Ukraine updates in English

[US7IGN]

It continues to rain and I feel bad, but every day can be lived as a whole life and it gives me strength.

The night of April 1, 2025 was the first in a long time when the occupiers did not launch their drones over Ukraine. There could be many reasons for this, starting from creating the appearance of observing a ceasefire, ending with reconfiguring drones and changing the tactics of their use.

Donald Trump told network NBC News on Sunday he is growing frustrated with Vladimir putin as a peace deal drags on. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says he is frustrated with "leaders on both sides". She says the war has gone on for too long, with many dying on both sides. https://news.sky.com/story/trump-third-term-latest-tariffs-stock-market-musk-13209921?postid=9369648#liveblog-body

But russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said the U.S. is not taking into account russia's "main demand" to secure peace in its war on Ukraine, and so the Kremlin "cannot accept" American proposals as things stand. "We have not heard from Trump a signal to Kyiv to end the war," Ryabkov told russia's International Affairs magazine in an interview. https://www.newsweek.com/russia-cannot-accept-trump-ukraine-peace-plans-2053585
https://interaffairs.ru/news/show/50973

President Vladimir putin has called up 160,000 men aged 18-30, russia's highest number of conscripts since 2011, as the country moves to expand the size of its military. The spring call-up for a year's military service came several months after putin said russia should increase the overall size of its military to almost 2.39 million and its number of active servicemen to 1.5 million. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c36718p52eyo

It is interesting that in Ukraine mobilization is happening the other way around - people aged 25 and older are subject to mandatory conscription, while those aged 18-24 are offered to serve under a contract.

However, young people in Ukraine are also not interested in public service. The National Civil Service Agency has published the results of a survey on factors that hinder the recruitment of young people to work in the civil service.

The survey was conducted in July-August 2024 among both young professionals who are already working or have experience in civil service, and among young people who do not yet have experience in public service.

According to the survey results, the factors that do not contribute to the employment of young people in the civil service are a toxic atmosphere, low salaries, and corruption.
https://api.par.in.ua/uploads/progress_report/file_uk/47/Survey_Report_Youth_Engagement_to_Public_Service.pdf

In 2024, the number of civil servants under the age of 35 in the civil service of Ukraine was only 20%.
https://sud.ua/uk/news/publication/326661-toksichnaya-atmosfera-nizkaya-zarplata-i-korruptsiya-v-nags-soobschili-pochemu-molodezh-ne-khochet-rabotat-na-gosudarstvo

But not everyone in Ukraine is doing badly. In 2025, Forbes counted six Ukrainian billionaire businessmen. The richest Ukrainian in 2025 was Rinat Akhmetov, owner of DTEK and co-owner of Metinvest. With a fortune of $7.9 billion, he took 390th place in the world.

The list continues with:
Viktor Pinchuk, who owns the Interpipe group of companies - $3.2 billion;
Petro Poroshenko, owner of the Roshen company - $1.7 billion;
Andriy Verevsky, founder of the agricultural holding and main shareholder of Kernel, - 1.4 billion;
Vlad Yatsenko, co-founder of the neobank Revolut, which in 2021 became the most expensive startup in the UK - $1.2 billion;
Vadim Novinsky, owner of Smart Holding Group - $1.2 billion;
Konstantin Zhevago, CEO of Ferrexpo, former owner of the "Finance and Credit" bank - $1.1 billion.
https://unn.ua/en/news/one-more-ukrainian-billionaire-forbes-published-the-ranking-of-the-richest-people-in-the-world-for-2025

Nice song about everything )
https://youtu.be/lpRqe0LYvzs

[KD8ZM-Brady]

"She says the war has gone on for too long, with many dying on both sides."

I agree completely.

I assume neither those Ukrainian billionaires nor their offspring will be opportunistically harvested from the streets, for military service? Rhetorical question.

Hope you soon feel some hope from the springtime weather... it's rather late in coming, here.

[KD8ZM-Brady]

Yes.

I don’t blame them for reconsidering, given that 1) They have (like the US) substantially drawn down their munitions stocks for Ukraine, 2) They need to drastically increase their defense capabilities generally since the US has become unreliable and has lost its resolve against Russian aggression, 3) The current Trump administration has been clear in words and deeds from their start that in essence they don’t view Ukraine as important strategically and therefore aren’t supportive of being any kind of backstop for EU peacekeepers, 4) That Trump has said he wants a friendly relationship with and to work with Russia on many fronts, and 5) Their traditionally more pacifist populations.

