War in Ukraine / April 6

The Molfar team sends a daily newsletter about the war in Ukraine. The editorial staff of AIN.Capital publishes the full version of the digest. You can subscribe to the newsletter here.

Preventure evacuation from Ukrainian cities announced

For several days now, we have been talking that Russia will focus its offensive exclusively on the East. The goal is a land route to the Crimea and the complete conquest of at least Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

The leaders of these regions, as well as the state authorities, are agitating people to evacuate urgently from Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as from several cities and villages of Kharkiv region. The mayor of Dnipro is also asking women, children and the old people to leave the city. Authorities are also asking not to return to Kharkiv. The goal of the leadership is to prevent the same victims as in the previously liberated cities of Kyiv region – Borodyanka, Irpin and Bucha. In addition, the situation in Donbass is already critical: in particular, there is not a single surviving hospital left in the Luhansk region.

On the other hand, the government reports that for today, russia has no plans to stop hostilities and will only escalate its offensive in the East to achieve some minimal significant goals.

China does not need toxic russian oil

China is seen as a safe haven for russian oil. If oil is not bought in Europe, it will be taken away by Asia. This is partly true: India has previously reported a desire to buy large quantities of oil, the main reason is a big discount, up to a quarter of value. Another important partner was called China: as if the country is willing to take everything that will be in russia. And the buyer’s monopoly will allow China to get even bigger discounts. So far, this path has not worked: according to Reuters, Chinese companies refuse new orders for Russian oil. Sinopec, CNOOC, PetroChina and Sinochem refused to buy a new batch of oil. Companies are afraid of secondary sanctions and are not ready to take risks because of discounts. At the same time, China continues to fulfill its long-term contracts, under which it will continue to buy previously paid oil. According to analysts, this is not enough to cover the possible lack of money in russia.

$1 trillion in losses

Ukraine claims that its losses due to the war have already reached $1 trillion. This huge amount consists of several components. The first is the loss of state infrastructure, such as roads and airports. The second is the loss of business: we are talking about unearned billions. The third is the violation of logistics chains: seaports do not work. Then – destroyed housing, schools, factories, shopping malls. In addition, the Ukrainian army is also suffering losses. Ukraine hopes for reparations from russia, at least from the previously frozen $300 billion of its reserves.

Airstrike, missile and MRL damage

Luhansk region:

• Shelling of residential areas, houses were destroyed. 1 person was killed, 1 injured. Another 5 people were rescued from the rubble. Information about 8 more people is being specified.
• 2 apartment  buildings were damaged, as a result of shelling, there was a fire in the garage. A fire also broke out in 10 residential buildings, roofs were damaged and windows were broken in many houses. There was also a fire in the mall. 2 educational institutions and several shops were damaged. Also, the hospital was shelled. 5 people who were standing in the humanitarian aid center were injured. Another 5 people died.
• Shelling of Zolote and Hirs’ke villages. Houses and civil infrastructure were destroyed. As a result of the shelling, houses and outbuildings were destroyed in Lysychansk, Severodonetsk, Novodruzhesk and Toshkivka.

Zaporizhzhya region:

• Three cruise missiles were shot down. The village of Mahdalynivka was shelled. As a result of the shelling, residential buildings were damaged, and one house was destroyed. The transformer was also damaged.

Donetsk region:

• Shelling of the place of distribution of humanitarian aid. 4 civilians were killed, 4 more were injured. There was a hit at a residential building.
• Shelling of the territories of the villages.

Kharkiv region:

• Rocket attack, the buildings were destroyed. In total, ~200 private houses were damaged as a result of shelling, 6 were completely destroyed.
• During the day, there were 48 strikes on the civilian infrastructure of Kharkiv.
• As a result of the shelling, private houses were destroyed. 3 people were killed.

Mykolaiv region:

• Shelling of the village, houses were damaged. During the day, 11 people were injured in the region.
• From the evening to 07.04, villages in the region have been shelled from the direction of Snihurivka. There is no information about the victims.

Kherson region:

• Shelling of a residential building from machine guns and grenade launchers, three garages were blown up. 1 person was killed.

New laws

Ukraine:

• [Support for the economy] Draft Law on Amendments to the Criminal Code of Ukraine regarding liability for the illegal manufacture and sale of excisable goods under martial law or state of emergency (including alcohol, fuel).

Russia:

• [Restrictions] In the third reading, an amendment to the administrative code was adopted. It introduces fines for publicly identifying the USSR and Nazi Germany, as well as for denying “the decisive role of the Soviet people in the defeat of Nazi Germany and the humanitarian mission of the USSR in the liberation of the countries of Europe.” For citizens, fines of up to 5k RUB or arrest for up to 15 days are provided, for legal entities – fines of up to 100k RUB.
• [Restrictions] The regime of temporary restrictions on flights to 11 Russian airports in the southern and central parts of the Russian Federation has been extended until 04/13/2022. 
• [Support for the economy] The territorial authorities received a directive from the Federal Tax Service on organizing joint measures with the Ministry of Internal Affairs to identify currency speculators who trade currency bypassing banks.
• [Response to the sanctions] A law was adopted to ensure the uninterrupted functioning of the transport complex under sanctions.

Liberated territories

Bucha:

— April 7, it was found that 112 private houses cannot be rebuilt, another ~100 are damaged. 18 high-rise buildings burned out, two of which are also beyond repair. At the same time, an inspection of damaged buildings is still ongoing.

— Also people, incl. children and pregnant women were shot at Russian roadblocks set up in the city.

Irpin:

— The city was liberated on 28 March. At that time, most of the houses were damaged or destroyed. After the liberation, bodies of civilians were found on the streets, near the shopping center and in apartments (1, 2). Also, according to the mayor of the city, Olexander Markushyn, the bodies of girls and women were found on the streets, who, after being shot, were crushed by a tank.

Hostomel:

— In one of the garages, 11 bodies of civilians shot by the Russian military were found. According to the residents, Russian snipers were training on them.

Zhytomyr highway:

— From the end of February, battles were fought on the territory of the Kyiv region in the area of ​​the Zhytomyr highway M-06. Buildings and infrastructure along the highway, incl. in the surrounding villages were badly damaged or destroyed. 

— During the period when the highway was controlled by Russian troops, the facts of the shooting the civilian vehicles were recorded.

Ukrainian troops regained control of the highway at the end of March. After gaining access to it, journalists found shot and burned civilian cars and the bodies of civilians, incl. pensioners and children. Some of the bodies were burned, and some of the people were burned trying to get out of the burning cars.

— The bodies of several girls, which were piled up and set on fire by Russian troops, presumably after being raped, were also found on the highway.

Trostyanets:

— Russian troops entered Trostyanets on the first day of the invasion, February, 24. During the period of occupation, Russian soldiers shot the residents of the city, they also threw grenades at pensioners moving around the city in cars and bicycles. Civilians were also tortured and then killed.

— The city was liberated on March 26, but mines and stretch marks were left by Russian troops, incl. at the local cemetery. A local resident was blown up on one of the stretch marks. Also, during the period of occupation, architectural monuments, residential buildings, and industrial enterprises were destroyed, incl. confectionery factory Mondelez, on which Russian troops opened fire for no reason. The city hospital was shot at by direct fire from a tank, at that time there were people there. Some areas of the city were completely destroyed.

War in Ukraine. Weekly digest of the key events