Victorious news of 779th day of war: former SBU officer’s car blown up in Moscow, Netherlands allocates €1bn in military aid to Ukraine

Russian media claim drone attack on Novoshakhtinsk refinery

The Russian Defense Ministry accuses Ukraine of an alleged drone attack on the Belgorod and Rostov regions. Russian media report an attack on the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery

The Russian Ministry of Defense reports this.

"During the night of April 12, the Kyiv regime's attempts to carry out terrorist attacks using aircraft-type UAVs against facilities in the Russian Federation were prevented," the statement said.

It is noted that Russian air defense allegedly destroyed four drones over the territory of the Rostov region and one over the territory of the Belgorod region.

The Russian media outlet Astra reports that 4 UAVs attacked the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery last night, one of them crashed into the plant's territory.

"According to ASTRA's sources in the region's emergency services, all four UAVs attacked the Novoshakhtinsk oil products plant. One of the downed drones fell on the territory of the plant," Astra added.

UK hands over minesweepers to Ukraine for military exercises

This is reported by Portsmouth News.

It is noted that now these ships will operate under the names Chernihiv and Cherkasy.

"The ships, each of which has served for more than 20 years in the Royal Navy, arrived at the Portsmouth Naval Base after sailing from Scotland," the journalists write and add that they will remain at the base while the crew members undergo training to prepare for mine hunting in the Black Sea.

"The ships are currently unable to enter the Black Sea due to the terms of the Montreux Convention, which restricts the passage of warships through the Bosphorus Strait in time of war. However, they will provide a critical capability for Ukraine in its future coastal defense as the UK seeks to support the long-term capabilities of the Ukrainian navy," said the UK Defense Ministry spokesman.

Ukraine's government has set a UAH 70,000 surcharge for military and police officers

On Friday, April 12, the government of Ukraine established a UAH 70,000 supplement for military and police officers performing combat missions on the front line.

Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal reported.

"In pursuance of the joint initiative of the Ukrainian and the government, today an additional payment of UAH 70,000 has been established for servicemen and police officers performing combat missions on the front line," he wrote.

One-time remuneration will be charged for every 30 days of performing such tasks.

UK may send prototypes of DragonFire laser weapons to Ukraine

The UK is working to improve the DragonFire laser weapon, which is capable of destroying enemy targets. The country is considering sending its prototypes to Ukraine.

The Telegraph reported the information.

UK Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said that laser weapons that can hit a £1 coin from a kilometer away "could have huge ramifications.”

The Cabinet of Ministers allocates additional UAH 2.5 billion to equip shelters in schools

Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal reported this.

"Today we have approved changes to the subvention from the state budget for the arrangement of safe conditions in secondary education institutions. First of all, we are talking about the regions close to the combat zone," he wrote.

Thus, the Kharkiv, Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia regions will receive UAH 500 million each.

• Mykolaiv region - UAH 200 million;
• Kherson region - UAH 200 million;
• Odesa region - UAH 150 million;
• Sumy region - UAH 150 million;
• Chernihiv region - UAH 150 million.

Ukrainian government allocates additional UAH 3.88 billion for construction of fortifications

Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal reported this.

"The government is allocating an additional UAH 3.88 billion for the further construction of defense borders. Of these funds, UAH 1.7 billion will be allocated for the Kharkiv region, and UAH 1.5 billion for fortifications in the Sumy region," he wrote.

"The Donetsk, Kherson, and Mykolaiv regions will also receive additional resources," the Prime Minister added.

Shmyhal reminded that since the beginning of the year, the government has allocated almost UAH 30 billion for the construction and arrangement of fortifications. The work is ongoing around the clock.

Car of traitor, former SBU officer Prozorov, blown up in Moscow

Today, on April 12, a Toyota Land Cruiser was blown up in Moscow, owned by former lieutenant colonel of Ukraine’s Security Service Vasyl Prozorov. Holding this position, the traitor had been cooperating with the Russian special services since 2014.

This was reported by RIA Novosti. 

According to the Russian media outlet, an unidentified explosive device detonated under Prozorov's car.

The assistant to the former SBU officer said: "He is alive, he is doing well. He will continue to work." 

Later, the Russian media reported that Prozorov had injured his arm and leg after the car explosion.

Vasyl Prozorov was a senior expert consultant at the SSU. Since 2014, he worked at the headquarters of the SBU Anti-Terrorist Center. Later, the traitor fled to Russia, and on March 25, 2019, he gave a press conference to Russian media. There he said that since April 2014, he had "voluntarily assisted Russia in obtaining information for ideological reasons". 

On the day of the press conference, the Security Service of Ukraine reacted to Prozorov's speech.

"Having drunk the honor of an officer, Prozorov decided to trade his conscience and military oath, finding 'worthy' people in the FSB. But this monster must remember the fate of Judas. It's only a matter of time," the SBU said. 

The Netherlands allocates €1 billion in military aid and €400 million for reconstruction to Ukraine

During a telephone conversation with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte announced the allocation of financial assistance

Zelenskyy announced this on April 12 on Telegram.

"In a telephone conversation, Prime Minister Mark Rutte has just announced that the Netherlands has allocated another billion euros for military assistance to Ukraine and €400 million for reconstruction. This is in addition to the commitments under our bilateral security agreement," he wrote.

The parties also discussed the possibility of speeding up the supply of artillery shells, ammunition, and air defense systems.

Ukraine to buy electronic warfare for critical infrastructure

This is reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing a speech by Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal at a meeting of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities.

He said that the government is focusing on three areas in the energy sector amid constant Russian attacks:

• rapid repairs and restoration of generation and distribution facilities;
• decentralization of the energy system (120 mini-CHPs have already been installed in Ukraine);
• strengthening the air defense system.

"The government has made a decision that allows us to finance the purchase of electronic warfare for critical infrastructure facilities," the Prime Minister said.