Ukraine at war, day 6. Timeline of events, March 1

 Five people have been killed and five injured during rocket attacks on a TV tower in Kyiv. Signal problems have been reported by several channels in the country.

 A powerful explosion has gone off in Kharkiv, near the airfield. Fighting has been going on in the city for three days:

 Since the fighting began, Russia has fired more than 400 missiles into Ukraine, a senior US defense official told CNN. He added that Ukraine’s air defense systems “remain capable, powerful and actively engaged.”

 The European Court of Human Rights demanded that Russia “refrain from attacks on civilians and civilian objects in Ukraine”. The Russian Ministry of Defense responded that it does not strike civilian targets in Ukraine, and that the targets of the Russian special operation are only military objects.

 President Zelensky said that in order to sit down at the negotiating table,  a ceasefire will be needed first.

 An elite group of Chechen fighters, which it was reportedly sent by Kadyrov to kill Zelensky has been destroyed- the head of the Security Service of Ukraine Serhiy Danilov says. The Times recently reported that more than 400 saboteurs were thrown into Kyiv on the instructions of the Kremlin. They are tasked with assassinating President Zelensky, members of the Cabinet of Ministers and preparing the situation to facilitate the capture of cities by the Russian army.

 US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken: “Should a UN member state be allowed to remain on the UN Human Rights Council if it is trying to seize power in another UN member state, commits gross human rights violations and creates a massive humanitarian catastrophe? Russia also carried out repressions on its own territory, closing down human rights organizations and persecuting activists, political opponents and journalists”.

 The Prosecutor General’s Office demanded that access to Ekho Moskvy and Dozhd be restricted. Their websites are no longer operating.

 Boris Johnson at the Tapa military base in Estonia: “We will not fight Russian troops in Ukraine. Our military is stationed here in Tapa, within the borders of NATO member countries, and this is a profoundly right thing to do”.

 The European Parliament by a majority supported the resolution on granting Ukraine the status of a candidate country for EU membership – and unanimously approved a resolution condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The European Parliament also called for tougher sanctions against Russia.

 The operator of Nord Stream 2 has filed for bankruptcy.

 BMW is ending production of its vehicles at Avtotor in Kaliningrad and is ceasing to supply vehicles to the Russian market, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

 Canada will ban Russian ships from entering its ports and territorial waters from next week.

 The Cannes Film Festival has decided not to receive an official Russian delegation this year.

 Paramount stopped film distribution in Russia following Disney, Sony and Warner. Netflix has stopped working on Russian original projects, according to The Bell.

 To date, Poland has received more than 377,000 refugees from Ukraine, according to the UN. The Polish government says an average of 50,000 people arrive every day.

Video: Violent arrest at an anti-war rally in St. Petersburg:

Thousands of people gathered in front of the State Chancellery in Tbilisi to express support for Ukraine and protest against the decision of Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili not to join international sanctions against Russia.

MILITARY REPORTS

 A rocket attack has hit a TV tower in Kyiv:

 The Russian Defense Ministry called on those who live in Kyiv near the relay nodes to leave their homes. “In order to suppress information attacks against Russia, precision-guided weapons will strike technological facilities and the main center of special operations in Kyiv”, the statement reads.

 New strike of Russian troops in Kharkiv, hospital has been destroyed.

 A Russian plane that carried out air strikes on Kharkiv and bombed a residential building was shot down by the Ukrainian military, Ukrainian Public Television reports.

 After the Russian strike at Borodianka:

 Rocket attack on utilities in Mariupol.

 The authorities of Chernihiv reported shelling of residential areas of the city with “Grad”.

 “The exit of Ukrainian units to the Sea of Azov is completely blocked”  – Russian Ministry of Defense. There has been no confirmation from the Ukrainian side yet.

 The British Ministry of Defense has published a map showing the places of attacks by the Russian army.

 The first exchange of prisoners took place – in the Sumy region, five Ukrainians have been exchanged for one Russian officer.

 Ukraine is increasing the supply of Turkish Bayraktar drones. Ambassador of Ukraine to the UK Vadym Prystaiko announced negotiations with Turkey on additional deliveries of strike UAVs.

 Poland and Bulgaria refused to transfer military aircraft to Ukraine. “NATO is not a party to a conflict”, said Polish President Andrzej Duda.

 The President of Ukraine recalled the ambassador from Georgia “for obstructing volunteers who want to help us, for an immoral position on sanctions”. “Sending volunteers to Ukraine is an attempt to drag Georgia into the war”, said Irakli Kobakhidze, chairman of Georgia’s ruling party.

