Day 428 of the Invasion of Ukraine: NATO has Delivered 230 Tanks and 1550 Armored Vehicles to Kyiv

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Day 428 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

• NATO: We have delivered 230 tanks and 1550 armored vehicles to Ukraine
• "Wagner" stops the artillery fire in Bakhmut because of a tour of journalists from the USA
• Moldova's president accuses Russia of meddling ahead of regional elections
• The Kremlin fired the "Butcher of Mariupol" as deputy minister of defense for the rear
• Russian rocket fire on Mykolaiv killed at least one and wounded 23
• Ukraine will receive weapons in time for its counteroffensive, a US general said
• An Italian journalist was injured, his Ukrainian assistant was killed in Kherson
• The EU should hurry up and accept Ukraine, Meloni said
• Usyk went to the front
• Polish private radio reported that debris found in a forest in northern Poland may be from an unidentified air-to-surface missile

NATO: We have delivered 230 tanks and 1550 armored vehicles to Ukraine

NATO allies and partners have provided Ukraine with 1,550 armored vehicles and 230 tanks to form units and help it retake territory from Russian forces, said NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, AFP reported.

Deliveries since the start of the war in February last year represent "more than 98% of the combat vehicles promised to Ukraine," Stoltenberg told a news conference.

"In total, we have trained and equipped more than 9 new Ukrainian armored brigades. This will put Ukraine in a strong position to continue to regain the occupied territories," he said.

NATO member countries also provided anti-aircraft systems and artillery, and Poland and the Czech Republic provided Soviet-made MiG-29 aircraft.

Thousands of Ukrainian soldiers were trained to use NATO-made weapons.

Stoltenberg highlighted this "unprecedented military support for Ukraine" but warned that "we must never underestimate Russia.

Moscow is mobilizing more ground forces and is "ready to send thousands of troops while ignoring high casualties," he said.

In the face of what looks set to be a protracted conflict, NATO countries "must stay the course and continue to provide Ukraine with what it needs to win," the alliance chief said.

Stoltenberg said plans for a "multi-year support program" for Ukraine would be set at a July NATO summit in Lithuania.

He also welcomed the conversation between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Chinese President Xi Jinping - their first conversation since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"Wagner" stops the artillery fire in Bakhmut because of a tour of journalists from the USA

The head of Russia's mercenary army, Wagner, said on Thursday he was halting artillery fire in Bakhmut to allow Ukrainian forces across the front line to safely show the town to visiting American journalists, Reuters reported.

Wagner has led Russia's assault on Bakhmut since last summer in the longest and bloodiest battle since the start of the war, but Ukrainian forces have so far thwarted its attempts to take full control of the city.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of Wagner, said in an audio message released by his press office: "A decision was made to stop the artillery fire so that the American journalists could safely film Bakhmut and go home."

In the same message, Prigozhin warned the Ukrainian side not to try to introduce additional forces under the guise of the journalists' visit.

Reuters could not immediately verify whether the Wagner stopped the artillery fire.

A day earlier, Prigozhin criticized the Ministry of Defense for not sending much-needed shipments of ammunition to his fighters.

Moldova's president accuses Russia of meddling ahead of regional elections

The President of Moldova, Maia Sandu, today accused Russia of interfering in the internal affairs of the country, referring to the local elections scheduled for this weekend in the semi-autonomous region of Gagauzia, in which, according to her, many of the candidates are Russian agents, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.

Moldova this week did not allow a delegation from the Russian regions to visit Gagauzia, where on Sunday residents will elect the head of the local administration.

The delegation was led by Rustam Minikhanov, governor of the Russian republic of Tatarstan, who said it was regrettable that he had been denied a visit to the Moldovan capital, Chisinau.

"We are witnessing open interference in internal affairs, he (Rustam Minikhanov) went to Gagauzia to support one of the candidates in the elections," Sandu said in a televised statement. And she added: "Unfortunately, many of the candidates in these elections are Russian agents, not politicians who want to work for the good of the people of Gagauzia."

Moscow denies that it interfered in Moldova's internal affairs. So far, Russia has not responded to Sandu's accusations against some of the candidates in the Gagauzia elections.

On Tuesday, Moscow announced it was expelling a Moldovan diplomat in retaliation for the expulsion of a Russian diplomat from Moldova last week.
"Russia does not respect and has never respected our sovereignty and independence. And now Moscow is trying to destabilize the situation in Moldova, to hinder our European course, to provoke chaos," Sandu said on Jurnal-TV.

