Wagner chief says it will take two years to capture entire Donbas
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Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Kremlin’s Wagner mercenary group, has said that it will take up to two years for Russian forces to capture the Donbas region, writes James Kilner.
His comments are a rare admission by a senior Kremlin-linked official that the Russian military will be in Ukraine for several years.
“If we need to reach the Dnieper (Dnipro river), that’ll take three years,” Mr Prigozhin said in the interview with Semyon Pegov, a pro-war milblogger.
“If we want to close down the whole of the DPR and LPR, then we need to work for at least one-and-a-half to two years,” he said, referring to the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Donbas, which the Kremlin illegally annexed last year.
Russian forces have launched a general push along the frontline, with the Vuhledar emerging as a critical hot spot in the fight for Donetsk province.
The town would give both sides, the Ukrainian forces who hold the urban center, and the Russians positioned in the suburbs, a tactical upper hand in the greater battle for the Donbas region.
05:26 PM
Today's top stories
Russia attacked a key bridge in southern Ukraine, deploying a drone boat for the first time since the war began
Mercenaries from Russia's notorious Wagner Group are working with Serbian paramilitaries to smuggle weapons and unmarked military uniforms into Kosovo
Ukraine’s hopes of getting fighter jets have been dealt a blow after Poland’s leader distanced himself from the idea of sending any soon
A Ukrainian soldier has warned the West is too busy fighting for transgender and feminist rights when they should be preparing for the threat of Russia invading countries beyond Ukraine
Half of Russia's main battle tanks have likely been destroyed or captured, a senior US defence official said
Energy Minister German Galushchenko said Russia had hit power facilities in six regions with missiles and drones on Friday, causing blackouts across most of Ukraine
04:51 PM
Russia strikes key Odesa bridge with first use of drone boat
Analysts warn that use of remote naval weapon represents a ‘major new threat’ to Ukraine after day of heavy missile fire, writes James Kilner
Russia attacked a key bridge in southern Ukraine, deploying a drone boat for the first time since the war began.
Western analysts warned that Russian drone boats now posed a “major new threat” to Ukrainian supply lines and control of the Black Sea.
“Russia was not known to have these types of drones or to think in these terms,” said H.I. Sutton, an independent naval analyst. “We may see another shift in the war in the Black Sea. This time in Russia’s favour.”
Video of the attack showed a boat speeding towards the low-slung Zatoka railway and road drawbridge near Odessa late on Friday evening. As it passes under the bridge the boat explodes, debris flies into the water and smoke billows into the night sky.
04:24 PM
Russia is putting the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant at risk of a disaster, Ukrainian official alleges
Russia is draining water from Kakhovka reservoir on temporarily occupied territories
This puts in danger the cooling system at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, irrigation for nearly half-a-million acres of farmland and drinking water for many peoplehttps://t.co/5BATcGAxPc pic.twitter.com/y0mLNBLENU— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) February 11, 2023
04:01 PM
Wagner mercenaries helping Serbia prepare potential attack on our nation, Kosovan president warns
Mercenaries from Russia's notorious Wagner Group are working with Serbian paramilitaries to smuggle weapons and unmarked military uniforms into Kosovo, writes Nick Squires
The secret operation is designed to lay the groundwork for a potential hybrid attack by Serbia to grab Kosovan territory, Vjosa Osmani claimed in an interview with The Telegraph.
The alleged preparations by Serbia bear parallels to Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, when Russian soldiers wearing uniforms stripped of any insignia, dubbed “little green men”, prepared the way for the peninsula’s secession from Moscow.
“They bring in weapons and uniforms but they are not formally part of the Serbian army. Serbia wants to achieve its aims without it being called a military operation,” Ms Osmani told The Telegraph in the presidential office in Pristina, Kosovo’s capital.
03:32 PM
'Russia shelled Kherson more than 60 times on Friday'
Russia reportedly shelled Kherson more than 60 times on Friday, injuring three civilians.
“Russian invaders shelled the territory of Kherson region 63 times. They fired artillery, MLRS, mortars, tanks. Four UAVs were shot down over the region... Three civilians sustained injuries of varying degrees of severity," the press service of the Kherson Regional Military Administration wrote on Telegram.