Bob, I don't disagree with any of those, but I do believe that #5 is only a recent phenomenon which came about because they could afford to be pacifist and play the moral superiority card, as long as they believed the US would rescue them. They didn't become pacifist because of the brutality of WW2; if that were the case, they would have had the same pacifist reaction to the equally-brutal WW1. And it was the "pacifist" Europeans who started both wars, it wasn't even Russia!
There's nothing quite like an immediate threat that someone else may not handle, to get one to shed their pacifist costume. It's time for Europe to stop fooling themselves about this, in fact, way past time. As was recently pointed out, there are 500 million Europeans, only 350 million Americans, and they are 4000 miles closer to the threat than we are.

[N0TZU]

The song and the animation are spot on!

I hope you feel better as the weather improves Wlad.

Weather here has been moving away from winter but then soon back again in typical schizophrenic pattern. Snow at the ski areas changes from hard and icy in the morning, to nicely soft mid-day, then slushy in the afternoon.

[N0TZU]

Bob, I don't disagree with any of those, but I do believe that #5 is only a recent phenomenon which came about because they could afford to be pacifist and play the moral superiority card, as long as they believed the US would rescue them. They didn't become pacifist because of the brutality of WW2; if that were the case, they would have had the same pacifist reaction to the equally-brutal WW1. And it was the "pacifist" Europeans who started both wars, it wasn't even Russia!
There's nothing quite like an immediate threat that someone else may not handle, to get one to shed their pacifist costume. It's time for Europe to stop fooling themselves about this, in fact, way past time. As was recently pointed out, there are 500 million Europeans, only 350 million Americans, and they are 4000 miles closer to the threat than we are.

I agree that American military strength and willingness to station forces in Europe after WW2 (and later nuclear weapons and our “nuclear umbrella”) was significant in allowing Europe to spend less on defense and helped to encouraged pacifist sloth (Soviet and Russian propaganda has also been a factor).

(Notably the UK and France have historically spent large sums relative to other countries in Europe and have nuclear weapons, nuclear missile and attack submarines, at least one operational aircraft carrier (the French carrier is nuclear) and other conventional military assets. Italy has two carriers)

However I don’t agree about the pacifism history.

There was considerable pacifism in Europe and the US after WW1. Besides the restrictions placed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles, there were several other treaties and agreements limiting militaries among many nations including the US. These remained mostly in force until the outbreak of WW2, except by Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.

Civilian pacifism and isolationism movements became fairly popular in Europe and the US, and resulted in insufficient political will for the former allied nations to respond to the rearming of Germany and Japan by increasing shrunken defense budgets and renegotiate or abandon the limits on militaries and ships. Some of this was also due to the effects of the Great Depression.

Ultimately the pacifism and lack of will culminated in Chamberlain’s capitulation to Hitler on the Sudenland which effectively gave Czechoslovakia to Hitler and allowed him to go on to confidently attack Poland starting WW2. Famously, Winston Churchill was in the political wilderness for many years partly for arguing that war was approaching and that rearming was vital.

In the US, there was a similar situation and military budgets had been atrophied for many years. It wasn’t until 1938 that Congress began to greatly increase military spending as war became imminent. Even then, it was still difficult to send military assistance to Britain and other allies because of strong isolationist sentiments in Congress. Not until the US was attacked by Japan and Germany declared war were all of these limitations fully abandoned.

[KD8ZM-Brady]

Bob, I don't disagree with any of those, but I do believe that #5 is only a recent phenomenon which came about because they could afford to be pacifist and play the moral superiority card, as long as they believed the US would rescue them. They didn't become pacifist because of the brutality of WW2; if that were the case, they would have had the same pacifist reaction to the equally-brutal WW1. And it was the "pacifist" Europeans who started both wars, it wasn't even Russia!
There's nothing quite like an immediate threat that someone else may not handle, to get one to shed their pacifist costume. It's time for Europe to stop fooling themselves about this, in fact, way past time. As was recently pointed out, there are 500 million Europeans, only 350 million Americans, and they are 4000 miles closer to the threat than we are.

