Chronicles of Russia’s Collapse: 09.04.2022

 #RussiaDisintegration #РазвалРоссии

Compiled by Liza Tumanova for Free Idel-Ural.

Military actions

Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, 176 children have been killed and more than 324 injured. The numbers are not final, since work is underway to establish casualties in the places of active hostilities and in the territories temporarily occupied by Russia. 

40 civilians, murdered by Russian soldiers, were found in one of the largest mass graves in Bucha. Killed Ukrainians were buried by the public utility worker who was staying in the town. Having been under constant fire, he literally begged Russians to let him take people shot dead from the streets. 

About 130 people had to stay in a 65 m2 cellar in Yahidne village near Chernihiv, occupied by Russians, within 25 days. They were sleeping upright. 12 people died in that cellar and their bodies remained there for a long time. 

The online archive of Russian war crimes was created in Ukraine. The evidence collected shows the world the truth about all atrocities committed by the Russian army in Ukraine to make sure all war criminals do not escape punishment and will be brought to justice. 

Hostile Russian troops shelled Severodonetsk. A multi-storied building was caught on fire following the attack. Casualties among civilians are still being verified. 

Explosives are being found in Kyiv Oblast under helmets, in munition boxes and at the entries to the cellars where civilians can hide.

Russian soldiers abducted the head of Kherson Regional Administration Andriy Putilov.  

In Ukraine, the commander of the 59th guards tank regiment holding the order of Lublin, Red Banner twice, orders of Suvorov and Kutuzov, was liquidated.

Russian troops shelled residential areas in Lysychansk, Severodonetsk and Rubizhne in Luhansk region. As a result of shelling, fires broke out in the region, one person died, four more were injured. 

In Chernihiv region, the Russians shot local residents in the Church of the Ascension where the Russian troops set up their headquarters.

In Luhansk region, Russian troops attacked the positions of border guards with ‘kamikadze’ drones. Two Ukrainian border guards destroyed them with small arms fire.

Ukraine and Russia have arranged the third war prisoner exchange. 

At night, the Russians shelled Mirgorod. The missile attack was carried out on the infrastructure. Two persons received injuries.

About 25 percent of the Russian troops who fought in Ukraine are no longer combat-capable.

Vapours from the explosion of a nitric acid tank in Luhansk region spread to the areas where the Russian troops are staying, near Kudriashivka and Varvarivka.

The Russian military are regrouping and planning to advance towards Kharkiv. 

Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the loss of Russian personnel has amounted to about 19,100 people. 

Russian troops abducted 106 people in Zaporizhzhia region, including 21 representatives of local authorities and two journalists. 

Russia entrusted the command of the so-called “special operation” in Ukraine to General Aleksandr Dvornikov, who fought in Syria. 

In Ukraine, the police opened more than 4,200 cases against the Russian Federation for violations of war laws and customs. 

Face recognition technologies and artificial intelligence will help identify the Russian occupiers within a few hours, so they could be punished even years later.

In Ukraine, 307 healthcare facilities were damaged by shelling. 

The Russian military set up some points in the underpasses to collect the bodies of Mariupol residents killed by the Russian military. Special cleanup teams transport hundreds of corpses daily to such points throughout the city. The largest one is located in a warehouse at the exit to the village of Stary Krym. The Russians subsequently take out the corpses to be destroyed in mobile crematoria or bury them in mass graves.

More than 15,000 missing people are registered in Ukraine.

Russian troops began hitting Kharkiv with shells descended on parachutes. Locals saw them during shelling on April 8 and 9 when a dozen private houses were damaged, and a five-meter crater was formed at the site of another explosion.

Turmoil in RF

During the evening briefing, the Ministry of Defense of Russia states that the Security Service of Ukraine is preparing a provocation at Kharkiv chemical plant. This plant was shut down about 10 years ago. It exists only on maps. 

The Russian defense industry depends on foreign high technologies and can’t produce any new weapons. The Russian dockyards suspend production of ships due to a shortage of parts. 

Amid discussions on possible YouTube blocking in Russia, a new service VK Video Transfer was created in VKontakte. It allows transferring YouTube channels into the social media to save the content and protect the channel from possible blocking. 

The owner of Lush cosmetics in Russia has to close 17 out of 48 shops and dismiss 200 out of 500 employees. The retailer encountered suspension of all deliveries from British Lush. They expect to run out of stock in three months if the supply is not resumed, the company will cease to do business and wind up. 

A new director general of Aeroflot was assigned. 

The Vyborgsky District Court in St Petersburg has fined a local resident Artur Dmitriev 30,000 rubles, finding him guilty under an article on discrediting the Russian army.

13,573 new COVID cases were registered in Russia. 

In Russia, the edition Kholod has been blocked.

