Ukraine/Russland/NATO – der Sammler am 14. April 2022 (Update: ‚Moskwa‘ gesunken)

Die interessanteste Nachricht in dem anhaltenden russischen Angriffskrieg gegen die Ukraine ist am (heutigen) Donnerstag die Havarie des russischen Lenkwaffenkreuzers Moskwa im Schwarzen Meer – nach russischen Angaben durch die Explosion von Munition an Bord, nach ukrainischer Darstellung durch Beschuss mit Raketen. (Update unten: Der Kreuzer ist gesunken.) Der Sammler am 14. April 2022:

In den Morgenübersichten sowohl der Ukraine als auch Russlands wird die Moskwa mit keinem Wort erwähnt.

• Das Morgenbriefing des ukrainischen Generalstabs:

The fiftieth day of the heroic resistance of the Ukrainian people to a russian military invasion continues. A russian federation continues its full-scale armed aggression against Ukraine.
A russain enemy continues to build an aviation group near the eastern border of our state, strengthens artillery units, optimizes existing command systems, intelligence and medical support.
There is a constant threat of russian enemy use of missile weapons throughout Ukraine.
The russian occupiers continue to launch systematic missile and bomb strikes on military and civilian infrastructure in Kharkiv, Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.
The enemy did not take active action in the Volyn and Polissya areas. Certain units of the belarusian Armed Forces continue to carry out tasks to cover the Ukrainian-belarusian border in Brest and Gomel regions. Planned combat training activities are underway.
In the belarusian town of Kholmych, at the checkpoints, the military police of the armed forces of the russian federation and the republic of belarus are checking personal phones. Civilians are informed that Ukrainian units may attack belarus at any time.
In the Siversky direction, the enemy is regrouping units of the Central Military District from the territory of the Bryansk and Kursk regions. After restoring combat capability, it concentrated these units in the Belgorod and Voronezh regions. The russian enemy strengthens border control, conducts engineering equipment for positions, bases and ensures the presence of a small number of personnel, weapons and military equipment.
In the Slobozhansky direction, the russian enemy conducts reconnaissance of probable areas of attack, increases the system of reconnaissance, management and medical support. It continues to partially block the city of Kharkiv and shells the city with artillery, regroups units and replenishes supplies.
In the Donetsk and Tavriya directions, the russian enemy fought in the Slavyansk, Popasna, and Kurakhovo districts and stormed the city of Mariupol. It was not successful and the fighting continues.
Strengthening of grouping of the russian enemy around Severodonetsk is carried out by the expense of separate divisions of the 2nd All Arms Army of the Central military district.
Coercive mobilization measures continue in the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. Thus, in the city of Horlivka, daily tours of private houses and apartment blocks are held.
In addition, it was established that the russian command set a task to mobilize 60-70 thousand people on the territory of the so-called „DPR“. However, these figures were met by only 20 percent.
In the South Buh area, the russian enemy is taking measures to restore combat capability, replenish ammunition, and take measures to engineering equipment positions, exercises fire on units of our troops.
The russian enemy is fighting in the area of Alexandrivka. It is trying to resume the offensive in order to regain lost ground in the Osokorivka area.
On the territory of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, the defenders of Ukraine repulsed eight enemy attacks, destroyed a tank, four armored units and six vehicles, as well as one enemy artillery system.
Units of anti-aircraft missile forces of the previous day shot down two enemy fighters.

• Das Morgenbriefing des russischen Verteidigungsministeriums:

During the day, high-precision weapons destroyed 12 enemy assets. Among them: 2 depots of missile and artillery armament of the Ukrainian troops in Velikaya Mikhailovka and Bogatyr; 1 Ukrainian MiG-29 fighter jet, 1 Mi-8 helicopter and 1 Bayraktar TB-2 unmanned aerial vehicle at Dnepr airfield.
Operational-tactical and army aviation hit 48 military assets of Ukraine. Among them: 2 command posts, 1 radar station, 2 positions of multiple rocket launchers, 1 artillery battery, 6 depots of missile and artillery weapons, as well as 48 areas of concentration of Ukrainian weapons and military equipment.
Missile troops and artiller hit 770 assets, including 9 command posts, 101 strong points, 548 areas of concentration of Ukrainian manpower and weapons, 110 artillery firing positions, 1 S-300 anti-aircraft missile system and 1 ammunition depot.
In total, 131 aircraft and 104 helicopters, 245 anti-aircraft missile systems S-300, Buk-M1, Osa AKM, 448 unmanned aerial vehicles, 2,179 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 248 multiple launch rocket systems, 944 field artillery and mortars, as well as 2,088 units of special military vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were destroyed during the operation.
During the operation to liberate Mariupol city, during the night 134 Ukrainian servicemen have voluntarily surrendered. The total number of servicemen of the 36th Marine Brigade who voluntarily surrendered was 1,160. Among them: 176 officers.