I agree that American military strength and willingness to station forces in Europe after WW2 (and later nuclear weapons and our “nuclear umbrella”) was significant in allowing Europe to spend less on defense and helped to encouraged pacifist sloth (Soviet and Russian propaganda has also been a factor).

(Notably the UK and France have historically spent large sums relative to other countries in Europe and have nuclear weapons, nuclear missile and attack submarines, at least one operational aircraft carrier (the French carrier is nuclear) and other conventional military assets. Italy has two carriers)

However I don’t agree about the pacifism history.

There was considerable pacifism in Europe and the US after WW1. Besides the restrictions placed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles, there were several other treaties and agreements limiting militaries among many nations including the US. These remained mostly in force until the outbreak of WW2, except by Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.

Civilian pacifism and isolationism movements became fairly popular in Europe and the US, and resulted in insufficient political will for the former allied nations to respond to the rearming of Germany and Japan by increasing shrunken defense budgets and renegotiate or abandon the limits on militaries and ships. Some of this was also due to the effects of the Great Depression.

Ultimately the pacifism and lack of will culminated in Chamberlain’s capitulation to Hitler on the Sudenland which effectively gave Czechoslovakia to Hitler and allowed him to go on to confidently attack Poland starting WW2. Famously, Winston Churchill was in the political wilderness for many years partly for arguing that war was approaching and that rearming was vital.

In the US, there was a similar situation and military budgets had been atrophied for many years. It wasn’t until 1938 that Congress began to greatly increase military spending as war became imminent. Even then, it was still difficult to send military assistance to Britain and other allies because of strong isolationist sentiments in Congress. Not until the US was attacked by Japan and Germany declared war were all of these limitations fully abandoned.

You're right, Bob, about European pacifism post-WW1, which I knew about very well but wasn't focused on, which is strange because I have listened to all of Churchill's prewar and wartime speeches, where he was begging the US "give us the arms and we'll do the fighting" and lamenting the Chamberlains and others who were doing the ostrich routine (head firmly implanted in sand). My theory was always that they took the "war to end all wars" phrase literally. Of course like everyone who studies American history, I'm aware of the pacifist movement in the US, popularized by folks like Lindbergh.

I like your term "pacifist sloth." Entirely descriptive, and time for the fantasy to be revealed for what it is. I hope Europeans remember the lessons of their pre-WW2 mistakes before it's too late, and recognize that responsibility for their defense primarily rests with them, not with the US. 

[US7IGN]

The war continues, drones and missiles continue to fly on both sides of the front and far beyond its borders. Ukrainian drones occasionally hit military factories in russia, and sometimes even reach Moscow.
https://gazeta.ua/articles/np/_bpla-atakuvali-moskvu-i-lipeck-v-mistah-chuli-vibuhi/1213633
https://www.dw.com/ru/drony-atakovali-edinstvennyj-v-rossii-optovolokonnyj-zavod/a-72147746

russian drones and missiles arrive in much larger numbers, but the media only report on the destruction of infrastructure and hits on residential buildings and offices. Kharkiv, Dnipro and Kropyvnytsky are getting the most. Dozens of civilians were killed, including children, and hundreds were injured.
https://tsn.ua/ato/ataka-droniv-na-kharkiv-pid-zavalamy-mozut-buty-zahybli-liudy-2801189.html
https://inforesist.org/ua/ih-vbyla-rosiya-zyavylysya-foto-ditej-yaki-zagynuly-vnaslidok-obstrilu-kryvogo-rogu/

Today, it was almost impossible to sleep all night because of the sounds of explosions and the work of air defense. In Kyiv, there was even an attack by ballistic missiles.
https://bigkyiv.com.ua/rankova-ataka-na-kyyiv-naslidky-balistychnogo-udaru/

However, the carriers of these missiles are gradually failing due to wear and tear and age.
https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/cde27d3xxjdo?xtor=AL-73-%5Bpartner%5D-%5Bukr%5D-%5Bheadline%5D-%5Bukrainian%5D-%5Bbizdev%5D-%5Bisapi%5D

So far we can talk about the slow advance of the russians, but still the inability of each side to gain a decisive advantage.