Moldova condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which caused turmoil in the Moldovan economy, which was heavily dependent on gas supplies from Russia. Anti-government protests followed.

Sandu said Russia was funding protests and various parties "to bring back to power politicians who are under their control" and that Chisinau was resisting those efforts with the support of the EU.

The Kremlin fired the "Butcher of Mariupol" as deputy minister of defense for the rear

The Deputy Minister of Defense of Russia for Home Affairs and Logistics, Colonel-General Mikhail Mizintsev, known as "The Butcher of Mariupol", has been dismissed from his post, the correspondent of the military radio-television channel Alexander Sladkov reported on his Telegram channel. Sladkov, who calls the general his comrade, notes that this is not the only loud resignation, but an untimely escalation of the struggles that are taking place inside the power bloc.

"And I have a lot of respect for him. How, what, for what (they fired him) - it's hard to guess. In time we will know everything. You know how it is with us, a man serves himself, everyone grinds their teeth against him (he can't cope, he's dumb, he steals), but he still serves, and serves, and even receives orders. And another - he hits someone in the face in a restaurant and - we take down the beef, he serves and serves, receives orders. And the second will fill someone's face in a restaurant. Fate," wrote Sladkov.

General Mizintsev became Sergei Shoigu's deputy on the rear in September of this year, when he replaced General Dmitry Bulgakov. Until then, Mizintsev headed the National Center for Defense Management (NDCM). The foreign press called him the "Butcher of Mariupol", and local media claimed that he led the attack on the city, although according to Sladkov, Mizintsev himself had nothing to do with this operation. The general was appointed to the position of rear guard in Shoigu's team without any experience in the material provision of the army. Western sources believe that he was responsible for the bombings of the maternity hospital in Mariupol and of the theater where children had hidden.

"This general should have had a completely different future, he is an intellectual, an organizer, not a rump," wrote the military correspondent.

Mizintsev's intellect can be inferred from a leaked recording intercepted by Ukrainian intelligence, in which the intellectual general berates and insults his subordinates for failing to fire some soldier for some unknown offense. Mizintsev gives instructions on how to deal with such soldiers - to break a bottle of beer and stick it in their behind, and then drop it on some homeless person. “As he goes out at night, unknown people attack him. They hit him in the face with a beer bottle all the time and pour another liter in his mouth. Then he's in the ICU, so he has to be found in the ICU and a broken beer bottle stuck inside him. And everything should be given to the homeless, the homeless trying to share a bottle of beer," the general gave methodical instructions to his subordinates.

Russian rocket fire on Mykolaiv killed at least one and wounded 23

At least one person was killed and 15 injured in a Russian missile attack on the southwestern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv last night, AFP reported, citing local authorities. However, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, 23 were injured.

Mayor Oleksandr Senkevich reported four strong explosions at 1 a.m. (Bulgarian time). One missile hit a tall building and another a house. There is no electricity in part of the city, Senkevich also wrote on his Telegram channel.

Russian armed forces have often targeted Mykolaiv since the start of the war, AFP notes.

President Zelensky published a video showing the consequences of the night shelling of Nikolaev.

"At night, Russia shelled Nikolaev with four Kalibr missiles launched from the Black Sea. The high-precision weapons were aimed at private houses, a historical building and a multi-story building. So far, one person has been killed and 23 injured, including a child," he wrote.

And called what happened a crime against humanity.

Initially, Ukrainian sources assumed that these were missiles from the S-300 anti-aircraft system, which the Russians fired at ground targets. Authorities in Mykolaiv and the region said one of the rockets hit a multi-story building and another destroyed and damaged houses. It was not reported where the other two missiles landed.

Russia has not yet commented on the information about the strikes on Mykolaiv.

Ukraine will receive weapons in time for its counteroffensive, a US general said

The Ukrainian armed forces will receive the weapons they need in time for their upcoming counter-offensive against Russian troops, General Christopher Cavoli, the commander in chief of NATO's joint forces in Europe, told the US Congress yesterday, quoted by Reuters and BTA.

The top American military gave as an example that more than 98 percent of the fighting machines promised to Kyiv have already been delivered.

"I am fully confident that we have delivered the equipment they need and we will continue to deliver to support their operations," Cavoli said during a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee.

Earlier, the owner of Russian private military company Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said Ukraine was preparing for an "inevitable counter-offensive" and was sending well-prepared units to the besieged eastern city of Bakhmut, which has been the epicenter of fighting for months.

