On the 387th day of the full-scale Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine Russian troops continue to try to keep the captured settlements of the neighboring country under control. The armed forces and units of the territorial defense of Ukraine resist aggression. It is impossible to verify the statements of representatives of both sides from independent sources. According to the UN, more than 16 million Ukrainians have already left their homes. DW is watching developments Friday, March 17 (Moscow time).
Poland will place HIMARS near the Kaliningrad region
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Poland by the end of this year will place near the border with the Kaliningrad region, the first American HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems, Defense Minister Mariusz Blashak said at a briefing. In addition, the 16th Mechanized Division stationed there will receive South Korean K2 tanks and K9 self-propelled howitzers. “Russia seeks to restore its evil empire and attacks its neighbors. Our task is to create a strong and reliable armed forces of Poland so that Russia does not dare to attack our country,” Blaszczak stressed. In total, the United States will supply Poland with 500 HIMARS MLRS.
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During the day, Russian forces launched 19 air strikes on the territory of Ukraine and fired 26 times from multiple launch rocket systems. Ukrainian General Staff. IN evening operational summary it is indicated that constant positional battles continue near Bakhmut, enemy attacks are repelled in the areas of the settlements of Klishchievka and Ivanovskoye; Minkovka, Orekhovo-Vasilovka, Zheleznyanskoye, Vasyukovka, Bakhmut, Grigorovka, Ivanovskoye, Ozaryanovka and Aleksandro-Shultino of the Donetsk region were subjected to shelling, in particular.
It is also alleged that in the Avdeevka, Maryinsky and Shakhtyorsky directions, the enemy carried out “unsuccessful offensive actions” in the direction of Kamenka, Nevelskoye, Avdeevka and Maryinka of the Donetsk region.
According to the Ukrainian command, in the eastern part of the city of Svatovo, Luhansk region, there is a new hospital of the occupiers, where about 30 seriously wounded military personnel of the Russian Armed Forces were brought over the past two days. In general, there has been an increase in the number of seriously wounded Russian soldiers – the number of evacuation flights to Russian territory has increased from two to three per week.
At the same time, the General Staff reports that over the past 24 hours, Ukrainian aviation has inflicted 6 strikes on the areas of concentration of personnel and military equipment of the Russian Federation.
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Press Secretary of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova stated that the decisions of the ICC do not matter to Russia, since it “is not a party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and does not bear obligations under it.” “Russia does not cooperate with this body, and possible arrest warrants coming from the International Court will be legally null and void for us,” Zakharova said.
Department of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine will help to investigate war crimes of the Russian Federation
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IN Ministry of Defense of Ukraine will be created unit to assist war crimes investigationscommitted by Russia in Ukraine. The division for international law, created under the department of legal support of the Ministry of Defense, will assist the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Ministry of Justice and international institutions in the work to identify and investigate war crimes.
According to the country’s Defense Minister Alexei Reznikov, the new unit will “contribute to the investigation of Russian war crimes, the implementation of international humanitarian law, EU regulations and NATO standards.” “Adherence to international law is what distinguishes a democratic state from a legal nihilist,” Reznikov stressed.
ICC issues arrest warrant for Putin for alleged war crimes
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The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putinaccusing him of being criminally responsible for war crimes committed in Ukraine, illegal deportation of the population (children) and their illegal movement from the occupied territories of Ukraine to the territory of the Russian Federation. ICC communication. The crimes that Putin is accused of were allegedly committed in the occupied territory of Ukraine since at least February 24, 2022, the court writes.
The court also issued an arrest warrant for Russian children’s ombudsman Maria Lvova-Belova.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gave the green light to Finland’s accession to NATO – he called on the country’s parliament to approve Helsinki’s application for admission to the alliance. Erdogan said about this after a meeting with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö in Ankara.
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Over the past two weeks, investigative journalists from the BBC Russian Service, Mediazona and a team of volunteers have become aware of more than 400 former prisoners died during the fighting in Ukraine Russian colonies. Judging by the obituaries, most of them were participants in the battles for Bakhmut.
Last week, a new mass grave of people who allegedly fought as part of the Wagner PMC was discovered near the town of Berezovsky in the Sverdlovsk region. On each of the 67 fresh graves was a black-red-yellow wreath depicting the emblem used by Wagner PMC, as well as wreaths in the colors of the Russian flag with a double-headed eagle. The names of at least four of those buried, who were able to make out on a video published by local journalists, match the names of prisoners who were convicted, including for serious crimes, the BBC points out.
In general, over the past two weeks, the BBC Russian Service, Mediazone and volunteers have managed to establish the names of 1304 dead Russian soldiers.
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On the territory of the Azovstal plant in the occupied Mariupol The Russian military has set up a helipad, said Pyotr Andryushchenko, an adviser to the mayor of the city. “Now helicopters have been added to permanent aircraft. The final transformation of the city into a military base,” he wrote on Telegram.
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Latvia made another 35 Russians to the list of persona non grata for supporting the war in Ukraine. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Riga, these are artists, journalists, bloggers and other public figures. IN statement of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that they are banned from entering Latvia for an indefinite period.
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Curfew in Kyiv and Kyiv region it is planned to reduce by 1 hour: from March 26, it will probably operate not from 23.00, but from midnight to 5.00. How reported the Kyiv city military administration, respectively, the work of the metro and land transport, as well as shops and restaurants will continue. “After the issue of improving the system of engineering barriers has been resolved, procedural coordination is now ongoing on the timing and procedure for changing the duration of the curfew in Kyiv,” the report says.
A new US drone entered the airspace over the Black Sea
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US sent a new reconnaissance drone towards the annexed Crimea Flightradar24 data testify that the RQ-4 Global Hawk drone with the call sign FORTE10, which took off from the Sigonella airbase near the Italian city of Catania, entered the Black Sea, stayed in Romanian airspace for some time, and then moved to the eastern part of the sea.
Meanwhile, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu presented the pilots of the Su-27 fighters who attacked on March 14 for state awards. American drone MQ-9 Reaper in the international waters of the Black Sea, which led to the crash of the aircraft. US State Department spokesman Ned Price said at the time that this was “the result of profound incompetence” of the pilots.
Chronicle of events March 17 00.00 – 13.59 >>>
Chronicle of events March 16 14.00 – 23.59 >>>
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