Western media is slowly revealing America's covert role in Ukrainian military operations against the invading russian army. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/03/29/world/europe/us-ukraine-military-war-wiesbaden.html

Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, on the other hand, believes that society should be ready to learn the truth about the war in Ukraine only over time. https://gordonua.com/ukr/news/military-actions/znati-pravdu-ukrajintsjam-pro-vijnu-treba-zhodom-zaraz-tse-zajve-budanov-1738649.html

People respond to such trust from the authorities with an unwillingness to fight for it. People again beat back another man who was trying to be forcibly mobilized by the mobilization center employees. https://sud.ua/uk/news/video/327319-vo-lvove-grazhdanskie-pytalis-otbit-muzhchinu-u-ttsk-travmirovav-voennosluzhaschego-video

Poland has transferred another 5,000 Starlink terminals to Ukraine. They will provide stable communication for the military and critical infrastructure. https://uatv.ua/uk/shhe-5-tys-terminaliv-starlink-peredala-ukrayini-polshha-mintsyfry/

European assistance remains important, but it is American weapons that remain critically important and no one can be sure of them now. US Patriot missile batteries in S. Korea to be temporarily deployed to Middle East https://www.koreaherald.com/article/10457906

[ke6sls]

Wlad,

Grateful to read your post this afternoon (6Apr2025) and know you are okay.  Too many days . .

The nazis are causing amazing destruction on/in my country.  There is no feeling of security and it's slowly dawning on most Americans that we are in great peril.

My slumlord has raised rent again and I now must try to figure out how/where I can afford to exist.

Cat's are all doing well and some day, I think the storms will finish with us for a while!

I wish you and your family well and will keep monitoring this thread.

73
Jaye

[N0TZU]

Wlad, thanks for the link to the NYT article. Im a subscriber but overlooked it somehow.

My recollection is that some of the information became public not long after the fact, but this is the first comprehensive and detailed press report I’ve seen.

So much waste from political decisions overriding professional military men in the army. Also many missed opportunities because the US did not provide long range weapons earlier when they could have made a tremendous difference.

[US7IGN]

Hi Jaye and Bob!
I think the US is in for a tough time, hang in there!
The trade war with the whole world probably has no analogues in history. China is raising tariffs in response and it no longer looks like a game of who blinks first, but rather who falls first. Will the winner get everything or will they become a victim of those who take advantage of such an unusual situation? In any case, it is obvious that a new world order is coming, and it depends on the leaders of countries what place they will take in it.

Victoria Spartz's interview in The Telegraf caused a great resonance in Ukraine and a sharp reaction from the authorities. The headline in The Telegraf stated: Ukraine’s first US congresswoman: Zelensky must cede land to russia. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2025/04/07/victoria-spartz-interview-republican-ukraine-war/

Congresswoman Spartz issued the following statement to clarify her current position on Ukraine, which I consider necessary to quote in full:
“It’s not surprising that the UK media is as dishonest as the US mainstream media, so let me set the record straight,” Spartz said. “I spent an enormous amount of energy trying to help the Ukrainian military to win their brutal fight against russia. Unfortunately, if you have morons and crooks like Zelensky and his puppet parliament running your country, it’s a lost cause. putin might be evil, but he is not a moron. The current reality on the ground is that Ukraine is not in the position to retake its territories, nor could they agree to give them up permanently. Therefore, only a temporary solution with the help of the United States can be achieved, which will give each side some time to regroup. The end result of that war will have to be decided later and not just on a battlefield.”
https://spartz.house.gov/media/press-releases/spartz-lasting-peace-ukraine-not-possible-now-ceasefire-needed

A discussion is underway on social media around the new Ukrainian history textbook for grade 11, specifically the section of modern history on the russian-Ukrainian war. Teachers, parents, and public activists are criticizing the authors for presenting events in a light favorable to the authorities. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/cx2w0nxywd7o

I haven't read that book and I can't say anything except that history textbooks have always reflected a point of view favorable to the current government, and to understand the situation, you need to read much more than one school textbook.

russian and US officials will hold fresh talks in Turkey’s Istanbul on April 10, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday. russia’s ambassador to the US, Alexander Darchiyev, will lead Moscow’s delegation, while US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Sonata Coulter will head the negotiators from Washington, the state-run Tass news service reported. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-04-08/kremlin-says-new-russia-us-talks-planned-in-turkey-on-april-10

