Thursday, May 16

Russia’s war against Ukraine

The aftermath of the Russian attack against the central part of Kherson on May 15, 2024. (Kherson Oblast Governor Oleksandr Prokudin / Telegram)

Zelensky: Ukraine stabilizes situation in Kharkiv Oblast amid Russian offensive.

Ukrainian forces have managed to stabilize the situation in Kharkiv Oblast over the past day amid Russia’s attempts to break through, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 15 in his evening address.

Reintegration Ministry: Ukraine brings home 17-year-old boy from Russian-occupied territory. The Reintegration Ministry brought the boy back in cooperation with the non-governmental union Ukrainian Child Rights Network.

Energy Ministry warns of blackouts due to ‘significant’ power shortage. Russian attacks and cold weather have caused a “significant capacity deficit” in Ukraine’s power system, leading to blackouts and energy restrictions for consumers across the country, the Energy Ministry reported on May 15.

Russian troops taking up positions on streets of Vovchansk, police chief says. Active battles are taking place in Vovchansk as Russian troops “take up positions on the streets of the city,” Vovchansk Police Chief Oleksii Kharkivskyi said on social media on the morning of May 15.

SBU detains 6 alleged Russian agents accused of aiding deadly strike in Donetsk Oblast. Ten people died in the attack including several rescue workers who raced to the scene of the first missile, only to be hit by another around 40 minutes later.

Military: Situation in Kharkiv Oblast somewhat stabilized but heavy battles continue. Heavy battles are ongoing in Kharkiv Oblast, but the situation has somewhat stabilized, Nazar Voloshyn, the spokesperson of the Khortytsia group of forces, said on air on May 15.

Ukraine’s public broadcaster says it received no fines over Azovstal T-shirts at Eurovision. Ukraine’s public broadcaster Suspilne on May 15 said in a statement it had not received any “complaints or fines for alleged violations of the rules.”

Umerov dismisses chief of Missile, Artillery, and UAV Forces. Defense Minister Rustem Umerov dismissed Brigadier General Serhii Baranov from his position as head of the Missile, Artillery, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Forces, the division announced on May 14.

Your contribution helps keep the Kyiv Independent going. Become a member today.

General Staff: Russian forces ‘partially pushed out’ from Vovchansk. Ukrainian forces repelled Russian attacks in the Vovchansk direction in Kharkiv Oblast and “partially pushed out enemy forces from the town,” the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces said on May 15.

Source: Ukraine’s military intelligence drones strike oil depot in Russia’s Rostov region. Drones from Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) attacked an oil base in the Rostov region of Russia overnight, a source in the agency told the Kyiv Independent on May 15.

Ukraine deploys more forces to Kharkiv Oblast. More Ukrainian forces are being deployed to Kharkiv Oblast amid Russia’s offensive in the region, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on May 15, following a meeting with top military commanders.

Mayor: No plans to evacuate Kharkiv. Speaking on national TV, Mayor Ihor Terekhov said around 6,000 people from the surrounding oblast who lived closer to the front lines had been taken to the city and housed in dormitories.

Zelensky confirms postponing participation in upcoming international events. President Volodymyr Zelensky decided to postpone all of his international events planned for the coming days, the Presidential Office said on May 15.

Defense Ministry confirms Russian units entered Vovchansk from north, fighting ongoing. Small Russian infantry units have entered Vovchansk in Kharkiv Oblast and are trying to gain a foothold in the northern part of town, Defense Ministry spokesperson Dmytro Lazutkin said on air on May 15.

Ukraine implements rolling blackouts after recent Russian attacks on energy infrastructure. Ukraine implemented rolling blackouts on May 15 due to power shortages caused by Russian attacks, Ukraine’s state-owned energy operator Ukrenergo announced.

Read our exclusives

Ukraine war latest: Ukrainian forces stabilize situation in Kharkiv Oblast, ‘partially’ push Russian troops out of Vovchansk

Ukrainian forces have managed to stabilize the situation in Kharkiv Oblast over the past day amid Russia’s attempts to break through, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 15 in his evening address.

Photo: Francis Farrell/The Kyiv Independent

Our readers’ questions about the war, answered. Vol. 6

What do the Ukrainians think of the “Peace Plan” that China proposed about a year ago? Would they feel comfortable if China were to be the country that brokered some kind of accord?

Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images

Human cost of war

Russian attack against Kharkiv injures at least 2. Governor Oleh Syniehubov said a five-story residential building in the Shevchenkyvskyi district was hit. At least two people were injured.

Updated: Russian airstrike targets Kherson, at least 19 injured. Russian forces carried out an airstrike against central Kherson on May 15, injuring at least 19 people, local authorities reported.

Russian aerial bomb strike injures 3 healthcare workers on Kharkiv outskirts. A Russian aerial bomb strike injured two nurses and a doctor in Mala Danylivka, a village on the outskirts of Kharkiv, the community’s head, Oleksandr Hololobov, told Suspilne Kharkiv on May 15.

