Russia-Ukraine war. Timeline of events, March 26-27

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky gave the first long interview to Russian journalists after the start of the war. Meduza editor-in-chief Ivan Kolpakov, Dozhd TV channel editor-in-chief Tikhon Dzyadko, journalist and writer Mikhail Zygar (he also gave Zelensky one question from Novaya Gazeta editor-in-chief and Nobel laureate Dmitry Muratov) and a Kommersant special correspondent spoke with the President of Ukraine Vladimir Solovyov. The interview was taken on zoom. Below is the full video posted by Meduza (in Russian).

Top quotes

About the Kremlin’s policy

Unfortunately, [there] do not see the independence of Ukraine. This is generally a tragedy of ours with you … I don’t know if it’s possible to say “with you”. Probably with you, yes – because there are two societies. And first of all, these are the peoples, and then the rulers. This tragedy happened – the immunity of us as an independent state. Perception of us not as an independent state, but as some kind of product, as part of some large organism, at the head of which the current president of Russia sees himself.
We do not consider ourselves an atavism. We consider ourselves an independent state with a long, deep history and morality. There is nothing to say about morality and unification <…>

I don’t know what was reported up there in Russia, but they probably said that we are waiting for you here – with flowers and smiles. That the situation is very bad, the incumbent president is not supported, the incumbent [ruling] party is not supported. I am 99.9% sure of this. I just wouldn’t throw words around in this situation.

About Mariupol

The city is blocked by the Russian military. All entries and exits from the city of Mariupol are blocked. The port is mined. A humanitarian catastrophe inside the city is unequivocal, because it is impossible to go there with food, medicine and water. Russian military fire on humanitarian convoys. Drivers are killed. What happens to these cargoes, I cannot tell you. Many of them were taken back.

About the Russian military

And a lot of very young [soldiers]. I don’t know… They gave an oath there or there promises… There are many [very young soldiers] who didn’t know where they were going, but, of course, many speak nonsense and lie at first out of fear, not knowing what will happen to them. And then, when they see that they are treated as normal as possible, because there is war, and it happens in different ways, many are shocked.

And all these [their] phone calls to parents and so on: pick us up. And how they abandon the tanks… [We have] a huge number of interceptions [of telephone conversations of Russian soldiers]. Just a huge number of calls when they say: “So and so. I shot myself in the leg today, and Pasha broke [something else].”

Well, look. There is a column of 200 tanks. Ours blew up 30. Everything. Consider there are no columns. 70 tanks are running. They are not warriors. They were forced. Sent to be killed.

On the attitude towards the Russians

Despite the fact that I am the President and should be a fairly pragmatic person, the attitude after the 24th has deteriorated. It got worse a lot. The emotional component [of the relationship] to the Russian Federation, to the people, has been lost. Even to the people.

Even though I understand intellectually that [in Russia] there are a lot of people who support Ukraine. I am grateful to them, because without word of mouth, without the work of honest journalism, without the inner potential of a Russian person who is for justice and for Ukraine…

And yes, let him be, first of all, for himself – which means that he will be for Ukraine in this situation. Because a war on our territory will not bring anything good to this Russian person, if he is aware of it. Attitudes deteriorated among the entire population.

On March 26, the Russian army fired a record number of missiles at Ukraine at the same time. But the air defense of Ukraine also set a record – out of 70 missiles, only 8 flew, The Insider reports citing sources. 52 were fired from the Black Sea Fleet ships, at least 18 from Belarus. Their production value exceeds $340 million.

In the photo: destroyed oil depot in Lviv

Situation at the frontline according to the adviser to the President of Ukraine Arestovich:

1. Ukrainian troops launched counterattacks in the Kharkiv and Sumy regions and continue the advance they had begun before in the Kiyv and Kherson regions.
2. The Russian army is trying to encircle the Ukrainian troops in the Donbas zone, take Mariupol and keep the defense of Kherson.

Kyiv is returning to partially normal life. Public transport begins to operate in a limited mode, a private business reopens, the educational process begins.