Oleksandr Fedienko, a member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence, explained that the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which opposed the draft law on demobilization prepared by the Ministry of Defense, will not write and submit its own draft. Therefore, there is no hope for demobilization for soldiers, some of whom have survived since 2022 and continue to serve. https://nv.ua/ukr/ukraine/politics/shcho-bude-z-rozroblenim-minoboroni-zakonoproyektom-pro-demobilizaciyu-novini-ukrajini-50504584.html

Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrsky stated that the russian offensive on the Sumy and Kharkiv regions has actually already begun. According to him, we are already observing an almost doubling of the number of enemy offensive actions in all main directions.
https://www.unian.ua/war/nastup-rf-viyskiy-ekspert-pro-masshtabni-ataki-rosiyan-na-riznih-napryamkah-12971730.html?utm_source=ukrnet_news

Right now, an active political struggle for power is unfolding in the largest city in Ukraine. The actors are the long-time mayor of the capital, Vitaliy Klitschko, and the recently appointed head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, Timur Tkachenko, appointed by Zelensky. He explains his interference in the city's economic activities and local government issues by the need to protect it, he denies participating in the political struggle, and he refused to answer uncomfortable questions about the organization of the work of the air defense. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/c367wnnz754o

It was slightly frosty again and even snowing, so I felt so bad yesterday due to the change in weather and pressure that I decided to stay home today. Tomorrow is the first meeting at 8:00 and I need to have time to recover.

[N0TZU]

Hi Jaye and Bob!
I think the US is in for a tough time, hang in there!
…

Congresswoman Spartz issued the following statement to clarify her current position on Ukraine, which I consider necessary to quote in full:
“It’s not surprising that the UK media is as dishonest as the US mainstream media, so let me set the record straight,” Spartz said. “I spent an enormous amount of energy trying to help the Ukrainian military to win their brutal fight against russia. Unfortunately, if you have morons and crooks like Zelensky and his puppet parliament running your country, it’s a lost cause. putin might be evil, but he is not a moron. The current reality on the ground is that Ukraine is not in the position to retake its territories, nor could they agree to give them up permanently. Therefore, only a temporary solution with the help of the United States can be achieved, which will give each side some time to regroup. The end result of that war will have to be decided later and not just on a battlefield.”
https://spartz.house.gov/media/press-releases/spartz-lasting-peace-ukraine-not-possible-now-ceasefire-
…

I haven't read that book and I can't say anything except that history textbooks have always reflected a point of view favorable to the current government, and to understand the situation, you need to read much more than one school textbook.
…

It was slightly frosty again and even snowing, so I felt so bad yesterday due to the change in weather and pressure that I decided to stay home today. Tomorrow is the first meeting at 8:00 and I need to have time to recover.

—- Thanks, nobody knows what to expect from one moment to the next here.

—- Well stated, and seems accurate. [Unfortunately.] Whether the US will broker a successful temporary settlement remains to be seen. I am not hopeful given the naivety and appalling favoritism shown by the US negotiators toward Russia.

—- Here also we sometimes have interesting situations with school textbooks. The publishers try to satisfy the marketplace but there are often many disagreements between the largest customers, liberal California and conservative Texas on how to accurately describe history and what events to emphasize. It’s easier with soft textbooks read on notebooks since they are much easier to make in different versions, but not every child has a notebook computer.

—-I hope you get rest and feel better soon!

(Sorry about the format of this reply, I was having difficulties with my tablet)

[US7IGN]

In three days the weather changed from snow and 0C to sun and +20C and together with everything else led to the fact that the pressure rose sharply at night and the pills did not help immediately. My heart ached until I fell asleep closer to the morning, but I did not hear the drone attack at around 5 am. In three districts of Kyiv there were hits on various objects, destruction and victims.
https://vechirniy.kyiv.ua/news/111061/

A new meeting of Ukraine's allies in the Ramstein format was held in Brussels. Despite concerns, the US Secretary of Defense was still present - albeit via video link. The allies talked about whether it was possible to strengthen Ukraine's air defense, and the Estonian Defense Minister said that russia would like to agree on peace by May 9. That will mark the 80th anniversary of the victory in World War II, which Moscow usually celebrates on a particularly large scale, with an emphasis on the victims and the USSR's contribution to this victory. The dates are very important for the Kremlin and it is probably trying to get some kind of agreement by that date, some kind of ceasefire or whatever.