What is left of economy

France is ready to tighten sanctions against the Russian Federation, including a ban on Russian oil import, after the shelling of Kramatorsk railway station.

Starting from April 16, the EU introduces an absolute ban on trucks from Russia and Belarus crossing the EU borders. 

Danish investment bank Saxo Bank has informed its Russian clients about termination of their brokerage accounts.

European banks began to block accounts and transfers performed by Russians living abroad. They conduct background checks on clients and remove the blocks only after “the circumstances were clarified.”

S&P cuts Russia’s foreign currency sovereign credit rating to “selective default”. The agency estimates that the sanctions will prevent the country from fulfilling its obligations.

Under sanctions against Russia, the Cayman Islands, one of the largest offshore zones, has frozen assets worth $7.3 billion.

U.S. President Joe Biden signed two bills passed by Congress in connection with the war in Ukraine. The first document introduces a ban on energy imports from Russia. The second severs usual trade links with Russia and Belarus. It means that the most-favored-nation (MFN) treatment of products imported from these countries will be revoked in the U.S. market. The U.S. authorities will be able to set higher customs duties for Russian and Belarusian goods than for other WTO member countries.

International Isolation

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.

Ukraine has approximately 30% of the information left to prepare and submit to the European Commission and become a candidate for EU membership.

A monument to the Russian poet and writer Alexander Pushkin was dismantled in Ternopil. “Everything Russian should be dismantled,” says the mayor.

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine legislated the decision to terminate trade relations with the Russian Federation.

“I am very disappointed with Putin’s behavior. He seemed to me a man of common sense,” said former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

YouTube has blocked a channel associated with the State Duma. Zakharova and Klishas are threatening to block the service.

 French authorities have detained two paintings from the Morozov brothers’ collection on display at the Foundation Louis Vuitton in Paris. The paintings belong to Russian billionaires who are under EU sanctions.

Austrian Federal Chancellor Karl Negammer held meetings with the leadership of Ukraine and Kyiv and visited Bucha.

Poland freezes relations with Hungary because of its position on Ukraine. “Orban needs an ophthalmologist to see Bucha. Resumption of relations is possible only after a change of assessment of the war in Ukraine!” said Kaczynski.

Slovakia is ready to put pressure on other EU members to speed up provision of a candidate status for accession to Ukraine, said the country’s prime minister.

Stepan the Cat, a Kharkiv-based Instagram blogger, was nominated for the prestigious World Influencers and Bloggers Awards 2022. The award ceremony will take place in Cannes in May. The money raised will be donated to help Ukraine.

On April 9, in memory of those killed in Kramatorsk, Ukrzaliznytsia left some seats vacant on several trains across the country. There were some flowers instead of passengers who might have been there. 

Yesterday, the worldwide campaign Stand Up For Ukraine was launched to raise funds to support Ukrainians. It was a response to Ukrainian President Zelensky’s call to support the country and its people. In particular, such performers and musicians from all over the world  as singers Katy Perry, Celine Dion, Madonna, American actress Ellen DeGeneres, rock musicians Ozzy Osbourne, Lenny Kravitz, the Irish rock band U2 and many others joined the initiative.

At the opening of the baseball season in Chicago, the Youth Choir of Viktor Pavlushkosang the Ukrainian anthem.

Ukrainian Mykolaiv is now on the British Vogue cover.

Things like those stolen in Ukraine by “Russian soldiers” have been brought to Russian consulates in Lviv and in London. The townspeople fetched items and household appliances as a symbol of the Russian army looting in Ukraine and doused them with red paint.

In Madrid, the street near the Russian embassy will be renamed Bucha or Irpen, and the streets Russia and St. Petersburg will be replaced by Kyiv and Mariupol.

The Olympic swimming champion, Lithuanian Ruta Meilutyte supported Ukraine. The swimmer starred in the protest performance “Swimming Through” expressing protest against the war unleashed by Russia. In the video, Meilutyte is swimming through the red-dyed pond representing blood. The pond is opposite the Russian Embassy in Vilnius. The street along is now named after the Heroes of Ukraine. 

In Turkey, three Ukrainian movies will be on at the Charity Film Marathon. The audience will watch the films “Toloka” “Anna” and “In My Own Land” in Ukrainian with Turkish subtitles.

The festival “From Lviv to the Urals”, which was supposed to be held in Nantes, France, has been canceled. Ukrainian culture cannot have anything in common with the Russian propaganda “Matrioshka” nesting dolls.

Victoria Secret’s model Maggie  Rawlins took a flight to Poland to help Ukrainian refugees as a nurse. 

The winners of the song contest “Eurovision-2021” rock band  Måneskin recorded a track in support of Ukraine, “Refugees in Ukraine and all around the world need urgent humanitarian aid. We use our voices to demand actions. So can you.” The musicians called people for creating their own videos and donating to support refugees.