- Russia-Ukraine Daily News
- Posts
- Weekend Briefing
Dear Reader, if you find this email interesting, helpful or of value, please do consider forwarding it to your friends or colleagues and encouraging them to subscribe. Thank you.
Morning Headlines
ISW: Belousov's appointment to the position of Russian Defense Minister is a significant development in Putin's efforts to set full economic conditions for a protracted war.
Reuters: Kremlin-owned energy kingpin Gazprom, once Russia's most profitable company, could face a long period of poor performance as it struggles to fill the gap of lost European gas sales with its domestic market and Chinese exports.
Bloomberg: In its latest bid to punish Russia for invading Ukraine, the EU may ban the use of its ports for re-exporting LNG (archive).
Reuters: Russian forces attacking Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region were engaged in fighting on the outskirts of the border town of Vovchansk, Kyiv's troops said on Sunday, as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy described heavy fighting there and in the east.
12.05.2024
Reuters: Putin tapped a civilian economist as his surprise new defence minister on Sunday in an attempt to gird Russia for economic war by trying to better utilise the defence budget and harness greater innovation to win in Ukraine.
CNN: Ukraine’s top general says the situation in the northern Kharkiv region has “significantly worsened” after Russia claimed to have captured four further villages as it expanded its surprise cross-border offensive.
The Economist: Russia is ramping up sabotage across Europe. In April alone a clutch of alleged pro-Russian saboteurs were detained across the continent (archive).
Reuters: Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska arrived in Belgrade on Sunday, the first visit by a top Ukrainian dignitary to Serbia since Russia's invasion in 2022 and a signal of the Balkan country's swing away from Moscow, its traditional ally.
Business Insider: A military unit called "Bars Kaskad" is recruiting Russia's elite, the UK Ministry of Defence said. The unit is mostly involved in drone operations far from the front lines in Ukraine. It likely allows recruits to "sidestep" usual service requirements "with guaranteed safety," said the MoD.
The Kyiv Independent: Drones operated by Ukraine's military intelligence agency attacked military targets in Russia's Volgograd, Lipetsk and Kaluga oblasts overnight on May 12, Ukrainska Pravda reported.
Yonhap: South Korea's spy agency said Sunday it is looking into suspicions that North Korean weapons made in the 1970s have been supplied to Russia for its war in Ukraine amid deepening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow.
The Telegraph: Buckingham Palace has stripped two businesses with ties to Russia of their royal warrants amid a major review of suppliers to the Royal family (archive).
Reuters: An overnight drone attack launched from Ukraine sparked a brief fire at an oil refinery in the Volgograd region in southern Russia, the region's governor said on Sunday.
11.05.2024
Euromaidan Press: German political leaders are considering a proposal to use NATO’s air defense systems stationed in Poland and Romania to protect the skies over Western Ukraine from Russian drone attacks.
France 24: Around 50,000 protesters marched through central Tbilisi on Saturday at a rally against a controversial foreign influence bill, dubbed "the Russian law", and backed by the Georgian government. Critics say the bill is inspired by a law in Russia that has been used to clamp down on dissent.
Reuters: Putin on Saturday gave extra duties to two key government officials who oversee the defence industry and energy sectors, as the Kremlin chief girds the world's second-largest oil exporter for a longer war in Ukraine.
The Telegraph: Russia is recruiting far-Right extremists to carry out attacks in the UK and Nato countries, The Telegraph understands. Intelligence sources have said that terrorists recruited by Russian GRU agents have been responsible for a series of attacks in Western Europe and the US in the last six months (archive).
The Kyiv Independent: Ukraine's 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade shot down another Russian Su-25 fighter jet, the unit claimed on May 11.
Reuters: Russia's Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat oil processing, petrochemical and fertiliser complex located in the Bashkortostan region has stopped its catalytic cracker after being attacked by a drone on 9 May.
The Kyiv Independent: Latvia will soon be providing Kyiv with domestically-produced drones and radar systems, Ukraine's ambassador to the country said on May 11.
Reuters: Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Saturday that Poland is starting work on further strengthening the entire eastern border, as the country faces what he called a growing "hybrid war" in illegal migration from Belarus.
ISW: Russian forces are likely conducting the initial phase of an offensive operation north of Kharkiv City that has limited operational objectives but is meant to achieve the strategic effect of drawing Ukrainian manpower and materiel from other critical sectors of the front in eastern Ukraine.
10.05.2024
Reuters: The commander of Ukraine's ground forces, in an interview published on Friday, said he expected the 26-month-old war against Russia to enter a critical phase in the next two months as Moscow tries to exploit delays in supplying weapons to Kyiv.
The Kyiv Independent: The Belgian government will provide Ukraine with an additional 9 million euros for energy infrastructure restoration.
Reuters: Canada will contribute C$76 million ($55.7 million) to a German-led initiative that aims to quickly source and deliver air defense systems to Ukraine to fend off Russian attacks, Defence Minister Bill Blair said on Friday.
CNN: The US announced on Friday a new $400 million military aid package to Ukraine. The package includes weapons Ukraine has been asking for, including Patriot missile system munitions, High Mobility Artillery Rocket System systems and ammunition, Stinger anti-air missiles, 155mm artillery rounds, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, and Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles, among other equipment.
RFI: French imports of fertiliser from Russia have shot up during the Ukraine war – leading to doubts over the government's promise to ensure that France is able to satisfy its own agricultural needs.
AFP: Portugal said it is "greatly concerned" by reports that its former colony Sao Tome and Principe has signed a military cooperation accord with Russia, the latest in a series between Moscow and West African nations.
Reuters: Kyiv expects to receive its first F-16 fighter jets from its Western allies in June-July, a high-ranking Ukrainian military source said on Friday.
All Eyes On Wagner: Thousands of Russian Defense Ministry personnel as well as “Wagner” recruits were transferred to Libya since the beginning of the year under the cover of a paramilitary organisation, probably African Corps.
FT: Sanctions represent a huge threat to air travel in Russia. Data collected by the FT shows that there has been a sharp drop in the amounts of components entering Russia over the past two years. But so far, there are few signs that sanctions have significantly disrupted air travel within Russia (archive).
The Times: A Russian-owned castle on the Kent-Sussex border that had its diplomatic status removed this week is suspected of being used by Russia’s military intelligence agency to meet and recruit UK agents (archive).
Russa-Ukraine Daily Briefing is sent 5 days a week. Do you think your friend or colleague should know about this newsletter? Forward it to them, please. They can also sign up here.
Please do support my work