Negotiations and official statements

 The meeting of the delegations is to take place on March 2. The head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said that “negotiations with the Russian Federation are needed, but Kyiv will not participate in them if Russia puts forward ultimatums there”.

 Hungary supported the accelerated accession of Ukraine to the European Union.

 Diplomats from more than ten countries left the hall of the UN Human Rights Council before the speech by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. So they expressed a sign of protest against Russian aggression in Ukraine.

 International support for Ukraine has strengthened even more

 Instagram has blocked all Russia Today accounts in 27 European countries

 German Lokomotiv Moscow coach Markus Gizdol has resigned due to the invasion of Russian troops in Ukraine.

 In Poland, announcements appeared in stores that 10% of each check was transferred to help Ukraine. Public transport in Warsaw is now free for Ukrainians.

 “The city of Volnovakha and thousands of its civilians are being wiped off the face of the earth, evacuation is impossible due to merciless, incessant shelling. Shelling that goes on day and night. The center is completely destroyed. There is no electricity, no communication, no water supply. Children with their parents have been sitting in the basements of multi-storey buildings for several days now, water and food are running out, or have run out already. People run from cover to cover in search of water. They run over the corpses. They walk 5 kilometers on foot under shelling”, Vladimir Vedenin, head of the office of the Prolisok-Volnovakha humanitarian mission. A “green corridor” is being discussed without which mass evacuation is impossible, since the railway is destroyed, and the roads are heavily shelled.

 President of Ukraine Zelensky’s speech in the European Parliament: “Every square in Ukraine will be Freedom Square. Nobody will break us.We fight for our rights, freedom, and now survival too. We are fighting to be equal members of Europe. With us, the European Union will be stronger. Prove that you are with us, prove that you are Europeans, then life will conquer death, and light will conquer darkness”.

  Volodymyr Zelensky called Russia a “terrorist state” amid the rocket attack on residential buildings in Kharkiv this morning. At least 10 people were killed, including children, more than twenty were injured, and the rubble continues to be cleared.

VIDEO: Kharkiv resident recorded an appeal to the inhabitants of Russia on a square destroyed by rocket fire, saying: “We are not afraid of you, you will not break us!”:

 Russian Defense Minister Shoigu: The Russian army will continue the special military operation in Ukraine until the set goals are achieved. The Russian army does not occupy Ukrainian territory and takes all measures to preserve the lives and safety of civilians. The strikes are carried out with high-precision weapons only at military facilities and exclusively with high-precision weapons, the Russian TASS reports.

  Chernigov is under siege, all exits from the city are mined, the city is ready for defense – the mayor of Chernigov.

  The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine called on residents “if possible, not to destroy, but to seize enemy equipment. “This is military equipment that our army can still use. But if there is no way out and it only needs to be destroyed, then destroy it”, Deputy Minister Anna Malyar said.

  The UK Treasury has imposed sanctions on the Russian Sberbank because it is “involved in obtaining benefits from the Russian government, which owns a controlling stake in the bank”.

  Russian conductor Valery Gergiev was fired from the post of chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, and Russian opera singer Anna Netrebko from the Bavarian State Opera. The reason is named as follows: “Because of Russia’s terrible military aggression against Ukraine and the lack of a sufficient response from Gergiev and Netrebko to it”.

  Foreign musical groups have begun to cancel concerts in Russia. Iggy Pop and The Killers refused to perform at the Park Live festival, and Franz Ferdinand canceled a concert in Moscow scheduled for July 1, Dozhd reports.

VIDEO: In Poltava, thousands of people bring help to the city council for evacuated children: toys, clothes, shoes, hygiene products

Ukraine recalls its ambassador from Georgia. “Georgian authorities do not allow Georgian volunteers to come to Ukraine and take an immoral position in relation to Western sanctions against Russia”, President Zelensky said.

The head of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Irakli Kobakhidze, replied: “Sending volunteers means direct participation in the military conflict. We won’t do that.”

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said on February 25 that Georgia would not support Western sanctions against Russia. Georgian society responded with numerous protests in the center of Tbilisi. On February 28, the prime minister made a new statement claiming that “there is no one to stop this war in Ukraine, and the sanctions are also ineffective”. He also spoke about the economic and financial importance of ties with Russia for Georgia, which also caused outrage among a large part of society.

  An explosion on has gone off on the Freedom Square in Kharkiv, the second largest city in Ukraine. Dozens of people have died since yesterday. Russia is bombing residential areas of the city, presumably with cluster bombs. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba has accused Russian President Putin of war crimes and called on the world to isolate Russia.

