On the 29th (local time), the 399th day of the Ukrainian War, Ukrainian forces launched a counterattack against the Russian-occupied Melitopol region.
According to foreign media outlets such as CNN and The Guardian, airstrikes on Melitopol took a toll on rail infrastructure, a local official appointed by the Russian government said.
Vladimir Rogov, who was appointed by the Russian government to be in charge of the occupation of Zaporizhia, said that the Ukrainian army fired six rockets from the High Speed Mobile Artillery and Rocket System (HIMARS) early in the morning to hit railway infrastructure. Rogoff said Russian air defenses shot down three of the Heimas rockets, while the other three hit railroads, substations and railroad depots. No casualties have been reported to date.
In this regard, Russia’s state-run TASS news agency, citing Russian military-named local officials, reported that there had been shelling by Ukrainian forces and damage to the city’s electricity supply grid, which had cut electricity in the city and nearby villages.
In addition, according to a video shared on social media that day, it was reported that an explosion occurred near a Russian air base in Crimea, which Russia forcibly annexed from Ukraine in 2014. “A UAV (drone) was shot down in the Simferopol area (south of the Crimean Peninsula),” it posted, “there were no casualties or damage.”
In the midst of this, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced on the 29th that it had started training with the Yars Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) and thousands of troops.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the “hybrid war” was a long-term one. The Kremlin has said it sees the Ukraine conflict as part of a long-term war. “If you mean war in the broad context of confrontation between hostile and unfriendly countries, the hybrid war they unleashed against Russia, then it lasts a long time,” he said.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov hinted in an interview with Estonian TV that a large-scale Western-sponsored tank attack could begin in April or May.
Defense Minister Reznikov said the German-made Leopard tanks that have begun arriving in Ukraine “will become part of a counteroffensive operation determined by the General Staff” and that a large-scale offensive will be launched at the most opportune time and “depends on weather conditions.” explained.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner Group, a Russian private mercenary group, said today that fighting in eastern Bakhmut had “practically destroyed” Ukrainian forces, but that the Wagner group had also suffered “severe damage”.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.