Photo : The State Duma
Photo : The State Duma
War on Ukraine: Day 600
Rishika Yadav
War on Ground
On 16 October, Elon Musk announced that SpaceX will continue to provide free Starlink satellite internet services in Ukraine despite funding difficulty. Musk expressed his commitment on Twitter: “Even though Starlink is still losing money & other companies are getting billions of taxpayer $, we’ll just keep funding Ukraine govt for free.” This comes after discussions with the US military regarding funding for the network. Till now SpaceX has donated 25,000 ground terminals to Ukraine.
On 16 October, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s President, called for unity and conflict resolution with Russia as the war entered its 600th day. He urged Ukraine and its allies not to succumb to doubts, but to maintain their will and unity in the face of adversity. Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to those fighting for Ukraine’s freedom and remembered those who sacrificed their lives. He emphasized the need to continue efforts to defeat the occupier and ensure that Ukraine’s future remains in its hands.
The Moscow View
On 16 October, Vladimir Putin, Russia’s President, stated that the Ukraine conflict predates Moscow’s military campaign in 2014. He blamed the West for supporting a coup against Viktor Yanukovich, former President of Ukraine. Putin accused the West of starting the conflict in Donbass “by proxy of the Kyiv regime.” He suggested Russia’s military operation aimed to end the war. He expressed disappointment with the US’s unreliability and criticized the concept of a “rules-based order” as colonialism. Putin highlighted the inevitability of a multipolar world and the trustworthiness of China as a partner. He also emphasized Russia’s readiness for peace negotiations with Ukraine while safeguarding its security interests.
On 16 October, Anna Kuznetsova, Russia’s Deputy Chairwoman of the State Duma and Co-Chair of a Commission proposed the adoption of an international convention to prevent terrorism against children. She stressed the need for international human rights organizations to respond urgently to situations where regimes exhibit characteristics of state-level “terrorist” groups. Kuznetsova recommended involvement of other country parliaments in countering information aggression by Western countries and the Kyiv regime.
On 16 October, Sergey Shoigu, Russia’s Defence Minister reported on losses incurred by Ukraine in the ongoing counteroffensive. According to him, over 1,500 armored combat vehicles and “hundreds” of tanks were destroyed. Despite Ukraine’s efforts to attack Russia’s positions along the frontline, it was countered with “active defence” and counter attacks from Russia, deterring Ukraine from making substantial gains. While exact figures for personnel casualties were not provided, Putin previously estimated that Ukraine had lost “over 90,000 people” during the counteroffensive.
The West View
On 16 October, in its intelligence update, the UK’s Ministry of Defence reported on the active recruitment by one of the mercenary unit under the Private Military Company (PMC), Redut by masking as “volunteers,” including ex-Wagner personnel. This group’s activities, including recruitment, is likely supervised and financed by Russia’s General Staff Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU). Redut has participated in combat operations across multiple Ukraine’s oblasts, involving Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kyiv, and Luhansk. Redut is one of several PMCs and Volunteer Corps units integrated by the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation to reinforce regular Russia’s forces.
On 16 October, according to Russia’s Offensive Campaign Assessment by Institute for the Study of War, Russia’s forces are reported to have deployed two Central Military District (CMD) brigades. The aim was to support Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR) operations near Avdiivka (Bakhmut). Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia’s Children’s Rights Commissioner confirmed the same on deportation of millions of people and children (estimated to be 700,000) from Ukraine into Russia.
On 16 October, Valery Revenko, Belarus’s Chief of the International Military Cooperation Department reported an inflow of up to 9,000 Russia’s troops and hundreds of armored vehicles to boost Belarus’s forces present in the Belarus-Ukraine border. Along with the ground troops, air support is also reported to have entered Belarus. The move comes after Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus’s President, and Putin agreed to deploy a joint regional force due to the situation on their western borders.
The Global Fallouts
On 16 October, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, urged citizens to leave Ukraine and register for evacuation through the China’s embassy. Following Russia’s retaliation over Crimea’s bridge attack, over 200 Chinese are expected to be evacuated from Ukraine due to worsening security situation. Till now186 individuals signed up for organized evacuation with embassy assistance, and 40 have registered independently.
References
“Elon Musk U-turns, says will keep funding Starlink in Ukraine,” Aljazeera, 16 October 2023
“Zelenskyy calls for unity as war enters its 600th day,” EFE, 16 October 2023
“Ukraine Says OSCE Faces 'Slow Death' If Russia Remains Member,” Barron’s, 16 October 2023
“Anna Kuznetsova proposed to adopt the convention on the prevention of terror against children,” The State Duma, 16 October 2023
“Ukraine conflict didn't start in 2022 – Putin,” RT, 16 October 2023
“‘Nonsense’ US approach, BRICS expansion, Kiev’s ‘huge’ losses: Key takeaways from Putin’s interview with Chinese media,” RT, 16 October 2023
“Russia’s Shoigu estimates Ukrainian counteroffensive losses,” RT, 16 October 2023
“Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine – 16 October 2023,” UK’s Ministry of Defence, 16 October 2023
“RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, OCTOBER 16, 2023,” ISW, 16 October 2023
Burc Eruygur, “Belarus says up to 9,000 Russian troops will be deployed on Ukraine border,” Anadolu Ajansi, 16 October 2023
Kawala Xie, “Hundreds of Chinese citizens plan to evacuate Ukraine as war escalates,” South China Morning Post, 16 October 2023