoke and flames billowing from the institute’s windows.

    The incident was followed hours later by unconfirmed reports of a fire at one of Russia’s largest chemical plants.

    Images on social media purported to show a large fire at the Dmitrievsky chemical plant in Kinsehma about 400km (250 miles) north-east of Moscow.

    They showed smoke billowing from the facility, which describes itself on its website as the largest producer of butyl acetate and industrial solvents in Russia and eastern Europe.

    There was no official cause given for either of the fires.

    2 votes
  8. cfabbro
    Link
    Latvian and Estonian parliaments say Russia committed genocide in Ukraine (Reuters)

    Latvian and Estonian parliaments say Russia committed genocide in Ukraine (Reuters)

    Lawmakers in Latvia and Estonia voted unanimously on Thursday to declare killings of civilians in areas of Ukraine occupied by Russian forces to be acts of genocide, according to statements posted on the two parliaments' sites.

    In its statement, the Latvian parliament cited "evidence of mass brutal crimes committed by the army of the Russian Federation, including the murder, torture, sexual abuse and desecration of Ukrainian civilians, including women and children, in Bucha, Irpin, Mariup ol and elsewhere".

    Estonia's parliament cited "murders, enforced disappearances, deportations, imprisonment, torture, rape, and desecration of corpses".

    2 votes
  9. cfabbro
    Link
    Putin calls off plan to storm Mariupol plant, opts for blockade instead (Reuters)

    Putin calls off plan to storm Mariupol plant, opts for blockade instead (Reuters)

    Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Russia's Chechnya region whose forces have been fighting in Mariupol, had suggested that the vast Azovstal facility, which covers more than 11 square kilometres (4.25 square miles), would be stormed after Ukrainian forces holed up inside ignored Russian offers to surrender.

    But Putin, in a Kremlin meeting with Sergei Shoigu, his defence minister, gave the order to call off the plan to storm it, saying it was better to save the lives of Russian soldiers and officers and to sit back and wait while Ukrainian forces ran out of supplies.

    "I consider the proposed storming of the industrial zone unnecessary," Putin told Shoigu in a televised meeting at the Kremlin. "I order you to cancel it."

    1 vote
  10. [2]
    cfabbro
    Link
    Germany to Help Ukraine With Artillery Ammunition, Training (Bloomberg)

    Germany to Help Ukraine With Artillery Ammunition, Training (Bloomberg)

    Germany will provide Ukraine with ammunition and training for heavy artillery as Chancellor Olaf Scholz comes under pressure to give more support to the effort to fend off Russian forces.

    The training and ammunition are for the PzH 2000, a self-propelled, rapid-fire artillery system, which the Netherlands is sending to Ukraine, according to a senior government official. The training could be provided in Poland or Germany, but not in Ukraine because of ongoing attacks from Russia, said the official, who asked not to be identified because talks between NATO allies and Ukraine are confidential.

    1 vote
    1. cfabbro
      Link Parent
      Germany will end oil imports from Russia by year end, says minister (Reuters)

      Germany will end oil imports from Russia by year end, says minister (Reuters)

      Germany will stop importing oil from Russia by the end of the year, said German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock after a meeting with her Baltic counterparts on Wednesday.

      "I therefore say here clearly and unequivocally yes, Germany is also completely phasing out Russian energy imports," said Baerbock.

      "We will halve oil by the summer and will be at 0 by the end of the year, and then gas will follow, in a joint European roadmap, because our joint exit, the complete exit of the European Union, is our common strength."

      2 votes