On March 17 local time, the pro-Russian Donetsk authorities announced that they had foiled an attempt by Ukraine to withdraw its troops from Bakhmut in the east of the country. On the other hand, the US government has once again rejected any call to establish a ceasefire for Ukraine in the current period.
Meanwhile, Russia said it would destroy Western weapons shipments to Ukraine after NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) members Poland and Slovakia pledged to send MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine.
Denis Pushilin, acting president of the pro-Russian Donetsk People’s Republic, announced that Russian troops had repeatedly blocked attempts by Ukrainian factions to leave Bakhmut.
In a statement to Russia’s Channel 1, Pushilin added that the situation was developing flexibly in the direction of “liberating Bakhmut,” stressing that Russian forces were able to gain a firm foothold in the city’s industrial zone.
British intelligence, on the other hand, said many elements of the Russian army, along with fighters from Russia’s Wagner Group, had established themselves on the west bank of the Bahmutka River – a former front in the battle for control of the city .
he Russian military website reported that the troops of the Russian Wagner Group continued to put pressure on the Ukrainian army from the north and south sides of Bakhmut, and attempted to encircle Bakhmut from all directions.
The site added that heavy fighting was taking place in the city center and in some neighborhoods to the north, noting that some of the fiercest fighting took place inside the industrial zone and in the town of Alichovo-Vasilyevka northwest of Bahmut .
On the other hand, the Ukrainian Army Staff said on the 17th that although the Russian army suffered losses, it continued to try to advance to the city of Bakhmut, adding that the Ukrainian army repelled the Russian army in the past few hours. More than 70 attacks launched on the front.
In addition, the Ukrainian General Staff also confirmed that the Russian army launched a “failed” attack on the Malinka region in the south of Donetsk, while at the same time, Avdivka, Lyman, Shakhta in Donetsk Attempts to break through the Ukrainian defenses have appeared in Kharkov, as well as Kobyansk in Kharkov.
Media reports said troops from the Wagner Group had reached the town of Hromovo, northwest of Bakhmut, on the last Ukrainian army supply line to the city.
Sources pointed to heavy fighting around the town after forces from Russia’s Naria group took control of the road from Khromovo to the neighboring city of Chasovyar.
With the battle for Bakhmut going on for almost eight months, the Russians are ramping up the pressure to capture Bakhmut for their first victory in months, while the Ukrainians hold on to the city, The fall of the city would open the way for Russian forces to easily advance towards other major Donetsk cities such as Kramatorsk and Slovyansk.
Attempt to land in Kherson
On the southern front, Vladimir Sardo, an official in the pro-Russian Kherson region, said on the 17th that Russian artillery had prevented Ukrainian troops from landing on the left bank of the Dnieper River.
Sardo added that Russian fire sank a Ukrainian barge carrying a landing battalion as it was trying to reach the left bank of the Dnieper in the Kakhovka dam area.
Dozens of Ukrainian soldiers were killed in the operation, the pro-Russian official said, adding that the incident was Ukraine’s largest attempt to cross the river in recent times.
In November last year, Ukrainian troops recaptured Kherson, the main city in southern Ukraine, but Russian troops still control the Kherson region on the left bank of the Dnieper River.
nato fighter
On a political level, the Russian foreign ministry said Slovakia should be aware that its active military involvement in support of Ukraine would herald an unintended escalation and the risk of conflict.
Earlier on the 17th, Slovakia announced that it would join Poland, thus becoming the second NATO member to decide to send fighter jets to Ukraine.
Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Hegel announced on the 17th that the country has approved the sending of 13 Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine.
Polish President Andrzej Duda announced the day before (16th) that the country will deliver the first batch of four MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine in the next few days.
On the other hand, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the decision by Poland and Slovakia to supply Ukraine with MiG-29 fighter jets was another example of some NATO countries increasing their involvement in the conflict.
The Russian official ruled out that the supply of the fighter jets would have any impact on Russia’s special military operations in Ukraine, stressing that any combat aircraft sent by Western countries to Ukraine would be destroyed.
In a statement to Newsweek, Peskov acknowledged that Russia’s special military operation against Ukraine took longer than initially planned and developed into a conflict with the entire NATO alliance.
He also accused the West of being directly involved in the conflict by supplying weapons to Ukraine, after Russia warned that NATO weapons would be a legitimate target for Russian forces.
After Western allies promised to provide Ukraine with advanced main battle tanks – such as the German-made “Leopard 2”, the American-made “Abrams” and the British-made “Challenger”, Ukraine is further implementing pressure to obtain F-16 fighter jets, but its allies have not met its requirements so far.
In this context, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and a statement issued by Sunak’s office later stated that the two sides discussed the development of the military situation in Bakhmut during the call. , and agreed that Ukraine needs to acquire the necessary capabilities to change the balance of power on the ground as quickly as possible.
America’s rejection
The US government has again rejected any call to establish a ceasefire for Ukraine in the current period.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Washington did not support the call for a ceasefire at this time, seeing it as an acknowledgment and endorsement of “Russian aggression.”
Kirby announced on the 16th that the United States welcomes any talks between the leaders of China and Ukraine, but asked China not to take a “unilateral” view on the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
He added that any current efforts to call for a ceasefire in Ukraine would only fuel “Russian aggression”.
On February 24 this year, China put forward a peace proposal to resolve the Russia-Ukraine crisis and emphasized the need to resume “direct dialogue” between Russia and Ukraine “as soon as possible”.
food agreement
On another issue, Turkey still hopes to be able to extend an international agreement on Ukrainian grain exports for 120 days before it expires, and has intensified efforts to persuade both Moscow and Kiev on the issue, which is crucial to easing the world food crisis. very important.
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said, “The expiration date of the agreement is approaching, and we are in contact with Ukraine and Russia to try to extend the agreement according to the initial conditions.”
As a gesture of goodwill, Russia offered to extend the agreement by 60 days in exchange for implementing a separate deal it signed with the United Nations last July on fertilizer exports.
This agricultural staple is theoretically exempt from sanctions imposed by Western countries since the start of the Russo-Ukrainian war, but in practice its export is banned.
Russia hopes to make tangible progress in terms of bank payments, transport logistics, insurance, “unfreezing” of financial activities, and completion of ammonia supply through the Togliatti-Odessa pipeline.
