UKRAINE WAR BRIEF DAILY DRAFT
For: 2024-02-28
Slava Ukraini! Since June 2023 I have provided a daily draft for the Ukraine War Brief Podcast collecting news from over 40 sources daily much of which ends up in the script. I will make this Draft available here for those who wish to keep up with events on a daily basis.
INSIDE UKRAINE
ALONG THE CONTACT LINE
GSAFU Morning Report
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in its situation update at 06:00 on Feb. 28 stated that it was day 735 of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
During the past day, 102 combat engagements took place. Over the past 24 hours, the enemy carried out 8 missile strikes, 75 air strikes, and 141 MLRS attacks across the positions of our troops and settlements. As a result of the Russian attacks, unfortunately, there are dead and wounded among the civilian population. Destruction and damage to residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure.
At the same time, Ukrainian soldiers continue to inflict losses in manpower and equipment on the occupying troops, exhausting the enemy along the entire front line.
The Ukrainian Air Force launched air strikes on 15 concentrations of enemy troops. 2 SU-34 fighter bombers and 4 intelligence drones
Ukrainian missile troops hit 4 concentrations of troops, weapons, and military equipment, 2 artillery systems, 1 air defence system, and 2 communication centers of the russian invaders.
Ukraine's Air Force downs second Russian Su-34 fighter on Feb. 27
The commander of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Lieutenant General Nikolai Oleshchuk reported that a second SU-34 was shot down around 14:00 on Feb.27. Oleshchuk added, with such losses of combat and special aviation, Russians should consider stopping "aviation meat attacks" at least for some time.
The Khortytsia operational-strategic group
(Responsible for the Kup’yans’k, Lyman, and Bakhmut axes, in the northeastern part of Ukraine. )
Kup’yans’k axis: Ukrainian defenders repelled 13 attacks of the enemy near the settlements Ivanivka and Tabaivka plus 20 assaults near Syn’kivka (Kharkiv oblast)
Lyman axis: Ukrainian defenders repelled 6 attacks near Terny, and Rozdolivka (Donetsk oblast)
Bakhmut axis: Ukrainian forces repelled 9 attacks near Ivanivske, Klishchiivka and Andriivka (Donetsk oblast)
The Tavria operational-strategic group
(Responsible for the Avdiivka, Mar’inka, Shaktars’ke, and Zaporizhzhia axes, in the central-eastern and southeastern part of Ukraine.)
Avdiivka axis: Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 25 enemy attacks near Berdychi, Orlivka,Tonen’ke, Pervomais’ke and Nevel’s’ke (Donetsk oblast).
Mar’inka axis: Ukrainian Defense Forces continue to hold back the occupiers in the vicinities of Krasnohorivka Heorhiivka, Pobjeda and Novomvahkilivka (Donetsk oblast). Troops repelled 29 attacks in that area.
Shakhtarske axis: Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 4 attacks near Staromaiors’ke, Urozhaine and Vuhledar (Donetsk oblast)
Zaporizhzhia axis: Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled attacks near Robotyne and Malynivka (Zaporizhzhia oblast).
The Odesa operational-strategic group
(Responsible for Kherson, Qırım, (also known as Crimea) and the Black Sea.)
Kherson axis: Ukrainian defenders continue to expand the bridgehead. Despite significant losses, the enemy does not abandon its attempts to dislodge Ukrainian troops from their positions. Over the past day, the enemy carried out 1 unsuccessful assault on the positions of the Ukrainian Defense Forces on the left bank of the Dnipro River.
TEMPORARILY OCCUPIED TERRITORIES
Ukrainian Partisans Claim of Reduction of russian Tanks in Temporarily Occupied Crimea
The Atesh Ukrainian partisan movement reported on its Telegram channel that its agents had noticed a decrease of russian tanks at railway station in occupied Yevpatoria.
"Due to the shortage of heavy equipment in their failed offensive operations in Zaporizhzhia direction, some tanks at the station had already gone to the frontline," the statement reads.
Atesh states that its agents managed to tamper occupiers` equipment while it was in the city. So there is a very good chance that it will not go to the battlefield. But if it does, it will not come back.
