Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy addresses Germany’s Bundestag, Berlin, June 11, 2024

Tuesday’s Coverage: A Conference in Berlin on Postwar Recovery

Map: Institute for the Study of War

UPDATE 1624 GMT:

At least eight civilians have been killed by a Russian missile strike on Kryvyi Rih in the Dnipropetrovsk region in south-central Ukraine.

At least 21 others, including two children, have been injured. Four people are missing.

No details have been given of the missile used by the Russians.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky commented,”Every day and every hour, Russian terror proves that Ukraine, together with its partners, must strengthen air defense.”

UPDATE 1617 GMT:

Sri Lanka is trying to prevent its citizens from being lured by Russia into fighting in Ukraine, amid reports of 16 Sri Lankans killed and 36 injured.

Amid heavy losses in its offensives, Russia has been turning to foreign nationals for assaults. On Tuesday, India’s Foreign Ministry appealed to Moscow after two more Indian nationals were killed (see 0656 GMT).

At least 10 Nepalis have reportedly been slain, with up to 200 fighting for Russia.

Sri Lanka’s parliament set up an inquiry in May to track down an estimated 2,000 citizens who have “reportedly enlisted on both sides”. Two retired Sri Lankan generals have been arrested “for illegally acting as recruiting agents for Russian mercenary firms”.

Sri Lankan officials say around 12 of their citizens are being held as prisoners of war in Ukraine, and at least 22 have deserted from the Russian army and escaped back to Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka Foreign Minister Ali Sabry raised the issue while in Moscow on Monday for a BRICS ministerial meeting. The Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry said he and Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov agreed that there would be no further recruitment.

UPDATE 1608 GMT:

Ukrainian military intelligence says it struck two, rather than one, of Russia’s most advanced warplanes in a Saturday strike deep inside Russia territory.

Satellite images showed damage to one Su-57 fighter jet, with craters and scorch marks, after the strike on the Akhtubinsk airfield in the Astrakhan region.

Spokeperson Andrii Yusov said Wednesday, “We can now say that one Su-57 suffered significant damage, and the other one suffered lighter damage and may be possible to restore.”

Russia has only a few of the Su-57s, used for cross-border attacks with Kh-59 and Kh-69 cruise missiles. The Akhtubinsk airfield is 592 km (366 miles) from the frontline.

See also Ukraine War, Day 838: Kyiv Strikes Russia’s Most Advanced Warplane for 1st Time

Satellite imagery published after the attack seemed to have confirmed a successful strike against the Akhtubinsk airfield in southern Russia, lying around 590 kilometers (over 360 miles) from the front line.

UPDATE 0738 GMT:

A Financial Times investigation has added to the evidence of Russia’s mass deportation of Ukrainian children.

The FT identified and located four Ukrainian children on the adoption website usynovite.ru, linked to the Russian Government. One child had a false Russian identity.

Last week the New York Times published details on the deportation of 46 Ukrainian children from a foster home into the Russian-occupied Kherson region in southern Ukraine. A Russian federal adoption site listed 22 of the children for adoption in Russia, placing at least two with Russian families.

The children identified by the FT, from 8 to 15 years old, were seized in southern and eastern regions of Ukraine during Russia’s invasion in 2022. They are in the Tula region near Moscow, in the Orenburg region close to the Kazakh border, and in Russian-occupied Crimea.

Seventeen additional matches on the adoption website were confirmed as Ukrainian children in the New York Times investigation.

UPDATE 0717 GMT:

The Netherlands is providing €60 million ($64.4 million) to bolster Ukraine’s purchasing and production of aerial and naval drones.

Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren confirmed €17.5 million ($18.8 million) for the purchase of naval drones, and €42.5 million ($45.6 million) for deliveries through the international drone coalition.

Established in January, the coalition includes Germany, Canada, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Sweden, Estonia, Denmark, the UK, and Latvia.

Ollengren also said that the Netherlands will deliver its first US-made F-16 fighters jets to Ukraine this summer, soon after Denmark does so.

Italy has approved €140 million ($150.4 million) for Ukrainian infrastructure and military aid including SAMP/T air defense.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced the assistance at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin: “The priority strategy for recovery…is the protection of Ukrainian infrastructure and Ukrainian buildings with an air defense system.”

UPDATE 0704 GMT:

Ukraine’s air defenses downed 24 of 24 Iran-type drones and five missiles fired by Russia overnight.

The attacks were intercepted over the Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Poltava, Kharkiv, and Vinnytsia regions.

Russia also launched an Iskander-M ballistic missile.

A fire was started by falling debris in an industrial facility and another in a warehouse in the Kyiv region, and a house, a gas station, and a garage were damaged One person suffered leg lacerations.

UPDATE 0656 GMT:

Two more Indian nationals, coerced by Russia into frontline service, have been killed in Ukraine.

The Indian Foreign Ministry called on Moscow to ensure prompt repatriation of the remains and the release of other Indians who have been deceived into fighting for Russia.

In May, Indian police arrested four people over trafficking of dozens of young men lured to Russia with the promise of jobs or university places.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Addressing Germany’s Bundestag, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has emphasized that Ukraine will prevail against Russia’s 27 1/2-month invasion.

Expressing deep gratitude to Germans for their assistance, Zelenskiy said:

We remain faithful to the dream of a peaceful Europe – a continent of culture, people, and without war. A Europe that will be a happy home for our children and their children. A Europe that won’t allow hatred to take root and will do everything to correct the mistake of this war.

He drove home the point that there would be no concessions to Vladimir Putin — including the surrender of occupied Ukrainian territory — by referring to the world after World War II: “A divided Europe was never happy. And a divided Germany was never happy. You don’t need me to tell you this, you know it from your own experience. No country should be doomed to have barbed wire tearing through its body for decades.”

The President concluded:

A Conference for Recovery

Earlier in the day, Zelenskiy attended the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin and met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

He told the conference that 50% of Ukraine’s energy capacity has been destroyed or damaged by intense Russian missile and drone attacks; however, this can be restored before winter, provided Kyiv has assistance.

He repeated that air defenses must be bolstered — with at least seven additional Patriot systems — to protect Ukraine as the power system is restored.

Germany’s Scholz confirmed to the conference that Berlin is sending a third Patriot system, as well as IRIS-T and Gepard anti-aircraft systems, missiles, and ammunition to Ukraine in forthcoming weeks and months.

US officials said Washington will finally send a second Patriot system.

The executive director of Ukraine’s largest private energy company, DTEK, has warned that Ukrainians could face up to 20 hours of blackouts a day under a “worst-case” scenario if there are no repairs and propere air defense.

Dmytro Sakharuk said the company has assessed various scenarios, with the worst based on a continuation of the status quo.