British Defense Secretary John Healy said allies had pledged 21 billion euros in military aid to Ukraine.

Although Europe is taking the lead from the United States in providing Kyiv with defense support, the United States remains a "major partner."
At a press conference in Brussels, German Defense Minister Pistorius commented on Ukraine's request for additional air defense systems, including American Patriots.

One journalist said that Volodymyr Zelensky had asked allies for 10 additional air defense systems. In response, Pistorius said that the Ukrainian president had talked about one additional system by the summer of this year, but Berlin would not be able to help with that.
https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/cj9e3zmrd7jo

Ukraine's experience with German weapons has been mixed. Hardly any large-scale equipment is "fully suitable for war." There are major problems with modern large-scale equipment, according to an internal Bundeswehr document obtained by NDR, WDR, and Süddeutsche Zeitung. The paper addresses eight weapon systems that Germany has provided to Ukraine. According to the paper, the Panzerhaubitze 2000 (self-propelled howitzer) has "such a high technical vulnerability that its suitability for war is seriously questioned." The Leopard 1A5 main battle tank, while considered "reliable," is "often used only as makeshift artillery due to its weak armor." The newer Leopard 2A6 requires high maintenance costs, and field repairs, i.e., repairs at the front, are often not possible.

The IRIS-T air defense system is very effective, but the price of the ammunition is too high, and these "are not available in the necessary quantities." The PATRIOT air defense system is also fundamentally an "excellent weapon system," but "unsuitable for combat use because the carrier vehicle is too old and the manufacturer can no longer supply spare parts." According to the minutes, the military attaché's conclusion sounds somewhat sobering: "Hardly any large German piece of equipment is fully suitable for war." The conclusion is also: "Complex equipment remains unused (...) The operational value of highly modern and complex large-scale equipment is low if troops cannot carry out repairs on site."
https://www.tagesschau.de/investigativ/ndr-wdr/ruestungsgueter-deutschland-bundeswehr-ukraine-100.html

President Trump's diplomatic envoy Steve Witkoff traveled to russia and met President Vladimir putin yesterday. This was the third meeting between Witkoff and Putin as Trump pushes for a ceasefire in the war between russia and Ukraine. Ahead of Witkoff's meeting with putin, Trump wrote on his Truth Social account: "russia has to get moving. Too many people are DYING, thousands a week, in a terrible and senseless war - A war that should have never happened, and wouldn't have happened, if I were President!!!"

Trump has become frustrated that negotiations haven't made much progress in recent weeks, and said at one point that he was "pissed off" about comments putin had made on Ukraine.

If no ceasefire is reached by the end of the month, Trump could move forward with additional sanctions on russia either through executive power or by asking Congress to pass new sanctions legislation, a source familiar with the issue told Axios. https://www.axios.com/2025/04/11/russia-witkoff-putin-meeting-ukraine-trump

Less than 48 hours after dining with a negotiator sent by russian President Vladimir putin in Washington last week, Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy leading talks with Moscow, sat down with President Donald Trump in the White House and delivered a clear message. The fastest way to broker a ceasefire in Ukraine, said Witkoff, was to support a strategy that would give russia ownership of four eastern Ukrainian regions it attempted to annex illegally in 2022, two U.S. officials and five people familiar with the situation told Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/trump-envoys-embrace-russian-demands-worries-republicans-us-allies-2025-04-11/

Trump envoy's embrace of russian demands worries Republicans, U.S. allies, but I am more worried that there are people in the world who shake hands with one of the greatest criminals against humanity of our time. I cannot imagine that someone from the administration of the US President would shake hands with Osama bin Laden, whose terrorist activities caused far less damage and casualties.

U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink intends to resign from her post early. "Ambassador Brink is stepping down. She's been the ambassador there for three years – that's a long time in a war zone. And frankly, the war has gone on for far too long," a State Department spokesperson said in a statement. "The real issue is whether the russians and Ukrainians are ready to do what's necessary to end this war."
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bridget-brink-ambassador-to-ukraine-to-resign-sources/

[KD8ZM-Brady]

Wlad, still reading your posts but I have little to add. They are so much more detailed and factual than what passes for "news" over here. Another reminder of why I mostly listen to foreign news services.
My only comment on your last post is that I feel we probably would have had little choice but to shake hands with Osama bin Laden, if he had possessed 6,000 nuclear warheads and the means to deliver them. I think that explains the difference.
Be well my friend.