THE HOME FRONT
Russian attack on Kharkiv Oblast train station kills 2, including a child
Russia attacked the village of Velykyi Burluk in Kharkiv Oblast with guided aerial bombs on Feb. 28, killing a man and a six-year-old girl, Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Oleksii Kuleba said. Russian forces carried out the airstrike at around 5 p.m. local time, hitting a local railway station.
The child's mother was also reportedly injured. She is being provided medical care but is in serious condition, according to Kuleba.
The village lies around 80 kilometers east of Kharkiv and over 20 kilometers west of the Russian border.
RUSSIAN WORLD
Kremlin left disappointed with initiative in Transnistria
Andrii Yusov, representative of the Defense Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine (HUR), in a comment to RBC-Ukraine stated that the appeal of the so-called Transnistrian Moldovanian Republic (PMR) to Russia for protection from Moldova was not the result the Kremlin expected.
Rumors about the appeal of the PMR to Russia regarding accession were not confirmed, as previously stated by the HUR.
"Today, considering the situation in the PMR, nothing has happened. Russia did not get the desired result. In this situation, their efforts, both political and informational, have failed," Yusov emphasizes.
The representative of the military intelligence notes that the active disinformation campaign regarding Transnistria's plans to ask Russian dictator Vladimir Putin for accession to the Russian Federation indicates that "an interested party" was involved.
Have you seen my new article on the technological gap in Russian fighter design?
It can be found here:
WORLD NEWS
Czech Republic has an initiative that can quickly result in 800,000 artillery shells for Ukraine
The Czech Republic has found 800,000 artillery shells of 155 and 122 millimeter caliber for Ukraine. In the coming weeks, they may be sent to the Ukrainian army, states Petr Pavel, President of the Czech Republic.
At a panel discussion with the leaders of 5 EU member states, Pavel said that the Czech Republic has been successful in finding military equipment around the world, including finding the source of thousands of shells for the Ukrainian army.
"We have found half a million pieces of 155-millimeter ammunition and 300,000 pieces of 122-millimeter ammunition," he said.
Pavel added that these shells could be delivered to Ukraine in a matter of weeks if the Czech Republic can secure funding from partners in the United States, Germany, Sweden and other countries.
Belgium allocates €200M for Czech ammo procurement initiative for Ukraine
Belgium announced it has allocated 200 million euros to the Czech initiative for the purchase of artillery ammunition, which Ukraine urgently needs, according to the Prime Minister of Belgium, Alexander De Croo.
"We can never match the sacrifice Ukraine is making every day," the statement reads.
The Prime Minister of Belgium added that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy needs to be given what he has asked for, namely more ammunition to counter the Russian aggressor.
"Belgium will fund the Czech initiative for 200 million euros. More ammunition is coming in the next weeks," he wrote.
Recently, France and the Netherlands supported a plan to purchase ammunition outside of Europe to quickly deliver much-needed military equipment to Ukraine. It is expected that the proposal will be made in early March.
The Netherlands has announced the allocation of over 100 million euros to Ukraine for the Czech initiative to purchase artillery shells outside the EU.
Zelenskyy meets with Prime Minister of Albania, cooperation agreement signed
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in Tirana. The meeting took place on the eve of a summit on Ukraine to be held on Feb. 28. Euronews reported
According to Euronews, the Ukraine-Southeast Europe summit will be attended by several leaders of Southeast Europe. The Prime Minister of Albania expresses pride in organizing the summit.
Rama says that in addition to co-organizing the summit, Zelenskyy will also hold bilateral meetings with Albanian political forces.
These meetings will take place before the summit, which begins at 11:30 a.m. The Ukrainian delegation will also include Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. Zelenskyy and Rama discussed Ukraine's urgent defense needs and further cooperation, including joint production of armaments.
During the meeting, the parties discussed work on a bilateral security agreement within the G7 Joint Declaration in support of Ukraine, to which Albania has joined.
Polish law enforcement officers detain Ukrainian journalists from Ukrainska Pravda
Polish law enforcement officers detained Ukrainian journalist Mykhailo Tkach, along with a cameraman, for several hours near the border with Belarus, the Ukrainska Pravda editorial team reports.
The journalist was filming a story about trade between Poland, Belarus, and Russia. The Ukrainian citizens were later released, and some footage was deleted.