The leaders of the so-called. The LPR and the DPR announced the start of preparations for a referendum on joining Russia, it could take place as early as next Sunday.

Negotiations can resume in a face-to-face format tomorrow. The head of the Ukrainian delegation, Arakhamia, named the dates March 28-30 and said that the meeting would be held in Turkey. The head of the Russian delegation, Medinsky, announced March 29-30.

International rejection of Russian oil and gas

European countries will be able to refuse gas supplies from Russia within two years, said the head of Eurodiplomacy, Josep Borrell.

Canadian Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said Canada would try to “help as much as possible in terms of pushing out Russian oil and gas” and is committed to exporting an additional 200,000 barrels of oil.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban remains one of the few politicians in Europe who says he will not stop buying Russian oil and gas, because in this case “factories will have to be closed, there will be mass unemployment and the Hungarian economy will roll back 10 years.”

“Orban’s position on Ukraine will cost Hungary dearly,” said Polish President Andrzej Duda. “It was Orban who brought Hungary to complete dependence on Russia for gas and electricity supplies.”

Investigative journalist Hristo Grozev of Bellingcat said that the Russian Federation has spent billions of dollars since 2014 on a network of pro-Russian politicians and opinion leaders in Ukraine, but they have thrown them for money:

Press Secretary of the President of Turkey Ibrahim Kalin at the international forum in Doha called on the world to dialogue with Russia: “If everyone burns bridges with Russia, then who will talk to them in the end? Ukrainians need to be supported by all possible means so that they can defend themselves. But Russia must be heard, one way or another, ”Reuters quotes. In Ukrainian social networks, they retort: ​​”Come to Mariupol, Ibrahim – they bomb so well here that you can hear Russia well.”

The UK has suspended scientific cooperation with Russian universities – the British government will not give grants for programs that are “related to the Russian state” and fund projects if it brings “a direct benefit to the Putin regime.”

Actor Sean Penn has promised to publicly melt his Oscar if Zelensky is not allowed to perform at the ceremony. The New York Post reported that the President of Ukraine is preparing to perform at the Oscars.

The international charity telethon in support of Ukraine “Save Ukraine – #StopWar” has started. Musicians, artists, public figures, opinion leaders, actors, athletes, volunteers from all over the world will support Ukraine during a two-hour broadcast, which is rebroadcast in 20 countries. The collected funds will go to help victims of Russian aggression.

An effigy of Putin was burned in Tbilisi

Advisor to the President of Ukraine Arestovich: “Within a week or two, Russia will withdraw troops from the Kiyv and Kharkiv regions and transfer them to Donbas. They realized that it would not be possible to take the big cities, they announced the completion of the first phase of the “special operation” and the beginning of the second – the “liberation of Donbass”. They now have three tasks: to surround our troops in this zone, completely occupy Mariupol and hold the South. If they lose Kherson, then their entire Mariupol occupation will collapse. And that’s it. There will be no capture of Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odessa.

 Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine: Russian occupiers used prohibited cluster munitions “Tornado-S” in the residential sector of Krasnogorovka, Donetsk region. Explosive technicians are working to neutralize HEAT warheads. Their self-destruction time can reach up to 40 hours, so it is extremely dangerous for civilians to approach them.

 Russia used prohibited phosphorus munitions near Avdiivka in the center of Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, writes BuzzFeed News correspondent Christopher Miller.

Ukrainian troops liberated:

1. The cities of Trostyanets and Boromlya in the Sumy region. There are wounded in the city, many houses are destroyed. There is no communication, light or water. The head of the Sumy administration Dmitry Zhivitsky said that the situation in Sumy is calm. There are fights in the Konotop region.
2. The village of Olkhovka is a few kilometers from Kharkiv.
3. The villages of Poltavka and Malinovka in Zaporozhye

Fronts in Ukraine: who controls what:

 The mayor of Slavutych, Yuri Fomichev, said that the Russian army had captured the satellite city of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

 British intelligence explained why Russia is firing missiles at Ukraine from afar. “Russia continues to rely on long-range missiles or bombs launched from Russian airspace to keep Ukrainian air defense forces from hitting Russian aircraft less, which means that Ukraine needs planes”.

