Russia establishes new ground force – British intelligence

The British Defence Ministry says Russia has “almost certainly” established a major new ground force to support its war.

The Defence Ministry stated in its daily intelligence bulletin on Wednesday that the new Russian force, called the 3rd Army Corps, is based in the city of Mulino, east of Russia’s capital, Moscow.

The ministry also said Russian commanders are facing “competing for operational priorities” of reinforcing offensive in the Donbas region as well as strengthening defences against Ukrainian counterattacks in the south.

After failing to capture the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early in the war, Russian forces have focused on the east and south, where pro-Moscow separatists have controlled the territory since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

Ukraine and its allies say Russia is responsible for an unprovoked imperial-style war of aggression that has ignited the biggest conflict in Europe since World War Two.

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They accuse Russian forces of committing atrocities in Bucha, a satellite town in the capital Kyiv, after beginning its invasion on February 24.

Russia denied the accusation and denies targeting civilians in what it calls its “special military operation” against its southern neighbour.

Supported with weapons by its Western allies, Ukraine is banking on sophisticated rocket and artillery systems to degrade Russian supply lines and logistics.

The U.S. State Department has approved $89 million worth of assistance to help Ukraine equip and train 100 teams to clear landmines and unexploded ordnance for a year.

Ukraine’s president has called on the West to impose a blanket travel ban on Russians, an idea that has found support among some EU member states but angered Russia, which dismissed it as irrational.

Zainab Sa’id