Russia Attacks Ukraine - 23 Feb 2022 #5

[SouthAussie]

Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia has said his country will carry out a cease-fire on Tuesday morning at 10 am Moscow time and open humanitarian corridors to evacuate citizens from Kyiv, Chernigov, Sumy and Mariupol.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected earlier proposals to evacuate Ukrainian citizens into what he has described as “occupied territory” in Russia and Belarus.

“This proposal doesn’t have any demands about the citizens being sent necessarily to Russia, into Russian territory,” he said at the end of a UN Security Council meeting.

“There’s also evacuation offered towards Ukrainian cities to the west of Kyiv, and ultimately it will be the choice of the people themselves where they want to be evacuated to,” Nebenzia said.

Russia to let Ukrainians evacuate in ‘direction of their choice’

 

[SouthAussie]

Estee Lauder Companies Inc has said it had decided to suspend all commercial activities in Russia, including closing all its stores in the country.
The company will also suspend brand sites and shipments to its retailers in Russia, it added.


Fitch has become the second major credit rating firm to suspend its commercial operations in Russia, saying its analysts outside the country would provide its coverage instead.

Fitch and Moody’s, which also suspended its commercial operations in Russia at the weekend, downgraded Russia’s sovereign rating by a record-equalling six notches earlier this month, warning the West’s sanctions had raised the risk of a default.

Russia to let Ukrainians evacuate in ‘direction of their choice’

 

[PommyMommy]

Russia-Ukraine war: Zelenskiy vows to punish attack on civilians in Irpin; Russia bombards Mykolaiv – live | World news | The Guardian
5h ago 23:28

The Ukraine Presidential Office has released the full transcript of the 9-minute address from Zelensky, given in a video from his office on Monday night:

Spoiler: Zelensky's address

Monday. Evening. You know, we used to say: Monday is a hard day. There is a war in the country. So every day is Monday.

And now we are used to the fact that every day and every night are like that.

Today is the 12th. 12th evening of our struggle. Our defense.

We are all on the ground, we are all working.

Everyone is where they should be. I am in Kyiv. My team is with me. The territorial defense is on the ground. The servicemen are in positions. Our heroes! Doctors, rescuers, transporters, diplomats, journalists...

Everyone. We are all at war. We all contribute to our victory, which will definitely be achieved. By force of arms and our army. By force of words and our diplomacy. By force of spirit, which the first, the second and each of us have.

Take a look at our country today.

Chaplynka, Melitopol, Tokmak, Novotroitske and Kherson. Starobilsk. Everywhere people defended themselves, although they do not have weapons there. But these are our people, and that’s why they have weapons.

They have courage. Dignity. And hence the ability to go out and say: I’m here, it’s mine, and I won’t give it away. My city. My community. My Ukraine.

Every Ukrainian man and woman who protested against the invaders yesterday, today and will protest tomorrow are heroes.

We shout at the invaders together with you. We stand in the squares and streets with you. We are not afraid with you when the invaders open fire and try to drive everyone away.

YOU do not back down.

WE do not back down.

And the one who repeated: “We are one people” - certainly did not expect such a powerful reaction.

In the south of our country, such a national movement has unfolded, such a powerful manifestation of Ukrainianness that we have never seen in the streets and squares there. And for Russia it is like a nightmare.

They forgot that we are not afraid of paddy wagons and batons. We are not afraid of tanks and machine guns. When the main thing is on our side, truth. As it is now.

Mariupol and Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Sumy. Odesa and Kyiv. Mykolaiv. Zhytomyr and Korosten. Ovruch. And many other cities.

We know that hatred that the enemy brought to our cities with shelling and bombing will not remain there. There will be no trace of it. Hatred is not about us. Therefore, there will be no trace of the enemy. We will rebuild everything. We will make our cities destroyed by the invader better than any city in Russia.

Enerhodar. Chornobyl. And other places where barbarians just don’t understand WHAT they want to capture. WHAT they want to control. Your work, your hard work on critical objects is a real feat. And we see it. We are sincerely grateful for it.