 US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the US intends to provide Ukraine with an additional $100 million in civil security assistance.

 President of Ukraine Zelensky: “Russian invaders deliberately kill civilians, destroy residential areas, get into shelters and hospitals, schools, universities. This is how the Nazis tried to take over Europe 80 years ago. Exactly the way the occupiers operate in Ukraine. Nobody will forgive them. There will be their responsibility. Just like 77 years ago. Most likely not in Nuremberg. But the meaning will be the same.

 Within a month, the Ukrainian military liquidated seven Russian generals. During 10 years in Afghanistan, the USSR only lost five generals.

 Turkey does not rule out further purchases of Russian weapons, – Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu: “We recently saw very interesting rumors that Turkey is being asked to transfer the S-400 to Ukraine. It’s out of the question. Does Turkey need more long-range air defense systems? – Yes. We prefer to purchase them from the US and its allies. But if we cannot buy them from the US, then we are looking for other sources. <…> Turkey should ensure European security, should be in Ukraine, but we still cannot obtain export licenses from our NATO allies. <…> Should we wait years to convince our NATO allies to provide us with what we urgently need?”

 US President Joe Biden has called Russian President Vladimir Putin a butcher. The question about Putin was asked during a meeting between Biden and refugees from Ukraine in Poland. Press Secretary of the President of Russia Peskov responded as follows: “New insults from Biden to Putin further narrow the window of opportunity for improving relations between the Russian Federation and the United States. It is strange to hear accusations against Putin from Biden, who called for the bombing of Yugoslavia and the killing of people”.

 The United States has promised to increase military assistance to Ukraine, Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said after meeting with Joe Biden in Poland.

Highlights from US President Biden’s speech in Poland:

1. I will repeat what I said today to the Minister of Defense of Ukraine: we are with you, period.
2. We need to prepare ourselves for a long fight, we won’t win in a day or a month. Now Ukraine is at the forefront in the struggle for democracy and freedom.
3. Allegations that NATO seeks to destabilize Russia are not true, this is a purely defensive alliance.
4. It is not true that we are going to expand NATO. This is a lie that Russia is spreading.
5. We imposed tough sanctions on Russia and struck at the very heart of the Russian economy.
6. Russian oligarchs are the architects of this conflict. We took everything from them.
7. Russian people are not America’s enemies.
8. Russians are now cut off from the modern world. You were a country of the 21st century. Now you are a country of the 19th century.
9. Putin has set himself an indecent goal. He, like all autocrats, believes that whoever is stronger is right. But Abraham Lincoln said that power is in truth. So let’s prove it.
10. Because of Putin’s cruelty, what happened is already a big catastrophe for Russia. Putin jails for protests. 200,000 have already fled from Putin.
11. Putin wanted to split NATO, but NATO is more united than ever before.
12. Putin should not stay in power.

 “Massive missile attacks on Lviv. Another large Ukrainian city. With great historical value. Near the border. Inside the city are embassies of many countries. But the barbarians of the Russian Federation are not interested in anything – neither history, nor heritage, nor foreign diplomatic missions. Will Europe continue to appease?” – wrote adviser to the President of Ukraine Mikhail Podolyak. Video of the shelling of Lviv, thick black smoke over the city:

 Finnish President Sauli Niinistö: NATO membership will increase tensions with Russia, but provide more security: “Sufficient security is when Finns can feel that there is no emergency and there will not be”.

 Britain needs to do ‘much more’ to help Ukrainian refugees, London’s mayor said at a march of thousands in support of Ukraine.

🔘 Journalist and head of the RIA-Melitopol website Svetlana Zalizetskaya, who announced on March 23 that her father was kidnapped, confirmed his release. According to Zalizetskaya, her father was released after she agreed to publish a statement about the transfer of control of the site to third parties.

