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UKRAINE WAR BULLETIN - April 13, 2022 - 6:30 p.m. EDT
Embassy of Ukraine in the USA
Wash, D.C., Wed, April 13, 2022, 6:30 pm EDT
Distributed by U.S.-Ukraine Business Council www.USUBC.org
Russia continues to launch systematic missile and bomb strikes on infrastructure in Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions.
191 children were killed and more than 349 were injured as a result of Russia’s armed aggression.
Occupiers had captured two more civilian ships.
Prosecutor General of Ukraine Iryna Venediktova and Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim AA Khan made a joint working trip to Bucha.
President V.Zelenskyy noted the leadership of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia in the comprehensive support for Ukraine in the face of armed aggression by Russia.
WAR ROOM
General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
Russia continues to launch systematic missile and bomb strikes on infrastructure in Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions.
In the Slobozhansky direction, Russian troops continue partially blocking Kharkiv. Due to the impossibility of capturing it, the armed forces of the Russian Federation continue to use artillery to destroy the city's infrastructure.
In the Donetsk and Tavriya directions, according to available information, the Russian enemy is ready for offensive action. It continues to focus its efforts on capturing certain quarters of Mariupol and inflicting air strikes.
Russia is trying to carry out assault operations in the areas of Siverodonetsk, Rubizhne and Popasna.
In the South Buh direction, the Russian enemy conducts air reconnaissance in order to identify units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Russia continues illegal actions against the civilian population in the temporarily occupied territories. The Russians are checking documents, personal belongings and mobile phones. The Russian occupiers also carry out forced inspections of apartments.
In some occupied territories of Kharkiv oblast, Russia has disrupted the cellular network. The Russian occupiers are exerting an aggressive informational and psychological influence on the population. It is mostly aimed at trying to convince of the futility of the fight against the Russian occupation forces. We urge citizens not to believe in hostile propaganda and to continue total resistance. Russian occupying forces continue to suffer losses in the temporarily occupied territories.
Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine
Defence Intelligence of Ukraine obtained a list of servicemen of the mobile special purpose detachment of the Rosguard in the Nizhny Novgorod region, Nizhny Novgorod, who committed war crimes against the people of Ukraine.
Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine
Negotiations are underway to exchange 169 servicemen of the National Guard of Ukraine who were taken prisoner at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine
191 children were killed and more than 349 were injured as a result of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation.
In the territory of Borodyanka and Korolivka villages of Kyiv region, the burned bodies of a 16-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy were found.
On 11 April, Russian armed forces shelled civilian infrastructure in Kharkiv. A 1.5-month-old baby and a 12-year-old boy were killed. Another 4 children aged 1, 4, 5 and 9 were injured.
On 11 April, a 15-year-old girl was seriously injured in Kherson region as a result of a Russian shell hitting a residential building.
As a result of massive bombardment and shelling by the Russian armed forces of Ukrainian towns and villages, 957 educational institutions were damaged, of which 88 were completely destroyed.
On 12 April 2022, at around 14:00, Russian servicemen shelled the Babayi village of Kharkiv Region. As a result, a 37-year-old man was killed. Two more people were wounded.
On 12 April 2022, in the village of Pravdyne, Kherson region, soldiers of the Russian armed forces shot six men and one woman in a residential house. Afterwards, intending to cover up the crime, the occupants blew up the house with the bodies of the shot people.
On 12 April, around 16:00, Russian Armed Forces personnel opened fire on the town of Barvinkove, Izium district. As a result, three people were killed, including a 16-year-old girl. A 20-year-old young man was injured.
Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights
Kherson and much of Kherson region remain under Russian occupation for more than a month. The region is on the brink of a humanitarian disaster. 106 settlements are without electricity. There is less and less food and medicine, and the Russian invaders are taking away the last things from the population. There are no medicines for people with cancer or diabetes in the region.
Recently, the occupiers seized a humanitarian hub in Kherson, which had been set up to help the townspeople and medical institutions in the region. The Russians took away medicines, baby food and nappies.
Activists with a pro-Ukrainian stance continue to be kidnapped. According to the regional prosecutor's office, 137 people, including four journalists, are being held hostage by Russian militants. Locals point out that Kherson has become an equivalent of the Donetsk isolation ward for torturing those who disagree with the occupation regime. The occupiers have blocked most of Ukraine's information channels and are spreading disinformation through the Russian media and social networks.
On the night of April 12, the Russian occupiers fired phosphorous bombs at the village of Novoyakovlivka in the Komyshuva Territorial Community of the Zaporizhzhia Region.