[US7IGN]

Thanks Braden!
Information is hard to find even here. Facts are hidden in a lot of garbage and even "reliable" sources sometimes spread fakes. Some events are more important than they seem and indicate something that will happen soon. I have learned that continuity of observation is also important. If something happens "unexpectedly", it only means that we have missed something from what preceded the unexpected.

At the Antalya Diplomatic Forum, Ukraine officially established diplomatic relations with Somalia. A remarkable victory for Ukrainian diplomacy... https://sud.ua/uk/news/abroad/328103-ukraina-ofitsialno-ustanovila-diplomaticheskie-otnosheniya-s-somali-sibiga-podpisal-dokument

The next winter will not be easy: the shelling caused enormous destruction in the energy sector, said the CEO of DTEK Energy. According to him, last year the company's thermal power plants were subjected to 10 powerful attacks, as a result of which 90% of the generating capacity was damaged or destroyed. Despite this, thanks to the coordinated work of the energy workers, it was possible to quickly restore more than half of the lost equipment before the beginning of winter. However, new shelling in November and December 2024 caused additional damage to the already restored facilities. https://thepage.ua/ua/news/90percent-potuzhnostej-zrujnovano-yak-dtek-trimaye-udar

I think Ukraine survived the winter without blackouts exclusively in warm weather, but no one knows what the next winter will be like.

Trump weighed in on ongoing talks with russia and Ukraine, one day after Witkoff met with russian President Vladimir putin for more than four hours. “I think Ukraine-russia might be going OK. And you’re going to be finding out pretty soon. You know, there’s a point at which you have to either put up or shut up. We’ll see what happens, but I think it’s going fine,” he said. https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-presidency-tariffs-iran-04-12-25#cm9eunsaf00053b6t8q429raz

President Duda says Trump best chance for Ukraine peace. As for negotiations with Vladimir putin, President Duda is sure that Donald Trump has the measure of the russian leader, while refusing to be drawn on the competencies of his chief negotiator Steve Witkoff who landed on Friday in Moscow for further talks with Vladimir putin - a man Mr Witkoff has described as "trustworthy" and "not a bad guy". "If anyone is able to force the end of Russia's war, it is most likely only the President of the United States," he says. "The question is whether he will be determined enough to do that in a way - because it is also very important here in Europe being a neighbour of russian aggression against Ukraine - that the peace is fair and lasting." https://news.sky.com/story/president-duda-says-trump-best-chance-for-ukraine-peace-and-urges-allies-to-stay-calm-over-tariffs-shock-therapy-13346892

President Donald Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, clarified his comments in an interview with The Times on April 11, in which he suggested that Ukraine could be divided into separate zones as part of a peace deal with russia. Kellogg proposed creating a “pacification force” led by Britain and France in western Ukraine and concentrating Ukrainian troops east of the Dnieper River, where a demilitarized zone would also be created near the current line of control. The territories currently under occupation would be controlled by russian forces. “You could make it look like what happened to Berlin after World War II, where you had a russian zone, a French zone, and a British zone, a U.S. zone,” he said.

Later, in a post on X, Kellogg explained that his comments had been misrepresented.

“I was talking about a post-ceasefire deterrence force to support Ukrainian sovereignty. "In discussions about division, I was referring to areas or zones of responsibility of allied forces (excluding U.S. troops)," Kellogg said. "I was NOT referring to the division of Ukraine." https://mind.ua/news/20287803-kellog-poyasniv-shcho-vin-mav-na-uvazi-pid-rozdiliti-ukrayinu-yak-pislyavoennu-nimechchinu-pislya-mirnoyi-ug

ISW analyzes the changes in the front lines of the russian-Ukrainian war. The report for April 13 indicates that the enemy has advanced in several directions, but Ukrainian forces have also had success. https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-april-12-2025

On Saturday, April 12, 26-year-old pilot Pavlo Ivanov died while performing a combat mission on an F-16 aircraft, the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported. https://sud.ua/uk/news/ukraine/328198-vo-vremya-vypolneniya-boevogo-zadaniya-na-samolete-f-16-pogib-pilot-pavel-ivanov

[US7IGN]

The weather seems to have stabilized and this is the first night in a long time that I have not woken up and I do not have any pain. The sun is shining outside, but due to forced and often illegal mobilization, if you don't have the proper documents, being on the streets is quite dangerous.

