Page 13 - UKRRptSept23

up to 8 kilometers.” But the group’s origins are no secret. Describing their most recent rebrand in a YouTube video released in January, the unit explained: “Today we officially announce that the SSO AZOV is expanding to a brigade. From now on, we are the 3rd separate assault brigade of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.” Like its predecessor, the unit is led by Andriy Biletsky, who founded the Azov Battalion and has long served as a figurehead for the closely-aligned National Corps political movement.
Ukraine's defense minister promises to resign if dishonest scheme in procurement of military clothing is proven. Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said on Aug. 25 that he is ready to resign if the accusations of summer jackets procurement instead of winter ones are confirmed.
Zelensky proposes equating corruption with treason during wartime. In a televised interview on Aug. 27, President Volodymyr Zelensky said he has submitted a proposal to equate corruption with treason while martial law is in effect in Ukraine.
On August 11 President Volodymyr Zelensky announced he was sacking the heads of the country’s regional military recruitment centres, where officials were alleged to be selling travel permits for up to $10,000. “Bribery during war is treason,” Mr Zelensky railed.
Students are exempt from mobilisation and many have enrolled in a second degree programme. But they will have to pay for his studies: only a first university degree is free in Ukraine. The number of draft-eligible men who have registered as students is “massive”, says Dmytro Tuzhansky, the director of the Institute for Central European Strategy
● War
Ukraine risks losing support from some ‘major powers’ if battlefield moves to Russian territory. Ukraine risks losing military support from some "major powers" if the battlefield in Russia's war against Ukraine moves to Russian territory, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview on Aug. 27.
EU’s drive to supply Ukraine with artillery shells moving slower than planned. The European Union's ammunition supply program for Ukraine is proceeding slowly, with the country receiving less than 250,000 out of the promisedmn artillery rounds, Estonian Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur said on August 30, as reported by German outlet Tagesschau.
Western observers feel that Ukrainian troops are overly dispersed and should instead concentrate on the main direction of the counter-offensive in the southern part of the country, The New York Times reported on Aug. 22, citing U.S. and other Western officials.
German foreign minister says Ukrainian strikes on Moscow are legitimate. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock defended Ukraine’s right to strike targets on Russian soil, saying that Kyiv acts within international law, Anadolu news agency reported on Aug. 22.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces will not be able to take Melitopol and reach the Sea of Azov by cutting the land bridge to the Crimea - at least during this
13 UKRAINE Country Report September 2023 www.intellinews.com