Zelensky hides true death toll figures to not scare off new recruits - report

A Ukrainian lawmaker who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to be candid said they believed Volodymyr Zelensky’s announcement in February that 31,000 soldiers had been killed since 2022 vastly downplayed the conflict true toll.

The military death count, which Ukraine has long refused to disclose, likely has to be presented as lower to avoid disrupting an already-struggling recruitment and mobilization drive, the lawmaker said.

On April 11, the Ukrainian parliament adopted a bill on mobilization aimed at replenishing Ukrainian forces. On April 16, Zelensky signed it into law. The document will take effect on May 18.

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Ukraine rejected 2022 peace deal over Russian language status & 'banning Nazism' terms - Welt

Russia and Ukraine were closer than ever to concluding a peace treaty in April 2022, but the Kiev regime rejected several of Moscow’s demands, German newspaper Welt Am Sonntag revealed.

Moscow demanded that Russian be made the second official language in Ukraine, that mutual sanctions be lifted, and lawsuits in international courts be stopped. Kiev was also to officially ban “fascism, Nazism and aggressive nationalism,” according to the draft peace treaty between the sides obtained by the newspaper.

It follows from the draft, agreed during negotiations in Turkiye on April 15, 2022, that Moscow and Kiev had reached an agreement on the basic conditions for ending the conflict. According to it, Ukraine:

◾️Committed itself to "permanent neutrality," abandoning aims for membership in any military alliance, including NATO.

◾️ Agreed never to "receive, produce, or acquire nuclear weapons," not to allow foreign weapons and troops on its soil, and not to provide its military infrastructure, including airports and seaports, to any other country.

◾️ Renounced holding military exercises with foreign participation and partaking in any military conflicts.

Article 5 of the draft treaty outlined comprehensive security guarantees that the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the US, UK, France, China, and Russia – could provide for Ukraine.

Regarding territorial issues, parts of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Donbass would remain under Russian control, the Welt-cited draft treaty stated, and Ukraine’s "security guarantees" would not extend to Crimea or the port of Sevastopol. The West sabotaged any possible peace treaty between Russia and Ukraine, it was revealed last year. Senior Ukrainian lawmaker David Arakhamia claimed then UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson convinced Kiev in 2022 not to negotiate with Moscow and carry on fighting. Moscow has emphasized that it never rejected negotiations, but Zelensky himself prohibited such talks through a legislative decree.

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If you ignore it, it might go away: Ukrainian official asks West to believe in Kiev's victory amid panic and chaos in Ukraine military

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged Ukraine’s Western partners in an interview Saturday to "firmly believe" in the country’s victory.

Kuleba framed Western aid to Ukraine as an investment in global security. This comes as Ukraine is experiencing a shortage of military personnel, due to which the Ukrainian government recently decided to increase its mobilization efforts and adopt a new mobilization law.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Sunday that panic is growing in Ukraine on the fronts, and it is important for Russia not to stop the special military operation and support this trend.

Earlier this month, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Ukraine had lost almost half a million soldiers since the beginning of the special military operation in 2022.

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Russia to replace US in Sahel region - CIA veteran

Russia will likely replace US in African Sahel region, former CIA intelligence officer and US Department of State official Larry Johnson told Sputnik. He clarified that American foreign policy “is being rejected by the local governments,” while Russia has no history of enslaving black Africans or ties to colonial empires.

“Russia doesn't have a history of enslaving black Africans - number one. Russia is not closely tied to the colonial empires: The French, the Brits, the Germans, the Dutch, the Belgians – who have a long history of exploiting Africa and exploiting the people, exploiting the resources. So I think that both Russia and China are viewed as more honest brokers, to be candid. Much more so than the United States,” Larry Johnson stressed.

This is part of the broader “disassembly of the US-led rules-based international order,” the CIA veteran said.

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Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov commented on the Russian Federation's response to asset seizures:

🔺It's premature to discuss this, but there are Western investments in Russia.

