In a sobering assessment before the US Congress, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe Gen. Christopher Cavoli laid bare Russia’s ability to absorb staggering losses in Ukraine while rapidly replenishing and even expanding its military capabilities. “The army is actually now larger – by 15% – than it was when it invaded Ukraine. Over the past year, Russia increased its frontline troop strength from 360,000 to 470,000,” Cavolistated. “Russia has also raised the upper conscription age limit from 27 to 30, increasing the pool of available military conscripts by 2 million for years to come.” W ..read more

After months of endless revisions and over 4,000 proposed amendments, Ukraine’s Parliament has finally adopted a new law aimed at strengthening the nation’s mobilization efforts in the face of Russia’s unrelenting aggression. With 283 votes in favor, the legislation promises several changes to the military conscription process. Yet, as the details of the law come into focus, a sense of disquiet permeates the frontline trenches and the wider public. For many, the long-awaited legislation falls painfully short of the decisive action required to confront the existential threat posed by Moscow’s ..read more

Russia’s war has left two choices for Ukrainians – either to adapt to new realities or to degrade. Ukraine has chosen to continue developing and has gone underground to protect its future. Establishing new facilities for children and parents in Lviv, Kherson, and Kharkiv marks significant steps in Ukraine’s efforts to provide crucial services amid the war, with the opening of a perinatal center and education spaces in shelters across the country. Lviv Regional Perinatal Center renovates shelter for safe deliveries In April 2024, the Lviv Regional Perinatal Center announced it set up delivery ..read more

The Russian command may focus their forecasted late spring/summer 2024 offensive operation on western Donetsk Oblast and will likely only be able to launch a concerted large-scale offensive operation in one operational direction at a time due to the country’s own personnel and planning limitations, according to a new report by the Institute for the Study of War. In a March interview with CBS News in eastern Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy voiced concerns about a potential major Russian offensive, which he expected around the end of May or June. Emphasizing the situation’s urgency, the p ..read more

Targeting critical oil refineries and storage facilities deep within Russian territory, Ukrainian drones have significantly reduced Russia’s crucial income from fuel exports. Experts suggest that intensifying these attacks could create severe fuel shortages, hindering Russia’s ability to sustain military operations. Contents First results of the campaign Did the US ask Ukraine to stop drone strikes against Russian refineries? Can these strikes drive up oil prices? Ukraine refers to the weakness of sanctions as the reason to conduct strikes against Russia’s energy facilities and stop Russia ..read more

The situation in the Bakhmut direction in Ukraine’s east is very complex and dynamic. After the failure to cut Ukrainians off from the south of Ivanivske village, Russians decided to divert their focus to the north of the village. Russians made incremental gains in this area, enabling them to break the stalemate and maintain their momentum in and around the village. New Russian gains between Bakhmut and Chasiv in Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast. Source: Reporting from Ukraine The hill to the northwest of Ivanivske gave Ukrainians a tactical advantage, enabling them to strike Russians who were trying ..read more

It is the eleventh day of the operation of Russian volunteer anti-Kremlin fighters in Russia’s regions bordering Ukraine. The fighting on Russian soil has flaunted one of Vladimir Putin’s “red lines,” with no ensuing repercussions. The volunteers, comprising the Free Russian Legion, Russian Volunteer Corps, and newly-minted Siberian Battalion, which fight alongside Ukraine against Russian invading troops, have claimed that their joint operation has thwarted a major Russian offensive on Ukraine. This is the second such operation of the anti-Kremlin fighters on Russian soil: their first raids we ..read more

On 6 February 2023, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy created a separate branch of forces – the Unmanned Systems Forces — to consolidate previous successful tactics of the battlefield utilization of drones and scale them up. In December 2023, he also announced the goal to manufacture 1,000,000 drones of all types in 2024 in Ukraine — a goal that seems realistic to fulfill by nearly 200 domestic manufacturers. Inside Ukraine’s campaign to crush Russia with combat drones At the same time, Russia has been doing the same, utilizing its state machine to introduce the massive use of small d ..read more

On 15-17 March, Russia held “presidential elections” in which incumbent President Vladimir Putin predictably secured his fifth term. Decried by Western leaders as a “farce,” Russia conducted the sham plebiscite also in all the regions it occupies in Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova, where the “record turnout” announced by the occupation authorities contrasted with empty booths and familiar intimidation and falsification strategies. Here is what transpired. Contents Repeated scenario of 2023 “parliamentary elections” “Record Putin popularity” in occupied lands amid impossible turnout Falsificat ..read more

Two years after the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine has published a report highlighting the mounting civilian suffering due to Russia’s disregard for humanitarian law and human rights obligations. The Commission found new evidence of violations and war crimes by Russian authorities in areas under their control in Ukraine. “New evidence strengthens the Commission’s previous findings that torture used by Russian authorities in Ukraine and in the Russian Federation has been widespread and systematic,” the report ..read more