The Ukrainian army holds positions. Well done! It inflicts extremely painful losses on the enemy. Defends. Counterattacks. If necessary - can take revenge. Necessarily. For every evil. For every rocket and bomb. For each destroyed civilian object.

Today in Makariv, Kyiv region, they fired at the bread factory. For what? The old bread factory! Think about it - to fire at the bread factory. Who should you be to do that?

Or to destroy another church - in the Zhytomyr region. The Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin built in 1862.

These are NOT people.

There was an agreement on humanitarian corridors.

Did it work? Russian tanks worked instead. Russian “Grads”. Russian mines. They even mined the road, which was agreed to transport food and medicine for people and children in Mariupol.

They even destroy buses that have to take people out. But ... At the same time, they are opening a small corridor to the occupied territory. For several dozen people. Not so much to Russia, as to propagandists. Directly to their TV cameras. Like, that’s the one who saves. Just cynicism. Just propaganda. Nothing more. No humanitarian sense.

The third round of negotiations in Belarus took place today. I would like to say - the third and final. But we are realists. So we will talk. We will insist on negotiations until we find a way to tell our people: this is how we will come to peace.

Exactly to peace.

We must realize that every day of struggle, every day of resistance creates better conditions for us. Strong position to guarantee our future. In peace. After this war.

Apart from the dead people and the destroyed cities, the war leaves destroyed the aspirations that once seemed very important, but now ... You don’t even mention them.

Almost three years ago, as soon as the election took place, we entered this building, this office, and immediately began planning our move.

I dreamed of moving from Bankova. Together with the government and parliament. To unload the center of Kyiv and in general - to move to a modern, transparent office - as befits a progressive democratic European country.

Now I will say one thing: I stay here.

I stay in Kyiv.

On Bankova Street.

I’m not hiding.

And I’m not afraid of anyone.

As much as it takes to win this Patriotic War of ours.

Today I signed a decree to present state awards of Ukraine to 96 Ukrainian heroes - our military.

Including…

The Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky of the second degree is awarded to:

Major Oleksandr Oleksandrovych Sak. Commander of the mechanized battalion who entered the battle with the battalion tactical group of the enemy and won thanks to a rational approach to combat and non-standard tactics.

Captain Rostyslav Oleksandrovych Sylivakin. Commander of the mechanized battalion, which successfully fought the overwhelming forces of the enemy, liberating Ukrainian towns and villages in the Sumy region.

The Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky of the third degree is awarded to:

Lieutenant Ihor Serhiyovych Lozovyi. Acting as part of the group, he stopped a column of enemy vehicles numbering about 150 units, which was moving in the direction of the Zhytomyr-Kyiv route. Destroyed.

Lieutenant Vitaliy Viktorovych Poturemets. He showed exemplary courage and composure in the battle, destroying a column of enemy equipment near the city of Kyiv. He was wounded.

The Order “For Courage” of the third degree is awarded to:

Master Sergeant, Commander of the Automobile Platoon Valentyn Viktorovych Baryliuk. Thanks to his brave actions and personal determination, the tank unit received fuel in time and left the encirclement, destroying the enemy on the way.

All 96 of our heroes are like these five!

Our gratitude to all the military.

Our gratitude to the Armed Forces of Ukraine!

Our gratitude is boundless.

Glory to Ukraine!

 

[PommyMommy]

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 2 hours ago
️Bipartisan bill introduced in U.S. House of Representatives that would ban import of Russian crude oil.
The bill would target U.S. imports of Russian crude oil, coal, liquefied natural gas, and petroleum products.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 1 hour ago
️Moscow's envoy to the U.N. Vasily Nebenzya says Russia will hold a ceasefire and open humanitarian corridors on Mar. 8.
The ceasefire will take place at 10 a.m. Moscow time and permit the evacuation of citizens from Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, & Mariupol, Nebenzya said.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
Bloomberg: Russia surpasses Iran and North Korea as most sanctioned nation 10 days after full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It became the target of 2,778 new sanctions, for a total of 5,530, Bloomberg reports, citing http://Castellum.ai, a global sanctions-tracking database.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
️U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price calls Russian Embassy tweet “flat out lie.”
Russian Embassy U.K. tweeted on Mar. 7 “the goal of Russia’s special military operation is to stop any war that could take place on Ukrainian territory or that could start from there.”

