Russian troop build-up may signal new assault, says Ukraine
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Russia has announced advances north and south of the city of Bakhmut, its main target for months.
PHOTO: AFP
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KYIV - Moscow has massed hundreds of thousands of troops in Ukraine and is targeting dozens of places a day in a markedly stepped-up barrage of artillery attacks.
Ukrainian forces are struggling to hold their ground on a 225km stretch in the east, awaiting tanks, armoured vehicles and other weapons systems from the West.
Ukrainian officials have been bracing themselves for weeks for a new Russian offensive that could rival the opening of the war. Now, they are warning that the campaign is under way, with the Kremlin seeking to reshape the battlefield and seize the momentum.
“I think it has started,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky this week.
Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said during an interview with French television broadcast late on Wednesday: “Given that (the Russians) live through symbols, we think that they will try something around Feb 24.” Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb 24,
“They could try an offensive on two fronts... We need arms to counter the army,” he said. “We do not underestimate our enemy... Their mobilisation has not stopped.”
Mr Reznikov said Kyiv believes Moscow has deployed about half a million troops – far more than Russia’s claim of 300,000 personnel currently mobilised.
Russia has gained momentum on the battlefield. It has announced advances north and south of the city of Bakhmut, its main target for months.
Over a dozen top European Union officials visited Kyiv on Thursday to promise military, financial and political aid, and show support for Ukraine before the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
But unwilling to admit a country at war, the EU is set to dash Ukraine’s hopes of being swiftly allowed membership, underlining the need for more anti-corruption measures.
“Good to be back in Kyiv, my fourth time since Russia’s invasion. This time, with my team of commissioners,” European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter under a photo of her arriving at a Kyiv railway station.
Members of the EU’s executive European Commission were due to meet members of the Ukrainian government on Thursday. On Friday, Mr Charles Michel, president of the European Council comprising the 27 EU national leaders, will meet Mr Zelensky.
The first such gathering in Kyiv since the war began last Feb 24 follows fresh Western pledges of arms deliveries to help Ukraine resist an expected new Russian offensive. Moscow has criticised the pledges, saying new weapon deliveries will escalate the conflict but not change its course.
EU officials said talks would include discussion of more arms and money for Ukraine, as well as more access for Ukrainian products to the EU market, helping Kyiv cover energy needs, sanctions on Russia, prosecuting Russia’s leadership for the war, and extending an EU no-roaming mobile calls zone to Ukraine.
“It is a very strong signal that we are in Kyiv during the war. It’s a signal to the Ukrainian people. It’s a signal to Russia. It’s a signal to the world,” said a senior EU official.
Kramatorsk strike
Meanwhile, rescuers on Thursday searched for survivors in the rubble of an apartment building in eastern Ukraine, after a Russian rocket strike.
At least three people were killed in the attack on Wednesday and 20 were wounded.
Rescuers wearing torches on their heads worked to pull survivors from the debris, their faces covered in dust as they tried to find any signs of life under the cover of night.
After discovering the body of a resident who was crushed under the rubble, rescuers carried the victim away on a stretcher, as firefighters worked their way through the mangled structure.
Donetsk regional police said paramedics, search-and-rescue dogs and explosive experts were combing the area as they believed that more people could be trapped.
“I first heard a whistle and then everything started to fly around,” said Petro, 71, whose apartment was damaged.
President Zelensky wrote after the rocket strike: “Peaceful people died and are under the rubble.
“This is the daily reality of life in our country.”
Ukraine accuses Russian forces of indiscriminately shelling civilian infrastructure,
At least 44 people were killed in January when a Russian missile hit an apartment building in the eastern city of Dnipro.
Last April, Ukraine said 57 people died when a Russian missile hit a train station in Kramatorsk.
Moscow denied responsibility, saying the missile was Ukrainian. NYTIMES, AFP, REUTERS