The UE team is outraged that the situation was resolved only after the publicity and intervention of the Ukrainian Embassy in Poland. The UE thanks the ambassador and the consul for their quick reaction and indifference.
"Near the Polish border with Belarus, Polish police approached us and showed the badge. We showed our documents and journalistic certificates. They started grabbing our cameras, searching…
Then we were brought to the commandant's office. About 10 people started searching our car, we were pushed to the hood, all the memory cards were taken from the cameras, all the phones and documents were taken away.
During the interrogation in the commandant's office, I said that we are journalists and said that we are filming how Poland trades with Russia through Belarus and how Poland trades with Belarus, how agricultural products go from Russia and Belarus to Poland.
It was clear that the representatives of the Polish secret service were frightened. They started asking me who else knows about it, whether Ukrainian civil servants, the Ukrainian government, know about it. They asked who our sources were, how we learned about it, how long we are working on this topic".
— Mykhailo Tkach, Ukrainian journalist
As a result, the journalists were held in the commandant's office for at least 4 hours and only then released after permission "from above". All this time, journalists were not informed to contact anyone.
In the Polish commandant's office, the Ukrainians were interrogated not only by police but also by special services.
After the journalists received the memory card back, they realized that some of the seized materials had been removed.
European Parliament approves 50 billion euro package for Ukraine
The European Parliament voted to approve the 50 billion euro ($54 billion) funding package for Ukraine, known as the Ukraine Facility, as part of the EU budget on Feb. 27. The Ukraine Facility was approved in the European Parliament with 536 votes in favor, 40 against, and 39 abstentions.
The package provides funding to Ukraine from 2024 to 2027, with 33 billion euros ($35.8 billion) available in loans and 17 billion euros (18.5 billion) in grants.
After months of obstruction by Hungary, European leaders agreed on the four-year financing for Kyiv during a European Council summit on Feb. 1. After the European Council agreed to the financing, members of the European Parliament (MEPs) negotiated the establishment of a "Ukraine Facility Dialogue," the parliament said.This guarantees that MEPs will have "regular discussions with the (European) Commission every four months on the progress and implementation of the Facility, fostering greater transparency and democratic oversight."
The European Parliament also strengthened the involvement of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, which "has significantly enhanced the democratic legitimacy of the Facility in Ukraine."
Grants make up 33% of the funding of the Ukraine Facility, "with at least 20% dedicated to the recovery, reconstruction, and modernization of Ukraine's sub-national authorities such as regions, cities, and local communities," according to the European Parliament. "Another 20% of the Facility's investments will be earmarked for green initiatives, and 15% of support directed towards small and medium-sized enterprises."
Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said he was grateful to MEPs and the European Parliament President Roberta Metsola "for their solidarity with the Ukrainian people" and "determination to support Ukraine."
MILITARY & TECH
Ukrainian soldiers claim the CV-9040 is the deadliest IFV
Soldiers of Ukrainian 21st Mech Brigade About the Swedish Combat Vehicle Defense Express reports. The best qualities about the Combat Vehicle 90 is its firepower and level protection it ensures to the crew
Ukrainian Defense Ministry's official media Army TV has gone to the frontline to see the CV9040 infantry fighting vehicle in action and talk to its operators, servicemen of the 21st Mechanized Brigade of Ukrainian Armed Forces. The troops describe their overall experience working with this weapon as positive and note how it often becomes a priority target for the russian invasion forces.
Interestingly, the multiple Ukrainian soldiers in the video praise the Barracuda multispectral camouflage. "It protects the vehicle from night vision devices, thermal imagers. Makes it some 70% less visible than any other vehicle. On the inside, covers from the heat, and on the top, it hides visually from the human eye. It helps a lot," says the crew commander, call sign Toreto.
"Our CV90 has shown itself in a positive light. First of all and most importantly, the armor and the gun. The armor is very robust, it withstood the frontal [hits by] Lancets, FPVs, and when a 120mm hit in the "a*s," it withstood, basically. The crew, although concussed, worked just as well on their own, fired at the target and fell back," says the deputy battalion commander of the 21st Brigade, call sign Drone.
The CV-9040 features a 40mm Bofors autocannon, the largest of any IFV serving in the conflict
The Bofors can fire a variety of ammunition
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