Ukrainian media outlet Ukrinform said Russia attacked the city of Kherson 16 times, with shells damaging houses and buildings part of the railway station.
03:18 PM
Mapped: Recent Russian missile and drone strikes
NEW: Russian forces launched another massive series of missile & drone strikes across #Ukraine.
Recent footage of a failed Russian assault near #Vuhledar, Donetsk Oblast has become the latest point of neuralgia in the Russian information space.
Latest: https://t.co/3K14p7jlZc pic.twitter.com/KHTb327AP4— ISW (@TheStudyofWar) February 11, 2023
02:59 PM
Pictured: Ukrainian soldiers train near the border with Belarus
02:50 PM
Poland casts doubt on sending jets to Ukraine
Ukraine’s hopes of getting fighter jets have been dealt a blow after Poland’s leader distanced himself from the idea of sending any soon.
Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly appealed to his allies for F-16 jets, saying they can help fight Russia in the air and secure Ukraine’s freedom.
The expectation is that after finally committing to send tanks to Ukraine, the West and Ukraine’s eastern allies will follow suit with aircraft.
However, President Andrzej Duda, who is one of Zelensky’s strongest allies, told the BBC that sending F-16 aircraft would be a "very serious decision" that was "not easy to take".
02:24 PM
Lithuanian anti-aircraft guns arrive in Ukraine, local media reports
⚡️First batch of Lithuanian anti-aircraft guns arrives in Ukraine.
Lithuanian Defense Minister Arvydas Anusauskas said on Feb. 11 that the first batch of L-70 anti-aircraft guns and ammunition has already arrived in Ukraine. He didn't specify the number.
📷Arvydas Anusauskas pic.twitter.com/YKqUd1Slwi— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) February 11, 2023
01:35 PM
Russia likely lost dozens of armoured vehicles near Ukraine's Vuhledar, says UK
Britain says Russian forces were making gains north of the city of Bakhmut which they are trying to surround, but are having a more difficult time attacking Vuhledar further south, where they abandoned more than 30 armoured vehicles in a failed assault.
Vuhledar, a Ukrainian-held bastion at the strategic intersection between the eastern and southern front lines, has seen some of the bloodiest fighting of the war as Russia continues a relentless assault on the eastern front.
01:13 PM
Watch: Rishi Sunak in Ukraine earlier this week
Earlier this week, @RishiSunak and @ZelenskyyUa visited Ukrainian personnel based in the UK learning to operate the Challenger 2 tank.@ZelenskyyUa handed out some medals to tank crews in recognition of their bravery in halting Russian advances.
🇺🇦 #SlavaUkraini 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/Ts9iGSqmFy— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) February 11, 2023
01:05 PM
Thousands of volunteers from the West and elsewhere want to fight for Russia, says official
Several thousand volunteers from the West and elsewhere are queueing up to fight for Moscow, a Russian official has claimed.
Vladimir Rogov, a member of the Administration Council of the Zaporizhzhia region, said they are motivated by a desire to fight “Nazism” and would be deployed on the battlefield and in intelligence.
"These are not only [people from] former Soviet republics, but there are citizens of the developed world - the United States, Great Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Middle Eastern and Latin American countries, including Brazil and Argentina," Mr Rogov, the leader of the movement We Are Together With Russia, told TASS on Saturday.
"Their motivation is quite strong, they would like to preserve traditional society and help Russia, they want to battle Nazism," he added.
12:42 PM
Ukrainian soldiers heading toward the frontlines, Visegrad24 reports
Ukrainian soldiers heading toward the frontlines.
🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/S1hGZMnGr5— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) February 11, 2023
12:19 PM
Russia says its military hit energy facilities in Ukraine on Friday
Russia carried out a massive strike on critically important energy facilities of Ukraine's military-industrial complex on Friday, Russian news agencies reported on Saturday.
They also said the transport of foreign weapons and ammunition by rail to the battlegrounds had been blocked as a result of the attack.