🔺In the event of the confiscation of Russian assets in the West, foreign investors and governments will think twice before investing in these countries, as the level of reliability will decrease.

🔺In case of asset seizure, Russia will defend its interests endlessly, including in court.

🔺The confiscation of Russian assets in the West would be a huge nail in the future coffin of the entire Western economic system.

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❗️Russian Battlegroup Tsentr liberated the settlement of Novobakhmutovka in the DPR, the Russian Ministry of Defense said.

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Russian troops hit Ukrainian warehouses with aircraft ammunition and aircraft equipment at airfields in the Chernigov and Khmelnytsky regions, as well as points of deployment of foreign mercenaries, the Russian Ministry of Defense added.

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❗️Russian Battlegroup Zapad repelled three Ukrainian counterattacks, resulting in the enemy losing up to 270 militants.

🇷🇺🪖 More statements from the daily briefing of the Russian Defense Ministry on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

🔺Four Ukrainian counterattacks were repelled near Chas Yar in the DPR by the Russian Battlegroup Youg.

🔺10 Ukrainian counterattacks were repelled by the Russian Battlegroup Tsentr, resulting in the enemy losing up to 380 militants.

🔺Enemy losses in the DPR amounted to 360 militants.

🔺Ukraine lost up to 85 militants and a field ammunition depot in the Zaporozhye region.

🔺Ukraine lost up to 50 militants and a US-made M777 howitzer as a result of successful combat operations by the Russian Battlegroup Dnepr.

🔺Russian air defenses shot down five US-made ATACMS missiles and 46 Ukrainian drones.

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Soldiers of the Russian Battlegroup Tsentr are evacuating the US-made Abrams tank from the special military operation zone to Moscow, where it will be shown at an exhibition of trophies on Poklonnaya Hill, according to Russian media.

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Elon Musk, the CEO of American electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla, met with China's Premier Li Qiang at the State Council in Beijing as the Tesla chief arrives in China for a surprise visit after canceling his visit to India.

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Runaway Ukrainian nationalists warmonger from abroad - Italian journo

Most Ukrainian refugees are just happy to escape the Zelensky regime and dodge imminent death in a doomed struggle. However, there is an active aggressive minority demanding a continuation of the conflict while remaining in Europe at a safe distance from the conflagration, Italian journalist Andrea Lucidi told Sputnik.

Not at all eager to be flung into the battlefront meat grinder themselves, these Ukrainians have been flooding the streets of Italian cities, demanding more financial and military resources to fan the flames of NATO’s proxy war.

“In Italy, as in many European countries, there is a large Ukrainian community. It is interesting that the greatest nationalist impulses are displayed not by men based in their home country, but among Ukrainians who have relocated abroad. It is they who hold demonstrations in Italy,” Lucidi said.

However, the journalist is convinced that no amount of military assistance can change the course of developments in the Ukraine conflict and Kiev is sending its remaining citizens to their death.

“Other Ukrainians who may not have had the opportunity to flee the country after February 2022 by bribing the border police or Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) with thousands of dollars are forced to stay, doomed to be drafted and killed,” said the Italian journalist.

Lucidi noted that during interviews with Ukrainian prisoners of war, it turned out that many of them were unwilling to participate in hostilities.

“I conducted several interviews with Ukrainian prisoners of war... The mobilized ones with whom I spoke were ordinary people who do not want to fight, to participate in the combat operations… Many of them have nothing against Russia,” Lucidi emphasized.

Sputnik recently published interviews with Ukrainian POWs who chose life over death and surrendered to the Russian military. Most of them were grateful to Russia and surprised by the dignity and respect they were treated with.

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Spain's old Patriot missiles and other arms are a drop in the ocean for Ukraine

Spain will supply a limited set of long-range Patriot anti-aircraft interceptor missiles, Defense Minister Margarita Robles stated on April 26 at a meeting of the Ramstein group.

