Access National Security News HERE.

Access Korean News HERE.

National Security News Content:

1. Ukraine War Update - March 19, 2022 | SOF News
2. RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, MARCH 18 (PUTIN'S WAR)
3. UKRAINE CONFLICT UPDATE 17
4. Readout of President Joseph R. Biden Jr. Call with President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China
5. Biden warns Xi against supporting Russia’s war in Ukraine.
6. What to expect from Biden’s first call with China’s Xi on Ukraine
7. Biden, Xi Talk as U.S. Threatens Actions if China Backs Russia in Ukraine War
8. Opinion: Zelenskyy's comedy background is ever-present in his approach to nations
9. Inside the transfer of foreign military equipment to Ukrainian soldiers
10. Four U.S. service members killed when aircraft crashes in Norway during NATO exercise
11. Putin Is Telegraphing His Weakness
12.  On Ukraine, what a change in just a few weeks
13. 4 reasons why social media can give a skewed account of the war in Ukraine
14. HASC leaders want next-gen Stinger replacement, as stockpile dwindles due to Ukraine
15. Ultraviolent Warfare: Where Conflicts Often Go.
16. China’s Great-Power Play
17. Legion of the damned: Inside Ukraine’s army of misfits, veterans, and war tourists in the fight against Russia
18. Here’s an Idea: Pay Russian Pilots for Defecting
19. Ukraine will not halt US shift to Indo-Pacific
20. The shadow warriors deployed to kill Zelensky
21. Why We Should Read Hannah Arendt Now
 

Korean News Content:

1. VOA: [Washington Talk] “North Korea’s attempt to escalate tension… What is the US response?”
2. Former U.S. Envoy Yun on North Korea's Nuclear Ambitions
3. Continued activities spotted at N. Korea's main airports amid speculation on missile launch, parade: reports
4. South Korea’s New President Understands the Threat From Pyongyang
5. Yoon inspects candidate sites for relocation of presidential office 
6. A North Korean Satellite Launch: What to Watch For
7. Moon, Yoon advised to meet sooner to narrow differences
8. [WHY] Is it really safe to leave valuables lying around in Korea?
9. Yoon faces growing opposition to Cheong Wa Dae relocation
10. The beauty of Korean democracy
11. 1,500 N.Koreans are at risk of being repatriated by China: UN investigator
12. Hoeryong lecturer criticizes Chinese mobile users as “tools of the enemy”
13. Two families die in succession in Hoeryong due to lack of food
14. Hyesan Coal Mine workers suffer from outbreak of tuberculosis

Register HERE

"Oh So Social" Conversation: Dr. Robert Gates and Dr. Michael Vickers

by The OSS Society

Date and time

Wed, March 23, 2022

3:00 PM – 4:30 PM EDT

 

 

 

Access National Security News HERE.

Access Korean News HERE.

National Security News Content:

1. RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, MARCH 17 (PUTIN'S WAR)
2. No Russian Shelling on Ukraine Observed in Last 24 Hours, DOD Official Says
3. Street warfare: How organized riots are the future of conflict
4. Foreign Fighters from Asia in Ukraine? Prospects and Possibilities
5. Ukrainians have found mystery warheads that look like darts. They're Russia's new weapon.
6. Putin’s Failure Is Biden’s Opportunity
7. Russian strikes hit outskirts of Ukrainian capital and Lviv
8. Putin likens opponents to 'gnats,' signaling new repression
9. Marine Corps unveils ‘influence officers’ for information fight
10. What the Reported Deaths of 4 Russian Generals Mean About the Fighting in Ukraine
11. Contrary to Russian media reports, 3 Tennessee Guardsmen were not killed in Ukraine
12. Why Vladimir Putin Invokes Nazis to Justify His Invasion of Ukraine
13. Analysis | What a Russia-Ukraine peace deal might look like
14. These are the contenders for rebranding Army posts with Confederate namesakes
15. The False Promise of Arming Insurgents
16. Opinion | Watching Russia’s military failures is exhilarating. But a cornered Putin is dangerous.
17. Biden's EIKO Sanctions Concession Is a Gift to the Ayatollahs
18. FDD | Team Biden Runs the Syria Playbook on Ukraine
19. Ukraine War Update - March 18, 2022 | SOF News
20. The war in Ukraine will determine how China sees the world
21.  Arnold Schwarzenegger urges Russians to overcome government disinformation
22. 'Can One Man Save the World' song about Zelensky takes internet by storm
23. Yes, Ukraine Could Beat Russia
24. A future defense triad: A new deterrence strategy for the 21st century
25. 'Fed-up' Biden wants Xi Jinping to disavow Russia's Ukraine invasion
26. Six cruise missiles fired at Lviv from submarine in Black Sea - West air command'
27. The Mystique of the Female Soldier: Portrayals of Ukrainian Women in Western Media
28. Review | Deception has changed in the digital era, and spies are adapting
29. Fueling Insurgency: Liquified Natural Gas, ISIS, and Green Berets in Mozambique

Korean News Content:

1. President-elect Yoon completes phone talks to all four Quad leaders
2. Yoon aims to open Cheong Wa Dae to public 'before spring flowers wither'
3. U.N. rapporteur urges provision of vaccines to N. Korea
4. Relocation of presidential office emerges as hot button issue
5. Yoon's transition team dominated by Seoul-born, 50-something men with SNU diplomas
6. Winston Churchill's advice for new Korean leadership
7. Why North Korea Won’t Give Up Its Nuclear Weapons
8. A debate about nuclear weapons resurfaces in East Asia
9.  [Editorial] End imperial presidency (South Korea)
10. U.N. report: North Korea food shortages, human rights abuses worst in years
11. U.S. and ROK committed to maintaining ironclad alliance
12. The problem with ‘han’ 한 恨

 Embassy of Ukraine in the USA

 

WAR BULLETIN

March 17, 6.00mp EST

 

Immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine are among the key aspects of a peace agreement that could be signed as a result of negotiations with Russia to end the war against Ukraine.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has promised to provide Russia with 40,000 militants for the war in Ukraine.

During online meeting, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine called on the world's leading investment companies to participate in the reconstruction of Ukraine after the war.

Commander of the 3rd motorized infantry division of Russian forces colonel Igor Nikolaev was killed in action.

Russian troops killed US citizen James Whitney Hill.

 

WAR ROOM

 

General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

Russian forces lost their offensive potential and were stopped in all directions. The enemy has significant problems with logistics, continues to suffer losses. In some areas it blocks units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Due to the fact that the enemy used almost the entire set of cruise missiles “Kalibr” and mobile short range ballistic missile systems “Iskander” during the first twenty days of the operation, the enemy continues to launch missile and bomb strikes on infrastructure and housing neighborhoods of large cities using indiscriminate weapons.

The enemy continues to keep the Ukrainian city of Mariupol under siege. Russian aggressor has moved to the total destruction of civilian infrastructure, housing and livelihoods, creating preconditions for a deepening of humanitarian crisis in the city.

Units of the Russian armed forces in the Kherson region, police officers from the Krasnodar Territory and the Russian-occupied Crimea have been detained. FSB task forces performs punitive functions. The enemy is campaigning to involve the local population in the so-called “police”.

According to the available information, due to the inability of high-quality restaffing of the occupying forces, the next wave of mobilization in the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk region will start on March 20 this year.

Aviation units of the 960th Assault Aviation Regiment of the 4th Army of the Russian Armed Forces suffered significant losses. The moral and psychological condition of the flight crew is extremely unsatisfactory. Cases of dismissal reports continue due to unwillingness to take part in hostilities on the territory of Ukraine.

Ukrainian defenders inflicted significant losses on units of the 252nd Motorized Rifle Regiment of the Western Military District, which are fighting in the areas of Kharkiv and Izyum. Up to 30 percent of personnel, weapons and military equipment were lost.

Commander of the 3rd motorized infantry division of Russian forces colonel Igor Nikolaev was killed in action.