But it was mobilization that became a tool for exempting top corrupt officials from criminal liability. On April 9, it became known that the former Head of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine Roman Nasirov, who is accused of allegedly receiving a bribe of $17 million, voluntarily mobilized into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. On that day, he did not appear for a hearing before the High Anti-Corruption Court.

But before the discussion about Roman Nasirov's voluntary mobilization had subsided during the criminal proceedings, the former tax official was no longer serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The commander of the unit where Nasirov was supposed to serve recognized the order as illegal and canceled it.

Roman Nasirov's defense did not officially comment on the situation with the failed mobilization. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/c24qqmrq3n9o

In March of this year, the Supreme Court published an explanation, from which it really followed that if a conscript was called up for military service during mobilization, then this process cannot be canceled. However, later the judge-speaker of the the Supreme Court, Andriy Zagorodnyuk, published a position on this legal situation. He said that such a court decision is not exemplary, that is, it is incorrect to say that those mobilized in violation of the mobilization procedure should remain at the front.

In another case, the Administrative Court of Appeals recognized that the decision to call up a reserved person was unlawful, but it was impossible to release him from military service by canceling the call-up order, because this was not provided for by law. https://sud.ua/uk/news/publication/328055-reshenie-ttsk-o-prizyve-zabronirovannogo-yavlyaetsya-protivopravnym-no-uvolit-s-voennoy-sluzhby-putem-otmeny-prikaza-o-prizyve-nevozmozhno-poskolku-eto-ne-predusmotreno-zakonodatelstvom-apellyatsionnyy-adminsud

Another court disagreed with the Supreme Court's position that illegal mobilization in violation of the medical examination procedure is not a reason for dismissal from military service, concluding that illegal actions cannot have legitimate consequences. https://sud.ua/uk/news/publication/328051-sud-vyrazil-nesoglasie-s-pozitsiey-verkhovnogo-suda-chto-nezakonnaya-mobilizatsiya-s-narusheniem-poryadka-prokhozhdeniya-vlk-ne-yavlyaetsya-osnovaniem-dlya-uvolneniya-s-voennoy-sluzhby-protivopravnye-deystviya-ne-mogut-vyzyvat-pravomernykh-posledstviy

Thus, in Ukraine, the chaos in mobilization, caused by imperfect legislation, corruption, and violation of the law by civil servants responsible for mobilization, is further aggravated by contradictory judicial practice.

The successful exchange of prisoners of war directly depends on the availability of an exchange fund, and it is the lack of this resource that is one of the main challenges for the return of Ukrainian defenders, said the representative of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, Oleg Slobodyanyk. https://gordonua.com/ukr/news/war/v-ukrajini-nedostatnij-obminnij-fond-shchob-povernuti-vsikh-polonenikh-predstavnik-koordinatsijnoho-shtabu-1739217.html

That is, it turns out that there are more Ukrainian prisoners of war than russians, despite propaganda statements that russian soldiers were surrendering en masse, and Ukrainian losses were minimal.

Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Pavlo Palisa said that a lot of applications for military service under the "18-24" program have been received, but fewer than 500 people have signed contracts so far.

Even before Trump's inauguration, American officials and representatives of NATO countries urged Ukraine to lower the mobilization age to 18, as it needs manpower on the front lines. Zelensky rejected such requests and later announced a one-year "Contract 18-24", which can be signed by young men aged 18 to 24. Among the conditions: one million hryvnias, an interest-free mortgage and a social package. The contract provides exclusively for combat positions, including rifleman, grenade launcher and scout. The training will last more than 80 days. Young men who serve in the army and are not 25 years old can also receive the money.
https://suspilne.media/993565-kontrakt-18-24-v-ofisi-prezidenta-nazvali-kilkist-pidpisanih-ugod-na-sluzbu-u-zsu/