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
️Ukraine will pay an additional $1,000 monthly to conscripts, police, National Guard, other military and emergency services staff during martial law.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
️Children among dead after Russian air raid on residential buildings in Sumy.
Head of Sumy Regional State Administration Dmitry Zhivitsky said in a video message on Facebook on March 7 that at least 10 people were killed as a result of targeted bombings by Russia on Sumy.

 

[Lillymac]

Unbelievable

How Russians Reacted When We Showed Them Pictures From Ukraine

Streamed one hour ago:

President Zelenskyy's exclusive interview with David Muir: ABC News

Oh my!! These people are sheepels. Pitiful!!

 

[dotr]

Live updates: Lviv struggling to feed people fleeing war | AP News
''LVIV, Ukraine -- The mayor of Lviv said the city in far western Ukraine is struggling to feed and house the tens of thousands of people who have fled here from war-torn regions of the country.

“We really need support,” Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said.

More than 200,000 Ukrainians displaced from their homes are now in Lviv, filling up sport halls, schools, hospitals and church buildings. The historical city once popular with tourists had a population of 700,000 before the war.

The mayor said the city needs big tents equipped with kitchens so food can be prepared.

Hundreds of thousands more people could arrive if humanitarian corridors are opened up from cities now under siege from Russian troops.''

 

[otto]

Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia has said his country will carry out a cease-fire on Tuesday morning at 10 am Moscow time and open humanitarian corridors to evacuate citizens from Kyiv, Chernigov, Sumy and Mariupol.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected earlier proposals to evacuate Ukrainian citizens into what he has described as “occupied territory” in Russia and Belarus.

“This proposal doesn’t have any demands about the citizens being sent necessarily to Russia, into Russian territory,” he said at the end of a UN Security Council meeting.

“There’s also evacuation offered towards Ukrainian cities to the west of Kyiv, and ultimately it will be the choice of the people themselves where they want to be evacuated to,” Nebenzia said.

Russia to let Ukrainians evacuate in ‘direction of their choice’

Russia placed landmines along evacuation corridors, and broke ceasefire agreements for humanitarian evacuations.

Putin has opened corridors from Ukraine to Russia. It does not sound like a friendly agreement.

 

[Herat]

It's almost 8 am in Moscow

My general impression is that there are, indeed, fewer Aeroflot, Norwind, Royal, Rossiya, Azur Air, Smartair and other foreign-flagged Russian flights up.

Of course, Russian flagged aircraft can still fly to Russian-friendly places, so there are still flights from Moscow to Cuba and Belarus and it looks like probably Moscow to Turkish destinations.

I'm tired now so I'll have to check back in the morning ( PDT) to see if they are still flying into Kaliningrad, or Venezuela.

I'm curious if they will pick up any flights to Brazil, as I yet haven't seen one.

 

[Herat]

By David Hughes
8 Mar 2022 rbbm.
‘No better than North Korea’: Russian aviation faces wipeout | Russia-Ukraine war News | Al Jazeera
''Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has resulted in its airlines being banned from European, American and Canadian airspace, left the country with leased aircraft it cannot use, and scuttled aerospace industry partnerships with the West.

Russian citizens won’t be flying to Europe or North America anytime soon, with even flights to friendly countries such as China in doubt due to the international community’s ostracisation of the country’s aviation sector, according to aviation analysts.''

“Russia will be the world’s largest country with a developed economy and an aviation industry no better than North Korea’s,” Richard Aboulafia, managing director of Michigan-based AeroDynamic Advisory, told Al Jazeera.

“Aviation sanctions are easy to enforce,” said Aboulafia, who has more than 30 years of experience in the aviation industry. “Airlines can’t fly. They will have to completely redo their aircraft plans, which at the moment, are built on Western technology.”

Actually, Russian citizens can fly to any city that Turkish airlines, Emirates, flyDubai, Etihad, and some others fly to.