 (https://bit.ly/3KYPpAt)

Operational information at 24.00

The twenty-second day of the heroic resistance of the Ukrainian people to the russian military invasion continues.

russian occupation forces continue offensive operation against Ukraine. The strategic goals of defeating groups of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, reaching the administrative borders of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, and establishing control over the left-bank part of Ukraine have not been met.

The Command of the Armed Forces of the russian federation continues to take measures to make up for the loss of personnel at the expense of foreigners. According to available information, the russian occupiers have already picked up close

1,000 volunteers from the so-called army of Bashar al-Assad and Hezbollah.

The main requirement for foreign fighters is the experience of fighting in the city. At the same time, according to available information, the above-mentioned militants do not intend to take part in hostilities on the territory of Ukraine, but to use "business trips" as opportunities to get to European countries.

The enemy did not carry out offensive operations in the Volyn direction. He continued to strengthen the protection of the Ukrainian-Belarusian border by units of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus. There is a high probability of provocations by the special services of the russian federation.

The enemy did not carry out active offensive operations in the Polissya direction, the main efforts of the occupiers were focused on maintaining the previously occupied borders and carrying out measures to prepare for a possible attack on Kyiv. At the same time, the losses inflicted on the occupiers by Ukrainian defenders, the low morale and psychological condition of privates and sergeants, as well as the lack of experienced commanders of tactical units make it impossible to resume offensive operations in the near future.

In the northern direction, the enemy is trying to stay on certain borders, restore the combat capability of units and replenish supplies. The occupiers continue to partially blockade the city of Chernihiv and carry out artillery shelling of the city.

In the direction of Brovary, the enemy did not conduct active hostilities.

In the area of ​​the city of Brovary, the occupiers periodically carry out artillery shelling of the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

In the Slobozhansky direction, in order to resume offensive operations on the cities of Sumy and Kharkiv, the occupiers are trying to replenish stocks of ammunition and fuel, and oil and are forced to use the accumulated human reserves prematurely. In the direction of the city of Izyum, the enemy is trying to resume offensive operations.

In the Luhansk and Donetsk directions, the enemy focused its main efforts on preparing for the attack on Severodonetsk and the encirclement of Mariupol.

The enemy did not take active action in the Pivdennobuzsky direction. He moved on to the defense and engineering of the occupied frontiers. He tried to regroup and replenish stocks.

The occupiers continue to try to detect and destroy the air defense system along the Black Sea coast.

In the Black Sea, the enemy is trying to conduct demonstrations.

 

Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine

Some Syrian Mercenaries See Participation in Russian-Ukrainian War as a Chance for Further Desertion and Illegal Migration to EU Countries.

On March 15, 150 mercenaries were sent to Russia from the Khmeimim military base (Syrian Arab Republic) to take part in hostilities against Ukraine.

According to Ukraine's military intelligence, weapons, military equipment and other resources are planned to be transferred from Syria to Russia and Belarus in the near future to support the Russian fascist forces. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has promised to provide Russia with 40,000 militants for the war in Ukraine.

During the recruitment, the mercenaries are promised that they will perform exclusively police functions to restore order in the occupied territories, that is, purely police functions. But more recently, information about direct participation in hostilities against the Ukrainian army has begun to spread among mercenaries. This significantly reduced the "fighting spirit" of the Syrians.

In addition, more than 30 militants, who were wounded in battles against the Ukraine’s defenders, have recently arrived at the Khmeimim military base from russia. This fact has negatively affected the moral and psychological condition of other mercenaries and has led to the refusal of some of them to take part in hostilities. Cases of self-mutilation have even been fixed among Syrian militants. Some mercenaries see sending to russia and belarus as a chance for further desertion and illegal migration to EU countries.

(https://bit.ly/3KR2zPM)

 

Commissioner for Human Rights in Ukraine

Russia's aggressor army is shooting civilians every day, cynically striking peaceful inhabitants and civilian buildings.

Russian troops covered artillery fire on civilians who were on the street in the center of Chernihiv. According to the available data, there are 4 dead, including US citizen James Whitney Hill.

According to the results of the night shelling of the city of Merefa in the Kharkiv region 21 people died, 25 were injured, debris are still being dismantled. The school, the house of culture and private houses were destroyed.

During the evacuation of people in the Bucha district in the Kyiv region, the occupiers fired at the evacuation columns with tanks. One policeman was killed and another was injured. The same situation occurred in Irpen, when a hail shell hit a police car.

Heavy artillery shelling of residential buildings in the village of Novi Petrivtsi, Kyiv region, killed a two-year-old child and injured four grownups. As a result of the shelling, a high-rise building was destroyed and neighboring houses were damaged.

In Severodonetsk, Luhansk region, the occupiers fired on a shelter for mothers with children, where a large number of them were staying. Fortunately, they were not injured.

Every hour, the troops of the aggressor country commit war crimes and crimes against humanity on the territory of Ukraine, ignoring the norms of all four Geneva Conventions of 1949.

“I call on the international community to take decisive action to deter the aggression of the Russian Federation and to force the aggressor country to immediately cease hostilities on the territory of Ukraine.

I appeal to NATO member states, every day the delay in closing the skies over Ukraine takes dozens of civilian lives, children die every day!  This must finally be stopped!” stressed Denisova.

(https://bit.ly/3COWsc2)

 

State Emergency Service

On March 17, at about 4:30 p.m. (Kyiv time), the SES received several reports of fires in the Sviatoshynskyi district of Kyiv. Because of the Russian shelling of the Ukrainian capital, one warehouse and two cars were caught on fire.

(https://bit.ly/36traer)

 

Mayor of Dergachi

Russian army fired cluster bombs at Kozach Lopan village of Dergachi district. The enemy bombed the railway station, shops, pharmacies and other civilian buildings in the center of the village.

Cluster bombs are a very dangerous weapon banned by the 2008 Dublin Convention. Russians are using them to bomb Kharkiv, Dergachi, and many other cities in Ukraine.

(https://bit.ly/3IxpHBv)

 

POLICY

 

Adviser to the Head of the Office of the President

Immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine are among the key aspects of a peace agreement that could be signed as a result of negotiations with Russia to end the war against Ukraine. But strategically, Ukraine wants to have a concrete mechanism that will guarantee its security in the future.

This was stated by Adviser to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Mykhailo Podolyak in an interview for WP Wiadomości.

“Immediate ceasefire and immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine is one of the key aspects of the peace agreement. There is no other way. However, the negotiations are a large-scale process in which not only Russia and Ukraine are involved. Our partners also take an indirect part. Because we don't just have to sign a treaty. We want to develop a concrete mechanism that will guarantee our security in the future," underlined the Adviser to the Head of the President's Office.

Mykhailo Podolyak noted that the Ukrainian and Russian delegations are still defending their positions at the talks, so it may take some time to agree on the disputed issues. Unfortunately, the process is not as fast as we would like it to be.

"During this time, we must move closer to a peace agreement. First of all, taking into account the interests of Ukraine, which has suffered enormous destruction by the Russian Federation," he stressed.

The Adviser to the Head of the President's Office is convinced that after the signing of such an agreement, Russia will have no choice but to begin the immediate withdrawal of its armed forces from Ukraine.

"After the signing of the treaty, the Vienna Convention will enter into force for both parties. It makes it clear that a peace treaty can be annulled if the belligerent states do not withdraw their troops from the enemy’s territory. Therefore, any attempts to keep Russian soldiers on Ukrainian land will be legally groundless," he explained.

Mykhailo Podoyak noted that in order to prevent Russia’s another violation of international law and treaties, Ukraine wants to spell out in detail a specific plan for the withdrawal of Russian troops, legally verify it and gain the support of international partners.

"Besides, it is foreign states that will guarantee the fulfillment of conditions and Ukraine’s security in the future. This will be a document that describes in detail the procedure in case of repeated aggression by Russia. This is an innovative formula authored by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which can become the basis for creating a completely new security system in Europe," said the Adviser to the Head of the President's Office.

In his opinion, Russia's invasion of Ukraine has shown that the entire architecture of European security must be revised. That is why Ukraine wants to end this war with a new coalition, so powerful that it will stop Russia if it wants to attack someone again.