  The President of Ukraine has also called it a war crime. The rocket attack on Kharkiv continues, but it is still under the control of Ukrainian forces.

  Right now there is a massive shelling of residential buildings in Kherson:

The presidents of eight EU countries issued a statement in support of the accelerated start of the process of Ukraine’s accession into the EU – Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and the Czech Republic.

  Ukraine has launched a temporary visa-free regime for foreigners wishing to join the Defense Legion

  The leader of Belarus Lukashenko: In Belarus, air defense systems have been put on alert to prevent Russian forces from being hit in the back. But the Belarusian army does not take part in hostilities and has never taken part in them. The leadership of Russia has never put this question before us”. However, there are speculations in Ukraine and in the West that Lukashenko is actually preparing to send military force to participate in the attack on Kyiv.

  US State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Monday that Russia had “made a joke” of Belarusian sovereignty by launching an invasion of Ukraine from Belarusian territory.

  “Russia’s war crimes will be prosecuted. Britain supports efforts to ensure the preservation of evidence”, British Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab said.

  The largest cryptocurrency exchanges – Binance, FTX and Coinbase – received a warning from the US government. A Binance representative said that the exchange does not plan to close access to the trading platform for all Russian users, but will be closed for those who are subject to sanctions.

  YouTube announced the blocking of RT and Sputnik propaganda channels throughout Europe.

What’s next – a brief analysis

  Raab told BBC Breakfast that the international community would be reluctant to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine because it would mean a willingness to shoot down Russian aircraft, which would mean “a clear escalation”. Instead, economic sanctions are being imposed that deprive Putin’s military machine of finances. It is also hitting the oligarchs who need access to the international system and who will put pressure on Putin.

  “Russia initially deployed approximately 40% of its military forces to Ukraine. However, now about 75% are already concentrated there”, the representative of the US Department of Defense has stated. Jack Watling, Research Fellow in Ground Warfare at the Royal United Services Institute, agrees with this statement. He says that a large force of Russian troops is now advancing from Belarus. Conditions are being created for the assault on Kyiv.

  According to Watling, the Ukrainian army no longer functions in the form of military formations. It is increasingly becoming part of the territorial defense forces and volunteer forces with which it actively cooperates.

  In the near future, Finland will start a parliamentary discussion on joining NATO. The alliance said that Finland could be accepted within 24 hours after parliament makes a decision.

CNN: Dramatic satellite images released by Maxar Technologies on Monday evening showed a massive 40+ mile long convoy of Russian military vehicles snaking along roadways northwest of Kyiv. It’s easy to trace where those hundreds of tanks, towed artillery, armored and logistical vehicles came from. Just follow the roads.

In Ukraine, northwest of Kyiv, all roads lead to Belarus. The roadway and bridge at Chernobyl — the town, not the failed nuclear reactor — ends in Belarus. Every other major road northwest of the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, ends in Belarus, which borders northern Ukraine.

Russian buildup of troops: 

For weeks prior to its invasion of Ukraine, Russia amassed its forces in Belarus.

Hundreds of Russian military vehicles, aircraft and helicopters were moved to the former Soviet state in order to participate in what the two allies described as joint exercises. But after the maneuvers ended, the Russian forces didn’t go home.

In fact, additional satellite imagery from Maxar showed that Russia continued to increase the amount of military vehicles, air power and weaponry in Belarus. From the city of Brest in the country’s east, to Gomel in the west, Russian forces kept popping up at air bases, in towns and in even in fields on satellite images and social media.

Pontoon bridge:

 Satellite images even showed that Russia constructed a pontoon bridge across the Pripyat River in the greater Chernobyl exclusion zone, which spans Ukraine and Belarus. The day the invasion into Ukraine began, additional satellite images from Capella Space showed Russia began moving dozens of military vehicles across that bridge.

Military power: 

The sheer length of the convoy is massive and speaks to the amount of the military power the Russians have amassed to try and take Kyiv.

It also speaks to Belarus’ activity in supporting and carrying the invasion — and responsibility for it. That military power could not have been amassed by the Russians without the permission, and assistance, of Belarus.

  A large column of Russian armored vehicles, which stretches over more than 50 km, is moving towards Kiev, satellite images show. Air raid sirens in Kyiv have been sounding at night and in the morning, the re have been reports of Russian missile strikes on the outskirts of the city. “The situation around Kyiv remains tense”, the Ukrainian General Staff said in a statement.

  Ukraine’s General Staff: “Russia plans to use the airspace of Belarus for air transportation of its military”. The day before, the US State Department stated that “so far there have been no signs of the movement of Belarusian troops”.