Video: Protests in Slavutychi captured by the Russian army. Russian servicemen are reported to be firing into the air and pelting protesters with stun grenades. — Real Kyiv

Situation in Ukraine:

🔘 Mayor of Slavutych Yury Fomichev was released. He spoke to the residents of the city, who came out to rally against the Russian invasion, the Telegram channel “Insider Ukraine” reported. Fomichev confirmed that he was in captivity. He told the assembled townspeople that the Russian troops “would ride around the city today, visit police, military registration and enlistment office, look for weapons, then they probably leave, but leave one of their checkpoints”. The mayor added that Slavutych “remains under the Ukrainian flag, under Ukrainian legislation” and that the residents of the city will not be denied the opportunity to leave.

🔘 Since the beginning of the war, shelling in Ukraine has affected at least 59 buildings of spiritual significance in at least eight regions. Most of the destroyed churches are Orthodox, said the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience.

🔘 In Ukraine, a month after the start of the war, 45% of families are worried about finding enough food. One in five is looking for different ways to overcome hunger, including reducing portions and the number of meals. Adults refuse food to leave more for children

Photo: View of the Ukrainian settlement in the war zone – Real Kyiv

In the world:

🔘 Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban responded to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who criticized him for refusing to support the idea of ​​an embargo on Russian energy and let arms supplies to Ukraine pass through Hungarian territory.

“In the Russian-Ukrainian war, Hungary is on the side of Hungary – it helps those in need, but protects its national interests”, Orban said.

Photo: A gas pipeline was damaged by shelling in Kharkiv – UNIAN

In Russia:

🔘 The Ministry of Education of Transbaikalia opposed “prayers” in schools, suggested by Vladimir Medinsky, aide to the President of Russia. “Our educational institutions are secular, and religion is the choice of every person”, said Deputy Minister of Education of the region Natalia Shibanova. Medinsky proposed introducing a daily “prayer” in schools on March 24. At the same time, judging by his words, he meant rather an oath of allegiance to state symbols.

🔘 How sanctions will affect the economy in 2022. Forecast of the Institute for Research and Expertise VEB.RF, cited by RBC. It is noted that the results of the study coincide with the previously published forecast of analysts who were surveyed by the Central Bank:

• Real incomes of the population will decrease by 12%;
• Unemployment will increase to 6.2%;
• Inflation will reach 19.3%.

🔘 The governor of the Tomsk region of Russia instructed to organize vegetable gardens at rural schools:

“The new is the well-forgotten old. I have a suggestion: the Soviet experience in the development of subsidiary farms, why don’t rural schools provide their canteens with potatoes and other vegetables – this is on the one hand. To accustom children to work is on the other hand”, the governor said during his speech

🔘 60 anti-war criminal cases, 46 defendants in 22 regions of Russia –  in just a month since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine, 60 criminal cases have been initiated on the territory of the Russian Federation, related to protests against the actions of the Russian authorities and their public criticism.

🔘 The use of the letter Z in the words “Evil” and “Fascism” was considered a discredit to the Russian military, OVD-Info reports. A court in the Sverdlovsk region fined a local resident 30,000 rubles for posting such message on the social network Vkontakte.

Video: BBC story about Irpin after a month of hostilities — Real Kyiv

 

Russia has announced that its main goals in Ukraine have been achieved, and now it will focus on establishing control over the entire southeastern region of Ukraine – Donbass. Ukraine has stated that some of its best combat units are now stationed in the Donbas.

Donbass consists of two regions, Donetsk and Luhansk, which are adjacent to the border with Russia. Since 2014, part of these territories, with the tacit military support of Russia, have declared themselves independent LNR and DNR. Since that time, the Ukrainian army has been conducting permanent military operations against the separatists. On February 21, 2022, Russia became the only country in the world to recognize their independence, and on February 24, it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. From the very beginning, Moscow has stated that its goal is to help the separatist LNR and DNR take control of the entire Donbass and the land corridor connecting it to the Crimean peninsula. Crimea was annexed by Russia in 2014, and since then Russian troops have been stationed there.

