INSIDE RUSSIA
World militaries learning from Russia
The Ukraine conflict has been a valuable source of battlefield experience, the president has said
All the world’s armies are closely examining Russia’s tactics and technology used in the Ukraine conflict, President Vladimir Putin has said. Moscow should build on its successes in the military-industrial sphere, he stressed.
Speaking at a meeting of the country’s Military-Industrial Commission on Wednesday, Putin said Russia’s battlefield experience is attracting unprecedented global attention. “Our special military operation – when it comes both to tactics and weapon development – is being studied by all armies of the world, top arms manufacturers, and tech firms.”
Russia “must stay one step ahead,” he said.
Putin also expressed his gratitude to the employees of the enterprises that serve as the backbone of Russia’s military efforts, noting that the industry faces even more ambitious challenges this year than in 2024.
While Russian forces had received over 1.5 million drones and more than 4,000 armored vehicles in 2024, the army is still suffering from a shortfall in FPV (first-person view) drones, which have become one of the key assets in the Ukraine conflict, the president noted.
He also stressed that Russia should prioritize the development of unmanned boats and robots, as well as combat lasers, noting that the country has made some progress in these areas.
A 2024 US Army War College report outlined several key takeaways from the Ukraine conflict, including the importance of electronic warfare and the challenges posed by a transparent battlefield due to ubiquitous surveillance. According to media reports, China is also taking note, with a focus on deploying swarms of low-cost drones and creating AI-driven coordination systems.
Meanwhile, as the fighting in Ukraine rages on, Russia has captured large quantities of Western-supplied equipment – including tanks, armored vehicles, portable missile systems, and NATO-standard communications systems – which it is analyzing to extract technological insights and improve its own battlefield capabilities.
Putin Gives New Orders for Army Tech: ‘We Need to Be One Step Ahead’
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday at a meeting of the Military Industrial Commission proposed to discuss issues related to the development of the armed forces today and in the future.
“Today, we will discuss a set of issues related to the development of the armed forces and the work of the defense-industrial complex at present, today and in the future,” Putin said.
The Russian president added that ensuring the armaments of troops in the special military operation zone is an absolute priority.
Vladimir Putin has instructed to complete the creation of an orbital group on time, which will be used for conducting all types of reconnaissance activities.
“In compliance with the deadlines and tasks set, it is necessary to complete the formation of an orbital grouping of spacecraft for various purposes for conducting all types of reconnaissance and ensuring stable continuous communication in a closed segment in a difficult interference environment,” Putin said during a meeting of the military-industrial commission.
The possibilities of using artificial intelligence in military affairs are simply enormous, Putin said.
“The possibilities of using artificial intelligence are simply colossal. And whoever starts to master these technologies faster, in this case, in military affairs, will have huge advantages on the battlefield. And we should never forget about this,” Putin said at a meeting of the military-industrial commission.
The Russian Defense Ministry and the defense industry enterprises established a feedback procedure to improve the samples of arms and equipment, Vladimir Putin said.
“The high technological dynamics of our productions has been achieved, among other things, thanks to feedback from the front line. Such work has been fine-tuned by the Ministry of Defense with enterprises of the military-industrial complex, and it should continue on an ongoing basis,” Putin said during a meeting of the Military-Industrial Commission.
Russian experience in conducting the special military operation is being studied by all the armies of the world, Putin said.
“I would like to emphasize that today our experience in conducting the special military operation, both in terms of tactics and technical development of weapons, is being studied without any exaggeration by all the armies of the world, leaders of the global arms industry and high-tech companies,” Putin said.
More than 1.5 million drones of various types were delivered to the Russian troops in 2024, Putin said.
“The troops received over 4,000 units of armored weapons, 180 combat aircraft and helicopters, and more than 1.5 million drones of various types were also delivered,” Putin said at a meeting of the military-industrial commission.
There are still not enough FPV drones in Russian troops, but the relevant work is underway on a daily basis, the president said, adding that plans to increase the production will be fulfilled.