Russian attack on Dnipro kills 2, damages infrastructure. Russian forces launched an attack against the eastern city of Dnipro on May 15, killing at least two people and damaging infrastructure, Governor Serhii Lysak reported.

Updated: Russian attack on Mykolaiv injures 6. A Russian attack against Mykolaiv around noon on May 15 injured at least three people, Governor Vitalii Kim reported.

As Russian casualties surge, Kremlin’s new defense minister says he wants ‘minimal losses.’ According to Ukraine’s figures, Moscow lost the most number of soldiers in a single day since the start of the full-scale invasion – 1,740 – on May 12.

Governor reports 25 civilian casualties, near 8,000 evacuations amid Russian assault on Kharkiv Oblast. Almost 8,000 civilians have been evacuated amid Russia’s offensive in northern Kharkiv Oblast, which has killed at least one civilian and injured 24 others over the past day, Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported on May 15.

General Staff: Russia has lost 486,940 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. This number includes 1,510 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

Mariupol defender breaks down his famous Azovstal photos

International response

Shares in Georgia’s largest banks plummet after US threatens sanctions against top Georgian officials. London-listed shares in the two banks, TBC and Bank of Georgia, plummeted to their lowest single-day declines since the spring of 2020, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Media: 50 states confirm participation in Ukraine’s peace summit in Switzerland. “We’re working intensively on the diplomatic front to convince those who haven’t yet announced their participation,” Nicolas Bideau, head of communications at the Swiss Foreign Ministry, told Swiss public radio RTS.

Medvechuk’s yacht officially transferred to Ukrainian state. The Royal Romance, a 92-meter (300-foot) luxury yacht worth an estimated 200 million euros ($218 million), was seized by Croatian authorities in March 2022.

Media: EU ambassadors agree on ‘broadcast ban’ of key Russian propaganda outlets. The move would reportedly impact Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Voice of Europe, RIA Novosti, and Izvestiya, said RFE/RL Europe Editor Rikard Jozwiak.

Reuters: US warns Raiffeisen that access to dollar system could be restricted due to Russia presence. Austria’s Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) was warned by the U.S. Treasury that its access to the U.S. financial system could be curbed due to its continued presence in the Russian market, Reuters reported on May 15.

Blinken: Washington has not encouraged Ukraine to strike inside Russia with US weapons, but decision up to Kyiv. Blinken was asked about recent Ukrainian complaints that a Washington ban meant Ukraine could not strike Russian forces as they built up before crossing the border into Kharkiv Oblast.

Blinken: US to give Ukraine additional $2 billion in military financing. The U.S. will provide Ukraine with an additional $2 billion in foreign military financing, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on May 15.

Pentagon: US ‘working hard’ to rush aid to Ukraine, battlefield situation ‘concerning.’ “But all accounts are that they (Ukraine) continue to take measures to defend their territory,” Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder said, adding that the U.S. is going to do “everything we can to get them the critical munitions and supplies that they need.”

CNN: Zelensky cancels Spain, Portugal visits due to battlefield situation. President Volodymyr Zelensky had been due to make the trip in the coming days, partly in order to sign a bilateral security agreement with Spain, the El Pais newspaper reported on May 13.

Ukraine asks US to lift ban on using American arms to strike at Russian territory. Ukrainian lawmakers are trying to convince Washington to allow Kyiv to strike at Russian territory with U.S.-supplied weapons, saying the ban prevented them from attacking Russian troops amassing near Kharkiv Oblast, Politico reported on May 14.

Bloomberg: US considers sending additional Patriot battery to Ukraine, sources say. U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration is working to supply Ukraine with an additional Patriot air defense battery to help the country repel Russian aerial attacks, Bloomberg reported on May 15, citing undisclosed sources.

European Commission predicts Russia’s GDP growth in 2024 to reach almost 3%. The forecast was still lower than the one reported by Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov in April, who claimed that the country’s GDP would grow by 3.6% in 2024.

Blinken: Zelensky, Biden may meet to sign security agreement in ‘coming weeks.’ President Volodymyr Zelensky could meet with U.S. President Joe Biden to sign a bilateral security agreement in the “coming weeks,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on May 15.

Estonian parliament passes bill allowing use of frozen Russian assets for war reparations for Ukraine. “We’re one step closer to setting a historic precedent in Europe,” said Prime Minister Kaja Kallas.

In other news

Slovak PM Fico critically injured in shooting. A 71-year-old man is reportedly suspected of carrying out what Slovak media refers to as an “assassination attempt” and has been detained.

Want to get the news faster? Follow our website: kyivindependent.com.

Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Chris York, Elsa Court, Martin Fornusek,

Katya Denisova, Lili Bivings, Nate Ostiller, Kateryna Hodunova, Olena Goncharova, and Rachel Amran.

If you’re enjoying this newsletter, consider joining our membership program. Start supporting independent journalism today.