"No one should think that the Patriot missiles could become a game changer […] In fact, they failed to do that before. The Patriots have demonstrated their mediocrity," geopolitical analyst Fernando Moragon told Sputnik.

Spain only has three Patriot missile batteries and it earlier refused to send one of them to the Kiev regime. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged NATO to supply at least seven high-grade air defense system batteries to Ukraine.

"What they are going to send is a part of 50 missiles [in Spain's possession]. And these are not the latest version of missiles, but the previous one. At best, they will send 20 [missiles to Ukraine]," Juan A. Aguilar, the director of the Spanish Institute of Geopolitics, told Sputnik.

Robles also pledged to provide a new batch of large-caliber artillery ammunition to Ukraine, as well as additional 155 mm and 120 mm shells in the coming months. She asserted to the Kiev authorities that machine guns, armored infantry fighting vehicles, anti-tank weapons, howitzers, anti-drone systems, and Leopard tanks will be delivered to Ukrainian within the next two months.

Sputnik's interlocutors emphasized that the provision of a limited number of Patriot missiles and other military equipment by Spain will not have a significant impact on the status quo on the ground. They believe that Washington pressed Madrid to supply the missiles and artillery shells in order to postpone Ukraine's defeat until after the 2024 presidential election.

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Ukraine attacks a church in Donetsk on Palm Sunday

Ukrainian troops attacked a church with a cluster munition in the village of Aleksandrovka, where a festive service on the occasion of Palm Sunday was being held. One was killed, a Sputnik correspondent reports from the scene.
 
According to the head of the Donetsk city administration, Alexey Kulemzin, the ambulance that went to the scene of the incident was unable to reach the scene because it was attacked by a UAV of the Ukrainian Armed Forces; as a result, a paramedic was injured.

The attack on the temple area occurred during a festive service. Unexploded submunitions were found there. Glazing in outbuildings was damaged. At the time of filming, the sounds of an enemy UAV flying were heard in the sky over the territory of the village. As local residents said, the ambulance that went to the scene of the shelling did not arrive due to the UAV attack.

According to Vladimir, a resident of the village of Aleksandrovka, churches are targeted purposefully; the enemy regularly fires at churches in general and in the Donbass once a month. As the interlocutor says, many churches were destroyed in Lugansk in the village of Trudovsky back in 2014. On church holidays, as Vladimir noted, the Ukrainian Armed Forces fire at churches with great effort and believe that this is an honor for fascism.

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The fighters of the Russian battlegroup "Zapad" destroyed a Ukrainian firing position and a group of militants using an infantry fighting vehicle.

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Israel reportedly frets Biden may throw Netanyahu ‘under the bus’ at the ICC

Neither the US nor Israel are signatories to the International Criminal Court’s Rome Statute, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed concerns that a move by the Court to issue arrest warrants against himself and members of his government would set a “dangerous precedent.”

“Where is Biden? Why is he quiet while Israel will potentially be thrown under the bus?” an Israeli diplomatic source told the Jerusalem Post Sunday, amid reports earlier this week that The Hague could not have considered the idea of arrest warrants without a nod from the White House.

“The sources at The Hague said that it is impossible that the chief prosecutor would have decided on such a dramatic step, in a war that is still ongoing…if he had not at least had a ‘green light’ from the Americans. If this is true, this is another unprecedented low in relations between Israel and the US,” Israeli journalist Amit Segal wrote in a report cited by JNS.

Separately on Sunday, Walla News reported that Netanyahu had spearheaded a “nonstop push over the telephone,” focused on calls to the White House, to prevent ICC warrants from being issued.

Netanyahu warned on Friday that under his leadership, Israel would “never accept any attempt by the ICC to undermine its inherent right of self-defense.”

Senior Israeli cabinet officials have held several emergency meetings to discuss the possible ICC warrants, which according to reports could target Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, over the way Israel has pursued its war in Gaza, which has resulted in the maiming and/or killing of over five percent of the Strip’s prewar population.