Theoretically, now is the time to speak publicly about all aspects of modern challenges and openly assess the level of modern security contours. Do they cope with these challenges? Can they protect European cities from the barbaric bombings that Ukraine is experiencing today? Will Europe be able to finally get rid of the fear of the Russian Federation? It is obvious that the countries that will be the new guarantors of security will undertake certain commitments. "In the future, on the basis of today's global crisis, a completely new alliance will be created, which will ensure the security of the whole of Europe," stressed Podolyak.

The Adviser to the Head of the President's Office stated that Ukraine would not agree to compromises that could damage its interests in any way. And it is not for the sake of such compromises that Ukrainians are now dying on the battlefields willing to fight to the end.

"We are not Russia. We know how and will continue to have a dialogue with our society. And we always hear our society. Unlike Russia, we can discuss any issues that should have been discussed long ago, but we will not agree to any ultimatum," he said.

Mykhailo Podolyak noted that despite the complexity of this process, Ukraine must hold negotiations with Russia, as no one else wants to fight together with Ukrainians. Negotiations during the war are just another frontline.

(https://bit.ly/3u3iMe1)

 

Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister for Reintegration of Temporary Occupied Territories

As of today, out of 9 planned humanitarian corridors 8 were operational.

800 private vehicles left Mariupol. Some people are leaving on foot. Over 2000 people arrived to Zaporizhzhia. Temporary help centers are set up in Berdyansk. Tomorrow such centers will be available in Manhush. Everyone who leaves on foot will be brought from Manhush to Berdyanks on cars. A bus convoy with a fuel tanker from Zaporizhzhia to Berdyansk was stopped at a Russian block post in Vasylivka and will continue on its route tomorrow. 10 additional busses will be sent tomorrow.

Kyiv region: 20 busses (~160 people) left Borodyanka to Zhytomyr. 41 busses and 200 private vehicles (~1500 people) left Shevchenkovo and nearby villages to Brovary.

36 tons of humanitarian aid (food and medicine) arrived to Hostomel’, Bucha, Semypolky, Markivtsi, Opanasov. Total number of people evacuated via green corridors today is approximately 3810. Humanitarian aid delivered today: ~40 tons.

The green corridor from Kharkiv to Vovchansk did not operate due to enemy fire. We continue to negotiate green corridors to all blockaded cities.

Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal met with the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Peter Maurer. Politicians discussed the necessary organization of collection and identification of enemy bodies. Ukrainian side emphasized that Russia has not asked to organize the collection of their bodies. Prime minister of Ukraine urged Peter Maurer to reach out to Russia to initiate this process.

In accordance with the international humanitarian law Ukraine created national information bureau. The goal of this bureau is to collect and organize information about Ukrainian soldiers and civilians that are captured, missing, or dead. Enemy forces have lost over 14 thousand troops. Ukraine will compile the lists of dead and captured enemy soldiers. In the future, we plan to share this information with our enemies through ICRC.

 (https://fb.watch/bPl4oTnGUv/)

 

Commissioner for Human Rights in Ukraine

The categorical refusal is the alleged reaction of the terrorist country to the ban on the continuation of any hostilities on the territory of Ukraine by the International Court of Justice.

Today, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov said that Russia is not going to comply with the decision of the International Court of Justice.

This is the official position of the aggressor country to continue the war with Ukraine.

Mass shelling, aerial bombardment of Mariupol, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Izyum, dozens and hundreds of towns and villages in Kyiv, Sumy, Luhansk, Donetsk, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv regions will continue.

“All of Ukraine is on fire and in the blood of peaceful Ukrainians, our children because of the ambitions of the president of the Russian Federation and his army of terrorists.

The world should not stand aside! After all, Russia's aggression plans go far beyond the territory of Ukraine!

The aggressor state must be stopped to save lives of millions of our children.

I call on the international community to press all the levers to force Russia to cease hostilities on the territory of Ukraine.” stressed Denisova.

(https://bit.ly/3KNNlei)

 

ECONOMY

 

Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine

Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak held an online conference with representatives of the world's leading investment companies.

He said that the Russian army continues to bomb Ukrainian cities, killing civilians and children.

“Today the whole world is talking about the terrible situation in Mariupol. The situation is not much better in Kharkiv, in the settlements around Kyiv. But Ukraine will never give up, will never give up its independence. And the army of a non-NATO country has stopped and continues to fight one of the largest armies in the world,” stressed Yermak.

Andriy Yermak also noted that after the end of the war, Ukrainians will rebuild their beautiful country very quickly. To this end, Ukraine plans to raise funds from international partners, as well as reparations to be paid by the Russian Federation.

He called on businesses to invest in the purchase of military bonds of the Ukrainian government, and responsible companies that have already left or are leaving Russia - to refocus on Ukraine in the future. Also, according to the Head of the Office of the President, it would be appropriate to consider the creation of special funds or individual programs for the restoration and reconstruction of Ukraine.

“The best answer to the inhumane acts we see now in our country will be the appearance of the most modern buildings and enterprises on the site of destroyed buildings, where Ukrainians will be able to work. And we hope that thanks to this, people who are now forced to leave Ukraine will quickly return to their homeland,” underlined Yermak.

(https://bit.ly/3wgKKpm)

 Embassy of Ukraine in the USA

 

WAR BULLETIN

March 17, 11.00 am EST

 

President of Ukraine: for weeks, hundreds of thousands of people in Mariupol have been under shelling around the clock, without food, water, electricity and communications.

Russian armed forces continue to launch missile strikes on civilians, cynically disregarding international humanitarian law. 108 children have been killed and more than 120 wounded.

Bombing and shelling by Russian forces damaged more than 411 educational institutions, 63 of which were completely destroyed: Donetsk - 119, Kharkiv - 77, Mykolaiv - 30, Sumy - 28, Kyiv - 35, Kherson - 21 and Kyiv - 24. More than 11 medical institutions, 3 rehabilitation centers, including for children with disabilities, were fired upon.

 

WAR ROOM

 

General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The total estimated loss of the Russian forces within the period of 24.02 – 17.03.2022:

· personnel – around 14 000 killed.

· aircraft – 86;

· helicopters – 108;

· tanks – 444;

· armored personnel vehicles – 1435;

· artillery systems – 201;

· anti-aircraft warfare systems – 43;

· MLRS – 72;

· vehicles – 864;

· fuel tanks – 60;

· UAV of operational and tactical level – 11;

· ships/boats – 3;

· special equipment – 10;

https://www.facebook.com/MinistryofDefence.UA/posts/277322574580202

 

The Russian troops continue the strategic offensive operation against Ukraine. Current activities include:

· continued Russian missile and bomb strikes on civilian infrastructure objects in Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Dnipropetrovsk and other regions.

· Using Belarus to prepare for Russian attacks and provide logistical support to Russian troops in the direction of Polissya and Volyn.

· Further attempts by Russian forces to resume the blockade of Kyiv from the northeastern direction.

· Attempts by Russian forces at offensive operations around the city of Izyum (Kharkiv region), but without success. The enemy made attempts to gain a foothold of the occupied boundaries and to improve the logistics system supply.

· Russian forces carried out offensive operations in Donetsk and Tavriya directions.

· Russian forces made failed assaults in Popasna and Volnovakha (Donetsk region). They suffered losses, and were forced to regroup.

· The assault on Mariupol continues (Donetsk region).

· In the regions around Pivdennobuzkyi, the enemy conducted reconnaissance and attempted to carry engineering works in occupied positions.

· Russian forces tried to carry out offensive operations in Kryvyi Rih direction (Dnipropetrovsk region), and while they took the control of the settlement of Mala Shestirnya they failed to consolidate their positions.

https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/274409551538797

 

European Parliament

Ukraine’s Minister of Defence Oleksii Reznikov participated in the joint meeting of the Foreign Affairs Committee and Security and Defence Subcommittee of the European Parliament. Key messages:

· I thank the European Parliament for the resolution on supporting Ukraine in the fight against the ongoing Russian aggression, and I urge MEPs also to recognize Putin as a war criminal.

· It is important not to delay the supply of lethal weapons and other means of combating the aggressor, the sampling of funds should be extremely operational. We need 100 Su-24 and Su-25 aircraft, or their analogues. Air and missile defense systems.