• Der Vorfall um den russischen Lenkwaffenkreuzer Moskwa, das noch zu Zeiten der Sowjetunion in der Ukraine gebaute Flaggschiff der russischen Schwarzmeerflotte, blieb den Tag über zunächst unklar. Die Moskauer Darstellung meldete die russische Nachrichtenagentur TASS :

The fire on the guided missile cruiser Moskva has been localized and the explosions of ammunition on board have been stopped, the Defense Ministry told the media on Thursday. (…)
The cruiser has retained buoyancy and its main missile systems are not damaged. (…)
Earlier on the Thursday the Defense Ministry said that the Black Sea Fleet’s guided missile cruiser Moskva had suffered serious damage as a result of explosions of ammunition, caused by a fire on board. The crew has been evacuated.

Von der ukrainischen Seite hatte es dagegen – wenn auch zunächst nicht von der Regierung in Kiew – die Angabe gegeben, das Schiff seit mit ukrainischen Neptun-Seezielflugkörpern angegriffen worden. Die Meldung kam unter anderem vom Gouverneur der Region Odessa, Maxim Marchenko, über den Messengerdienst Telegram:

Die Neptun-Raketen, die das Schwarze Meer bewachen, haben das russische Schiff schwer beschädigt.

Sollte die Havarie der Moskwa tatsächlich Folge eines ukrainischen Angriffs gewesen sein, hätten die Streitkräfte des Landes einen auch psychologisch wichtigen Erfolg errungen. Dafür wäre dann allerdings auch die entsprechende Aussage aus Kiew nötig. Bislang bestätigten das allerdings auch die USA nicht:

• Notizen aus dem täglichen Pentagon-Briefing, von Dan Lamothe von der Washington Post:

A background briefing with a senior U.S. defense official at the Pentagon about the war in Ukraine has concluded.
Some key points:
Lots of eyes today on the explosion yesterday aboard the Russian warship Moskva. The Pentagon confirms the ship “experienced an explosion,” and that the vessel is still on fire as it makes its way east to the Black Sea port of Sevastopol for apparent repairs.
The senior U.S. defense official said the Moskva was roughly 70 to 75 miles south of the port city of Odessa in the Black Sea when the explosion occurred. The Pentagon is not yet offering an assessment for what caused the explosion.
No clear assessment for Russian casualties.
New, notable detail today: Four or five other Russian warships dispersed off the coast of Ukraine have pulled farther south away from the coastline, the senior U.S. defense official says.
It “very well could have been an external source like a missile” that caused the explosion on the Moskva, the senior U.S. defense official says.
But he notes there are other possibilities: A mishap with ordnance on board, the propulsion system, etc.
The senior U.S. defense official also did not rule out that the ship struck a mine on the ocean’s surface.
Contradicting Ukrainian claims, the Pentagon assesses that the Moskva has not sunk.
“It does appear that this is a significant fire that they’re battling,” the senior U.S. defense official said of the Moskva. “But what’s underneath that fire, how much hull damage there is, we just don’t know.”
Other news: Ukrainian troops will likely receive training on the expanded arsenal of weapons the Pentagon is sending in Europe, the senior U.S. defense official says.
Gen. Tod Wolters, the chief of European Command, is examining options to train Ukrainian forces, the senior U.S. defense official said.
Plan appears to be to take Ukrainians who already have familiarity with a given weapon and teach them how more sophisticated versions the U.S. is providing differ. That goes for 155mm Howitzers, counter-artillery radar and Sentinel air-defense radar, official says.
“We do not assess that it’s going to take longer than a few days, max, to get them trained up on those systems,” senior U.S. defense official says.
The training will come after the Biden administration vastly expanded Wednesday the kinds of weapons it will provide the Ukrainian military.
The senior U.S. defense official also disclosed for the first time that a small group of Ukrainian troops who had been in the United States for schooling when Russia invaded Feb. 24 received training not on armed Switchblade drones, as previously reported.
Those Ukrainians also received training on coastal defense surface drones Biden first approved Wednesday, the senior U.S. defense official says.
Raises the question: What *else* did those Ukrainians receive training on?
“They did receive training on that particular system, so some of that training already has occurred,” the official said.
Other news: Shaping operations are underway in the Donbas region. Battalion tactical groups not really moving in, but enablers, including artillery are, official says.
U.S. also now observes Russian helicopters being stages just over the Ukrainian border in Russia.

Interessanter Punkt dabei: Die USA veranschlagen für das Training ukrainischer Soldaten an neu gelieferten Waffensystemen nur einige Tage. Die neuen Waffenlieferungen, das hatte das Pentagon am (gestrigen) Mittwoch bekanntgegeben, umfassen unter anderem:

18 155mm Howitzers and 40,000 artillery rounds;
Ten AN/TPQ-36 counter-artillery radars;
Two AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel air surveillance radars;
300 Switchblade Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems;
500 Javelin missiles and thousands of other anti-armor systems;
200 M113 Armored Personnel Carriers;
100 Armored High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles;
11 Mi-17 helicopters;
Unmanned Coastal Defense Vessels;
Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear protective equipment;
Medical equipment;
30,000 sets of body armor and helmets;
Over 2,000 optics and laser rangefinders;
C-4 explosives and demolition equipment for obstacle clearing; and
M18A1 Claymore anti-personnel munitions configured to be consistent with the Ottawa Convention

