Chris Lange, FISM News
Russia’s top counterterrorism body on Monday blamed Ukrainian intelligence agencies for a bombing attack that claimed the life of a well-known Russian military blogger. Russian officials said Vladlen Tatarsky, 40, an ardent supporter of Moscow’s war in Ukraine, was killed Sunday at a cafe in St. Petersburg.
Russia’s National Anti-Terrorist Committee said that the “terrorist act” against Tatarsky was “planned by Ukrainian special services” in coordination with a foundation formed by jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
The Kremlin’s investigative body announced the arrest of Darya Tryopova, a 26-year-old St. Petersburg resident suspected of being involved in the attack. Tryopova was detained previously for allegedly participating in anti-war rallies. Several reports indicate that Tryopova presented Tatarsky with a bust of himself rigged with explosives as he prepared to give a talk at the cafe. More than 30 people were wounded in the blast.
BLINKEN URGES LAVROV TO RELEASE WSJ JOURNALIST, US MARINE
Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on his Russian counterpart to immediately release a Wall Street Journal reporter detained last week. In a rare call to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Blinken expressed “grave concern” over the arrest of Evan Gershkovich on espionage charges, according to a statement from State Department officials, per The Associated Press. He also again called for the release of imprisoned U.S. Marine veteran Paul Whelan who has been detained in Russia since 2018 on charges of spying.
The State Department officially declared Whelan as “wrongfully detained,” a designation which essentially transfers cases to the office of the U.S. Special Presidential for Hostage Affairs, and said it may do the same for Gershkovich.
Lavrov accused Blinken of attempting to “politicize” Gershkovich’s arrest.
ZELENSKYY: BAKHMUT FIGHTING REMAINS ‘HOT’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that the military situation around the city of Bakhmut, besieged by Russian forces for months, was “especially hot.”
“I thank our soldiers who are fighting near Avdiivka, Maryinka, Bakhmut… especially Bakhmut,” Zelenskyy said in a Sunday evening video address, per Reuters. “It’s especially hot there today.”
Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed in a short video published Sunday that “in legal terms, Bakhmut has been taken. The enemy is concentrated in the western districts.”
Ukraine’s military said Russian forces were still advancing in Bakhmut but that its own forces were “bravely holding the city and repelling numerous enemy attacks.”
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a new mobilization of nearly 150,000 additional Russian troops on Saturday as the Kremlin continues to suffer heavy losses. RadarOnline.com reported that Moscow has lost around 700,000 troops since the Feb. 2022 invasion.
UKRAINE POISED TO LAUNCH SPRING COUNTEROFFENSIVE
Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said Kyiv’s forces could launch a long-anticipated spring counteroffensive as early as this month in what could be a new phase in the war as it approaches the 14-month mark.
Kyiv’s military is entering the spring season with an influx of powerful weapons and freshly trained troops returning from the West. Germany announced last week that it had given Ukraine 18 promised Leopard 2 tanks on top of previous deliveries of Leopards from Canada, Norway, and Poland as well as the U.K.’s contribution of a battalion of its Challenger tanks.
RETIRED US AIR FORCE METEOROLOGIST HELPS KYIV STRATEGIZE WITH DAILY WEATHER UPDATES
Another advantage for Ukraine has come from an unlikely source: a network of volunteers who provide Ukraine with daily weather updates to help its commanders take advantage of improving weather conditions.
According to the Daily Wire, U.S. Air Force meteorologist David Helms is one joining the fight from afar by posting forecasts on social media under the hashtag #NAFOWeather. The acronym is a reference to the North Atlantic Fellas Organization, described as “an online anti-Russian propaganda movement.”
Helms gave an example of the strategic advantage he can provide, saying that while Russian tanks are still stuck in the mud in Eastern Ukraine, Kyiv’s forces could launch a counteroffensive in the south toward the Russian-occupied city of Melitopol.
Helms added that he and his fellow volunteers also provide pro-Ukrainian groups with information about specific days when clear skies will allow for the best opportunities to take photos from space. Upon receiving the reports, the groups use donations to request satellite imagery from private vendors like Maxar. Those images are then passed along to Ukrainian commanders on the front lines.
“To me, it’s just people interested in and supporting Ukraine, trying to do whatever they can to do exactly that,” Helms said.