So they can fly to, say Paris, via Turkish Airlines to Istanbul then to Paris. Or to Toronto via Turkish Airlines to Istanbul to Toronto.

So they aren't really entirely cut out from the world, it just takes patience and money as these Russia-based flights are going to be full with Russians or other foreign nationals who want to get out of Russia before it all gets worse.

 

[PommyMommy]

Russia-Ukraine war: Zelenskiy vows to punish attack on civilians in Irpin; Russia bombards Mykolaiv – live | World news | The Guardian
1h ago 02:55

Ukraine much closer to joining EU, says Kuleba
Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, has made some very positive noises about the prospects of Ukraine being admitted to the European Union., according to Ukraine’s Unian website.

After a call to the EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, on Monday, he said that while distance to EU membership had been as far away as the Moon last week, it was now only from Kyiv to the Ukraine city of Vinnitsa – a distance of just 262km or 162 miles.

The situation has changed. I won’t talk about which specific countries are now skeptical for now, but some of those countries that were negative now really support us. Some still don’t. But wait. This week will be serious news related to our membership in the European Union.

[...]

 

[Sundog]

Actually, Russian citizens can fly to any city that Turkish airlines, Emirates, flyDubai, Etihad, and some others fly to.

So they can fly to, say Paris, via Turkish Airlines to Istanbul then to Paris. Or to Toronto via Turkish Airlines to Istanbul to Toronto.

So they aren't really entirely cut out from the world, it just takes patient and money as these Russia-based flights are going to be full with Russians or other foreign nationals who want to get out of Russia before it all gets worse.

I assume they can also still fly from Moscow to Beijing or Shanghai, and then on to other destinations in the west, including Canada and the U.S. I know there are fewer flights from China to the U.S. since Covid-19, but still several flights a week.

 

[NoSI]

I can't figure out, what is DDR?

"Deutsche Demokratische Republic" aka East Germany.

 

[PommyMommy]

Detained Protesters In Perm, Russia, Speak Out Against The War In Ukraine (rferl.org) - Video

People being held by police in the Russian city of Perm for protesting against the war in Ukraine have been filmed speaking out from detention about why they joined the demonstrations. Almost 100 people were detained in the city on March 6 after protests against the war were held across Russia.

A Detention, A Recording, A Brutal Beating: Another Window Into Russian Police Interrogations (rferl.org)
[...]

One of nearly 5,000 people arrested on March 6 amid protests against Russia’s war in Ukraine, Kaluzhskikh was asked to state her name, home address, and place of study, and to explain how she heard about the demonstrations.

In an audio recording first published by a well-known Russian rights group and circulated on a Telegram channel, Kaluzhskikh, 26, responds by citing the clause in the Russian Constitution that bars people from incriminating themselves.

The sound of what appears to be a person being hit is then heard.

“The next one will be even harder,” a man identified in the transcript as a police officer can be heard saying.

It gets worse.

Over nearly 11 minutes of the recording, the sound of blows is heard repeatedly, interspersed with verbal abuse.

By the standards of Russian police brutality, documented for years by rights groups, the physical and verbal abuse that Kaluzhskikh endured is shocking, but not out of the ordinary.

[...]

 

[cujenn81]

I assume they can also still fly from Moscow to Beijing or Shanghai, and then on to other destinations in the west, including Canada and the U.S. I know there are fewer flights from China to the U.S. since Covid-19, but still several flights a week.

The real problem is that airplanes need routine maintenance to run smoothly and Boeing and Airbus have both halted all shipments of parts and suspended maintenance and support services in Russia.

 

[Herat]

I assume they can also still fly from Moscow to Beijing or Shanghai, and then on to other destinations in the west, including Canada and the U.S. I know there are fewer flights from China to the U.S. since Covid-19, but still several flights a week.

The problem for Aeroflot and Russia is that about 65% of their planes are owned by companies based in either Ireland or Bermuda and leased to the Russian companies

As part of their protest over the invasion of Ukraine, these companies have cancelled the leases on these planes. So they can legally seize them. Unlikely someone from Ireland or Bermuda is going to travel to Russia to seize them, but they can legally enforce the notice in most all other countries.

