Ukraine News. Monday 30 April. [Ukrainian sources]

MONDAY HEADLINES:
In the West, they explained why Putin did not go on a big war against Ukraine.  Trump's customs policy will harm both Europe and the United States.  U.S. Confirms Delivery Of Javelin Antitank Missiles To Ukraine.  The British military joined the Ukrainians in the Donbas.  Russians slept: the network was struck by a video of a powerful blow to the military base in Syria.  The accounts of Russian citizens in the British offshore $47 billion.  19 Russians sentenced to life imprisonment in Iraq for being involved in ISIL.  

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The President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, did not wage a major war against Ukraine, since in early 2015, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (the Armed Forces of Ukraine) caused the enemy great losses in the Donbas.

This was stated by Polish military expert Lukash Nadolsky in an interview with Ukrinform.

According to him, at that time Ukrainians learned to fight better. In addition, there was already a certain line of the front, that is, there was no situation as under Ilovajsky, when the Russians hit the Ukrainians from the rear.

"All together, this led to the fact that Russia did not achieve the goals it set itself, they received the absolute minimum of what they planned - pushed the Ukrainians from Debaltsevo and got a new airport terminal, but one building (DAP - ed.) Is not some very significant military achievements after many weeks of heavy battles, and in Debaltsevo the Russians wanted to close the Ukrainian group in a "boiler" and destroy it, that is, to repeat the events from Ilovaysk, which they did not succeed, "Nadolsky said.

He added that from the clutter of information that can be found in the Russian media, it is clear that during this "winter campaign" Russians suffered significant losses, much larger than Ukrainians.

"I think that then they concluded that further offensive actions or some other major military operation would cause them even more losses, since it is clear that the Ukrainian army is not getting weaker, it becomes stronger," the expert said.

Nadolsky noted that the absence of significant battles, not counting local ones, from 2015 indicates the calculation of Russians: for further advancement they should have introduced much more military units into Ukraine.

"This meant that there would be a lot more" tragic incidents during the exercises. "So they decided that their interests would be promoted in another way: political pressure or" fatigue "from Ukraine in the European capitals," he summed up.

apostrophe.ua  In Ukrainian/український

Austria's Chancellor, Sebastian Kurtz, said that the duties on aluminum and steel imposed on the US in the past would harm both European exporters and the US economy.

This was reported by Bloomberg.

"I have concerns that in the future there may be new trade restrictions on the part of the United States. Therefore, I hope that we, as the EU, will be able to work out a clear answer quickly, which will not lead to an aggravation of trade relations, but will force the states to reconsider their views, "Kurtz said in an interview with Bloomberg, commenting on the future leadership of Austria in the EU.

The United States postponed the introduction of new duties for the EU on the eve of the day.

Bloomberg analysts point out that recent visits to Washington's leaders of France and Germany relate precisely to the trade negotiations with Trump, namely to ensure access of European metallurgists to the American market.

Donald Trump introduced import duties on steel (25%) and aluminum (10%). The orders signed by the president came into force on March 23. Mexico and Canada are still excluded from the list of countries.

Merkel condemned the introduction by the United States of duties on metals.

The Ukrainian government has said it is working to bring Ukrainian metal products out of US customs duties.

hromadske.ua  In Ukrainian/український

The United States has confirmed to RFE/RL its delivery of American-made, Javelin antitank missile systems to Ukraine in a move that is welcome in Kyiv but will almost certainly enrage Moscow amid a four-year conflict that pits Russia-backed separatists against Ukrainian national troops.

"They have already been delivered," a U.S. State Department official confirmed on April 30 in response to an RFE/RL query on the handover of Javelins.

A shipment of lethal aid would appear to deepen U.S. involvement in the simmering conflict and mark at least a symbolic victory for Ukraine in its effort to maintain Western backing in the ongoing conflict.

After months of heated debate in Washington and, reportedly, much reluctance on the part of U.S. President Donald Trump, the White House was said to have approved the Javelin sale in December.

That announcement sparked a sharp rebuke from Moscow, with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov accusing the United States of "fomenting a war."

Two sources who wished to remain anonymous as they were not authorized to speak publicly about it -- one in Ukraine and the other in the United States -- confirmed the Javelin deliveries to RFE/RL ahead of the State Department announcement.

Neither disclosed when the missile systems arrived in Ukraine, whether all the promised missiles and launchers had been sent or where they were being stored; or whether Ukraine’s military had begun training on Javelins. But one of the sources added that the Javelins were delivered “on time.”

The State Department provided no details beyond the confirmation of the delivery.

Kyiv and Western governments say Moscow has armed and coordinated Ukrainian separatists as well as provided Russian fighters to help wrest control of swaths of territory that border Russia since Moscow seized Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has lobbied hard to Western officials for more weapons, in addition to limited supplies of nonlethal aid from Washington and European allies so far and U.S. approval of commercial weapons sales.

Reached on April 30, Poroshenko's office would not comment on the reported delivery of Javelins.

A $47 million U.S. military-aid package approved last year and confirmed in March specified 210 Javelin antitank missiles and 37 Javelin launchers, two of them spares, for Kyiv.

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in December that U.S. military assistance to Ukraine was intended to bolster that country’s ability to "defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and to deter further aggression."

The Javelins' delivery is likely to spur a response from Moscow, which rejects accusations of involvement despite mounting evidence that includes weapons movements and cross-border artillery barrages, captured Russian troops, and intercepted communications.