Due to the rainy weather, the fire did not occur as a result of the shelling, no one was injured or killed. There are damaged houses.
The use of phosphorus bombs is prohibited by the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Victims of War and the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons.
A civilian car exploded on the Chernihiv-Kyiv highway, killing the driver. The car hit an anti-tank mine.
As of April 12, 168 out of 1,500 settlements in Ukraine have been demined.
In Berdyansk, a significant number of school principals and heads of education departments have written a letter of resignation. They do not want to work under the leadership of the occupiers.
The same situation used to happen in Melitopol district. The occupiers put pressure on representatives of the education sector in Melitopol. School principals began to resign en masse.
It is known that the occupiers are trying to start the educational process. They are forcing teachers to teach in Russian under the new curriculum.
Vasyl Vyrozub, a citizen of Ukraine and rector of the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Odessa, is being held illegally in pretrial detention center No. 2 in the Belgorod district of Stary Oskol (Russia).
The priest of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine was placed in solitary confinement, where he was tortured and accused of "espionage."
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 20 journalists have been killed, including representatives of foreign media.
On April 8, it became known about the death of journalist and writer Yevhen Bal, and on April 12 - about the shooting at the employee of the popular Chernihiv TV channel "Dytynets", video engineer Roman Nezhyborets.
As a result of the atrocities of the Russian occupiers in Bucha near Kyiv, 403 people were killed, 16 people are missing, and the bodies of 163 victims have already been identified.
According to the city authorities, the occupiers destroyed 22 high-rise buildings, 2 of which are not subject to restoration. 243 private houses that cannot be restored were also destroyed.
It became known that the occupiers had captured two more civilian ships.
On the territory of the Mariupol Sea Commercial Port, the Russian military took hostage members of the crews of the ships "Azburg" under the flag of Dominica and "Lady Augusta" under the flag of Jamaica.
POLICY
President of Ukraine
Address of President V.Zelenskyy to Ukrainians
Today was a useful day for our state, for our defense against the Russian offensive. The presidents of four states - friends of Ukraine - arrived in Kyiv. Those who help us from the first days. Who did not hesitate to give us weapons. Who did not doubt whether to impose sanctions. And who is now at the level of the European Union pushing for a tougher sanctions package against the Russian Federation. Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia. I was very glad to meet with the presidents today. The negotiations were fruitful.
It is important that the presidents visited Borodyanka in the Kyiv region, where they saw with their own eyes what the occupiers had done. For the presidents, this is another argument to push harder for tangible sanctions against Russia.
First of all, we need an oil embargo. And Europe's clear readiness to give up all Russian energy. The European Union must stop sponsoring Russia's military machine.
Western sanctions policy was also discussed today by a group of international experts led by Michael McFaul and Andriy Yermak. The group has been working for three weeks. It consists of international and Ukrainian experts who assess the sanctions imposed and how Russia is trying to circumvent them.
The group has prepared concrete proposals on how to remove sanctions loopholes, which are constantly used by Russia, and how to immediately enhance sanctions to make it tangible for Moscow.
I spoke today with US President Biden. The topics of the conversation included the prosecution of all Russian servicemen and commanders who committed war crimes. International cooperation for this. A new package of defensive support for Ukraine was discussed. The agreement was reached. $ 800 million. Weapons, ammunition, other assistance. Artillery systems, armored personnel carriers, helicopters. Sincere gratitude for your support! We also agreed to enhance sanctions against Russia.
I addressed the Parliament and the people of Estonia. Expressed gratitude for the help provided to Ukraine, including weapons. I also called on Estonia to join the project of Ukraine's reconstruction after the war.
We are already cooperating with Estonia in the field of digitization. And after the war it could become an even bigger project. On restoration of government and business digital systems, on cybersecurity. On restoration of the relevant educational institutions.
Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Karim Khan visited Bucha. It is right that a group of forensic experts from the International Criminal Court will start working in the city. Responsibility for the Russian military for war crimes is inevitable. We will drag them all to the tribunal. And not only for what was done in Bucha.
In general, in the north of our country, in the liberated areas, mine clearance continues. The occupiers left tens of thousands of unexploded shells, mines and tripwire mines - a lot of everything. Therefore, everyone who wants to return home to the liberated territory should be as careful as possible, as attentive as possible. And immediately inform the police and rescuers in case you find a strange object, an explosive object.