So Aeroflot does not want to risk losing their aircraft if they fly into say, Canada, or Ireland, or any cooperative country in the world.

So far I have not been able to find current flights from Moscow direct to any city in China. It appears China Airlines are not flying into Russia, either. The only countries in the west that the were flying these leased planes into were: Cuba, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Venezuela, and Turkey.

 

[Herat]

Since the US consultate has closed for business in Russia, there are no Visas being issued for any US entry. I imagine the same goes for Canada and the NATO participants or EU members, too.

So the regular Russian isn't going to be able to get to these countries, anyway.

I do think, though, that through several middle-East airlines, they can easily fly into Doha or UAE and be able to selectively travel elsewhere, if that country has not yet closed it's doors to Russians. Like maybe Indonesia, or India, or Brazil, or the Maldives.

 

[Sillybilly]

It's 9:00 am in Moscow. Ceasefire is set to start 1 hour from now.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 1 hour ago
️Moscow's envoy to the U.N. Vasily Nebenzya says Russia will hold a ceasefire and open humanitarian corridors on Mar. 8.
The ceasefire will take place at 10 a.m. Moscow time and permit the evacuation of citizens from Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, & Mariupol, Nebenzya said.

 

[Herat]

The real problem is that airplanes need routine maintenance to run smoothly and Boeing and Airbus have both halted all shipments of parts and suspended maintenance and support services in Russia.

Yes, that's like phase II of the airlines problem for Russia. It's not like Russia was famous for great maintenance or adherence to strict regulations to begin with. Long history of bad / stupid accidents.

 

[otto]

Detained Protesters In Perm, Russia, Speak Out Against The War In Ukraine (rferl.org) - Video

People being held by police in the Russian city of Perm for protesting against the war in Ukraine have been filmed speaking out from detention about why they joined the demonstrations. Almost 100 people were detained in the city on March 6 after protests against the war were held across Russia.

A Detention, A Recording, A Brutal Beating: Another Window Into Russian Police Interrogations (rferl.org)
[...]

One of nearly 5,000 people arrested on March 6 amid protests against Russia’s war in Ukraine, Kaluzhskikh was asked to state her name, home address, and place of study, and to explain how she heard about the demonstrations.

In an audio recording first published by a well-known Russian rights group and circulated on a Telegram channel, Kaluzhskikh, 26, responds by citing the clause in the Russian Constitution that bars people from incriminating themselves.

The sound of what appears to be a person being hit is then heard.

“The next one will be even harder,” a man identified in the transcript as a police officer can be heard saying.

It gets worse.

Over nearly 11 minutes of the recording, the sound of blows is heard repeatedly, interspersed with verbal abuse.

By the standards of Russian police brutality, documented for years by rights groups, the physical and verbal abuse that Kaluzhskikh endured is shocking, but not out of the ordinary.

[...]

Reminds me of Poland in 1979. The police picked up everyone who was suspected of using foreign currency. They hit them as soon as they denied it, which they always did, and hit them harder for lying, punched them every time they found a reason. They were broken and wounded when released.

 

[Charlot123]

Wow these Russian Moms sure put this guy on the spot. He even brought up Afghanistan in explanation of it being ok their boys didn't know where they were going or that they would invade Ukraine.

'Sent As Cannon Fodder': Locals Confront Russian Governor Over 'Deceived' Soldiers In Ukraine

"In an apparent effort to ease the audience's concerns, Tsivilyov likened the Kremlin's approach to the Ukraine invasion to the Soviet Union's bloody 1979-1989 war in Afghanistan that helped set the stage for the Soviet collapse.

"It was officially stated that we had declared war, and the first who entered Afghanistan didn't know where they were going," Tsivilyov said. "They found out when they already entered.”"

This is a very bad example. The Afghani invasion was decided on by six, or seven, Soviet ruling gerontes, and expected to be a very brief war. It lasted for ten years, and eventually, the Soviet Union evacuated the troops, leaving Afghanistan to a tribal war that, amidst many events, essentially continues until now. Afghanistan ended so shamefully for the USSR that it makes no sense to even remember those times.