Putin has also ordered acceleration of work on development of advanced weapons, including unmanned vehicles.
The production of electronic warfare equipment in Russia has more than doubled in 2024, Putin said.
“For example, the production of weapons of destruction, communication systems, intelligence and electronic warfare has more than doubled,” Putin said at a meeting of the military-industrial commission.
Russian troops received over 4,000 armored weapons, and a total of 180 combat aircraft and helicopters in 2024, Putin said.
Putin Announces Russia’s Major Initiative to Help Africa Combat Epidemics
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday welcomed the participants of the first Russian-African international exercises of rapid response teams for sanitary and epidemiological emergencies, noting that Russia is conducting a large-scale program to assist Africa in combating epidemics.
“Following the results of the second Russia-Africa Summit, we are implementing a large-scale program to help African friends in the fight against epidemics, including those with pandemic potential,” Putin said in a telegram published by the Kremlin.
In less than two years, the program has trained more than 150 African specialists, conducted joint research on dozens of dangerous infections, and dispatched six mobile laboratories to African countries, the Russian leader added.
Sanitary and epidemiological services from Russia and 15 African countries, as well as representatives of various international and regional organizations, are taking part in the exercises, the telegram said. The event raises cooperation to a new level and provides an excellent opportunity to exchange professional experience, practice the joint use of specialized equipment and improve methods of responding to outbreaks of dangerous communicable diseases, Putin added.
“I am confident that the exercise will be very useful for all the services involved and will make it possible to improve their readiness to protect people’s health and well-being. I sincerely wish you success and all the best,” Putin said.
The exercise is taking place from April 23-25 in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa.
The second Russia-Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum took place in the Russian city of St. Petersburg from July 27–28, 2023.
Russia reacts to Vance’s Ukraine proposal
The Kremlin has downplayed remarks by US Vice President J.D. Vance urging an immediate truce between Ukraine and Russia
Moscow does not view US Vice President J.D. Vance’s call for Russia and Ukraine to accept a Washington-formulated truce as an ultimatum, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.
On Wednesday, Vance said that President Donald Trump’s administration had presented a “very explicit proposal” to the principal parties in the Ukraine conflict, stating, “It’s time for them to either say yes or for the United States to walk away from this process.” During a press conference the same day, Peskov dismissed a journalist’s characterization of Vance’s comments as an ultimatum.
“The US continues its mediation efforts, and we certainly welcome them,” he said. “Nuanced discussions of proposals for a resolution are essential to bridge differences.”
The Trump administration awaits responses from Ukraine and the European NATO members supporting Kiev about a roadmap toward a compromise peace deal that was shared with them last week. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has already cast doubt on the feasibility of the proposal by publicly dismissing some of the suggestions reportedly made by US officials.
The American proposals that have been detailed in media reports include the formal recognition of Moscow’s sovereignty over Crimea, the former Ukrainian region that voted to join Russia after the 2014 Western-backed armed coup in Kiev. On Tuesday, Zelensky reiterated that his government will never agree to that.
Russian officials have previously warned that Zelensky, whose presidential term expired last year, could sabotage any serious attempts to de-escalate the conflict, contending that his self-interest compels him to continue the hostilities “to the last Ukrainian.”
OUTSIDE RUSSIA
‘EU wants war, not talks’
The EU has been derailing US-Russia efforts to reach a peace deal in the Ukraine conflict, Dmitry Peskov has told Le Point
The EU has been obstructing US-Russian diplomatic efforts to end the Ukraine conflict, working instead to prolong the hostilities, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.
He made the remarks in an interview with French magazine Le Point on Wednesday.
According to Peskov, the EU has clearly shown that it lacks independence, and it seemed “the whole continent” was working for the administration of former US President Joe Biden after the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022.
Things changed after Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, Peskov said, adding that now “Washington is talking about peace” while the “Europeans only talk about war.”
Moscow and Washington have held multiple rounds of high-level meetings this year focused on achieving a peace deal. Meanwhile, the EU’s stance has been widely seen as undermining any chance of a breakthrough. Western European defense chiefs, led by the UK and France, met this month to discuss deploying a “reassurance” force to Ukraine, despite warnings from Moscow.
