Thursday, April 4

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a meeting in Kyiv on April 3, 2024. (Presidential Office)

Ombudsman: 7 more children returned home from Russian-occupied territories. Seven more Ukrainian children, together with their families, were returned home from the Russian-occupied territories in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts, Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on April 3.

Some villages in occupied Kherson Oblast ‘no longer exist,’ official says. The situation in Oleshky in occupied Kherson Oblast is deteriorating under Russian occupation, and some villages “no longer exist,” Tetiana Hasanenko, the exiled head of Oleshky’s military administration, told Radio Svoboda on April 3.

Zelensky: Russia used over 4,000 missiles, Shahed drones, guided aerial bombs against Ukraine in March. Russian forces launched over 400 missiles of various types, 600 Shahed drones, and 3,000 guided aerial bombs, President Volodymyr Zelensky reported on April 3.

Military Intelligence: Russia has about 200 Su-34, Su-35 fighter jets, 7 A-50 planes. Russia has about 100 Su-35 fighter jets, more than 100 Su-34 fighter bombers, and seven A-50 early warning and control aircraft as of March, ArmyInform reported on April 3, citing data provided by Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR).

Zelensky: Russia prepares to mobilize additional 300,000 troops by June. Russia is preparing to mobilize an additional 300,000 soldiers by June 1, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on April 3 in Kyiv during a joint press conference with his Finnish counterpart, Alexander Stubb, Interfax-Ukraine reported.

7 suspects listed in Ukrainian Railways corruption scandal. Seven people have been listed as suspects in a corruption scheme connected to Ukrainian Railways (Ukrzaliznytsia), the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) reported on April 3.

Your contribution helps keep the Kyiv Independent going. Become a member today.

Military intelligence: Ukraine denies Russia’s potential offensive on Kharkiv, calls it ‘psychological operation’. Rumors of a potential Russian offensive on Kharkiv are part of a Russian “psychological operation,” Andrii Yusov, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s military intelligence, said on April 3.

Defense Ministry creates new role of military ombudsman. Ukrainian military personnel will soon have access to a military ombudsman, ensuring they can report violations of their rights, the Defense Ministry announced on April 3.

State Bureau of Investigation has investigated over 1,600 treason cases since start of full-scale invasion. Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation reported on April 3 that since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, 1,633 cases of suspected treason have come under investigation, resulting in 1,072 people being declared suspects.

Military intelligence: Ukraine didn’t attack facilities in Tatarstan with foreign-made weapons. Ukraine did not use weapons provided by Western partners for the attack on industrial facilities in Russia’s Republic of Tatarstan, Andrii Yusov, a military intelligence spokesman, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RLE) on April 3.

Read our exclusives

Ukraine war latest: Russia preparing to mobilize additional 300,000 troops by June, Kyiv says

Russia is preparing to mobilize an additional 300,000 troops by June 1, President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a joint press conference in Kyiv with Finnish President Alexander Stubb on April 3.

Photo:f Sean Gallup/Getty Images

As Zelensky’s party falters, Ukrainian parliament drifts to standstill.

In recent months, Ukraine’s parliament is drifting to a standstill, as the government struggles to gather necessary votes during sessions. The reason is not political disagreement over pending legislation, but a general sense of frustration among parliament’s members, according to experts and lawmakers who spoke to the Kyiv

Photo: Juan Medina - Pool/Getty Images

How Ukraine hit a Russian drone factory 1,300 kilometers away

For the first time since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine attacked facilities in Russia’s Tatarstan Republic, some 1,300 kilometers from the country’s border. On April 2, overnight, drones attacked production facilities in the cities of Yelabuga and Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan Head Rustam Minnikhanov said.

Photo: Nizhnekamsk local Telegram channels

Human cost of war

Update: 4 killed, 10 injured in Russian attacks on Kharkiv. Russian strikes on the city of Kharkiv have killed at least four people and injured ten, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Telegram in the early hours of April 4.

Russian attack on Kharkiv Oblast injures woman. A Russian missile strike on the city of Merefa in Kharkiv Oblast injured a 55-year-old woman, the Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor’s Office reported on April 3.

Russian attack on Kharkiv Oblast injures man. A Russian attack on Kharkiv Oblast injured a 70-year-old man, the National Police in Kharkiv Oblast reported on April 3.

Russian missile attack against Sumy Oblast kills 1, injures 2. The two wounded residents included a man and his four-year-old son, officials said without elaborating on their conditions.

Russian attacks over past day kill 3, injure 21, including children. Russian forces attacked 13 of Ukraine’s oblasts over the past day, killing three people and injuring 21, including children, regional authorities said.

General Staff: Russia has lost 419,020 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. This number includes 710 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

International response

Stoltenberg: Long-term NATO support for Ukraine can show Russia it cannot win the war. NATO’s transition to a longer-term commitment to support Ukraine could eventually push Moscow to a peace agreement, where Russia realize “that they cannot win the war,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on April 3 ahead of the NATO meeting in Brussels.

Estonian President: Ukraine’s right to attack military targets in Russia ‘entirely legitimate.’ During a meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal in Tallinn on April 3, Estonian President Alar Karis reaffirmed support for Ukraine’s attacks on military targets in Russia, stating that it was “perfectly legitimate for the Ukrainian forces to destroy infrastructure critical to the Russian army.”