11:59 AM
Moscow has lost half of its main battle tanks, says US
Half of Russia's main battle tanks have likely been destroyed or captured, a senior US defence official said.
Celeste Wallander, the assistant secretary of defence for international security affairs, said on Friday that Moscow had "probably lost half of its main battle tank stock in combat and through Ukrainian capture".
The losses come as Ukraine is set to receive an influx of heavy Western tanks from its allies.
Britain has said its Challenger 2 tanks will be deployed in Ukraine in March, while Germany and its allies aim to deliver a battalion of Leopard 2 tanks by April.
11:48 AM
'Russia strikes bridge in Odessa'
⚡️Underwater Russian drone hit the bridge connecting mainland Ukraine with the section connected to Romania in the Odessa region pic.twitter.com/dEqjFkjq83
— War Monitor (@WarMonitors) February 10, 2023
11:32 AM
Russian combat losses so far, according to Ukraine
"This is what you'll get
This is what you'll get
This is what you'll get
When you mess with us"
Radiohead
Total combat losses of the enemy from Feb 24 to Feb 11: pic.twitter.com/CMdtbrx6vA— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) February 11, 2023
11:17 AM
Moscow says calls to ban Russian athletes from Olympic Games 'unacceptable'
The Russian sports minister said that Ukraine's call to ban Russian athletes from the 2024 Paris Olympics, which gathered support from several countries, was "unacceptable".
"The attempt to dictate the conditions of athletes' participation in international competitions is absolutely unacceptable," sports minister Oleg Matytsin was cited as saying on Saturday by Russian state-run news agencies.
"We see a blatant desire to destroy the unity of international sport and the international Olympic movement."
10:59 AM
Life on the frontline: West 'too busy with woke rights to combat Russia'
A Ukrainian soldier has warned the West is too busy fighting for transgender and feminist rights when they should be preparing for the threat of Russia invading countries beyond Ukraine, writes Valerie Browne.
"Today it’s Ukraine. Tomorrow it’s Poland, Germany. We’ve already destroyed more planes than the British Army has in total and Russia keeps fighting," said Artem, 32, who is to join a brigade in Bahkmut.
He added: "If you will not help Ukraine now, you will fight Russia in five years. If you’re thinking about human rights, transgender, feminists you’re not thinking about your country."
10:37 AM
Wagner owner says war in Ukraine will drag on for years
The owner of the Russian Wagner Group private military contractor actively involved in the fighting in Ukraine has predicted that the war could drag on for years.
Yevgeny Prigozhin said in a video interview released late on Friday that it could take 18 months to two years for Russia to fully secure control of Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland of Donbas. He added that the war could go on for three years if Moscow decides to capture broader territories east of the Dnieper River.
The statement from Mr Prigozhin, a millionaire who has close links to President Putin, marked a recognition of the difficulties that the Kremlin has faced in the campaign.
10:21 AM
In case you missed it - here's our latest podcast on the war
10:13 AM
MOD: Rivalry likely cause for Wagner ending prisoner recruitment
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 11 February 2023
Find out more about the UK government's response: https://t.co/v7qL4SkvX3
🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/N8gnUNhhJY— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) February 11, 2023
09:56 AM
Biden to travel to Poland to mark invasion anniversary
President Joe Biden will travel to Poland from February 20 to 22 to show support for Kyiv ahead of the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of the Ukraine, the White House said.
"The president will make it very clear that the United States will continue to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," said spokesperson John Kirby.
Mr Biden’s aides have been planning for weeks how they will mark the anniversary of the invasion, including potentially a major address.
09:38 AM
Russian missiles cause blackouts across Ukraine
Energy Minister German Galushchenko said Russia had hit power facilities in six regions with missiles and drones on Friday, causing blackouts across most of Ukraine.
The latest Russian attacks came as Presiden Volodymyr Zelensky ended a tour of European allies where he was enthusiastically received but secured no public promises of the fighter jets he sought.
"London, Paris, Brussels - everywhere I spoke these past few days about how to strengthen our soldiers. There are very important understandings and we received good signals," he said in his nightly video address.
