Ukraine Latest: NATO Chief Warns Bakhmut May Fall Soon

Original article here.

(Bloomberg) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the possible fall of Bakhmut “in the coming days” would not indicate a turning point in Russia’s war against Ukraine.

“We must continue to provide support to Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said before a meeting with European Union defense ministers in Sweden.

Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander in charge of Ukraine’s ground forces, made a second visit Ukrainian positions near Bakhmut this week. Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, meanwhile, said a draft EU proposal to use €1 billion ($1.1 billion) to buy shells won’t be enough, adding his country needs about four times as much.

Key Developments

• EU Urges Faster Joint Purchases of Artillery Shells for Ukraine
• UN’s Guterres, Zelenskiy to Discuss Black Sea Grain Deal
• Pentagon’s Budget to Seek Big Increases for Weapons Buying, R&D
• Cyberattacks Are Just One Part of Hybrid Warfare: QuickTake
• Putin and Saddam Hussein Have a Lot in Common: Leonid Bershidsky

(All times CET)

UN’s Guterres Visits Kyiv as Crop-Export Deal Talks Continue (3:00 p.m.)

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited Ukraine for talks with Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday on issues which included grain exports, nuclear security, and mitigating impact from the Russia’s war.

“I want to underscore the critical importance of the rollover of the Black Sea Grain Initiative,” Guterres said during a press conference with Zelenskiy in Kyiv.

The deal allowing to export grain from some Ukrainian ports is set to expire March 18 and can be extended if no side seeks to terminate or modify it, though a renewal is yet to be confirmed.

Ukraine Will Evacuate Dozens of Children From Bakhmut (2:20 p.m.)

About 40 children will be re-located with a family member, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said on television. The evacuation of children had been encouraged in all areas of fighting, but was made obligatory for Bakhmut during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

They are among fewer than 4,000 civilians still in Bakhmut compared with a population of about 70,000 before the invasion, including about 12,000 children, according to Vereshchuk.

The issue of children in Russia’s war has become particularly charged. Last month, The School of Public Health’s Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale University said at least 6,000 Ukrainian children aged from 4 months to 17 years had been placed in “political reeducation” camps in Russia and occupied Crimea, with some later adopted or sent to foster families.

Bakhmut Could Fall to Russia Shortly, NATO Chief Says (1:30 p.m.)

Stoltenberg said Russia has suffered major losses in the battle for Bakhmut but is deploying more troops, trying to use quantity as a way of making up for a lack of quality.

“They have suffered big losses but at the same time we cannot rule out that Bakhmut may eventually fall in the coming days,” the NATO secretary general said, referring to Russia. “Therefore, it is also important to highlight that this does not necessarily reflect any turning point of the war and just highlights that we should not underestimate Russia and should continue to provide support to Ukraine.”

Ukrainian Top Commander Visits Bakhmut Troops Second Time (1:20 p.m.)

Oleksandr Syrskyi handed out medals to servicemen, according to video on his telegram channel.

Mother of Wagner Group Founder Wins Appeal Against EU Sanctions (12:05 p.m.)

Violetta Prigozhina was targeted in February last year through her association with her son, whose mercenary group has played a key role in President Vladimir Putin’s increasingly all-encompassing war effort. The EU General Court, the bloc’s second-highest tribunal, on Wednesday annulled her inclusion on the list.

Even if Prigozhin “is responsible for actions undermining the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine,” the link between mother and son “is based solely on their family relationship and is therefore not sufficient to justify her inclusion on the contested lists.”

Wagner Group Founder’s Mother Wins Challenge to EU Sanctions

Zelenskiy’s Top Aide and US Security Adviser Discuss Bakhmut (10:45 a.m.)

Zelenskiy’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak spoke by phone with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan. Yermak briefed Sullivan on decisions approved by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and the top military command about operations near Bakhmut, Zelenskiy’s office said by email.

Yermak and Sullivan discussed international efforts to provide Ukraine with weapon and financial support, punishment for Russian crimes against Ukrainians and environmental damage caused by the Russian invasion.

Germany’s Pistorius Warns of Ammunition Shortages (9:25 a.m.)

The EU proposal for sending ammunition to Ukraine “is important and necessary, but one can’t avoid the fact that over the next few weeks and months we’ll have to grapple with shortages,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said in Stockholm.

Pistorius said that “right now we need to find stocks jointly and to deliver whatever we can – to supply within the context of our own defense capabilities and the capacities of the alliance.” He added there was also a need to “see how quickly industry can scale up production.”

Draft EU Proposal on Ammunition Is too Little, Ukraine Says (9 a.m.)

Ukraine urgently needs artillery ammunition in large quantities, and a draft EU proposal to use €1 billion to buy shells won’t suffice, Ukraine’s Reznikov said. “We need one million rounds and approximately that would cost four billion,” Reznikov told reporters before a meeting of his EU counterparts in Sweden. “We need more.”

The EU’s Borrell said “we have the resources that we have.” He added: “If member states are ready to provide more, then we will have it. But today let’s be realistic and pragmatic. Don’t discuss about the infinity, discuss about the thing that can be adopted today.”

We Must Ramp Up Ammunition Production Within Europe, Sweden Says (8:50 a.m.)

“What is crucial is that Ukrainians direly need ammunition and we have to ramp up production within Europe,” Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson told reporters in Stockholm. “The primary objective is to procure from the European industrial base but if there are other deliveries from other states I don’t think we should exclude that possibility.”

The European Commission, the EU’s executive body, last week circulated a three-track plan, proposing to immediately transfer ammunition to Ukraine, particularly 155mm artillery rounds, from existing stocks or pending orders. It also called for aggregating orders to European industry and pledged to propose measures to cut back on red-tape or other bottlenecks hindering the industry from ramping up output.

Wagner Troops Have Taken Eastern Part of Bakhmut, Prigozhin Says (8:15 a.m.)

Prigozhin’s claim on Bakhmut couldn’t immediately be verified, but Russian forces have been slowly advancing in and around the city, which has seen some of the heaviest fighting of the war.

According to the Institute for the Study of War, “Russian forces have likely captured the eastern part of Bakhmut east of the Bakhmutka River following a controlled Ukrainian withdrawal from eastern Bakhmut as of March 7.” Zelenskiy this week ordered commanders to continue the defense of the city despite the Russian advances.

Germany Reacts Cautiously to Nord Stream Report (7:30 a.m.)

Germany’s Pistorius reacted cautiously to a New York Times report that said new intelligence reviewed by US officials suggests a pro-Ukrainian group carried out last year’s attack on the Nord Stream gas pipelines. The newspaper did not identify the officials by name and said they declined to disclose the nature of the intelligence or how it was obtained.

“It’s always interesting to read such investigative reporting and I have taken note with great interest but we have to wait and see what is actually confirmed,” Pistorius told Germany’s Deutschlandfunk radio. “I don’t think commenting on hypotheticals is appropriate,” he added. “Much more important is that we do everything possible to better protect underwater critical infrastructure.”