· I urge MEPs to ask their Governments to immediately provide the necessary weapons at the expense of the already allocated assistance package within the framework of the European Peace Fund.

· We need armor. Hundreds of thousands of people in Ukraine are ready to take weapons, but they need to be protected.

· It is necessary to strengthen sanctions against Russia. Disconnecting key Russian banks from SWIFT, embargo on oil and gas supplies, making impossible any cooperation in the field of defense industry. As well as a ban on the entry of Russian ships to the seaports of EU member states.

· I urge to continue the termination of any cooperation between the European Union and the Russian side. This should continue until power in Russia is changed by holding open and democratic elections.

· Ukrainian critical infrastructure facilities have undergone large-scale cyberattacks from the Kremlin. I urge our partners to strengthen Ukraine's cyber resilience by deepening cooperation with relevant institutions.

· We need a clear signal to restore the destroyed infrastructure and support the Ukrainian economy. This will increase the stability of our state.

https://multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/en/webstreaming/d-ua_20220317-0900-COMMITTEE-SEDE-AFET

 

Prosecutor General’s Office

· The Russian armed forces continue to launch missile strikes on civilians, including children, cynically disregarding international humanitarian law.

· As of of March 17, 108 children had been killed and more than 120 injured.

· Bombing and shelling by Russian forces damaged more than 411 educational institutions, 63 of which were completely destroyed: Donetsk - 119, Kharkiv - 77, Mykolaiv - 30, Sumy - 28, Kyiv - 35, Kherson - 21 and Kyiv - 24. More than 11 medical institutions, 3 rehabilitation centers, including for children with disabilities, were fired upon.

· On March 16, 2022, the occupiers dropped a bomb on the Donetsk Regional Drama Theater in Mariupol, which housed approximately a thousand civilians, mostly women and children, took shelter. The exact number of victims cannot be determined, as shelling continues in Mariupol.

https://gp.gov.ua/ua/posts/yuvenalni-prokurori-108-ditei-zaginulo-cerez-zbroinu-agresiyu-rf-v-ukrayini

 

Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine

· On March 16, Luhansk police registered 20 cases of shelling of residential buildings and civilian infrastructure in the region. As a result of enemy shelling, a number of civilians were killed and wounded.

· Also, as a result of the shelling, 15 apartment and private buildings and a private company building was damaged or destroyed. Gas pipelines in the cities of Rubizhne and Lysychansk were damaged.

· Due to the fall of the remains of a downed missile a fire broke out in a Kyiv high rise building.  30 people were evacuated, 3 of whom were injured, 1 person died.

https://www.facebook.com/mvs.gov.ua

 

Liudmyla Denisova, Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights

· On the night of March 16 shells hit several private houses in the Podilskyi district of Kyiv. Also as a result of a missile strike in Kyiv, two high-rise apartment buildings in the Darnytskyi district were damaged, one person was killed and four were injured.

· Yesterday in Irpin, Kyiv region, Russian soldiers hit a residential building with a direct shot from a tank. In Sarny, Rivne region, 3 enemy missiles were launched.

· At night, Russian forces shelled Merefa in the Kharkiv region. The school, the house of culture and private houses were destroyed.

https://www.facebook.com/denisovaombudsman/posts/503837381097539

 

In Mariupol, the release of civilians from the rubble of the drama theater has begun. The building withstood the impact of a high-powered air bomb and protected the lives of people hiding in the bomb shelter. Work is underway to unlock the basement.

https://www.facebook.com/denisovaombudsman/posts/503857891095488

 

· In settlements temporarily occupied or surrounded by the enemy, Russian soldiers have tortured the local population according to witnesses.

· In the Sumy region, the occupiers are driving people out of their homes and looting. Taking advantage of the lack of humanitarian corridors, they have arranged «arms marches».

· Villages, where the enemy enters for overnight stays, suffer the most: Russians break into houses, throw people out into the street and take their food.

· In Mariupol, a well-known paramedic, People's Hero of Ukraine Yulia Paіevska, together with her driver Serhii, was captured by the occupants. She spent 8 years saving the lives of civilians, including children and wounded soldiers. Yulia has a disability and health problems. Staying in captivity threatens her life and health.

https://www.facebook.com/denisovaombudsman/posts/503868221094455

 

POLICY

President of Ukraine

Address by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the Bundestag.

I am addressing you after three weeks of full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, after eight years of war in the east of my country, in Donbas. I appeal to you when Russia is bombing our cities, destroying everything in Ukraine. Everything - houses, hospitals, schools, churches. Using missiles, air bombs, rocket artillery.

Thousands of Ukrainians died in three weeks. The occupiers killed 108 children. In the middle of Europe, in our country, in 2022. I am addressing you after numerous meetings, negotiations, statements and requests. After steps in support, some of which are overdue. After sanctions, which are obviously not enough to stop this war. And after we saw how many ties your companies still have with Russia. With a state that just uses you and some other countries to finance the war.

During the three weeks of war for our lives, for our freedom, we became convinced of what we had felt before. And what you probably do not all notice yet. You are like behind the wall again. Not the Berlin Wall. But in the middle of Europe. Between freedom and slavery. And this wall grows stronger with each bomb that falls on our land, on Ukraine. With every decision that is not made for the sake of peace. Not approved by you, although it may help.

Why is this possible? When we told you that Nord Stream was a weapon and a preparation for a great war, we heard in response that it was an economy after all. Economy. Economy. But it was cement for a new wall.

When we asked you what Ukraine needs to do to become a member of NATO, to be safe, to receive security guarantees, we heard the answer: such a decision is not on the table yet and will not be in the near future. Just as the chair for us at this table. Just as you are still delaying the issue of Ukraine's accession to the European Union. Frankly, for some it is politics. The truth is that it is stones. Stones for a new wall.

When we asked for preventive sanctions, we appealed to Europe, we appealed to many countries. We turned to you. Sanctions for the aggressor to feel that you are a force. We saw delays. We felt resistance. We understood that you want to continue the economy. Economy. Economy.

And now the trade routes between you and the country that has once again brought a brutal war to Europe are barbed wire over the wall. Over the new wall that divides Europe.

And you don't see what's behind this wall, and it's between us, between people in Europe. And because of this, not everyone is fully aware of what we are going through today.

I am addressing you on behalf of Ukrainians, I am addressing you on behalf of Mariupol residents - civilians of a city that Russian troops have blocked and razed to the ground. They just destroy everything there. Everything and everyone who is there. Hundreds of thousands of people are under shelling around the clock. No food, 24 hours a day without water, no electricity, 24 hours a day without communication. For weeks.

Russian troops do not distinguish between civilians and military. They don’t care where civilian objects are, everything is considered a target. A theater that was a shelter for hundreds of people and was blown up yesterday, a maternity hospital, a children's hospital, residential areas without any military facilities - they are destroying everything. Round the clock. And they do not let any humanitarian cargo into our blocked city. For five days, Russian troops have not stopped the shelling specifically to prevent the rescue of our people.

You can see it all. If you climb over this Wall. If you remember what the Berlin Airlift meant to you. Which could be realized because the sky was safe. You were not killed from the sky as now in our country, when we cannot even make an airlift! When the sky gives only Russian missiles and air bombs. I am addressing you on behalf of older Ukrainians. Many survivors of World War II. Those who escaped during the occupation 80 years ago. Those who survived Babyn Yar. Babyn Yar that President Steinmeier visited last year. On the 80th anniversary of the tragedy. And that was hit by Russian missiles now. It is exactly this place that was hit. And the missile strike killed the family that went to Babyn Yar, to the monument. Killed again, 80 years after.

I appeal to you on behalf of everyone who has heard politicians say: "Never again." And who saw that these words are worthless. Because again in Europe they are trying to destroy the whole nation. Destroy everything we live by and live for.

I am addressing you on behalf of our military. Those who defend our state, and therefore the values that are often talked about everywhere in Europe, everywhere - and in Germany as well.