In an audio message posted on his Telegram channel, Prigozhin also repeated his criticism of the Russian Defense Ministry for not sending the necessary ammunition to his fighters. Inside Russia, "treason is being committed," he stressed.

"Today, well-prepared enemy units are already thrown into the battle for Bakhmut... The counter-offensive of the Ukrainians is inevitable," said the owner of "Wagner". He added that he expects the Ukrainian campaign to begin sometime after May 2 when the weather improves and the mud dries up.

An Italian journalist was injured, his Ukrainian assistant was killed in Kherson

An Italian journalist was wounded and his Ukrainian assistant was killed in an attack in Kherson, Reuters reported.

Reporter Corrado Zunino and Ukrainian Bogdan Bitik were ambushed in the southern Ukrainian city from which the Russian armed forces were forced to withdraw in November, BTA reports, citing "La Repubblica".

According to the publication, the two were most likely shot by Russian snipers. The ambush was set up near a bridge in Kherson, which Zunino and Bitik reached after passing through a series of Ukrainian checkpoints.

The journalist was injured in four places and is being treated in hospital.

The Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office reported a foreign reporter with a gunshot wound to the shoulder and a Ukrainian civilian killed by Russian shelling in Kherson.

The EU should hurry up and accept Ukraine, Meloni said

The European Union should speed up Ukraine's accession process as a reward for its contribution to Europe's security in the fight against Russian invasion, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said, quoted by Politico.

Ukraine "is an outpost for the security of the European continent," said Meloni, standing next to Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal within the framework of a bilateral conference in Rome on the preparation of the country's recovery.

"The smartest way to thank the Ukrainians for what they are doing is to speed up the opportunity for them to become part of the European institutions," Meloni added.

Ukraine, which gained EU candidate status last June along with Moldova, has been pressing its European partners to quickly integrate it into the bloc, a process that usually takes years.

In January, Shmyhal told Politico that he was aiming to secure EU membership within two years, which would mean opening accession talks by the end of 2023.

But Brussels has so far carefully avoided confirming Kyiv’s ambitious goals.

When Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Brussels in February, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen praised Ukraine's progress on the EU path, but said there was no "firm timetable" for joining, adding that it was a "merit-based process".

Usyk went to the front

WBA/WBO/IBF/IBO super heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk inspired the Ukrainian soldiers at the front.

The boxer uploaded a picture of himself against the background of trenches and surrounded by soldiers, but did not specify the location for security reasons.

It is not the first time in which Usyk visited the front line in the war against the Russian Federation. He was also a member of the territorial defense, but withdrew due to the preparation for the match with Tyson Fury, which failed due to the unpreparedness and greed of the Gypsy King.

Russia's war against Ukraine has been going on for 428 days now, and it doesn't look like it will end anytime soon. The boxer is currently facing the challenge of defending his WBA title against challenger Daniel Dubois. The match is due to take place in the summer, and Warsaw is being discussed as a venue.

In the Polish capital, Usyk, will receive huge support, since according to official data, Ukrainian refugees in the country are already close to 5 million people.

Recently, Usyk appeared on the poetic front as well. He wrote a poem about the defenders of Ukraine from Russian aggression:

«СЛАВА УКРАЇНІ — за такі слова,
кулю ти отримав і тебе нема.
Але пам’ять вічна воїне тобі,
ти за Неньку рідну ворогів давив.
Показав ти силу, силу ЗСУ
так ГЕРОЯМ СЛАВА. А ТОБІ В РАЮ».

Polish private radio reported that debris found in a forest in northern Poland may be from an unidentified air-to-surface missile

Wreckage found in a forest in northern Poland may be from an unidentified air-to-ground missile several meters long, Reuters reported, citing "unofficial information" by Polish private radio RMF FM. The missile was initially reported to be a surface-to-air missile.

The Polish Ministry of National Defense announced earlier on Twitter that the wreckage had been found in Zamość, not far from the town of Bydgoszcz in northern Poland.

"The situation does not pose a threat to the security of residents. The area is being inspected by the Polish military, as well as by military police and sappers," the Polish ministry said in a statement.

According to a Twitter post by Polish Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro, the military department of the prosecutor's office in Gdańsk is investigating, together with military experts, the police and military counterintelligence, the debris found in the forest a few kilometers from the city of Bydgoszcz, which is located 265 kilometers northeast of the capital Warsaw, the Associated Press reported.

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