Ihor Zhdanov, Information Defence Project, Open Policy Foundation

Informational Defence of Ukraine provides a daily review of the military-political situation in Ukraine as of April 23rd, based on an analysis of open sources.

1. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are preparing for the decisive battle for the Donbas area.

According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the main efforts of the enemy in the Donetsk and Tavriia areas are focused on taking control of the settlements of Popasna, Rubizhne and preparing for the attack on Severodonetsk. In the area of Mar’inka and in most other areas, the enemy is unsuccessful in the attacks.

In the Slobozhanskyi direction, the enemy continues to partially encircle Kharkiv, carrying out artillery shelling of the positions of our units and civilian infrastructure in the area of Chuhuiiv, Korobochkino and Dovhenke.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine carried out a successful counterattack in the Kharkiv region and pushed russian troops out of Bezruky, Slatine, and Prudianka in the Derhachivskyi district.

The total combat losses of the enemy from February 24 to April 23 were approximately: approximately 21,600 combatants (killed), tanks - 854 units, armored combat vehicles - 2,205 units, artillery systems - 403 units, MLRS - 143 units, air defence - 69 units, aircraft - 177 units, helicopters - 154 units, motor vehicles - 1,543 units, ships / boats - 8 units, fuel tanks - 76 units, UAVs operational and tactical level - 182 units, special equipment - 27 units, TBM / BRBM (tactical ballistic missile / battlefield range ballistic missile) launchers – 4.

According to the ex-Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Arsen Avakov, the losses of the enemy according to the internal information of the General Staff of the russian federation on the morning of April 22nd are the following: russian servicemen - 23,655, private military companies - 6,902, in general, 30,557 people. These data are absolutely correlated with the data of the General Staff of the Supreme Court of Ukraine.

Units of the 64th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade, which took an active part in crimes against civilians in Bucha, are operating in the Izium district of the Kharkiv region and have already sustained losses.

2. Information summaries, reviews and assessments of foreign, Ukrainian intelligence and think tanks.

According to the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, on April 22nd, 2022, the Armed Forces of Ukraine struck at the advanced command post of the 49th Army of the russian troops in the Kherson region.

According to intelligence, PPU 49A was destroyed, two generals of the enemy-army were eliminated, one was seriously wounded and evacuated. Personal data is being clarified.

According to the UK intelligence in its review, despite increased activity, russian troops over the past 24 hours have not had significant success in their attempts to further capture Ukraine.

Despite russia's declared conquest of Mariupol, fierce fighting continues there, nullifying russia's attempts to seize the city and further slowing their desired advance in the Donbas, the UK intelligence has informed.

In addition, the russian Air Force and Navy have not established control in any of the regions due to the effectiveness of Ukraine's air and naval defence units that reduce their ability to make significant progress.

3. The russian occupiers are violating international humanitarian law and committing genocide against Ukrainians.

At least 242 examples of russian occupiers' war crimes against cultural heritage have been documented in Ukraine.

The russian aggressors kill Ukrainian children. The official number of child victims has remained unchanged over the past two days - 208, the number of injured - 387.

According to juvenile prosecutors, most children were injured in the Donetsk (120), Kyiv (113), Kharkiv (91), Chernihiv (66), Kherson (44), Mykolaiiv (41), Luhansk (37), Zaporizhzhia (25), Sumy (17), Zhytomyr (15) regions and in Kyiv City (16).

In particular, on April 20th, a 5-year-old child was injured as a result of aggressor’s shelling of civilian infrastructure facilities in the Polohivskyi district of the Zaporizhzhia region.

The russian occupiers are killing, abducting civilians, holding them hostage and torturing them. In Mariupol, the occupiers are clearing the rubble of the Drama Theater bombed by russian troops, the found bodies are taken to the village of Manhush, where they are dumped in a trench.

The city authorities of Mariupol received information about another mass burial of the dead Mariupol residents - a mass grave in Vynohradne. Thus, Planet satellite images show that the size of the mass grave is 45 by 25 meters. At least 1,000 Mariupol residents killed by russians may have been buried there.

On April 21st, russians took 308 deported Mariupol residents to Vladivostok, 90 of whom were children. On April 8th, the russian occupiers deported 466 residents of the blockaded Mariupol to the Chuvash region, including 106 children. The occupiers deported 308 Mariupol residents to the Far East, to the town of Nakhodka in the Primorsky Krai.

Near Izium, Ukrainian police found the burned bodies of two villagers who had been tortured by the russian occupiers.

The russian invaders are launching missile and bomb strikes on civilians, towns and villages. On the afternoon of April 23rd, russian troops launched a missile strike on Odesa, two air targets were shot down by the Air Defence, and two more, unfortunately, targeted a military facility and two residential buildings.

Because of rocket fire by the occupiers in Odesa, six people were killed, a three-month-old baby was killed and another 18 were injured.

In the Kharkiv region on Friday night, two civilians were killed and 19 were injured in russian shelling.

