Wednesday, March 18, 2015
8:12 AM PDT
One Ukrainian soldier
killed, five wounded in past 24 hours - NSDC
(Censor.NET) --- One Ukrainian soldier was
killed and another five received injuries in the anti-terrorist area March 17.
Anti-terrorist
operation spokesman Andrii Lysenko said at a press briefing in Kiev on Wednesday, Censor.NET reports.
"We have lost
one servicemen and another five have been injured in the hostilities over the
past 24 hours," he said .
According to him, the injured servicemen are provided with medical treatment.
According to him, the injured servicemen are provided with medical treatment.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
7:40 AM PDT
Ukroboronprom ready
to upgrade 300 T-72 tanks to NATO standards
(Censor.NET) --- State concern
Ukroboronprom is ready to upgrade about 300 T-72 tanks, currently in the army
reserve, up to NATO standards.
This was stated by
Ukroboronprom Deputy Director General for the production Yurii Pashchenko,
Censor.NET reports citing the press service of the concern.
According to him,
today, when the Ukrainian military need fast and high-quality re-arming, the
equipment modernized by international standards will help to further strengthen
the Ukrainian army.
"The T-72 is
not in service with the Ukrainian Army. Ukraine has almost 300 of these
tanks. We offered the Ministry of Defense to upgrade them to PT-91 tanks, which
are in service in Poland ,
basically up to NATO standards," Pashchenko said.
He also noted that
the Polish side has already provided the Ukrainian military an opportunity to
test such equipment at their ranges. These machines exhibit particularly high
rates in terms of fire at night.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
6:37 AM PDT
Militants try to
force Ukrainian military back near Maiorske
KIEV, March 18 (Ukrinform). --- Over the
last day repeated attempts of the Russian-terrorists forces made repeated
attempts to disrupt the ceasefire in the Donbas .
Head of the
Information Resistance group Dmytro Tymchuk wrote this on his Facebook page on
Wednesday.
"Russian-backed
militants carried out provocations by firing on the positions of Ukrainian
troops and a series of active offensive actions. In particular, near the village of Maiorske
"In
particular, near Avdiivka, militant infantry groups were reinforced by tank
platoons with three or four tanks, which act as direct fire support
groups," Tymchuk said.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
6:11 AM PDT
Ukraine to strengthen
border with Transnistria
KIEV, March 18 (Ukrinform). --- Ukraine has developed the program to strengthen
the borders in "dangerous areas", particularly in Odesa and Kherson regions.
First deputy head
of the Presidential Administration Vitaliy Kovalchuk has said this at a
briefing in Kiev, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
"Today it is
necessary to distinguish between construction of fortifications and
strengthening the border areas, where we can expect the risk. It is clear that
the program to strengthen dangerous border areas in certain regions of the
country, including in Odesa and Kherson
regions, has been developed," Kovalchuk said.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
6:00 AM PDT
"Regular Russian
army is fighting against Ukrainians. There are no local miners and volunteers
left," - mercenary from Kyrgyzstan
(Censor.NET) --- Regular Russian army
detachments are fighting against the National Guard and the Armed Forces of
Ukraine units in the Donbas .
A mercenary from Kyrgyzstan , who has been participating in
engagements in the Donbas on the side of the
militants for more than six months, told this, Censor.NET reports.
He said that the
separatists are backed by the combat-ready detachments deployed in South Ossetia and the ones that have gone through the
first and second Chechen campaigns. The mentioned military personnel is mostly
consists of contract soldiers.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
6:53 AM PDT
Mariupol may be false
target because Russia might launch offensive on Kharkiv and Chernihiv - Marchuk
KIEV, March 18 (Ukrinform). --- Demonstrative
concentration and preparation of Russian military for a possible offensive on
the city of Mariupol
may be a false maneuver for the invasion of Russian military in Kharkiv and
Chernihiv regions.
This forecast was
stated by the former head of Ukraine 's
Security Service, the National Defense and Security Council Secretary, Defense
Minister and Prime Minister of Ukraine Yevhen Marchuk during a presentation of Research Center
on Russia
think tank at Ukrinform agency. "I have this fear, God's willing that I
make a mistake here that the accumulation and demonstrative preparation for an
offensive operation on Mariupol so that it will not be used to divert our
resources, so it will not become a maneuver for provocations, in fact an
aggression. It will be disguised, and now after the showing of the Russian
documentary on Crimea, where Russian President Putin had acknowledged Russia 's military involvement in the occupation
of Crimea , it might not be disguised but the
information on its military preparation will be twisted. However, an aggression
might not start towards Chernihiv, near the Ukrainian-Russian border 200
kilometers northeast of Kiev. Although it is difficult to imagine that they
will carry out an offensive on Kiev, but theoretically every option is
realizable in this situation," said Marchuk, commenting on his previous
statements in an interview that Chernihiv and Kharkiv border regions were under
threat.
Former defense
minister said that in a war, as a rule, "there is always a false
maneuvering."
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
2:11 AM PDT
Terrorists use heavy
artillery in the Donetsk airport vicinity - OSCE
(Censor.NET) --- The OSCE Special
Monitoring Mission in Ukraine
keep recording violations of the armistice near the Donetsk airport with the use of heavy
artillery.
Censor.NET informs
citing the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission latest report.
