RTSat, 05 Mar 2022 21:22 UTC
March 4 war map
The Russian Ministry of Defense announced on Saturday that offensive operations in Ukraine would resume from 18:00 Moscow time "due to the unwillingness of the Ukrainian side to influence the nationalists or extend the ceasefire."
"Not a single civilian was able to leave Mariupol and Volnovakha along the humanitarian corridors. The nationalist battalions took advantage of the ceasefire to strengthen their positions," the statement said.
At the request of the Ukrainian side, a ceasefire was called in the area around the cities of Mariupol and Volnovakha, with a complete halt in hostilities imposed to ensure the evacuation of the civilian population.
"Not a single civilian could get out along the designated humanitarian corridors. The population of these cities is held by Ukrainian nationalists as a 'human shield'," however, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
Ukrainian officials halted the evacuation,
accusing Russia of continued shelling despite its promises it would ensure safe passage.
Russian forces are blockading Mariupol, which has been held by Ukraine. Moscow recognizes the city as part of the Donetsk People's Republic, which broke away from Ukraine shortly after the 2014 coup in Kiev.
Moscow launched a full-scale offensive in the country last week, arguing that it had to "defend" the Russian population of the breakaway Lugansk and Donetsk People's Republics, as well as "demilitarize" and "denazify" Ukraine. Kiev said the invasion was unprovoked and appealed to the international community for help.
Ukraine has accused Russian forces of shelling residential areas in several regions, including the capital Kiev and other major cities. Moscow insists it is targeting only military infrastructure.
Comment: According to the DPR, only
17 people managed to leave Mariupol. One of Ukraine's negotiators, Denis Kireev, was reportedly
executed by the Ukrainian SBU "during an attempt to arrest him" for treason. We wouldn't be surprised if more such "executions" take place in the future. The Ukrainian extremists are
quite vocal of their intentions for anyone pro-peace. As Yarosh said of Zelensky: "Zelensky said in his inaugural speech that he was ready to lose ratings, popularity, position...
No, he would lose his life. He will hang on some tree on Khreshchatyk - if he betrays Ukraine and those people who died in the Revolution and the War." Betraying Ukraine would be abiding by the Minsk agreements.
Some statements from Putin: Any attempt to impose a
no-fly zone over Ukraine will be seen by Russia as an act of war. No martial law yet, and hopefully not in the future. By its current actions, Ukraine is putting its future
statehood into question. Speaking of the background to the incursion, he
said: "Listen, people in the Donbass are not stray dogs.
Between 13,000 and 14,000 people have been killed over the years. More than 500 children have been killed or crippled. And what's especially intolerable is that the
so-called 'civilized' West preferred not to notice it during those eight years." He
expanded:
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that he chose to attack Ukraine beyond the borders of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR) to prevent the West from "endlessly" supplying "nationalists and radicals" with various resources, such as weapons and money. He added that the Russian forces were "practically done" destroying Ukrainian military sites, such as air defenses and weapons depots.
The president stated that he had ordered Russian troops to invade Ukraine last week in order to neutralize the "real threat" coming from Kiev and NATO. Moscow has long protested the Western military infrastructure along its borders and Ukraine's aspirations to join the US-led bloc.
"They began to say more actively that they will admit [Ukraine] to NATO. What will this lead to? All other members of the alliance must back Ukraine in the case of a military conflict," Putin said. "They will [attack] Crimea, and we will be forced to go to war with NATO. Do you understand the consequences?" The president stated that he wanted Ukraine to become a neutral country.
According to the Kremlin, Russia has
no intention of partitioning the country. Rather, they want to free Ukraine of neo-Nazi ideology (which is held by numerous official and unofficial militias who have fought against the Donbass for the past 8 years).
Over in the U.S., Secretary of State Blinken had
this to say:
"We'll always look for opportunities for diplomacy and for dialogue. It depends entirely on President [Vladimir] Putin and on Russia," he said.
According to Blinken, if Moscow shows "any signs of being willing to engage in meaningful diplomacy, of course we'll engage."
"We look to our Ukrainian partners, too. They are talking to the Russians, but that's not producing anything," he added.
He is unlikely to acknowledge the fact that the U.S. doesn't negotiate, it issues demands with no concessions.
Col. Macgregor continues to speak sense on Western media:
Ukraine's government has
launched a website to recruit foreign mercenaries - an "international legion" of adventurers and war tourists.
Comment: According to the DPR, only 17 people managed to leave Mariupol. One of Ukraine's negotiators, Denis Kireev, was reportedly executed by the Ukrainian SBU "during an attempt to arrest him" for treason. We wouldn't be surprised if more such "executions" take place in the future. The Ukrainian extremists are quite vocal of their intentions for anyone pro-peace. As Yarosh said of Zelensky: "Zelensky said in his inaugural speech that he was ready to lose ratings, popularity, position... No, he would lose his life. He will hang on some tree on Khreshchatyk - if he betrays Ukraine and those people who died in the Revolution and the War." Betraying Ukraine would be abiding by the Minsk agreements.
Some statements from Putin: Any attempt to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine will be seen by Russia as an act of war. No martial law yet, and hopefully not in the future. By its current actions, Ukraine is putting its future statehood into question. Speaking of the background to the incursion, he said: "Listen, people in the Donbass are not stray dogs. Between 13,000 and 14,000 people have been killed over the years. More than 500 children have been killed or crippled. And what's especially intolerable is that the so-called 'civilized' West preferred not to notice it during those eight years." He expanded: According to the Kremlin, Russia has no intention of partitioning the country. Rather, they want to free Ukraine of neo-Nazi ideology (which is held by numerous official and unofficial militias who have fought against the Donbass for the past 8 years).
Over in the U.S., Secretary of State Blinken had this to say: He is unlikely to acknowledge the fact that the U.S. doesn't negotiate, it issues demands with no concessions.
Col. Macgregor continues to speak sense on Western media:
Ukraine's government has launched a website to recruit foreign mercenaries - an "international legion" of adventurers and war tourists.