Moscow claims to have “eliminated” 200 reservists at the Chaplino station and kyiv raises the number of deceased travelers to 25
Russia’s Wednesday night bombing of the Chaplino train station in the central Dnipropetrovsk region has once again shown that the war in Ukraine is not fought solely on the battlefield. They also measure their forces in the field of information, with a continuous crossing of conflicting versions and mutual accusations. Not in vain, after kyiv described what happened as a massacre of civilians that has already claimed the lives of 25 travelers, Moscow stepped forward this Thursday to ensure that it was a successful action against an Army convoy that “eliminated » 200 reservist soldiers.
Russia shook off the accusations after the harsh condemnations it received from the international community for an operation that took place on the same day that six months had passed since the beginning of the invasion and 31 years since Ukraine’s independence. “An ‘Iskander’ missile directly hit a military train at Chaplino station, eliminating more than 200 soldiers from the Ukrainian Armed Forces reserve,” the Ministry of Defense settled in a statement.
According to the Kremlin, the convoy was headed for “combat zones” in eastern Ukraine, where Moscow’s troops are located. Meanwhile, the governor of Dnipropetrovsk, Valentin Reznichenko, reported that rescue operations were continuing to find survivors after the projectile hit the train and four wagons were engulfed “in flames”, as President Volodímir Zelensky described in a telematic appearance on Wednesday before the United Nations Security Council.
For kyiv, the version offered this Thursday by the Kremlin is further evidence of its propaganda and disinformation campaign. Oleg Nikolenko, spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, denounced “Moscow terrorism” by reporting on Twitter that there are already “25 civilians killed after a missile was fired” at the Chaplino station, a population of 3,000 inhabitants. According to the country’s railway operator, the attack also left 31 injured when several residential buildings were hit.
The data, in any case, did not seem to be entirely clear since the services of the Ukrainian prosecutor general spoke of “10 dead civilians, including two children aged 6 and 11, and another 10 wounded, two of them minors”, in and around the station, suggesting that there might be other non-civilian victims.
What there has been evidence of, as the US warned on Tuesday when it urged its citizens to leave Ukraine as soon as possible, is that Russia has intensified its offensive. “The number of bombings against cities and towns increased. In the last 24 hours, the Police registered 58, many more than we normally had, ”Evhen Enin, Deputy Minister of the Interior, declared on Telegram. According to local media, nine regions were targeted. The incursions, although focused on districts of Dnipropetrovsk, were also registered in Khmelnitsky, in the west of the country and far from the front, in the southern city of Mikolaiv, as well as in Kharkov and Donetsk, in the east.
“They will be held accountable”
Despite the clash of versions, both the EU and the US were firm in their condemnation of Moscow for the Russian bombing of Chaplino. “Those responsible for terrorism with Russian rockets will be held accountable,” said the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, who next week will chair meetings of the Foreign and Defense Ministers of the Twenty-seven in Prague to discuss the crisis. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed himself in similar terms, warning that “Russia’s missile attack on a train station full of civilians fits into a pattern of atrocities.”
In order to ensure that there is no impunity, the Ukrainian government advocates the creation next year of an international court to judge Russian President Vladimir Putin and those responsible for the invasion. “It is the only option to quickly bring criminals to account,” Andrii Smirnov, deputy head of the presidential administration, told AFP.
So far, some 600 suspects of “crimes of aggression” have been identified. But the cases of human rights abuses and violations do not stop registering. This Thursday, precisely, the NGO Human Rights Watch revealed that 689 civilians have died in Ukraine due to the “widespread use” of cluster bombs by Russia, which is the only country in the world that uses this type of “inconceivable and illegal” weaponry. .
Putin orders to increase the contingent of his Army by 10%
In full escalation in Ukraine and with the tension overflowing with the West, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Thursday to increase the number of soldiers in his Army by 10%. By virtue of the new order published yesterday by the Government and which will enter into force on January 1, the Armed Forces will have two million troops, of which 1.15 will be soldiers; compared to 1.9 million members five years ago, in 2017.
Not counting civilian personnel, this represents an increase of 137,000 military personnel, or more than a tenth of the current combat force. The measure, the reasons for which the decree does not explain, seems aimed at counteracting the numerous casualties registered on the Russian side since the invasion began on February 24. However, for the moment the Kremlin has not ordered any general mobilization.
Despite Moscow’s secrecy, a senior US Pentagon official estimated in early August that some 80,000 soldiers under Putin’s command had died or been wounded in these seven months of war.
On the Ukrainian side, which has the military support of the West, the death of 9,000 soldiers since the beginning of the conflict was recognized on Monday. However, according to observers, the balance could actually be much higher.
Topics
Josep Borrell Fontelles, Vladimir Putin, European Union (EU), United States, Europe, Kharkov, kyiv, Moscow, Prague, Russia, Ukraine
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