The raeport reads: "From 9:17 to 9:57hrs the SMM heard from its location inDonetsk
city centre ("Donetsk
People's Republic" "DPR"-controlled) at least 16 incoming mortar
rounds, estimated as 82mm and 122mm calibre. The SMM assessed that the impacts
occurred approximately 10km north-west of its location, in the vicinity of the Donetsk airport ("DPR"-controlled, 10km
north-west of Donetsk ).
The raeport reads: "From 9:17 to 9:57hrs the SMM heard from its location in
"Whilst in the
vicinity of the Donetsk
airport the SMM heard more than 100 explosions (incoming and outgoing) three to
five kilometres north and west of its location. The SMM assessed that a variety
of weapons were used, including heavy mortar, main battle tanks, artillery,
canons mounted to armoured personnel carriers, and small arms and light
weapons.
The SMM continued
to observe cease-fire violations around Shyrokyne village
("DPR"-controlled,102km south of Donetsk , 20km east of Mariupol).
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
17:43 PDT
Amnesty International
Slams Annexed Crimea 's Pro-Russia Regime
(RFE/RL) --- Amnesty International says the de facto authorities in
Crimea have failed to investigate a series of abductions and torture of their
critics since the violence that led to Russia 's
mostly unrecognized annexation of the peninsula from Ukraine a year ago.
Instead, Amnesty
said, Crimea 's Russian-backed leaders have
cracked down on dissent, creating a climate of fear on the annexed Ukrainian
region, with many of the regime's more vocal critics opting to leave.
It cites
"violations of the rights to freedom of expression, assembly and
association in Crimea [and] highlights human
rights abuses by the de facto authorities, including the failure to investigate
a series of abductions and torture of their critics, and their unrelenting
campaign of intimidation against pro-Ukrainian media, campaigning
organizations, Crimean Tatars and other individuals critical of the
regime."
Amnesty's fresh
report on March 18 comes exactly one year after Russian President Vladimir
Putin and Crimean leaders signed a treaty on Crimea joining Russia , a moved
widely rejected and condemned by the international community.
"One year on
from Crimea’s annexation, the attitude of its de facto authorities and their
Russian masters can be summed up simply -- like it or leave or shut up,"
said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International’s director for Europe and Central Asia .
Amnesty said since
the annexation of the Black Sea peninsula, at
least seven people have been abducted, with their fates unknown. At least one
other abducted individual has been found dead, with signs of torture.
"Unless the
ongoing clampdown on human rights, including freedom of expression, assembly
and association in Crimea is reversed, and
past violations are effectively addressed, the outlook for the people living on
the peninsula is bleak," the group warns in its introduction.
The global human
rights watchdog said it has documented the disappearances of three Crimean
Tatars.
Islyam Dzhepparov,
19, and Dzhevdet Islyamov, 23, were pushed into a van by four men in black
uniform on September 29, 2014, and have not been seen since.
Reshat Ametov, 39,
was seized while attending a demonstration in March last year. His body was
found later with signs of torture.
Andriy Schekun, the
leader of Ukrainian House, an organization promoting Ukrainian language and
culture, was abducted by pro-Russian paramilitaries and held for 11 days in a
secret location where he was electrocuted in March 2014. He was eventually
handed over to the Ukrainian military.
Amnesty said in none of these cases was
anyone held accountable.
Amnesty said the de
facto authorities are also using intimidation and restrictive laws to silence
the media and NGOs.
On January 26, some
30 armed, masked men from a special police unit, accompanied by security
officials, raided the offices of the Crimean Tatar TV Channel, ATR, disrupted
broadcasting and took away documents dating back to February 2014.
Several journalists
and bloggers have fled Crimea , fearing
persecution, including the vocally pro-Ukrainian blogger, Elizaveta
Bogutskaya.
A number of
prominent independent organizations, particularly those working on human rights
issues, have ceased to exist.
The Mejlis, which
represents the Crimean Tatar community, has been denied recognition and its
prominent members subjected to a campaign of harassment and persecution.
The recognized
leader of the Crimean Tatar national movement, Mustafa Dzhemilev, told a think
tank in Brussels on March 17 that Crimeans “live and survive in fear” and spoke
of constant intimidation and searches of schools and mosques for alleged arms
and so-called forbidden literature.
He also added that
there was “almost zero democratic freedom” and that Russia ,
through intimidation and blackmailing, is attempting to create “Putin Tatars”
responsive to Moscow .
Dzhemilev called
for tougher sanctions against Russia .
According to the
state-run Russian news agency TASS, Putin will "check the social and
economic development of Crimea at a special meeting" with the region's
pro-Russian leadership in Moscow
on March 18.
Russian
presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin's "short-term plans did
not include a visit to Crimea," although he said the Russian leader
may attend a Moscow
rally and concert on March 18 to mark the Crimean anniversary.
In a documentary to
be aired on Russian TV, Putin said he told senior security officials of his
decision to take Crimea just hours after
embattled Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych abandoned power.
Putin described an
emergency Kremlin meeting he said ended about 7 a.m. on February 23, 2014.
Putin said he
ordered the military and security agencies to "to save the Ukrainian
president's life."
"As we were
parting, I told all my colleagues: We will have to start work to return Crimea
to Russia ,"
Putin said in the trailer shown on March 8.
The Kremlin
originally denied that it had sent troops into Crimea ,
but Putin later said on television that Russian troops had been sent in.
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