• Das Abendbriefing des ukrainischen Generalstabs (weiterhin ohne Erwähnung der Moskwa):

The russian enemy is trying to complete preparations for an offensive operation in the Eastern Operational Zone. The aviation group and the command and control system are being built up.
The enemy continues to launch missile and bomb attacks on infrastructure facilities and residential areas of cities and villages of our state.
In order to conduct hostilities on the territory of Ukraine, the russian occupiers are training additional units of the Northern Fleet and the 8th All Arms Military Army of the Southern Military District of the Armed Forces of the russian federation. To provide units with weapons and military equipment, measures are being taken to remove them from long-term storage at bases and warehouses.
According to the available information, the losses in the 126th Separate Coastal Defense Brigade (Perevalne) and the 127th Separate Reconnaissance Brigade (Sevastopol) amount to more than 50 percent of the personnel.
The command of the russian army fails to implement plans to mobilize human resources in the North Caucasus region to participate in the war against Ukraine. The main reason is the reluctance of the population of this region to take part in hostilities.
Due to the critical situation with the staffing of combat units, the command of the armed forces of the russian federation plans to begin a new process of mobilization at the national level. According to the plan, the mobilization, in order to hide it, will be carried out in parallel with the planned conscription.
The situation in the Volyn and Polissya areas has not changed significantly. There is a movement of units of the 36th All Arms Military Army of the Eastern Military District by rail from the territory of the Gomel region of the republic of belarus. The threat of missile strikes from the territory of Belarus on the objects of our State remains.
In the northern direction, the russian enemy is regrouping units with their further concentration in the areas bordering Ukraine. From the territory of the Bryansk and Kursk regions there is a movement to the Belgorod and Voronezh regions of russia.
In the Slobozhansky direction, the occupiers are conducting reconnaissance of probable areas of attack, increasing the system of reconnaissance and medical support. Stocks are being replenished. The partial blockade and shelling of the city of Kharkiv continues.
In the city of Belgorod, the russian enemy deployed a unit of information and psychological operations of the armed forces of the russian federation in order to intensify measures of psychological influence on units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine and the civilian population of Kharkiv region. The goal is to demoralize and end the resistance.
The occupiers continue to prepare for active action in the areas of Slovyansk and Barvinkove.
In the Donetsk direction, the russian enemy, with the support of aircraft and artillery, continues to attack in certain directions. The main efforts are focused on establishing control over the settlements of Popasna, Rubizhne, Severodonetsk and Slovyansk.
The enemy tried to break through our defenses in the areas of Rubizhne, Novotoshkivske and Marinka. It was not successful. A russian enemy continued to launch air strikes on Mariupol.
There have been no significant changes in the situation in the South Buh region.
In the Black Sea and Azov operational zones, enemy naval groups continue to carry out tasks to isolate the area of hostilities and reconnaissance.

• Das Abendbriefing des russischen Verteidigungsministeriums:

Im Laufe des Tages trafen operative und taktische Flugzeuge sieben militärische Einrichtungen in der Ukraine.
Dazu gehören: ein Raketen- und Artilleriewaffendepot in der Nähe von Prywolje; sechs Gebiete, in denen die ukrainische 54. unabhängige mechanisierte Brigade und die 128. Gebirgsjägerbrigade in den Gebieten Welyka Nowoselka, Temyniwka, Iwaniwka, Kramatorsk und Bogoroditschne zusammengezogen sind.
Raketen und Artillerie schlugen an 132 Orten ein, darunter: 8 Gefechtsstände, 110 Stützpunkte und Gebiete, in denen sich Arbeitskräfte angesammelt haben, 4 Artilleriebatterien und ein Munitionsdepot.
Seit Beginn der militärischen Sonderoperation wurden insgesamt 131 Flugzeuge, 104 Hubschrauber, 245 Flugabwehrraketensysteme, 448 unbemannte Luftfahrzeuge, 2.188 Panzer und andere gepanzerte Kampffahrzeuge, 248 Mehrfachraketenwerfer, 957 Feldartillerie- und Mörsergeschütze und 2.088 militärische Spezialfahrzeuge zerstört.
(Übersetzt mit deepl.com)

Update: Die Moskwa sank am Donnerstagabend in schwerer See, während der Kreuzer geschleppt wurde, teilte das Verteidigungsministerium in Moskau mit. Aus dem Bericht der russischen Agentur RIA:

The missile cruiser Moskva, which was damaged due to the detonation of its ammunition, sank during a tow, the Defense Ministry said.
„When the Moskva cruiser was being towed to its port of destination, the ship lost its stability due to hull damage sustained during a fire from the detonation of ammunition. In rough sea conditions the ship sank,“ said the military department.

(Weiterhin läuft hier Minimalbetrieb; deshalb auch weiterhin deaktivierte Kommentarfunktion)