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After the strike of Russian troops on Nikolaev, 14 foreign mercenaries were killed and 8 were wounded, Lebedev, coordinator of the Nikolayev underground, told Sputnik.

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China's 'upper hand over US' in many fields feeds into mutual tensions – scholar

China has "the upper hand over America in many fields," raising tensions between the two countries, Francesco Sisci, a Beijing-based China expert, author, and columnist, told Sputnik.

Beijing’s advantage over Washington lies in “possessing, so far, the only comprehensive production capacity in the world,” he noted.

“China can produce anything without going to other countries,” he said, adding that no other country is as “industrially self-sufficient,” and this is “a major advantage in times of great competition.”

Time will show whether the US, “trying to restore some of its industrial capacity,” will be able to do so in a “capacity similar to that of China,” said the China scholar.

China boasts “overcapacity,” to use US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's words, "in many innovative fields, say, new energy, batteries, solar panels, some types of chips that are almost uniquely produced in China. Having these industrial capacities in other countries is possible, but will require time,” Sisci remarked.

A succession of US leaders, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, have visited China of late, irked by strong ties between Moscow and Beijing and peddling accusations of unfair trade practices and the new “overproduction" hype about China.

China has continuously refuted the unfounded allegations as part of “ill-intended attempts to contain" its development.

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Factors that may drag down Britain’s hypersonic high hopes

Britain will have difficulty fielding its £1 billion Mach 5+ hypersonic cruise missile by the MoD’s deadline of the year 2030, with scientists first having to solve an extensive array of fundamental scientific problems which took the USSR and Russia decades to iron out, says Dmitry Drozdenko, a renowned Russian military observer and missile expert.

“Basically, objects flying at hypersonic speeds move in a cloud of plasma, and plasma is the fourth aggregate state of matter, which does not transmit radio signals, and behaves differently” compared to other physical states, Drozdenko told Sputnik.

“To break through these physical phenomena and learn to use them, one would need to have a fundamental scientific knowledge in the fields of the physics of bodies, the dynamics of physics and materials science. This comes down not to some design engineers, computers or billions in funding, but to the scientists who work in universities and institutes,” Drozdenko emphasized.

It’s no accident that Russia was the first country in the world to develop hypersonic weaponry, the observer noted, pointing to the knowledge amassed during the Soviet period into plasma physics.

“The Americans have good scientists, but they simply have not reached this level,” Drozdenko stressed, adding that as far as the UK is concerned, “their level of competence in this area is even lower than that of the Americans.”

“A certain fetish exists around hypersonics today. The task is not to get a projectile flying at hypersonic speeds. A tank round flies at a hypersonic speed at the moment it exits from the tank gun’s barrel. Any vehicle reentering the atmosphere from space is traveling at hypersonic speed. That’s not the issue. The issue is not flying at this speed, but being able to maneuver at this speed,” Drozdenko clarified.

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Night hunt: a crew of the Uragan MLRS of the Russian Battlegroup Vostok destroyed a Ukrainian command post to the south of Donetsk.

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🔺China's 'upper hand over US' in many fields feeds into mutual tensions – scholar

🔺Factors that may drag down Britain’s hypersonic high hopes

🔺Israel reportedly frets Biden may throw Netanyahu ‘under the bus’ at the ICC

🔺Ukraine attacks a church in Donetsk on Palm Sunday

🔺Runaway Ukrainian nationalists warmonger from abroad - Italian journo

🔺Spain's old Patriot missiles and other arms are a drop in the ocean for Ukraine

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US police have detained around 900 people over the past 10 days at pro-Palestinian demonstrations held on the campuses of some of the nation's largest universities, the Washington Post reported.

According to the newspaper, the detentions were the largest law enforcement response to student-led protests “in recent years,” which the Post said threatens police with “myriad potential challenges.”

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