The battlefield situation in Ukraine in recent days shows that the two countries’ forces are in a deadlock situation, with both sides trying to maintain strategic goals and unable to launch large-scale attacks.
However, those commitments do not seem to meet the Ukrainian President’s request for stronger military aid to this country.
Controversy over evacuation of civilians to Russia
Moscow and Kiev are making contradictory statements on the issue of evacuating Ukrainian civilians to Russia, in the context of fighting that shows no signs of cooling down.
Ukrainian officials accused the Russian military of confiscating the passports of Ukrainian citizens and then sending them to separatist-controlled camps in the east, before transferring them to remote areas in Russia.
Ukraine Ombudsman Lyudmyla Denisova said that 402,000 people in this country, including 84,000 children, were evacuated as above.
However, the Russian side denied the accusations, affirming that Ukrainian civilians were evacuated according to their wishes.
Smoke rises from a warehouse destroyed after shelling on the outskirts of Kiev, Ukraine, on March 24.
Ukraine calls on NATO for tank aid
In a video speech to NATO leaders at the March 24 summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized that the West must provide `unlimited` aid to the country to deal with Russian forces.
Mr. Zelensky said Ukraine asked NATO to aid or resell 500 tanks, which he said accounted for only 1% of the tanks on the payroll of member countries of this military bloc.
Western leaders did not respond to Zelensky’s entire proposal, but pledged to impose new sanctions against Russia and increase humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
Finland announced it would send more military equipment to Ukraine and Belgium announced an addition of one billion euros to its defense budget to counter Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine.
The US meanwhile announced it would welcome 100,000 Ukrainian refugees and provide an additional $1 billion in food, medicine, clean water and other supplies to the country.
Deadlock on the battlefield
Nearly a month after the conflict, Russian and Ukrainian forces continue to fight fiercely.
The US believes that Ukraine can destroy Russian naval ships
The video is said to show a Russian warship in Berdyansk suspected of being hit by a Ukrainian attack on March 24.
Russia announced that it has taken further control of the city of Izyum in Kharkov province.
Local officials in Chernihiv, a city in northern Ukraine, accused the Russian military of deliberately targeting food warehouses.
City council secretary Olexander Lomako estimates that more than 130,000 people, nearly half of the pre-hostilities population, remain in the city and Ukrainian forces remain in control.
However, in other large cities, the situation became deadlocked, when the forces of both sides mainly clustered to keep the target under control.
The Russian army gradually adjusted its tactics to adapt to new combat conditions, shifting from deep penetration to siege organization.
Leader of the Russian Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov announced that forces under his command had taken control of Mariupol city hall.
How is the West pressuring Russia?
Western countries continue to impose more sanctions on Russia because of its military campaign in Ukraine.
The US also announced a new round of sanctions targeting 48 state-owned defense companies, 328 parliamentarians and dozens of people in Russian oligarchs.
On March 24, the British government announced sanctions against 65 more companies and individuals involved in Russia’s military campaign, including the country’s largest private bank.
The US and Western allies previously imposed several rounds of sanctions on Russia, including removing some Russian banks from the SWIFT international payment system.
The US Treasury Department also imposed sanctions on Russian President Putin, freezing his assets and interests in the US.
Countries call for an investigation into Russia’s military campaign
Dozens of country representatives gathered in The Hague on March 24 to show their commitment to support the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) investigation into Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine.
He said he is increasing funding and expert support for the ICC investigation.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken previously announced that the country’s government had declared that `the Russian military committed war crimes`.
Russia has not responded to the accusations from the US, but it affirms that the special military campaign aims to `demilitarize and de-fascize Ukraine` and only attacks military targets, not civilians.
After requests from dozens of member states, ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan earlier this month announced the opening of an investigation into Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine.
Prosecutor Khan said he would work `as quickly as possible`.
Conflict areas in Ukraine.
Hannah