Russia’s Defense Ministry says its missiles hit Ukraine’s S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems in two locations, while cruise missiles from the sea destroyed the headquarters of a Ukrainian unit in the Dnipro region. Neither side’s military allegations could be independently verified. The Pentagon has said that Russia has a clear advantage over the armored forces for its next phase in its war against Ukraine. Spokesman John Kirby said Friday that the Russians are too weak to occupy the capital, but are now more concentrated in a smaller area and still have the vast majority of their fighting power. It will take a lot of effort from the Ukrainian defense and more Western help to repel them.
KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR: – US: Russia’s new battlefield commander has a history of brutality – Ukraine is digging to fight Russia’s impending eastern aggression – Analysis: War, economy could weaken Putin’s position as leader – Zelensky, in an interview with the AP, says that he seeks peace despite the horrors – Poland-Ukraine ties are considered a target of Russian misinformation – Go to for more coverage
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS: WASHINGTON – A senior US official has said Russia has appointed a new commander to oversee its war on Ukraine. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Russia had turned to one of its most experienced soldiers, General Alexander Dvornikov. U.S. officials say the 60-year-old general has a history of atrocities against civilians in Syria and other war theaters. White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN on Sunday that “this general will be just another author of crimes and atrocities against Ukrainian civilians.” He said that “no appointment of a general can erase the fact that Russia has already faced a strategic failure in Ukraine.” The new leadership on the battlefield comes as Russia prepares for a major and more focused push to expand Russian control over Donbass following its failure to occupy the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Sullivan reiterated his support for the Ukrainian government, saying that the United States is determined to do all it can to help the Ukrainians resist this general and the forces he commands. – Robert Burns and Hope Yen
KYIV, Ukraine – Ukraine’s border guards say about 2,200 Ukrainian men of fighting age have been arrested so far while trying to flee the country in violation of martial law. The agency reported on Sunday that some of them used forged documents and others tried to bribe border guards to leave the country. He said some people were found dead trying to cross the Carpathian Mountains in bad weather, without specifying the number. Under martial law, Ukrainian men between the ages of 18 and 60 are barred from leaving the country so they can be called up to fight.
WARSAW, Poland – Some Polish cities are honking their sirens to mark the anniversary of a 2010 plane crash that killed the country’s president, despite protests that their sound would be unnecessarily traumatic for refugees from the war in Ukraine. The sirens on Sunday morning were intended to add to the significance and grievance of the celebrations in honor of the late President Lech Kaczynski, the first lady and 94 other prominent Poles killed 12 years ago in the crash of a presidential plane in Russia. Kaczynski was a twin of Jaroslaw Kaczynski – the leader of the main ruling Law and Justice party. The governors of the provinces ignored the calls not to use the sirens due to the concern for the refugees from the neighboring Ukraine, injured by the air raid alarms. Authorities sent text messages to the refugees calling that the sirens would not pose any danger.
KYIV, Ukraine – The Ukrainian military says Russia is stepping up its forces and trying to investigate Ukrainian defense. The Ukrainian military said Sunday that Russian troops had continued to try to break through Ukrainian defenses near Izyum, southeast of Kharkov. He said Russia was sending reinforcements to the Izyum while continuing to bomb Kharkov. The army added that the Russians also continued their efforts to take control of Mariupol, the port of the Sea of Azov that has been under siege by Russian forces for almost a month. After Russia’s attempt to seize Kyiv and other major cities in northeastern Ukraine quickly failed, Ukrainian and Western officials expect Moscow to launch a new offensive in eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed separatists have been fighting Ukrainian forces for years. .
KYIV, Ukraine – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he has focused on the need to identify perpetrators of war crimes by telephone with German Chancellor Olaf Solz. Zelensky tweeted that in Sunday’s call “we stressed that all perpetrators of war crimes must be identified and punished.” Ukraine has blamed Russia for atrocities against civilians in Bukha and elsewhere near Kyiv, where hundreds of slaughtered civilians, many with their hands tied and signs of torture, found themselves after the withdrawal of Russian troops. Zelensky also said that he and Soltz “discussed anti-Russian sanctions, defense and financial support for Ukraine.”
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis opened Holy Week with a call for an Easter truce in Ukraine to make room for peace through negotiations, stressing the need for leaders to “make some sacrifices for the good of the people.” Celebrating Palm Sunday Liturgy in front of the crowd in St. Peter’s Square for the first time since the pandemic, Pope Francis called for “weapons to be laid to begin the Easter truce, no more refueling and no more fighting, no more ! “A truce to achieve peace through real negotiations.” Francis did not directly mention the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but the reference was clear. He has repeatedly denounced the war and the suffering inflicted on innocent civilians.
HELSINKI – Finland says a shipment of works of art from Russian museums has been returned to Russia after being confiscated as part of European Union sanctions against Moscow. The Finnish Customs Service announced late Saturday that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had granted special permission to return the shipment with a total insurance value of approximately 42 million euros ($ 46 million). He said trucks carrying works of art from the Hermitage Museum and the Pavlovsk State Museum in St. Petersburg, among others, left Finnish territory on Saturday afternoon. The cargo was seized at the Baalimaa border crossing in early April. The works were on their way to Russia after being borrowed from museums in Europe and Japan. Experts say works of art borrowed from Russia usually travel overland via Finland. Russia has demanded the return of all projects borrowed from “unfriendly” countries that imposed sanctions after its invasion of Ukraine.
MOSCOW – The Russian military says it has hit Ukrainian air defense batteries in the south and east of the country. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Lt. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said Sunday that the military had used air-to-air missiles to strike Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile systems at Starobohdanivka in the southern Mykolaiv region and at an air base in the north. Konashenkov also said that cruise missiles destroyed the headquarters of a Ukrainian military unit near Zvonetske in the Dnipro region. The allegations of the Russian army could not be independently verified.
KYIV, Ukraine – Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Iryna Vereshchuk says more civilians are expected to leave Mariupol on Sunday in their own vehicles. Evacuations are also planned from Berdyansk, Tokmak and Enerkhodar in the south and Siverierodonetsk, Lysikhansk, Popasna and Rubizne in the east. Mariupol, a strategic port on the Sea of Azov, has been under siege by Russian forces for almost a month, cut off from food, water and electricity, and hit by relentless bombings that have killed at least 5,000 people, according to local officials. Ukrainian authorities have urged civilians in the east to flee in the face of an impending Russian attack. Russia has been accused of killing 52 people at a train station in the eastern city of Kramatorsk on Friday as it prepared to evacuate.
GENEVA – The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says 4.5 million people have fled Ukraine since the start of the war. A regular update by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees on Sunday on the number of refugees who have left Ukraine since February 24 raised the total to about 4.504 million. About 2.6 million of them fled at least initially to Poland and more than 686,000 to Romania. However, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) notes that there are very few border controls within the European Union and believes that “a large number of people” have moved from the first country they arrived to.
LONDON – Britain’s defense ministry says Russia’s armed forces are seeking to respond to the growing casualties by increasing the number of troops with personnel who have been discharged from military service since 2012. In a Twitter post, the ministry also said Sunday that the Russian military’s efforts to “create more combat power” also include recruiting from the Transnistrian, a breakaway region of Moldova bordering Ukraine. Russia has about 1,500 troops in the area, which is not internationally recognized.
KYIV, Ukraine – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the Associated Press on Saturday that he is committed to the pursuit of peace despite Russian attacks on civilians who have taken the world by surprise.