In March, the European Commission proposed an $840 billion rearmament plan to deter Russia and maintain military aid to Kiev.
Moscow has repeatedly criticized the EU’s arms supplies to Ukraine and condemned plans to deploy troops, accusing the bloc of trying to expand its military presence and prolong the conflict instead of pursuing a settlement.
Asked whether Russia would accept the EU at the negotiating table, Peskov replied, “There’s nothing to negotiate – Europe wants war, not talks. We’re not going to force them!”
He also said, “Europeans wanted to teach us democracy, criticizing [President Vladimir] Putin nonstop,” adding “we no longer want any lectures from Europeans! We don’t want hypocrites telling us what to do!”
Russian officials insist that Ukraine recognizing the territorial “reality on the ground” is key to achieving a lasting peace. Moscow further requires that Kiev demilitarize, denazify, maintain neutrality and stay out of NATO.
Putin outlined Russia’s demands in July, Peskov recalled, stressing “whether peacefully or militarily, we will achieve them.”
Lavrov: Russia Aware of the West’s Efforts to Reenter the Afghan ‘Game’
SAMARKAND (Sputnik) – Russia has noticed Western Countries’ attempts to return to the Afghan “game” and does not mind the Doha process if the West’s participation is fair, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday.
“We have noticed that the West is actively trying to get back into the Afghan game, from which it withdrew, as I said, during the coalition’s flight from that country after the Taliban came to power. The West, in particular, has initiated through the UN secretariat a new format of consultations that hold meetings in Doha … We are not against it, only if the participation of Western countries in this common effort is honest and does not carry a double bottom, so we also take part in the Doha process,” Lavrov told reporters during his visit to Uzbekistan.
Lavrov also warned that NATO should not try to return its military assets to Afghanistan.
“It is unacceptable to try – and there are such attempts – to bring the military infrastructure of NATO countries back here again under various pretexts. Such attempts will create a new time bomb, or perhaps even a ticking time bomb,” he said.
Additionally, Russia advocates for unfreezing Afghan assets in the United States, the minister said.
Russia donates 30,000 tons of wheat to Palestine, to be sent to Gaza — Abbas
The Palestinian President said the grain was expected to “arrive at Israeli ports next month”
CAIRO, April 23. /TASS/. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced that Russia donated 30,000 tons of wheat to his country, and all of this cargo will be redirected to the Gaza Strip.
“Russian President Vladimir Putin donated 30,000 tons of wheat to us; all of it will be sent to Gaza,” he said, speaking at a meeting of the Central Council of the Palestine Liberation Organization in Ramallah. His speech was broadcast by the Al Hadath TV channel.
Abbas said the grain was expected to “arrive at Israeli ports next month,” after which it would be handed over to the Palestinian government in the West Bank and sent to the enclave. He did not specify how or when the wheat would be delivered to Gaza, where all entry points are currently closed, but stressed that he considered it necessary to “lift the blockade on the Strip as soon as possible” and bring in humanitarian aid.
On March 2, Israel blocked aid supplies to Gaza and closed all crossings after Hamas refused to accept the plan of US special envoy Steven Witkoff to continue negotiations on a ceasefire in the enclave. A week later, Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen ordered a halt to electricity supplies to the Gaza Strip, and on March 18, full-scale hostilities resumed in the enclave after two months of a ceasefire.
SPECIAL MILITARY OPERATION IN UKRAINE
Russian troops liberate Tarasovka community in Donetsk region over past day
Russia’s Battlegroup South inflicted roughly 335 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed four enemy ammunition depots in its area of responsibility over the past day, the Defense Ministry added
MOSCOW, April 23. /TASS/. Russian troops liberated the settlement of Tarasovka in the Donetsk region over the past day in the special military operation in Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Wednesday.
“Battlegroup South units liberated the settlement of Tarasovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic through active operations,” the ministry said in a statement.