Freedom and equality. Opportunity to live freely, not to submit to another state, which considers a foreign land its "living space". Why are they defending all this without your leadership? Without your strength? Why are overseas states closer to us than you are?

Because this is the Wall. The wall that someone doesn't notice and that we are hammering on while fighting to save our people. I am grateful to everyone who supports us. I am grateful to you. Ordinary Germans who sincerely help Ukrainians on your land. To journalists who do their job honestly, showing all the evil that Russia has brought to us. I am grateful to the German businessmen who put morality and humanity above accounting. Above the economy. Economy. Economy. And I am grateful to the politicians who are still trying... Trying to break this Wall. Who choose life between Russian money and the deaths of Ukrainian children. Who support the strengthening of sanctions against Russia that can guarantee peace. Peace to Ukraine. Peace to Europe. Who do not hesitate to disconnect Russia from SWIFT.

Who know that an embargo on trade with Russia is needed. On imports of everything that sponsors this war. Who knows that Ukraine will be in the European Union. Because Ukraine is already more Europe than many others.

I am grateful to everyone who is taller than any wall. And who knows that the stronger one bears more responsibility when it comes to saving people. It is difficult for us to endure without the help of the world, without your help. It is difficult to defend Ukraine, Europe without what you can do. So that you don’t look over your shoulder even after this war. After the destruction of Kharkiv... For the second time in 80 years. After the bombing of Chernihiv, Sumy and Donbas. For the second time in 80 years. After thousands of people tortured and killed. For the second time in 80 years. Otherwise, what is the historical responsibility to the Ukrainian people still not redeemed for what happened 80 years ago?

And now - so that a new one does not appear, behind the new Wall, which will again demand redemption. I appeal to you and remind you of what is needed. The things without which Europe will not survive and will not preserve its values.

Former actor, President of the United States Ronald Reagan once said in Berlin: Tear down this wall! And I want to tell you now. Chancellor Scholz! Tear down this wall. Give Germany the leadership you deserve. And what your descendants will be proud of. Support us. Support peace.

Support every Ukrainian. Stop the war. Help us stop it.

https://bit.ly/3ifGOgh

 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The operational situation on the diplomatic front as of 10:00, March 17

For twenty-one days, Ukraine has been fiercely resisting Russia's armed aggression on all fronts, including diplomatic.

Ukrainian diplomacy continues to provide sustained support from the world. Significant progress has been made in recent days in providing military and financial assistance. At the same time, Russia continues to fall into the abyss and plunge into complete isolation from the world.

Helping

After the speech of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskiy before the US Congress, President Joe Biden announced the allocation of an additional $ 800 million in security assistance to Ukraine

World's support

The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskiy addressed the deputies of the German Bundestag and called on them not to delay Ukraine's accession to the European Union

The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania passed a solid vote resolution calling on the UN to take immediate measures to secure a no-fly zone over Ukraine to stop the mass deaths of civilians

Isolation of the Russian Federation

Canada has banned broadcasting in the country of the Russian propagandist channel RT (Russia Today)

The American company Qualcomm, which develops wireless communications, has stopped selling its products to Russian companies

The United States has set up a multilateral task force with other countries to persecute Russian oligarchs and officials. The group collects and exchanges information to take a specific action, including sanctions, asset freezes, and criminal indictment

According to the analytical company Sensor Tower, 6982 applications have been removed from the Russian App Store since the beginning of the war in Ukraine

Illy coffee stops supply to Russia

Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan, as well as the University of Łódź and the University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn have stopped cooperating with universities in Russia and Belarus

Canada bans Belarusian planes from entering the country's airspace

Serbian airline Air Serbia has refused to operate flights between Belgrade and Moscow

Humanitarian aid

Belgian monarchs King Philippe and Queen Mathilde will provide shelter to Ukrainians who have been forced to escape from their homes due to the Russian war

The Japanese government has allowed Ukrainians escaping from Russian aggression to enter, even if they have no relatives or acquaintances who could act as guarantors

EU countries reserve more than 10,000 hospital beds for Ukrainians. In particular, medical care is provided for preterm babies and their mothers, for children, for cancer patients, patients with severe burns, and patients in intensive care units.

https://bit.ly/3tYwKha

 

Adviser to the Head of Office of the President Briefing

· As of 22 day of the war, the enemy’s positions did not change significantly. However, there are several achievements by the Ukrainian Armed forces.

· Ukrainian aerial forces downed at least 5 aircraft, 2 helicopters, 1 UAV, and several cruise missiles. 

· The enemy, understanding its weakness in air and on land, uses the massive destruction of civil objects and terror of locals in shelters as, for example, yesterday in Mariupol [Drama Theatre].

· A principal position of the President of Ukraine remains the same: Ukraine must be restored in the internationally recognized borders as of 1991, and secondly, the negotiations must bring to an improvement of position in comparison to the one before the war, because otherwise any losses are unjustified. Ukraine will never give up its national interests.

https://www.facebook.com/president.gov.ua/videos/1187225555381211/

 

Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine - Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine

9 humanitarian corridors approved for March 17:

· Donetsk region

· Mariupol - Zaporizhzhia.

· Kyiv region

· Borodyanka - Zhytomyr;

· Shevchenkovo - Brovary.

· Kharkiv region

· Kharkiv - Vovchansk.

· Through these routes, we also plan to deliver humanitarian aid - food and medicine - to the settlements of Hostomel, Bucha, Semipolka, Markivka, Opanasiv

https://tinyurl.com/2p8btkuy

 

Ministry for Digital Transformation of Ukraine

150 million UAH were raised for Ukrainian army through Diia applications. Over 160 thousand Ukrainians have donated money in the application. All the money is transferred to the fund “Come Back Alive” and will be used for necessary supplies for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

https://www.facebook.com/mintsyfra/posts/333409218828401

 

ENERGY

Gasmen from Mykolaiv under attacks prevented distribution of danger for citizens.

The shelling of gas networks is especially dangerous. Because of the bombing of Mykolaiv in the territory of line production management the explosion damaged the office building, boiler room and other adjacent buildings. In addition, there was a fire caused by fragments hitting a gas distribution station. After the fire, the concentration of poisonous gas reached dangerous levels and was only prevented from spreading through the efforts of experts from the chemical and radiological laboratory of the State Emergency Service of Mykolaiv.

https://www.facebook.com/minenergoUkraine/posts/331321049025848

Access National Security News HERE.

Access Korean News HERE.

National Security News Content:

1. RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, MARCH 16 (AKA PUTIN'S WAR)
2. Exclusive: Secret CIA training program in Ukraine helped Kyiv prepare for Russian invasion
3. Remarks by President Biden on the Assistance the United States is Providing to Ukraine
4. Fact Sheet on U.S. Security Assistance for Ukraine
5. Zelenskyy tells US Congress, ‘We need you right now’
6. Outmatched in military might, Ukraine has excelled in the information war
7. Opinion | Why the West must boost military assistance to Ukraine
8. How the West is breaking through Russia’s propaganda wall
9. US must counter Russian misinformation on Ukraine with ‘psyops,’ experts say
10. Invoking America’s Darkest Days, Zelensky Pleads for More U.S. Aid
11. Chinese Agent Proposed Violent Means to End Dissident’s Congress Run, DOJ Says
12. Ukraine War Update - March 17, 2022 | SOF News
13. The DOD Needs a Joint Wargaming Center
14. Japan spots four Russian amphibious transports sailing from Far East
15. Top Marine General Praises Ukrainian Forces as 'Very Well Trained, Very Well Led'
16. Pacific general vows ‘robust’ response to China attack
17. Ukraine’s Lessons for Taiwan
18. A complete guide to why a no-fly zone over Ukraine won't work
19. Better Curricula, Better Strategic Outcomes: Irregular Warfare, Great Power Competition, and Professional Military Education
20. Fall of the Golden Arches Theory: Enriching tyrants doesn’t prevent wars after all
21. Chinese Agent Proposed Violent Means to End Dissident’s Congress Run, DOJ Says
22. A Losing and Desperate Putin Could Be Terrifying
23, Paying for Tomorrow’s Readiness with Today’s
24. Inherently Escalatory: The No-Fly Zone in Ukraine
25. China will define the next phase of the Russia-Ukraine war—and the shifting world order
26. U.S. bars ex-spies from becoming 'mercenaries,' following Reuters series
27.  How China is winning the information war in the Pacific
28. We need to stop talking about the grey zone
 