Combat reports for today do not differ significantly from previous ones. Russian troops are stepping up activity in the eastern and southern directions. They are trying to retaliate for their defeats. Rocket bombings and artillery strikes continue. New columns of equipment are being brought in. They are looking for reserves. They are trying to recruit residents of the south of our country - that is, from these temporarily occupied areas in addition to the so-called mobilization in certain districts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
All this feverish activity of the occupiers testifies first of all to their insecurity. To the fact that even with significant stocks of Soviet military equipment and a significant number of soldiers, whom the commanders do not spare at all, the Russian troops doubt their ability to break us, to break Ukraine. Well, we do everything to justify their doubts.
And I am grateful to all our defenders who hold positions and teach Russian soldiers to think that this war against Ukraine can only end in Russia's strategic defeat - sooner or later.
Either the Russian leadership will really seek peace, or as a result of this war, Russia will leave the international arena forever.
First Lady of Ukraine
'The number one target is all of us' - First Lady of Ukraine Mrs. Olena Zelenska warns no one in Ukraine is safe from Russian forces.
Prime Minister of Ukraine
On April 13, the Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal together with the Presidents of Estonia Alar Karis, Latvia Egils Levits, Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda and Poland Andrzej Duda visited the town of Borodianka in Kyiv region affected by the most massive destructions as a result of Russian attacks.
"We have seen numerous destructions of buildings and infrastructure in the villages of Kyiv region. There are shot and burned cars along the roads. Many have the inscription "Children", told Denys Shmyhal.
The Prime Minister of Ukraine informed the heads of state about the numerous crimes committed by the occupiers on Ukrainian soil. The Head of Ukrainian Government also raised the issue of the aggressor's inevitable responsibility, including criminal.
The parties also discussed the introduction of large-scale sanctions that will help stop the war as well as the need to restore Ukraine as soon as possible.
"The seized funds and property of Russia abroad should be used to rebuild the destroyed and damaged infrastructure of our state," the Head of the Government of Ukraine stressed.
Denys Shmyhal highlighted that the visit of the presidents of the four EU countries to Kyiv region testifies to a strong international coalition in support of Ukraine.
ECONOMY
National Bank of Ukraine
NBU Buys UAH 20 Billion of War Bonds in Second Such Purchase
On 12 April 2022, the NBU Board has decided to purchase UAH 20 billion in war bonds. This is the second time the central bank has bought these securities. As a result, the NBU holds a portfolio of UAH 40 billion in military domestic government debt securities as of 13 April.
By supporting the state budget in this way, the NBU has been ensuring that Ukraine can effectively repel Russia’s full-scale military aggression. However, as previously announced, the NBU will provide only limited financing, in a transparent manner, so that the government can meet its critical expenses.
This approach will allow the regulator to minimize the risk of inflation expectations getting out of control, the risk of inflation becoming high, and the risk of macro financial stability being disrupted. In addition, this approach will facilitate a quick return of the economy and financial markets to their market-driven mode of operation after Ukraine wins the war. At the same time, this approach will not put at risk Ukraine’s European integration, nor will it interfere with the efforts by international financial donors to help Ukraine.
As before, the NBU is not the main source of funding the government relies on for making expenditures. Even as the war has raged on, Ukrainian companies have been gradually going back to business as usual and paying taxes, while the Ukrainian people have been donating large amounts to the Armed Forces. International partners have also been providing Ukraine with vital financial, military, and humanitarian aid.
Should the government require more funds to finance its critical expenses, the NBU will make separate decisions regarding the viability of new purchases of domestic government debt securities. Going forward, the NBU’s comment on changes in its war bond portfolio will be published on a monthly basis, no later than the fifth day after the month begins.
As the Ukrainian economy and financial system go back to normal, the NBU will resume, as soon as possible, the pursuit of its inflation-targeting regime with a floating exchange rate and a ban on financing the state budget.
ENERGY
Ministry of energy of Ukraine
Operation of the power system of Ukraine as of April 13
Over the past 24 hours, power supply to more than 51,9 thousand consumers has been restored.
In particular, in Chernihiv region - 13 thousand consumers, Dnipropetrovsk – 10,1 thousand, Kyiv – 8,6 thousand, Luhansk - 6 thousand, Kharkiv – 5,5 thousand, Donetsk – 4,8 thousand, Mykolaiv – 2,3 thousand, Zaporizhzhia – 1,6 thousand subscribers.
Gas supply was restored to 4,6 thousand consumers.
Ukrainian energy companies are doing their best to quickly restore energy supply to citizens.
However, in some areas, emergency recovery work is complicated or impossible due to the intensification of hostilities and the emergence of new damage.
As of April 13, about Ukraine remains without electricity 950 settlements, a total of about 765,1 thousand consumers.
More than 289 thousand subscribers remain without gas supply.