🔘 Morning report of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine:

• Russia abandoned almost all units of the Russian Guard, which were stationed in the Crimea,Kherson, Zaporozhye and Donetsk regions, in order to break the resistance of the inhabitants of Kherson, Genichesk and Berdyansk.
• Equipment supplied to the Russian troops from warehouses and arsenals is in poor technical condition due to careless preliminary operation and long-term storage.

🔘 Russian troops kidnapped the head of the village of Motyzhin, Kiev region, Olga Sukhenko, along with her son and husband. This is reported by the Ukrainian media. The police said that the village is occupied and it is impossible to establish where the head of the village is.

🔘 In Mariupol, free coffins are distributed for the burial of the dead.

“On the Volodarskoye Highway, opposite the Funeral Home, you can take an unstuffed coffin and bury the deceased. Those who do not have money can take it for free. Whoever can pay, I ask you to bring the payment for the coffin to any of Skorbota’s stores after the end of hostilities,” said the owner of the funeral home, Nikolai Saparov. He also asked the townspeople, if possible, to put at least some information about the deceased in the coffin during the burial of the dead.

🔘 Zelensky announced the construction of temporary housing for IDPs

🔘 Russia will focus on capturing eastern Ukraine and try to cut off the Ukrainian military, a Pentagon spokesman tells Reuters. Thus, the Russian Federation wants to get leverage during negotiations with Ukraine

🔘 In Zhytomyr, a military base, the mayor of the city, was hit by a missile. There is no information about victims yet.

Photo: Mariupol civilians killed by shelling – UNIAN

In the world:

🔘 France, Turkey and Greece want to carry out a humanitarian operation to evacuate people from the surrounded and shelled Mariupol, French President Emmanuel Macron said:

“We will try to do this as quickly as possible, hopefully within a few days. In the next 48-72 hours, I will talk with President Putin to agree on the details and conditions.”

🔘 The United States may announce new sanctions next week that will affect Russian technology companies working with the army and intelligence agencies, The Wall Street Journal reports. These sanctions are expected to cut off Russia’s access to foreign-made computer chips, as well as the money and components needed to produce them domestically.

🔘 Interpol sent a team to Moldova because of problems with human trafficking. The country faced a huge influx of refugees. Almost 380,000 Ukrainians have fled to Moldova, which has a population of 2.6 million. The agency has already received reports of human traffickers and smugglers at border checkpoints preying on “vulnerable” Ukrainians.

“Children and unaccompanied minors are particularly vulnerable to exploitation by smugglers and traffickers,” Interpol warned.

🔘 The Anonymous hacker group, which announced the hacking of the Russian Central Bank, began to spread data that it claims to have received as a result of the attack. The Central Bank itself denies the fact of hacking. On the file sharing website, almost 30 GB of information published by hackers appeared, according to the BBC. Among other things, there are hundreds of audit reports and data on bank owners. The hackers claim to have gained access to the “secret agreements” of the Central Bank.

🔘 Biden hinted that American soldiers will go to fight in Ukraine. Speaking to members of the 82nd Airborne Division in Poland and speaking of the Ukrainians, Biden said: “You [all] will see for yourself when you get THERE”.

🔘 Russia can be left without bananas. The largest suppliers from Ecuador cannot provide supplies to the Russian Federation due to sanctions, writes The Wall Street Journal.

In Russia:

🔘 Russians may be allowed to find a job with an additional employer without terminating the employment contract at the main place of work. This is provided for in the new draft government decree, Kommersant writes.

Video: the village of the Kharkov region after the shelling – Trukha

Armenia Airlines confirmed the cancellation of Moscow-Yerevan-Moscow flights from March 24 to April 15. Deputy General Director of the airline Gevorg Khachatryan said: “Armenia Airlines canceled flights NGT936/935 Moscow-Yerevan-Moscow from March 24 to April 15 due to European and American restrictions. As for the flights NGT930/929 Yerevan-Moscow-Yerevan, they will be carried out according to the schedule.”

The airline also reports that negotiations and the search for alternative solutions are underway.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Follow the timeline of March 24-25 events here