Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,104

On Tuesday, March 4, 2018, this is the situation:

Fighting

• 46 of the 83 Russian drones launched overnight were destroyed, according to Ukraine’s military. Another 31 drones reportedly “lost” and failed to land on their intended targets.
• According to regional governor Oleh Kiper, a drone attack on Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Odesa severely damaged the region’s energy infrastructure, causing power and heat supply disruptions. Three boiler plants were destroyed, according to Odesa Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov, according to the mayor of Odesa.
• The governor of the Samara region on Tuesday stated that no injuries were reported from the drone attack by Ukrainian drones on an industrial facility in Syzran, in the country’s southern city of Syzran. The Syzran oil refinery was allegedly hit during the attack, according to a Russian Telegram channel.
• An oil pipeline was set on fire by a Ukrainian mass drone attack in the southern Rostov region of Russia, according to regional governor Yury Slyusar. Later, he claimed that falling debris had also set off a fire at an industrial site’s storage facility.
• According to a Ukrainian military source, several soldiers were killed in a Russian missile attack on an army training ground close to Cherkaske, according to the AFP news agency. According to Ukrainian military blogger Yury Butusov, about 30 to 40 soldiers were killed and 90 others were hurt, despite the release of an official death toll.
• After Ukraine seized control of the western Kursk region, Moscow confirmed that Kyiv had retaken 33 civilians who had been displaced there. Tatyana Moskalkova, a human rights ombudswoman for Russia, claimed mediation by Belarus and the International Committee of the Red Cross helped facilitate the handover.

Economy

Following the public altercation between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Reuters news agency reported a significant decline in Ukraine’s international bonds.

diplomacy and politics

• Eric Lombard, France’s economic minister, criticized the seizure of Russian assets to fund European military spending, claiming that it would be against international agreements.
• The next round of Russia-US discussions, according to the Kremlin, is unlikely to occur before both countries’ embassies resume normal operations.
• Zelenskyy, who was quoted by AFP as saying, “It would not be simple” to appoint him as Kyiv’s leader, is a statement. He reaffirmed his willingness to step down in exchange for the NATO membership of Ukraine.
• No decisions have been made regarding the nature of a truce in Ukraine, according to Luke Pollard, the minister of armed forces of the United Kingdom. A government source cited by AFP also claimed that “a one-month truce has not been reached.”
• The UK’s prime minister’s representative, Keir Starmer, stated that the European nations were considering a number of options when putting an end to Russia’s conflict with Ukraine. The spokesperson did not, however, provide specifics about these choices.
• Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, criticized the London Security Summit and claimed that the EU’s pledges to boost funding for Kyiv would only lead to the continuation of hostilities rather than to a peaceful resolution of the conflict.
• Peskov added that Trump and Zelenskyy’s conflict in the Oval Office show how difficult it would be to reach an agreement with Ukraine. Peskov alleged Zelenskyy to have “a complete lack of diplomatic abilities” and that he lacked “someone to make him want peace.”
• Zelenskyy claimed that a ceasefire without security guarantees would not put an end to Russia’s invasion of his nation. If Ukraine is forced into a ceasefire without any clear security guarantees, he said, “it will be a failure for everyone.”
• German Galushenko, the energy minister of Ukraine, wrote a letter to Rafael Grossi, the agency’s head, pleading for its observance of Ukrainian laws. Galushchenko’s letter to the agency cautioned the organization against conducting staff rotations without the Ukrainian government’s approval.

• Grossi argued that the only reason they rotated through Russian-occupied territory was because he was in charge of his employees’ security.
• A mineral deal between the US and Ukraine, according to Starmer, would need to be “enough on its own” without security guarantees, according to Starmer to the UK Parliament.
• Zelenskyy stated that a resolution to end Russia’s conflict with Ukraine is “still very, very far” and that he anticipates continuing to receive US support despite his recent row with Trump.
• After Zelenskyy claimed that a resolution to the war was in the future, Trump said he would “not put up with” Zelenskyy’s position on a possible ceasefire with Russia. On his Truth Social Network, Trump wrote, “America won’t tolerate this for very long,” and this is the worst statement that Zelensky could have made.
• In response, Zelenskyy responded by saying that he wants to end the conflict as soon as possible and that “it is very important that we try to make our diplomacy really substantive.”
• Trump reiterated that Zelenskyy should be more appreciative of Washington’s support for Kyiv on Tuesday and that he would update the deal on the minerals deal.
• Following his growing conflict with Zelenskyy, Trump’s administration stopped funding any new weapons sales to Ukraine. A White House official was cited by Reuters as saying that Washington is reviewing its aid to ensure that the US is making a contribution to world peace.