Russian troops strike Ukrainian military airfield, UAV production workshops over day
Russian troops struck a Ukrainian military airfield, workshops producing unmanned aerial vehicles, a stationing site of a Vampire multiple launch rocket system and Ukraine’s military-industrial enterprises over the past day, the ministry reported.
“Operational/tactical aircraft, attack unmanned aerial vehicles, missile troops and artillery of the Russian groups of forces struck infrastructure facilities of a military airfield, industrial enterprises rolling out military output, workshops producing unmanned aerial vehicles and their storage warehouses, a stationing site of a Czech-made Vampire multiple launch rocket system, and also temporary deployment areas of Ukrainian armed formations and foreign mercenaries in 147 locations,” the ministry said.
Russia’s Battlegroup North inflicts 50 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day
Russia’s Battlegroup North inflicted roughly 50 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed four enemy artillery guns in its areas of responsibility in the Sumy and Kharkov Regions over the past day, the ministry reported.
“In the Belgorod direction, Battlegroup North units inflicted losses on formations of three mechanized brigades and an assault regiment of the Ukrainian army in areas near the settlements of Veliky Prikol, Prokhody, Turya, Miropolskoye and Petrushevka in the Sumy Region,” the ministry said.
In the Kharkov direction, Battlegroup North units inflicted losses on massed manpower and equipment of a motorized infantry brigade of the Ukrainian army and two territorial defense brigades in areas near the settlements of Volchansk, Liptsy and Maliye Prokhody in the Kharkov Region, it said.
The Ukrainian army lost an estimated 50 personnel, an armored personnel carrier, three motor vehicles and four field artillery guns, including a US-made M777 howitzer in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.
In addition, Russian forces destroyed a radar station and an ammunition depot of the Ukrainian army, the ministry said.
Russia’s Battlegroup West inflicts 250 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day
Russia’s Battlegroup West inflicted around 250 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed a German-made self-propelled artillery system and a US-manufactured counterbattery radar station in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.
“Battlegroup West units gained better lines and positions and inflicted losses on manpower and equipment of six mechanized brigades of the Ukrainian army, a territorial defense brigade and a National Guard brigade in areas near the settlements of Kupyansk, Sobolevka, Monachinovka, Petropavlovka, Palamarevka and Peschanoye in the Kharkov Region, Raigorodka in the Lugansk People’s Republic, Kirovsk and Yampol in the Donetsk People’s Republic,” the ministry said.
The Ukrainian army lost as many as 250 personnel, seven motor vehicles, a German-made 155mm Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled artillery system, a US-manufactured AN/TPQ-48 counterbattery radar station, a Kvertus electronic warfare system and a Nota electronic warfare system in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.
In addition, Russian forces destroyed three ammunition depots of the Ukrainian army, it said.
Russia’s Battlegroup South inflicts 335 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day
Russia’s Battlegroup South inflicted roughly 335 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed four enemy ammunition depots in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.
During the last 24-hour period, Battlegroup South units “inflicted losses on formations of five mechanized brigades of the Ukrainian army, two territorial defense brigades and a National Guard brigade in areas near the settlements of Novoolenovka, Ulyanovka, Chasov Yar, Ivanopolye, Minkovka, Novaya Poltavka, Berezovka, Seversk and Yablonovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic,” the ministry said.
The Ukrainian army lost an estimated 335 personnel, three armored combat vehicles, eight motor vehicles, two NATO artillery guns and four ammunition depots in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.
Russia’s Battlegroup Center inflicts 370 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day
Russia’s Battlegroup Center inflicted roughly 370 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed two enemy tanks and five armored combat vehicles in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.
“Battlegroup Center units improved their forward positions and inflicted losses on massed manpower and equipment of two mechanized brigades, two assault brigades, an airmobile brigade, a jaeger brigade, an unmanned systems brigade and an assault regiment of the Ukrainian army, two marine infantry brigades and a National Guard brigade in areas near the settlements of Krasnoarmeysk, Udachnoye, Muravka, Alekseyevka, Grishino, Dimitrov, Zverevo and Novopavlovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic,” the ministry said.