Zelensky calls newly appointed Portuguese prime minister to discuss future security agreement. President Volodymyr Zelensky called newly appointed Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro to discuss a future security agreement between Ukraine and Portugal.

Austria provides $2.2 million in humanitarian aid for Ukraine. Austria is supporting Ukraine with 2 million euros ($2.2 million) worth of humanitarian aid, Austria’s Foreign Ministry reported on April 3.

Kuleba calls on allies to provide Ukraine with Patriot air defense systems. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held several meetings on April 3 with Ukraine’s allies in Brussels, discussing strengthening Ukrainian air defense systems, the minister wrote on X.

Russian, French defense ministers call for first time since 2022. French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu held a call with his Russian counterpart Sergey Shoigu, and expressed “France’s solidarity with the victims” of the mass shooting at the Crocus City concert hall outside Moscow on March 22, Le Monde reported on April 3.

WSJ: Macron privately pushed Biden, Scholz to adopt ‘strategic ambiguity’ toward Russia. French President Emmanuel Macron held confidential calls with U.S. President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in February to convince them about the need for strategic ambiguity toward Russia, the Wall Street Journal reported on April 3, citing undisclosed official sources.

Ukraine, Finland sign long-term security agreement. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Finnish counterpart, Alexander Stubb, signed in Kyiv a long-term security agreement between the two countries, Zelensky announced on April 3.

Latvian government approves $10 million for Ukraine’s reconstruction, defense fund. The Latvian government approved on April 2 around 5.3 million euros (roughly $5.7 million) in support of Ukraine’s reconstruction in 2024, as well as 4.3 million euros ($4.6 million) in defense assistance via the European Peace Facility.

Zara, Bershka, other fashion brands reopen stores in Ukraine. The media outlet RBC-Ukraine shared videos of long lines of people waiting to enter the stores.

Zelensky calls with Japanese PM, discusses economic cooperation. President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the Japanese prime minister for more than $12 billion in assistance that Tokyo has already provided since the start of the full-scale war, in addition to further support pledged for 2024.

German customs detains ship loaded with sanctioned Russian uranium, lumber. The cargo ship, named Atlantic Navigator II, is registered in the Marshall Islands, but has a largely Russian crew. It was forced to stop in Rostock due to propeller damage, where it encountered trouble with German customs agents due to its cargo of sanctioned goods.

Blinken hopes Washington NATO summit to be ‘highly focused’ on roadmap for Ukraine. NATO’s July summit in Washington can be “highly focused” on the creation of a roadmap for Ukraine to join the alliance in the future, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on April 2.

Politico: Allies consider moving Ramstein group under NATO control to shield it from Trump. Washington and its partners are considering moving the U.S.-led Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG) under NATO control to maintain weapons supplies to Kyiv even if Donald Trump returns to the White House, Politico reported on April 2, citing four undisclosed sources.

Poll: More than half of Lithuanians opposed to any kind of military deployment to Ukraine. According to the poll, only 15% of respondents were in favor of sending troops to Ukraine, but on the condition that other Western allies do so as well.

US lifts sanctions against former European branch of Russia’s VTB Bank. Ost-West Handelsbank has been removed from the list, according to the information on the office’s website. The names under which the bank used to operate earlier – VTB Bank Deutschland and VTB Bank Europe – were also struck down.

Politico: Ukrainian officers complain of pattern of receiving Western weapons systems ‘when they’re no longer relevant.’ Russia has been steadily adapting its defensive capabilities to counter new Western weapons as they arrive, unnamed Ukrainian military officials told Politico.

Netherlands allocates $11 million to help Ukraine investigate Russian war crimes. The Netherlands pledged to make available 10 million euros ($10.8 million) to help Ukraine investigate Russian war crimes, Dutch Foreign Minister Bruins Slot said on April 2 at the Restoring Justice for Ukraine Conference.

Ivanna Sakhno on her mission to keep Ukraine relevant

Opinions and insights

Opinion: NATO is not a hegemonic burden

“NATO is the blue chip in the U.S. security umbrella – the instrument that allows it to respond rapidly to threats and challenges anywhere in the world,” writes political scientist Carla Norrlöf in this guest op-ed.

Photo: Sean Gallup

In other news

Ukrainian photojournalist wins World Press Photo prize. Ukrainian photojournalist Julia Kochetova was announced as one of the 2024 World Press Photo Contest winners on April 3 for her multidisciplinary project “War Is Personal.”

Romanian Defense Ministry proposes law enabling military intervention to protect Romanians abroad. Romania’s Defense Ministry has proposed a draft law that would enable its troops to be deployed to protect Romanian citizens outside of Romania’s territory, Romanian newspaper Adevarul reported on April 3.

Ruling party in Georgia will again try to pass ‘foreign agents’ law withdrawn following protests in 2023. The bill, popularly known in Georgia as the “Russian law” for its resemblance to similar legislation passed there, was introduced previously in early 2023 by the Georgian Dream party.

Want to get the news faster? Follow our website: kyivindependent.com.

Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Katya Denisova, Martin Fornusek, Nate Ostiller, Elsa Court, Kateryna Hodunova, Teah Pelechaty, Dmytro Basmat, and Rachel Amran.

If you’re enjoying this newsletter, consider joining our membership program. Start supporting independent journalism today.