Ukraine, Briefly

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This week, Russia launched a massive wave of missile attacks across Ukraine, killing dozens of people, knocking out power and taking a nuclear power plant off the grid, Reuters reported. The first large-scale missile attack since mid-February on Thursday shattered the longest period of relative peace since Russia launched an offensive on Ukraine’s vital infrastructure five months ago. According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, infrastructure and residential properties in 10 areas have been damaged.

Also this week:

  • Russian forces are bombarding Ukrainian soldiers on three sides as they attempt to seize Bakhmut, a city in the eastern Donetsk region that has become the focus of the longest and bloodiest combat operation since the war began, according to the Guardian. Despite an estimated 100 to 200 casualties every day, Ukrainian authorities said they will continue to try to hold the city, explaining that the cause is more political and symbolic than practical.
  • Ukrainian officials denied any involvement in the undersea explosion of the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines after US and European intelligence agencies found that a pro-Ukraine group carried out the sabotage last year, NPR wrote. Intelligence officials suggested that a group of six people used a yacht to carry out the attack that damaged the pipelines transporting gas from Russia to Germany. However, they noted that there was no evidence that the Ukrainian government directed the suspected saboteurs or even knew about them.
  • A parliamentary delegation from Hungary will support Sweden’s NATO membership ambition following a meeting with the speaker of the Swedish parliament to resolve “political differences,” the Associated Press reported. A number of Hungarian lawmakers have expressed reservations about supporting NATO membership applications from Sweden and Finland, citing what they describe as “blatant lies” from Stockholm and Helsinki regarding the state of Hungary’s democracy.
  • The mother of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the CEO of the Russian mercenary organization the Wagner Group, won a legal fight against sanctions at the European Union’s second-highest court, Politico noted. The General Court removed Violetta Prigozhina from the sanctions list after concluding that being a family member of Prigozhin – a close supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin – was insufficient justification for sanctions. The ruling could have a significant impact on other cases of family members of sanctioned individuals.
  • Meanwhile, four bankers appeared in a Swiss court charged with assisting Putin in concealing tens of millions of dollars, the Guardian added. The individuals, who worked in top positions at Russia’s Gazprombank’s Swiss branch, are suspected of assisting Sergei Roldugin – another ally of the Russian president, dubbed “Putin’s pocketbook” – to move millions through Swiss bank accounts without employing adequate due diligence procedures.
  • Ukraine has set up a high-tech hotline aimed at helping Russian soldiers who are not willing to fight and want to voluntarily surrender, according to the Los Angeles Times. The “I Want to Live” program provides step-by-step information on how Russian troops can abandon their posts. Organizers said the program has attracted more than 13.3 million visits since September, with 7.6 million of those coming from Russian territory.

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