The Ukrainian army lost an estimated 370 personnel, two tanks, five armored combat vehicles, including a US-made M113 armored personnel carrier, two motor vehicles and two artillery guns in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.
Russia’s Battlegroup East inflicts 175 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day
Russia’s Battlegroup East inflicted roughly 175 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed three enemy armored fighting vehicles in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.
“Battlegroup East units kept advancing deep into the enemy’s defenses and inflicted losses among manpower and equipment of two mechanized brigades, an air assault brigade and a jaeger brigade of the Ukrainian army and a marine infantry brigade in areas near the settlements of Tolstoy, Volnoye Pole, Bogatyr and Zelyonoye Pole in the Donetsk People’s Republic,” the ministry said.
The Ukrainian army lost an estimated 175 personnel, a US-made M113 armored personnel carrier, three armored fighting vehicles, three motor vehicles, two field artillery guns and an electronic warfare station in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.
Russia’s Battlegroup Dnepr destroys 85 Ukrainian troops in past day
Russia’s Battlegroup Dnepr destroyed roughly 85 Ukrainian troops and two enemy ammunition depots in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.
“Battlegroup Dnepr units inflicted losses on formations of a mechanized brigade and two artillery brigades of the Ukrainian army in areas near the settlements of Magdalinovka and Kamenskoye in the Zaporozhye Region and the city of Zaporozhye,” the ministry said.
“As many as 85 [Ukrainian] military personnel, six motor vehicles, a counterbattery radar station, an electronic warfare station, two ammunition depots and a materiel depot were destroyed,” the ministry said.
Russian air defenses down 166 Ukrainian UAVs, nine JDAM smart bombs over past day
Russian air defense forces shot down 166 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and nine JDAM smart bombs over the past day, the ministry reported.
“Air defense capabilities destroyed nine JDAM guided aerial bombs and three rockets of the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system of US manufacture, four rockets of the Czech-made Vampire multiple launch rocket system and 166 fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles,” the ministry said.
Overall, the Russian Armed Forces have destroyed 661 Ukrainian warplanes, 283 helicopters, 53,200 unmanned aerial vehicles, 604 surface-to-air missile systems, 23,000 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 1,546 multiple rocket launchers, 23,996 field artillery guns and mortars and 34,445 special military motor vehicles since the start of the special military operation, the ministry reported.
INSIGHTS
Ukraine’s Easter tantrum: guns, gold, and guilt – Kiev’s loudest lobbyist demands salvation at the EU’s expense (again)
The country’s UN envoy has rolled out a basketful of demands to Berlin, including €550 billion and a third of Germany’s weapons
Most people keep their Easter expectations pretty modest: some pastel candy, a chocolate bunny, maybe even one that doesn’t taste like it was made during the Cold War.
But Ukraine’s former ambassador to Germany, Andrey Melnik, has decided that this is the perfect time to send the Easter Bunny – also known, apparently, as incoming German Chancellor Friedrich Merz – a list that reads less like holiday funsies and more like a NATO procurement form.
“I am a realist and have no illusions as to whether you will take up one or more of these ideas. Or even none,” Melnik wrote in an open letter published by the German newspaper Die Welt last week. “But Easter is approaching. We are celebrating the resurrection of Christ, who overcame death on the cross. And we can hope for a miracle.”
Alright, so what exactly is on this audacious list? A Ladurée Macaron or Fabergé Egg? A five-star Easter getaway to the Alps complete with Easter brunch?
Not quite.
Melnik apparently wants Merz to get cracking on getting Ukraine 150 Taurus missiles the day he’s expected to take office as chancellor on May 6. We’re talking the kind that can hit deep Russian targets, like the Crimean bridge that Merz keeps obsessing about openly. Melnik also wants 30% of Germany’s current inventory of fighter jets. But why stop there? Spoiler alert: He doesn’t.
