May 13, 2022 | Daily briefing

00:05 

The question of Turkey’s intercession in the evacuation of the military from Azovstal is being negotiated; it would commence with the seriously wounded. Currently, the Ukrainian side is negotiating only about 38 gravely wounded combatants (cot cases), and if the exchange of 38 heavy ones turns successful, the negotiations will go further.

02:30

During the past 24hrs, missile and artillery units and aircraft of the Armed Forces of Ukraine inflicted more than 100 strikes on enemy positions. The total enemy casualties were 57 invaders, 60 armored units, and 3 cars.

04:35

In one of the villages of Kharkiv region, police registered the fact that Russian soldiers opened fire on civilians from a tank. Therefore, it is obvious that the Russian military has no moral limitations at all.

06:55

Russia is sending additional artillery units to the border areas of the Bryansk region to increase the provocative shelling of border settlements in the Chernihiv oblast.

08:50

Russian occupiers do not give up their attempts to seize control over Azovstal; on the morning of May 13 the occupiers are trying to break into the plant under cover of artillery.

09:35

At the daybreak of May 13, Russian invaders launched a rocket attack on the Dergachiv’s house of culture, where humanitarian aid to civilians was stored and distributed.

11:45

In Ukraine, at least 646 children have suffered due to Russia’s invasion. As of the morning of May 13, the official death toll has not changed, it counts 226 children. The number of wounded has increased to 420. These figures are not final, as this number is being established in the area of hostilities, in the temporarily occupied and liberated territories.

12:00

The first trial of Vadim Shishimarin, a Russian military, charged with the cynical murder of an unarmed civilian, has begun. For this war crime, the suspect could be sentenced to lifelong imprisonment.

13:15 

​Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko and Petro Poroshenko appealed to world leaders to help save civilians and the military from Azovstal in Mariupol.

13:45

In an interview with Italy’s Rai 1 TV channel, President Zelensky said that the possibility of talks with the Russian Federation was daily becoming increasingly difficult due to abuse, torture, executions and destruction done by the Russian military in occupied cities. At the same time, Zelensky confirmed that he was ready to negotiate with Putin, but “without his mediators and ultimatums.

15:00

In the Kharkiv oblast, three bridges, which are necessary for a counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were blown up. According to CNN, bridges in the vicinity of Rubizhne, Stary Saltiv, and Pechenegs were destroyed. This could significantly complicate the Ukrainian military counterattack while crossing the Seversky Donets River. The destroyed bridges also symbolize that the Russians no longer plan to return to the Kharkiv region.

15:35

Compulsory issuing of Russian passports for Ukrainian citizens who were forcibly deported to the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol from Kherson and Zaporizhia oblasts continues, says ombudsman Lyudmila Denisova. It is reported that Ukrainian citizens who have been forcibly relocated to the peninsula are being “explained” about the need to obtain a Russian “red card”, as they will not be allowed to live in Crimea without “identity documents”.

16:25

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on the sidelines of the G7 meeting in Germany that the situation with arms supplies to Ukraine has improved, but it is necessary to ensure constant supplies. He also stressed that Ukraine needs missile systems and military aircraft.

16:40

Oleksiy Reznikov explained that the war is currently in a protracted phase until Ukrainian defenders at the front receive a critical amount of heavy weapons from Western partners. According to the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, the coming weeks will be extremely difficult. “How many [weeks] there will be – no one will say for sure. During this period, we will keep the defense mostly on our own against the enraged aggressor,” – said Reznikov.

17:20

“Occupier”: a website with data on Russian prisoners of war has been launched in Ukraine. The service will be available to Russian citizens to obtain information about the fate and whereabouts of their relatives who were taken prisoner in Ukraine.

17:45

Three thousand food kits per 150 thousand population: a video of huge queues for food in Mariupol has appeared. Every day the occupiers allocate only 3,000 food kits. But most people remain hungry. It is noted that the elderly are forced to collect leftovers in the garbage due to the inability to receive assistance and food in the “humanitarian headquarters”.

18:35

A group of recruiters from the FSB, the DNR, and representatives of the “Liga” private military company (formerly “Wagner”) arrived in Kherson. They are looking for people who will agree to work with them. At the same time, the occupiers continue to kidnap and torture patriotic residents of Kherson. About 120 people were abducted and another 50 were killed. Their whereabouts are currently unknown, Ukrainian Chief Directorate of Intelligence reports.

19:30

The Russian occupiers continue their unsuccessful efforts to advance in the Eastern Operational Zone – the enemy has failed in the area of Bogorodichne in the Sloviansk direction, in the Lyman direction in the area of Alexandrivka. Also, the invaders were unsuccessful in the assault in the area of Zolote and Komyshuvakha in the Bakhmut direction and Kamyanka and Novoselivka in the Avdiivka direction, the Headquarters of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reports.

20:35

The Cabinet of Ministers has decided to transfer 172 gas stations related to Medvedchuk’s Glusco network under Naftogaz jurisdiction. The Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmygal says that this decision will help overcome the fuel shortage in the country.

21:10

The European Commission will open “corridors of solidarity” so that Ukraine can export grain as its ports have been blocked by Russia. These are routes that will speed up the export of agricultural products and the work of customs between Ukraine and the EU, said Prime Minister Denys Shmygal.

22:00

For the first time, the Ukrainian authorities have named the number of citizens they plan to mobilize for the army. The Ministry of Defense “focuses on the need to provide 1 million people who will fight the enemy,” said Defense Minister Reznikov. Before the war, the Armed Forces numbered about 200,000 people.

22:15

The head of the Central Intelligence Agency, Kyrylo Budanov, said that by mid-August the war would have turned in Ukraine’s favor, and by the end of the year, active hostilities would end. In addition, he said that in Russia a process of dethroning Vladimir Putin has already started and that the Russian leader is seriously ill with cancer.