Western supply lines in Ukraine destroyed – Russia

Russian troops have destroyed six traction substations, – units that power the railways – which are being used for delivery of “foreign weapons and military hardware to the Ukrainian forces in the Donbass,” Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov announced on Monday.

He added that the stations were located at the Krasnoye, Zdolbunov, Zhmerinka, Berdichev, Kovel, and Korosten railway hubs, all in western Ukraine.

According to Konashenkov, 27 military targets were also destroyed by airstrikes, including four command centers.

Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said last month that pushing Ukrainian troops from the territory of the Donbass republics had become Moscow’s top priority at this stage of the campaign.

Ukraine’s Western backers have not disclosed the exact routes they use to ship weapons to Kiev, but reports said that many of them are being delivered through neighboring Poland.

NATO member states supply various anti-tank and anti-aircraft missile systems, armored vehicles, howitzers, and other weapons to Kiev. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Ukraine on Sunday, where they promised additional military aid to President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Russia attacked the neighboring state in late February, following Ukraine’s failure to implement the terms of the Minsk agreements, first signed in 2014, and Moscow’s eventual recognition of the Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. The German and French brokered protocols were designed to give the breakaway regions special status within the Ukrainian state.

The Kremlin has since demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join the US-led NATO military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked and has denied claims it was planning to retake the two republics by force.

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