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2. Yoon officials mull construction of presidential residence in Yongsan
3. First meeting between Moon and Yoon canceled after election
4. Both Moon and Yoon want to fill empty top posts
5. Relocating the presidential office emerges as ‘tall order’
6. Kim Jong-un views US military presence as ‘bulwark’ against China threat: Pompeo
7. Defense minister visits US military base to check combined readiness
8. Cheong Wa Dae stresses Moon's right to personnel appointments until end of term
9. The Biden Administration’s Indo-Pacific Strategy and Its Implications for South Korea
10. Li Ning refutes US claim of using North Korean forced labour in its supply chain as his sports goods are banned in America
11. Column: Despite nasty campaign, South Korean voters reconfirm merits of law-abiding democracy
12. North Korea courts disaster with missile tests from international airport: Analysts

 Embassy of Ukraine in the USA

 

WAR BULLETIN

March 16, 13.00 pm EST

 

President Zelenskyy: We have already become part of the anti-war coalition. But we have to move on and create new tools to respond quickly to stop the war. The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24. And it would be fair if it ended in a day, in 24 hours. Today the world does not have such tools.

The wars of the past have prompted our predecessors to create institutions that were supposed to protect us from war, unfortunately they don't work. We urgently need new institutions, new alliances that must be efficient.

We offer to create an association - U-24. UNITED FOR PEACE. A Union of responsible states that have the strength and conscience to stop conflicts immediately. Provide all necessary assistance in 24 hours – weapons, sanctions, humanitarian support, political support. Everything necessary to preserve peace quickly and to save lives.

Ukraine now https://www.facebook.com/president.gov.ua/videos/328538592578059/

 

WAR ROOM

 

General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The total combat losses of the Russian forces from 24.02 to 16.03 are reported to be:

· personnel - about 13800

· tanks - 430

· APV - 1375

· artillery systems – 190

· MLRS  - 70

· Anti-aircraft warfare systems - 43

· aircrafts - 84

· helicopters –-108

· vehicles - 819

· boats/vessels - 3

· fuel tankers - 60

· UAV operational-tactical level - 11

· special equipment - 10.

(https://bit.ly/3KMqnEq)

 

Operational situation

The twenty-first day of the heroic resistance of the Ukrainian people to the Russian military invasion began.

According to the results of the previous day, due to the actions of the air defense of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, three planes (two of them - Su-34) were destroyed. In addition, one helicopter, three operational-tactical UAVs, and two cruise missiles were shot down. Additional information is currently being clarified.

Air Force aircraft continued to launch missile and bomb strikes on ground targets. Nine airstrikes were carried out on columns of equipment and clusters of occupying troops.

The occupying forces continue to launch missile and bomb strikes on the infrastructure and densely populated areas of Ukrainian cities.

The enemy continues to bear losses on retreats in certain areas. The main efforts of the occupiers are focused on consolidating and maintaining previously occupied borders and defense areas.

Russian fascist forces continue strategic offensive operation against Ukraine. The goals of defeating the groups of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, reaching the administrative borders of Donetsk and Luhansk regions and establishing control over the left-bank part of Ukraine were not achieved.

The enemy is trying to move additional reserves of the Eastern Military District.

Due to heavy losses in the south, the command of the aggressor country's armed forces refused to strengthen the grouping of troops in Polissya with additional reserve units from the 5th Combined Arms of Russian Armed Forces.

The enemy did not carry out offensive operations in the Volyn direction. Air reconnaissance with the use of the Orlan-10 UAV was noted.

The Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus plan to rotate units that cover the Belarusian-Ukrainian border.

The enemy is trying to resume offensive operations in the direction of Vyshgorod. During the day the enemy tried to advance towards Kyiv. Russian operation was unsuccessful. The enemy moved on to defense.

The enemy was stopped in the northern direction.

Russian fascists are trying to gain a foothold on the achieved frontiers, they are regrouping troops and trying to restore the combat effectiveness of their units.

The enemy does not abandon attempts to capture the city of Chernihiv, however, does not conduct active offensive operations. Russians are regrouping troops and are trying to organize logistics. In doing so they have no success.

In the direction of Brovary there is a movement of small groups of occupiers' equipment within the occupied area of the settlements Bohdanivka and Velyka Dymerka.

Air reconnaissance of the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is carried out with the use of UAVs "Orlan-10".

In the Slobozhansky direction, Russian fascists are trying to gain a foothold on the occupied frontiers, regrouping troops and replenishing stocks of ammunition and fuel.

The enemy continues to blockade the cities of Sumy, Lebedyn and Okhtyrka with no active offensive actions. Russian fascists continue unsuccessful attempts to block Kharkiv.

In the Donetsk and Tavriya directions, as a result of assaults in the Popasna area, the enemy suffered losses and was forced to withdraw for regrouping.

In the area of Severodonetsk, the occupiers conducted reconnaissance by fighting, had no success, trying to gain a foothold on the eastern and western outskirts of the city of Rubizhne. At the same time, according to available information, on March 15, enemy aircraft fired on the positions of their troops near the village of Smolyaninovo.

In the Volnovakha direction, Russian Fascists are trying to develop an offensive in the direction of the settlement of Velyka Novosilka.

In the Kryvyi Rih direction, the enemy is trying to resume the offensive in the direction of the settlements of Velyka Kostroma, Mala Kostroma and Kryvyi Rih. As a result of the fire damage inflicted by units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the enemy was stopped, suffered losses and retreated to unfavorable borders.

Enemy aircraft continue to launch missile and bomb strikes on military and civilian infrastructure in Kyiv, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Sumy and Donetsk oblasts, actively using the airfield network of the Republic of Belarus and the occupied Crimea.

In the Black Sea operational zone, warships shelled the coast in the areas of the settlements of Lebedivka, Sanzheika, Zatoka and Bilenke.

The Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine draws the attention of military experts, bloggers and active users of social networks to the inexpediency of IMMEDIATE demonstration of the consequences of hostilities, trophies, and other information that may be used in future defense operations.

 

Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine

Russian authorities are not paying compensation for the killed in action troops from so called LPR, DPR. In addition to that Russian fascists are burning bodies of their own soldiers to hide the number of losses in Ukraine.

In the temporarily occupied Luhansk, a point of extradition of the dead "mobilized" in the region was opened in the “Kopiyka” store. The so called "police" of the Russian occupation army hands over the bodies. Only death certificates and burial permits are issued to relatives of the victims. There are no documents on where, how and under what circumstances they died.

Relatives are told that there is no compensation for the deaths of those mobilized from the so called "LPR" and "DPR". Even Russian passport is not an argument. In comparison, relatives of the officially killed Russians were promised a payment of 12 million rubles. Such actions, are provoking unrest among the local population, however, so called "police" of the occupiers does not take into account these sentiments.

In the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk region, forced recruitment continues. Locals are grafted to the 1st Army Corps of Occupiers. The vast majority of "recruits" are sent to the hottest spots without proper training. They are mostly used on the front lines to clear obstacles and dig trenches. There is an extremely low level of provision and nutrition. Losses among "recruits" are 70-80%.

To hide the real number of human loses, Russian fascists are using the Donetsk Metallurgical Plant to burn the corpses of local "recruits" and volunteers from Russia. The exact number of burned bodies is unknown.

(https://bit.ly/3wcXeym)

 

Commissioner for Human Rights in Ukraine

On shelling of civilian objects

Russian fascist fighter fired on Chernihiv residents queuing for bread. At least 10 people died on the spot. The number of victims is being clarified.

In the morning, a “Caliber” cruise missile was shot down 500 meters from the OKHMATDIT National Children's Hospital in Kyiv. When the wreckage fell, the attic and the upper floors of one of the houses were hit.

This is the third attempt to destroy this children's hospital since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Airstrikes and rocket attacks on cities and civilian objects are evidence of the selective direction of hostilities against civilians, another crime of the Russian army against humanity and a violation of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.

