Victorious news on 415th day of war: international investigation of genocide in Ukraine, impressive losses of Russian special forces, any weapons to de-occupy Crimea

Agreement to investigate the genocide in Ukraine

Members of the Joint Investigation Team on core international crimes in Ukraine (JIT) have signed an agreement to investigate not only war crimes but also the crime of genocide. After a working meeting of the group, the document was signed in Vilnius.

"International cooperation in the investigation and prosecution of genocide is reaching a new level. We are joining forces with our partners to investigate this crime. The agreement will facilitate the exchange of evidence and information, and the work of the JIT will be strengthened by international experts," said Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostin.

He also added that from the first days of Russia's full-scale invasion, it became clear that the massive and systematic nature of war crimes committed in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine has signs of persecution of Ukrainians as a national group. After all, in virtually every settlement liberated from the occupiers, cases of murder of civilians, torture, sexual violence, looting, and destruction of civilian objects were recorded. More than 19,000 cases of forced deportation of children have also been recorded.

Ukraine will use any non-banned weapons to de-occupy Crimea

Ukraine is ready to use any weapon that is not prohibited by international conventions to liberate Crimea. This was stated by Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleksiy Danilov.

"Crimea is the territory of Ukraine, and we will test and use any weapon not prohibited by international laws that will help liberate our territories," the NSDC Secretary said on Twitter.

According to the General Staff, Ukrainian aviation carried out 5 strikes on areas where Russian occupying forces were concentrated.

Missile and artillery units struck 1 control centre, 3 clusters of enemy manpower, weapons and military equipment, as well as 1 Russian electronic warfare station.

Impressive losses of Russian special forces

Some Russian special forces units lost 90-95% of their personnel in Ukraine. It may take decades to restore them. The Washington Post reported about this with reference to the leaked secret documents of the Pentagon. The Russian command is overly reliant on specialised units that are used as part of frontline infantry formations.

Citing aerial photography and other intelligence data, the journalists claimed that the 22nd and two other Russian special forces brigades have lost 90 to 95 percent of their personnel.

"Compounding Russia’s problems is the loss of experience within its elite forces. Spetsnaz soldiers require at least four years of specialized training, the US documents say, concluding that it could take as long as a decade for Moscow to reconstitute these units," the WP authors noted.

According to the article, it is not known how many special forces have been killed or wounded in Ukraine, but there is an estimate based on intercepts that one unit alone (the 346th) "lost almost its entire brigade, having only 125 men left out of 900 deployed."

Initiative in the war of technology goes to the Ukrainian Armed Forces

In the war of technology with Russia, the initiative is gradually shifting to Ukraine. This was emphasized by Yaroslav Kalinin, director of the Infozahyst Research and Production Center, on Espreso. 

"Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the situation in terms of technology did not look in our favour. There was very little information about the technological state of the Russian army. That is why we overestimated the capabilities of the Russian army," Kalinin explained.

He emphasized that since 2014, the Ukrainian army has been able to effectively adapt to the situation on the battlefield

"Since February 24, 2022, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, together with the Ukrainian people, have been changing the technology vector in the war in our favour. The balance of power in the war of technology is gradually shifting in our favour. I want to emphasise that from 2014 to the present day, we have worked out many cooperation initiatives and ways to effectively adapt to the situation. That is why we can already clearly state that much fewer enemy intelligence complexes can be used effectively now. The enemy is reducing the number of strategic complexes and losing access to Hi-Tec technologies," added the director of the Infozahyst center.

EUR 2 billion from France for Ukraine

France is ready to provide Ukraine with €2 billion, part of which will be used to restore infrastructure. This was announced by the Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal.

"I had a conversation with French Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire on the sidelines of Spring Meetings 2023. France is ready to support Ukraine with €2 billion as part of a long-term program. Part of the funds will be used for reconstruction. Thank you for your support," Shmyhal wrote on Twitter.

The Prime Minister also emphasized that this year the government needs $14 billion to rebuild Ukraine. Five rapid recovery priorities have already been identified for this year: energy restoration, humanitarian demining, housing restoration, critical and social infrastructure, and private sector development.