As a result of shelling by the russian occupiers in Kharkiv in the afternoon of April 23rd, four more people were injured, and two were also wounded in a village near Chuhuiiv.

During April 22nd, in the fighting and shelling of the russian occupiers in Donetsk, Mar’inka, Novoselivka Druha, and Zelene Pole, one civilian died in each settlement.

Two people were killed and one was injured in shelling by the russian occupiers of Popasna in the Luhansk region.

4. Evacuation of civilians, exchange of prisoners.

The head of the Ministry of Reintegration Iryna Vereshchuk said that russians could lie to recruit people from Mariupol through their corridor. We have just received information that the occupiers may be trying to organize their own corridor for evacuation to russia, the same as ours.

The russian occupiers again thwarted the evacuation from Mariupol, while they trying to deport civilians.

At 11 am at least 200 Mariupol residents gathered near the “Port City” shopping center, waiting to be evacuated to Zaporizhzhia. Instead of the buses promised by the russian side, the russian military approached the Mariupol residents and ordered them to disperse, because "there will be shelling now."

At the same time, the occupiers brought buses to a point near the “Metro” shopping center (200 meters from the confirmed evacuation point) and began their boarding. Later, Mariupol residents were told that the "evacuation" would take place only in Dokuchaevsk, that is, in the occupied territories of the Donetsk region. People were not allowed to get off the bus.

5. Political and socio-economic situation in Ukraine, economic losses due to the russian aggression.

The government and society demonstrate unity, patriotism and faith in victory. Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi has asked bloggers to refrain from public assessments of hostilities, commanders' decisions, etc.

He noted that information used by the enemy to inflict losses on the Armed Forces of Ukraine periodically appeared on social networks and called on everyone, especially bloggers with large audiences, to refrain from public assessments of hostilities, logistics, supplies and commanders' decisions.

Ukraine's economy is being rocked by the war; the largest Ukrainian companies are sustaining losses due to the russian aggression. The war in Ukraine has already affected about 25% of world grain trade and has led to rising world prices, food inflation and declining access to food in Ukraine's and russia's countries-importers. Taras Vysotskyi, the First Deputy Minister of the Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, has announced this in his blog on Forbes.

The entire world is interested in resolving the situation, as the supply of wheat from Ukraine is more than 10% of the annual wheat consumption for 15 countries. For example, this is 28% of the needs of Indonesia, 21% of Bangladesh.

As a result of hostilities in the newly occupied territories, a third part of gas exported from russia to the EU through Ukraine will be lost.

6. International support and assistance to Ukraine.

Political support for Ukraine. Officials representing the United States, Germany, Japan and other countries left a joint meeting of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund when a russian representative began speaking.

The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba, called for the recognition of the russian federation as a state that supports terrorism. He made his statement after the missile attack on Odesa by russians.

Military assistance to Ukraine. Canada has sent to Ukraine four M-777 howitzers out of 37 available in the country.

The United States Department of Defense is looking for new opportunities to speed up weapon production and transfer it to Ukraine. The Pentagon is interested in the pace of weapons production and commercial opportunities related to air, anti-tank, anti-personnel, coastal defenses, as well as unmanned aerial systems and communications.

Humanitarian aid to Ukraine. New York will allocate $ 2 million from the city budget to help Ukrainian migrants.

7. Ukrainian-russian negotiations.

Negotiations on security guarantees for Ukraine with partner countries will be finalized within a week. This was stated by the adviser to the head of the President's Office Mykhailo Podoliak in an interview for Suspilne.

According to Podoliak, consultations are underway with countries that are potential guarantors of security. He also outlined important points for Ukraine: weapon supplies, close the sky, military consultations and means for the rapid purchase of additional weapons.

Mykhailo Podoliak has noted that Ukraine wants such security guarantees that in case of escalation other countries stand next to Ukraine, it should be about the legal right of those countries to defend Ukraine.

8. Statements, provocations and fakes of the russian aggressors.

russia's Ministry of Defence said that only one sailor was killed on the cruiser "Moscow", another 27 crew members were missing.

russians continued to adhere to their version that the ship was not hit by Ukrainian Neptune missiles, and there was just a fire.

The Center for Combating Disinformation at the National Security and Defence Council (JRC) warns that russia is continuing an informational and psychological operation to fuel panic in Ukraine.

On April 23rd, the russian Defence Ministry has said that “the United States is preparing provocations to accuse the russian military of using chemical, biological or nuclear weapons in Ukraine.”

The Security Service of Ukraine draws attention to the fact that the russian occupiers are preparing new shelling of civilians and Ukrainian defenders on Easter.

In a recording released by the secret service, the occupier tells his wife about the explosive "Easter surprises" that the invaders are preparing for the Ukrainians.

9. Political and socio-economic situation in russia, the impact of international sanctions on it.

New sanctions and restrictions against russia. According to Reuters, the European Commission has said that the EU companies can circumvent russia's requirement to receive payments for gas in rubles without violating sanctions if they pay in euros or dollars, which are then converted into russian currency.

Christ is Risen! Ukraine will Rise!