The commission of these crimes is possible as long as the skies over Ukraine are open.

Please, NATO, establish a no-fly zone in the skies of Ukraine, stop the killing of peaceful Ukrainians by bombs and missiles of the terrorist state.

 (https://bit.ly/3KRWfYu)

 

Russian terrorists are massively abducting civilians

Russian terrorists are massively abducting civilians in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

Yesterday, the armed Russian military kidnapped activist Vitaliy Shevchenko for organizing a rally in Berdyansk after a protest. Several other activists were also detained.

In the town of Bucha in the Kyiv region, the occupiers broke into the city council and took away 5 employees in an unknown direction, among them Dmytro Gapchenko, the business manager of the Bucha city council. Russian terrorists confiscated and discarded their passports, and people under the barrels of machine guns were taken out of the council building. The workers were later released.

In the Kherson region, Russian fascists abducted Skadovsk Mayor Oleksandr Yakovlev and his deputy Yuri Palyukh. Mayor was released later.

In the city of Mariupol, Russian criminals continue to detain staff and patients, as well as residents of surrounding houses - 400 people in the basement of the Regional Hospital for Intensive Care.  Militias set up firing points on the floors of the institution, people are used as a "living shield" from the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The taking of civilian hostages is a direct violation of Articles 3 and 34 of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

“I call on the international community to use all means of sanctions against the terrorist state of the Russian Federation to stop the military invasion of Ukraine and the immediate return of all civilian and military hostages.” stressed the Commissioner.

(https://bit.ly/3tgL4lY)

 

Situation with minors in Ukraine

Today, 1.5 million children have already left Ukraine due to the fighting of the aggressor state.

So far, it has not been possible to evacuate 37 children from the orphanage in Polohy, Zaporizhia Oblast, who are in a bomb shelter.

Military medic Olga Semidyanova from Manganese city, Dnipropetrovsk region, was killed in battles with the Russian invader.  She has 12 children left.  Olga was awarded the heroine's mother prize for giving birth to six children and taking the same amount from an orphanage.

 For the past 24hrs, 80 people were injured in Mykolayiv region, including two children.

Once again, educational institutions came under fire from the Russian occupiers: a preschool in Severodonetsk and a secondary school in Kharkiv.  As a result of the bombing of a school in Kharkiv, the building was almost destroyed.

To date, bombings and shelling have damaged more than 400 educational institutions, 59 of which have been completely destroyed.

The actions of the Russian Federation violate the right to life of children guaranteed by Article 6 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and prove that Russia is a terrorist state and its political and military leadership criminals.

(https://bit.ly/36nNHcA)

 

Ministry of Defence of Ukraine

Russian forces continue their strategic offensive operation against Ukraine but have failed to achieve their goal of reaching the administrative borders of Donetsk and Luhansk regions and establishing control over the left-bank part of Ukraine.

The enemy is trying to move additional reserves of the Eastern Military District.

Russia is trying to resume offensive operations in the direction of Vyshgorod. During the day Russian forces tried to advance towards Kyiv. It was an unsuccessful attempt and they switched to defense.

Russian troops are regrouping troops and trying to restore the combat effectiveness of their units.

However, they continue with their attempts to capture the city of Chernihiv by regrouping their troops and better logistical support; their attempts were rebuffed.

Russian forces continue to blockade the cities of Sumy, Lebedyn and Okhtyrka.

In the Donetsk and Tavriya, as a result of assaults by Ukrainian personnel, Russian forces suffered losses and were forced to withdraw for regrouping.

In the Kryvyi Rih direction, Russia is trying to resume the offensive in the direction of the settlements of Velyka Kostroma, Mala Kostroma and Kryvyi Rih. As a result of the fire damage inflicted by units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, it was stopped and suffered losses.

Russian aircraft continue to launch missile and bomb strikes on military and civilian infrastructure in Kyiv, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Sumy and Donetsk regions, using the airfield network of Belarus and the occupied Crimea.

In the Black Sea operational zone, warships shelled the coast in the regions of Lebedivka, Sanzheika, Zatoka and Bilenke.

(https://www.facebook.com/100069073844828/posts/276715491307577/?d=n)

 

State Emergency Service of Ukraine

Russian forces made another attempt to capture Rubizhne, Severodonetsk and Lysychansk in the Luhansk region. Extensive casualties and damage to homes was reported in Severodonetsk, Rubizhne and Lysychansk during the night.

Russian shelling has continued along with attacks on civilians (including shooting at convoys and capturing areas where evacuations were planned).

(https://www.facebook.com/100064736946785/posts/333705168797379/?d=n)

 

State Border Guard Service of Ukraine

Over 16 thousand people (13,000 Ukrainians and 3000 foreign nationals) entered Ukraine on 15 March. In total, approximately 273,000 men have returned to support Ukrainian Armed Forces.

(https://www.facebook.com/DPSUkraine/posts/296854635886747)

 

Ministry of Health of Ukraine

Russian forces damaged 117 hospitals; 7 of them were totally destroyed.

Despite the military actions, the Ministry of Health has supplied 7 new angiographs to hospitals, and are now providing installation and preparing for the launch of the equipment.

18 ambulances were delivered to Kharkiv. The cars are part of a humanitarian aid that was transferred to the Kharkiv region from Denmark.

(https://bit.ly/3MX8Vik)

POLICY

 

President of Ukraine

Address by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the US Congress

I am proud to greet you from Ukraine, from our capital - Kyiv. From a city that is under missile and air strikes by Russian troops. Daily. But it does not give up. And it didn't even think to give up for a single minute! Just as dozens of other cities and communities in our country, which found themselves in the worst war since World War II.

I have the honor to greet you on behalf of the Ukrainian people, brave and freedom-loving people. For eight years they have been resisting the aggression of the Russian Federation. They sacrifice the best children - sons and daughters to stop the full-scale Russian invasion.

Now the fate of our state is being decided. The fate of our people. It is being decided whether Ukrainians will be free. Whether they will preserve their democracy.

Russia has attacked more than just our land and our cities. It went on a brutal offensive against our values. Basic human values. It threw tanks and planes against our freedom. Against our right to live freely in our country, choosing our own future. Against our desire for happiness. Against our national dreams. Just like yours, ordinary people of America. Just like those of everyone in the United States.

I remember your Rushmore National Memorial. The faces of your prominent presidents. Those who laid the foundations of America. As it is today. Democracy, independence, freedom and care for everyone. Everyone who works diligently. Who lives honestly. Who respects the law.

We in Ukraine want the same for ourselves. All that is a normal part of life for you.

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Americans!

In your great history you have pages that will allow you to understand Ukrainians. Understand us now. When it is needed most.

Remember Pearl Harbor. Terrible morning of December 7, 1941. When your sky was black from the planes attacking you. Just remember that.

Remember September 11th. A terrible day in 2001, when evil tried to turn your cities into a battlefield. When innocent people were attacked. Attacked from the air. In a way no one expected.

In a way you could not stop it. Our state experiences this every day! Every night! For three weeks now! Different Ukrainian cities... Odesa and Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Sumy, Zhytomyr and Lviv, Mariupol and Dnipro. Russia has turned the Ukrainian sky into a source of death. For thousands of people.

Russian troops have already fired nearly a thousand missiles at Ukraine. Countless bombs. They use drones to kill more precisely. This is a terror Europe has not seen for 80 years!

And we ask for a response. For the response from the world. For the response to terror. Is this too much of a request?

To establish a no-fly zone over Ukraine is to save people. Humanitarian no-fly zone. Conditions under which Russia will no longer be able to terrorize our peaceful cities every day and night. If that's too much, we offer an alternative.

You know what defense systems we need. C-300 and other similar systems.

You know how much depends on the battlefield on the ability to use aircraft. Powerful, strong aircraft. To protect your people. Your freedom. Your land. Aircraft that can help Ukraine. That can help Europe.

And you also know that they are available. But on land. Not in the Ukrainian sky. They do not protect our people.

