In Ukraine on Thursday, April 14, Kyiv reported of Russia having prepared for the Donbas offensive it has planned and of battles raging in the east of the country. Russia has admitted that Ukrainian missiles have hit the flagship missile cruiser, to which the Snake Island border guards refused to surrender on the outset of the war, Ukrainian public broadcaster Ukrinform and British public broadcaster BBC report.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces wrote in its report on the military developments in and around Ukraine over the past 24 hours that the invaders had reached readiness to carry out a major offensive in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions. The enemy is building up military air forces near the eastern border of Ukraine, enforcing artillery units, optimizing the existing command systems, intelligence and medical support.
Battles are raging near Sloviansk, Popasna and Kurakhove in Donbas and Russian troops attempted to storm the city of Mariupol, yet failed to succeed. Russian invaders continued to systematically launch missile and air strikes on military and civil infrastructure facilities in Kharkiv Region, Donetsk Region and Zaporizhzhia Region.
Outside these territories, there was a persistent threat of Russia’s missile strikes all across Ukraine.
In the Slobozhanskyi direction, the Kharkiv Region, Russian troops were conducting the reconnaissance of potential attack areas, expanding the reconnaissance system, management and medical support, Kyiv claimed.
Over the past day, in Luhansk Region and Donetsk Region, Ukrainian defenders had repulsed eight enemy attacks, destroyed a tank, four armored vehicles, six motor vehicles and one enemy artillery system. The Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile forces shot down two enemy fighters, claimed the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Fate of flagship missile cruiser Moscow
On Wednesday, April 13, Russia stated that its flagship Black Sea guided missile cruiser had been seriously damaged and its crew forced to evacuate. Ammunition onboard the ‘Moscow’ ship exploded after a fire, according to Moscow’s defence ministry. It said the original cause of the damage was not known, BBC reports.
The Ukrainian military stated it struck the vessel with two of its Neptune missiles. The 510-crew warship has led Russia’s naval assault on Ukraine, making it an important symbolic and military target. In the first days of the war, the ship’s crew became infamous after calling on Ukrainian border troops defending Snake Island in the Black Sea to surrender. The Ukrainian border guards, who have now, been free, sent a message of refusal to surrender.
OSCE finds human rights breaches on both sides
The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe has released its ‘Report on Violations of International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law, War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity Committer in Ukraine since February 24, 2022’.
In it a group of international rapporteurs concluded: «Violations occurred on the Ukrainian as well as on the Russian side. The violations committed by the Russian Federation, however, are by far larger in nature and scale.»
Zelensky offers Russia choice
Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky has said in a video address that Russia should leave the international community if it doesn’t want to pursue a peace agreement. «Either the Russian leadership will really seek peace or as a result of this war, Russia will leave the international arena forever,» he said in a video address.
See a video address by the Ukrainian President in Ukrainian with English subtitles.
Day 50 of war in Ukraine: Russia ready for Donbass offensive, key Russian hit with missiles, OSCE finds human rights violations on both sides