  Russian troops have launched an assault on Kherson, a city in southern Ukraine. There have been explosions at the airport, then a column of tanks entered the city.

  Large columns of tanks  have entered Berdyansk, which was captured by the Russian army on February 28. Fighting continues in Mariupol.

  Dozens of civilians died on February 28 as a result of an intense bombardment of Kharkiv, the second largest city in Ukraine, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

  More than 70 Ukrainian servicemen died as a result of artillery shelling on February 27 by Russian troops of the city of Akhtyrka in the Sumy region, head of the administration Dmitry Zhyvitsky said today. The Ukrainian military unit was destroyed, rescuers and volunteers continue to get the bodies out of the rubble. Zhivitsky also said that “there are many Russian bodies in the city that are now being handed over to the Red Cross”, but the Red Cross has not yet confirmed this information.

 According to reports, Mariupol, located about 85 km east of Berdyansk, is still under siege by the Russians, but has not yet fallen.

  According to the President of Ukraine, even when peace talks were underway on February 28, the Russians continued to shell cities, including Kharkiv, Kyiv and Chernihiv.

  The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court announced its readiness to launch an investigation against Russia for possible war crimes.

  The procedure for considering an application for Ukraine’s accession to the European Union has officially begun. The head of the Ukrainian mission to the EU, Vsevolod Chentsov, officially presented the document to the representative of France, Philippe Leglis-Costa.

Closed briefing of US Senato in Washington on the night of March 1 (BBC):

● “The fight for Kyiv will be long and bloody”.

● “Western countries will not only freeze, but also confiscate the assets of the Russian president and leading oligarchs”.

● “Russians are behind the original invasion plot”.

● “Ukraine continues its tough resistance”.

Sanctions against Russia and its retaliatory sanctions

  The European Union has imposed new personal sanctions against Russian businessmen, officials and propagandists, including the head of Putin’s press service, Peskov, and influential oligarch Sechin, close to Putin.

  Turkey announced that, based on the Montreux convention, it will not allow warships to pass through the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles.

  Ukrainian President Zelensky called for the creation of a no-fly zone over his country and the removal of Russia from its post as a permanent member of the UN Security Council.

  The National Hockey League announced the termination of business relations with Russia.

  Japan has imposed sanctions against the Russian leadership, including Putin, Medvedev, Lavrov, Shoigu, Gerasimov and Patrushev. The Japanese authorities have also imposed sanctions against the Central Bank, VTB and Promsvyazbank and banned the sale of any goods to 49 Russian companies, organizations and government agencies, including Rosoboronexport, the FSB and the Foreign Intelligence Service.

  The United States imposed sanctions against the Bank of Russia, the Russian Ministry of Finance and the National Welfare Fund.

  The dollar and the euro on the Moscow Exchange rose to 110 and 126 rubles, breaking their historical highs. Because of this, the Central Bank temporarily canceled trading in shares on the Moscow Exchange.

  By Putin’s decree, Russian residents were banned from transferring foreign currency and crediting foreign currency to their accounts outside of Russia. Russian exporters are required to convert 80% of foreign exchange earnings into rubles.

Assistance to Ukraine

  Australia will provide 70 million Australian dollars ($50 million) for military assistance to Ukraine.

  Bulgaria, Poland and Slovakia are transferring 70 military aircraft to Ukraine, which will be based on Polish airfields.

  Taiwan will donate 27 tons of medical supplies.

  MasterCard blocks transactions from Russia.

  Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, is up for more 15% to over $43,000, Ethereum is up by over 10%. This comes amid reports that Binance, the largest crypto exchange, will not block the accounts of Russian users, despite Ukrainian calls for this. There are fears that Russia, blocked from the global financial system, will try to use cryptocurrency to circumvent Western sanctions. However, Ukraine also received millions of bitcoins from donors.

  A batch of Starlink terminals arrived in Ukraine, which will soon allow Internet users to access satellite Internet from SpaceX. Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Mikhail Fedorov has thanked SpaceX founder Elon Musk. “Welcome”, Musk wrote back.

  Warner Bros. canceled the release of the new “Batman” in the Russian box office. This decision was made because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The film was supposed to be released on March 2.

  The UN said that more than half a million refugees fled from Ukraine to neighboring countries.

Photo (BBC) : People hiding in a bomb shelter in Dnipro

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, day 5. Follow the timeline of February 28 events here.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, day 4. Follow the timeline of February 27 events here.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, day 3. Follow the timeline of February 26 events here.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, day 2. Follow the timeline of February 25 events here.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, day 1. Follow the timeline of February 24 events here.