"I have a dream" - these words are known to each of you. Today I can say: I have a necessity. The necessity to protect our sky. The necessity for your decision. Your help. And it will mean exactly the same thing. The same thing you feel. When you hear: I have a dream.

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Friends!

Ukraine is grateful to the United States for its overwhelming support. For all that your state and your people have already done for our freedom. For weapons and ammunition, for training and funding, for leadership in the free world, which helps put pressure on the aggressor economically.

I am grateful to President Biden for his personal involvement, for his sincere commitment to the defense of Ukraine and democracy around the world.

I am grateful to you for the resolution, which recognizes all those who commit crimes against the Ukrainian people as war criminals.

However, now, in the darkest time for our country, for the whole of Europe, I urge you to do more! New packages of sanctions are needed every week. Until the Russian military machine stops. Restrictions are needed as regards everyone on whom this unjust regime is based.

We offer the United States to impose sanctions against all politicians in the Russian Federation who remain in office and do not sever ties with those responsible for the aggression against Ukraine. From State Duma deputies to the last official who lacks the morale to sever ties with state terror. All American companies must leave Russia, their market. Leave this market flooded with our blood.

Ladies and Gentlemen.

Members of Congress!

Take the lead! If you have companies in the constituencies that sponsor the Russian military machine, keeping their business in Russia. You have to put pressure. So that the Russian state does not receive a single dollar, which it spends on the destruction of Ukraine. On the destruction of Europe.

All American ports must be closed to Russian goods and ships. Peace is more important than profit. And we must defend this principle throughout the world together.

We have already become part of the anti-war coalition. The great anti-war coalition, which unites many states, dozens of states. Those who reacted in a principled manner to President Putin's decision - to Russia's invasion of our state.

But we have to move on. We have to create new tools. To respond quickly! And stop the war. The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24. And it would be fair if it ended in a day. In 24 hours. So that evil is punished immediately. Today the world does not have such tools.

The wars of the past have prompted our predecessors to create institutions that were supposed to protect us from war. But... They don't work. We see it. You see it. So, we need new ones. New institutions. New alliances.

And we offer them.

We offer to create an association - U-24. United for peace. A union of responsible states that have the strength and conscience to stop conflicts. Immediately. Provide all necessary assistance in 24 hours. If necessary - weapons. If necessary - sanctions. Humanitarian support. Political support. Funding. Everything necessary to preserve peace quickly. To save lives.

In addition, such an association could provide assistance to those who are experiencing natural disasters, man-made disasters. Who fell victim to a humanitarian crisis or epidemic.

Remember how difficult it was for the world to do the simplest thing - to give everyone vaccines. Vaccines against Covid. To save lives. To prevent new strains. The world spent months and years doing things that could have been done much faster. So that there were no human losses.

Ladies and Gentlemen!

Americans!

If such an alliance, the U-24, had already been formed, I believe it would have saved thousands of lives. In our country, many other countries that need peace so crucially, that suffered inhuman destruction... I ask you to watch one video now. Video of what Russian troops did on our land. We have to stop this. We must prevent such things. Preventively destroy every aggressor who seeks to conquer another nation.

Please watch this video

https://www.facebook.com/100007211555008/posts/3032455393671483/?d=n

And in the end to sum it up.

Today it is not enough to be the leader of the nation.

Today it takes to be the Leader of the world. Being the Leader of the world means to be the Leader of Peace.   

Peace in your country does not depend anymore only on you and your people.

It depends on those next to you, on those who are strong.

Strong does not mean big. Strong is brave and ready to fight for the life of his citizens and citizens of the world.

For human rights, for freedom, for the right to live decently and to die when your time comes, not when it is wanted by someone else, by your neighbor.       

Today the Ukrainian people are defending not only Ukraine, we are fighting for the values of Europe and the world, sacrificing our lives in the name of the Future.

That’s why today the American people are helping not just Ukraine, but Europe and the world to keep the planet alive, to keep justice in history.

Now I am almost 45 years old. Today my age stopped when the hearts of more than 100 children stopped beating. I see no sense in life if it cannot stop death. And this is my main mission as the Leader of my people – great Ukrainians.

And as the Leader of my nation I am addressing President Biden.  

You are the Leader of the nation, of your great nation.

https://www.president.gov.ua/en/news/promova-prezidenta-ukrayini-volodimira-zelenskogo-pered-kong-73609

 

Meeting of the President of Ukraine with Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court

Main points:

Ø     We are stepping up work to bring the invaders to justice. There must be an international tribunal. And it will be. For everything they did against Ukraine. Against our people. For every act of terrorism of Russian troops on the territory of our state.

Ø     The Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine and law enforcement agencies have already started this work. The launch of the activity of the investigative group of the International Criminal Court in Ukraine is also important, which together with our law enforcement officers is already collecting all the evidence, collecting the facts of war crimes of the invaders on the territory of our state. So that they receive the legal answer - legal and concrete.

Ø     I spoke with Karim Khan, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague. He is already in Ukraine, he has already started working. Therefore, the invaders will be responsible for all war crimes against Ukrainians.

Ø     As of this morning, 103 children have been killed.

Ø     A total of 400 educational institutions have been destroyed in Ukraine to date, the largest number is in the Donetsk region - 119.

Ø     In Mariupol, the invaders seized a hospital, a regional intensive care hospital. Already damaged by Russian bombs. Patients and doctors are in captivity. Residents of neighboring houses were forced to go inside the hospital as well. More than 400 people are hostages! And the invaders are using the hospital as a firing position to shell the city.

Ø     Today I signed an important decree on a nationwide minute of silence to honor the memory of all Ukrainians who died in our patriotic war. All those we lost because of the Russian invasion. Because of the terror committed by the invaders. Every morning at 9 am in the whole territory of our state we will remember the Ukrainians who gave their lives. All who fought. All military and all civilians.

Ø     The losses of the invaders continue to grow. The number of killed enemy soldiers is already approaching 14,000. Tens of thousands of Russian servicemen were wounded. They have already lost more than a hundred helicopters. Soon there will be hundreds of lost planes. More than 400 Russian tanks were destroyed, plus several thousand units of other equipment.

Ø     Eight years ago, on this day, the Russian state organized a fake "referendum" on the territory of our Ukrainian Crimea. Which it later used to justify the seizure of our territory. It was illegal. This was the destruction of the entire security architecture in Europe, which was created after World War II. But Russia went for it… If then the world had reacted at least half as it should react now and reacts... I'm sure we would have had neither this invasion, nor eight years of war in Donbas.

(https://bit.ly/36osdfD)

 

Adviser to the Head of Office of the President of Ukraine Oleksii Arestovych

Main points:

Ø     Yesterday the Ukrainian army held tactical counter-attacks including 7 serious rocket, aviation and artillery strikes at the enemy’s positions. At least 3 airplanes, 1 helicopter and several missile rockets were downed by Ukraine.

Ø     Russian forces used Iskander, two-thirds of which hit civilian targets - probably intentionally.

Ø     The Russian Federation has exhausted its military resources, and its attempts to attract its forces from Syria and Libya, the Far East are not meeting much success.

Ø     The enemy concentrates mainly on the Joint Forces Operations area, but yesterday they suffered losses in Izyum and Mykolaiv directions, while tactical battles started by them provide advantages to Ukraine.

(https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=780005292977049)

 

Prosecutor’s General Office of Ukraine

At 5:00 a.m. on 16 March, Russian soldiers fired rockets at civilian infrastructure in Zaporizhzhya, including the Zaporizhzhya-2 railway station. Two rockets damaged administrative and civilian buildings.

(https://www.facebook.com/pgo.gov.ua/posts/331465849016255)

 

On 16 March, at around 6 a.m., Russian armed forces, shelled a residential area in the Shevchenkivskyi district of the capital, hitting and severely damaging a 12-storey residential building, According to preliminary information, two people were injured and 35 were evacuated.

(https://www.facebook.com/pgo.gov.ua/posts/331500859012754)

 

Kyiv City Administration

Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko met with a delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross and its President Peter Maurer, who arrived in Kyiv. He thanked the representatives of the organization for the help they provide to Ukraine.

(https://bit.ly/3KOx4G5)