Look, how about I just grab you some marshmallow Peeps from the store? Classic yellow? Electric pink? Because that’s the sort of thing that belongs in Easter baskets – not precision-guided missiles.
This isn’t even Melnik’s first holiday-themed ask. Over the last Christmas period, he wanted €20 billion a year from Germany. Not quite the usual stocking stuffers of socks, aftershave, or underwear.
“The thing is that this should not be perceived as “Christmas charity”, as some call it. We are talking about Germany’s investments in its own security,” Melnik said to Germany’s N-TV at the time.
In Melnik’s new Easter plea, he also asked for 30% of the entirety of Germany’s weapons inventory. And all this is in addition to his proposal that a quarter of that 2% GDP that NATO countries are supposed to spend on defense – so we’re talking 0.5% of German GDP – should just be straight-up earmarked for Ukraine. He adds that Merz should also lobby the entire EU to do the same.
Also? Confiscate €200 billion in frozen Russian state assets and reroute it to Ukraine. As in: “Hey Merz, could you just go full Ocean’s Eleven real quick and fund our rebuild?”
Melnik also wants security guarantees, which, in plain terms, means that Germany would have to vow to step in and take a punch to the face itself from Russia if Ukraine does something face-punch-worthy. And even Melnik acknowledges right in his letter that he, personally, is highly punchable. “I know that many in the SPD – perhaps even in your own party – will once again be outraged: ‘How dare you!’ ‘Not that cheeky Melnyk again, who puts his two cents in everywhere.’ ‘We don’t need his advice, you pain in the ass.’ I can understand these reactions on a human level,” he said.
But it’s all worth it, he says, because Russian President Vladimir Putin would sit up and take notice if Merz did what Melnik suggested. “This mega-commitment of €550 billion for Ukrainian defense over the next four years would be a massive warning signal to Putin that you, Mr. Merz, and our allies are serious about aiding Ukraine. That will impress Putin.”
No doubt Putin could only marvel at Kiev’s consistent treatment of the EU as a 24/7 weapons vending machine, all while insisting that it’s doing the EU itself a big favor. Which is exactly what Melnik keeps saying himself. “Not only the future of Germany depends on your success as chancellor, but also the fate of Ukraine and all of Europe,” he says. Apparently, if Merz doesn’t risk World War III, he’s letting down the whole continent.
And this is Melnik on his best behavior. When diplomacy doesn’t deliver, he shifts gears fast. Like three years ago, after Ukraine iced out German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier for being too chummy with Moscow, prompting Chancellor Olaf Scholz to cancel his own visit to Kiev. That led to this classic from Melnik: “To play an offended liverwurst doesn’t sound very statesmanlike. We’re talking about the most brutal war of extermination since the Nazi attack on Ukraine, it is no preschool.”
Nothing says diplomatic savvy like slandering processed meat by comparing it to Scholz. Or reminding Germans of the Nazis as a means of seduction. Melnik’s like, “Hey man, help us out here against Russia. But it still isn’t as bad as that time when you guys genocided us.” What a charmer.
And just when you might have thought that was rock-bottom, Melnik brings out the jackhammer. He once responded to Elon Musk’s Ukraine peace plan workshopping efforts on social media with a rather unique proposition, rarely observed in the diplomatic world. “F*ck off is my very diplomatic reply to you,” Melnik wrote on Musk’s own X platform.
Turns out his style of diplomacy almost worked. Musk did, in fact, consider effing off, and taking Ukraine’s free Starlink satellite access with him.
Now, fresh off this highlight reel of diplomatic brawls masquerading as strategy, Melnik is poised to strut into the United Nations as Ukraine’s new envoy. Buckle up, world, and get ready for wishlists, lectures, and the occasional middle finger diplomatic salute.
Kiev might still be waiting on those Taurus missiles, but one thing’s for sure. Melnik’s weaponized mouth is always locked and loaded to friendly-fire on allies. And if the Easter Bunny doesn’t deliver the loot, guess there’s always another holiday right around the corner. Maybe try Oktoberfest.
