Mar 22: Kremlin File Week in Review
Hey guys, Kremlin File’s '“Week in Review” is out on YouTube.
Our commentary and analysis covers the most impactful Russian-related news stories affecting Ukraine, Europe, and the United States. Delve into the headlines often overlooked, which shed light on Russia's aggressions, intelligence activities, assassinations, espionage, and beyond.
Don't miss out on the latest edition of Kremlin File's Week in Review, airing every Saturday! Here is the link to listen to KF Week in Review. You can also listen to it on your preferred podcast platform.
Don’t forget to subscribe to our Kremlin File YouTube channel.
Show Notes…
On March 22, over 60 Shahed drones and about 90 missiles were fired at Ukraine. In Zaporizhzhia missile hit a trolleybus with people moving across the Dnipro HPP dam. One of the power lines at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is down. Critical energy infrastructure facilities in Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi, Lviv, Sumy, and Ivano-Frankivsk regions have been hit. At least 7 people have been killed and 15 others injured. Via CNN and Kyiv Independent.
Secret classes to counter Russian brainwashing in occupied Ukraine: A brave Ukrainian teacher, Nataliia, a teacher, is holding classes for her Ukrainian children. She couldn't tolerate living under Russian occupation in her southern hometown of Melitopol and felt she would be more useful in territory still controlled by Ukraine. Now she spends her time giving online classes to hundreds of her former students.
Portraits of Vladimir Putin now hang on the walls of Nataliia's old classrooms in Melitopol. The pupils must both learn, and sing, the Russian national anthem. They are even obliged to write "inspirational letters" to Russian soldiers.
This is how Ukrainian children are educated in territories occupied by Russia. They are taught that Ukraine isn't a real country - and Nataliia says, if a child challenges the curriculum, their parents are threatened with beatings or torture.
It's why Nataliia, with her former colleagues, created an online teaching platform to try to "save the minds of Ukrainian children.” Via BBC
Russia has lost 600,000 barrels of daily oil-refining capacity due to drone attacks. Ukraine's recent drone attacks have knocked out about 600,000 barrels of Russia's daily oil-refining capacity, as estimated by Torbjorn Tornqvist, the director of the international energy commodities trading company Gunvor Group, Bloomberg reported on March 18. Via Bloomberg
The EU Commission has been meeting for the last 2 days where they talked about Ukrainian and Moldovan accession, frozen Russian assets, and tariffs to impose on Russian and Belarusian grain imports. Bosnia and Herzegovina accession process begins its first step. Via Reuters
Borrell announced that he will propose that the EU uses 90% of the revenues from Russian assets frozen to buy arms for Ukraine via the European Peace Facility fund. Borrell told reporters in Brussels he would propose that the remaining 10% be transferred to the EU budget to be used to boost the capacity of the Ukrainian defence industry.
Ramstein on Tuesday: many states are signing up to the Czech initiative and there are efforts to coordinate with Ukraine on its needs. Via Hromadske
Charles Michel: ‘High time to put EU's economy on war footing‘. "Now that we are facing the biggest security threat since the Second World War, it is high time we take radical and concrete steps to be defense-ready and put the EU’s economy on a “war footing”," European Council President Charles Michel said. Via Kyiv Independent
Russian, Belarusian athletes barred from Paris Olympics opening ceremony. Athletes from Russia and Belarus will not be allowed to take part in the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics this summer, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on March 19. Via Kyiv Independent
Marjorie Taylor Greene submits a motion to remove Speaker Johnson. If successful, Ukraine aid may be delayed indefinitely. Via CNN
An Insider investigation found that In the first 17 months of a full-scale war, Sibur, through its European subsidiary SIBUR International GmbH, exported €3 billion worth of products in Vienna. Via The Insider
According to reports, Moscow plans to soon announce a new wave of military mobilization that would seek to enlist up to 300,000 people to bolster its troops involved in the ongoing genocidal invasion of Ukraine as the Kremlin said that Russia is in a “state of war” in Ukraine. This, as Ukraine reports that Russia is creating a force of 100,000 soldiers, possibly to conduct a new offensive in early summer. Via RFERL and Kyiv Independent
Washington Post reported that Western firms bought hundreds of millions of dollars of titanium metal from a Russian company with deep ties to the country’s defense industry after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, according to a review of Russian export data. Via Washington Post
Newly emerged evidence shows how Hungary and Russia worked together during the 2020 Slovak elections to help the Slovak government stay in power, Orban acted as a middleman. Via Vsquare
The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions Wednesday against two people and their Russia-based companies it accused of supporting a Kremlin-directed disinformation campaign involving the impersonation of legitimate news websites. Via VOA News and Treasury
There are reports that Trump who pardoned Manafort, a decades long Russian agent, is considering him back to his campaign, along with Corey Lewandowski, who was fired, and informally Roger Stone. 2016 all over again. Via CNN and Axios.