Responding to the approved delivery of the missiles to Kyiv in December, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said arming Ukraine would further inflame tensions between Moscow and Washington and push Ukraine "toward reckless new military decisions."

Since 2015, the U.S. has provided Ukraine with $750 million in nonlethal aid, including Humvees, night-vision equipment, and short-range radar systems......................

rferl.org Click here for full access of entire article in English

British military John Harding joins the Georgian Legion, who fights on the Donbass on the Ukrainian side

This is the BBC .

The 55-year-old Harding arrived in Ukraine in February. Before that he went to volunteer against the Islamic state in Syria on the side of the Kurdish rebels.

When he flew to Ukraine, he was questioned by members of the British Home Office responsible for migration control. This department does not advise the British to take part in wars abroad on either side.

"I did not come to kill. Here I am a doctor, so this motif does not really concern me," says Harding, who calls himself a freedom fighter.

According to him, six Georgians are fighting on the Ukrainian side in the Georgian Legion. 70% of the troops in the legion created in 2014 are Georgians, the rest are troops from Germany, the USA, Australia, Greece, Azerbaijan, Moldova, Armenia and Israel.

In October 2015, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a bill that allows foreigners to enter military service in the armed forces of Ukraine. After that the Georgian national legion became a member of the 25 infantry battalions of the Kievan Rus AFU.

espreso.tv  In Ukrainian/український

Israel struck a missile strike on the Syrian Government Army's weapons depots in the provinces of Hama and Aleppo. One of the bases was 40 kilometers from the Russian air base Khmeimim .

Video attacks are published on social networks.

Израильский авиаудар по асадовской военной базе в Южной Хаме. Взрыв был такой силы, что толчки в два балла по шкале Рихтера зафиксировали в Ливане и Турции. Не связывайтесь с Израилем
pic.twitter.com/WnWbqq6mCA

— Экономика РФ (@PutinsEconomy) April 30, 2018

It is also noted that the base "Jabal 47" near the "zone of responsibility" of Russian air defense was used by the troops of Iran.

"In the north-east of Homs, an Iranian military base, Jabal 47, was attacked, located only 40 km from the Uma Air Base Khmeimim, which is covered by the S-400 (they either always slept or rally)" - write in Twitter account "Hemp Dwarf".



 apostrophe.ua  In Ukrainian/український

Citizens of Russia keep in the British offshore reserves about 34 billion pounds sterling ($47 billion).

Such assessments are based on experts Global Witness, dealing with the fight against corruption, reports The Times.

At the same time about $30 billion dollars of Russian oligarchs are stored in the British Virgin Islands.

They also note that Russian oligarchs hold five times more money in British offshore than in Britain itself.

The Times also adds that more than 110 billion pounds sterling related to Russia have passed through the British offshore.

Let's remind that in the United States sanctions against Russian oligarchs approaching Russian President Vladimir Putin in the case of Moscow's interference in the presidential election of 2016 have been imposed .

After new US sanctions in Russia, the dollar for the first time since November 2017 exceeded 60 rubles.

On the night of April 14, the United States, Great Britain and France struck Syria. Trump called the US and Syrian allies a "perfect mission."

Attacks on the United States, Great Britain and France in Syria have been supported by NATO . Ukraine also supported the strikes by the United States, Britain and France over Syria.

The Russian Foreign Ministry reacted to attacks on Khimobjects in Syria. Russia convened an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council due to blows to Syria, but the UN Security Council rejected a draft resolution on Russia 's air strikes in Syria.

In response to a strike on Syria, Russia said it was preparing a cyber attack against Britain.

On April 15, the United States said they were preparing to re- impose sanctions on Russia in connection with a chemical attack in Syria.

hromadske.u  In Ukrainian/український

The court in Iraq on Sunday, April 29, sentenced 19 Russian women to life imprisonment for involvement in the terrorist group "Islamic State".

This is reported by Censor.NET with a link to the DW.

During the trial, the head of the Central Criminal Court in Baghdad, who deals with terrorism, said that women were found guilty of "joining and maintaining the ID."

Similar sentences were received on Sunday by six women from Azerbaijan and four from Tajikistan. Many of the women in the court were accompanied by their children. All convicted persons have the right to appeal the sentences.

We remind you that in January this year, an Iraqi court sentenced a German citizen of Moroccan origin to the death penalty, which assisted militants of the "Islamic State". In February, 15 Turkish women were sentenced to death for the support of the ID.

ua.censor.net.u  In Ukrainian/український

Thousands of demonstrators are protesting in downtown Moscow against the Russian government's efforts to block the popular Telegram messaging app.

Protesters at the rally on April 30 chanted: "[President Vladimir] Putin is a Thief!" and called for freedom on the Internet.

Opposition politician Alekei Navalny was one of thousands of people at the protest organized by the Libertarian Party of Russia, which has called the attempts to block Telegram "a national shame."

Protesters held posters calling on the government to stop its attempts to block Telegram, which fell afoul of the authorities over its refusal to give the Federal Security Service (FSB) access to users' private messages.

Libertarian party chief Sergei Boiko led protesters in calls to "stop censorship on the Internet!"

While it has met with mixed success, the bid to block Telegram has deepened concerns that the government is seeking to silence dissent as Putin -- who has been president or prime minister since 1999 -- heads into a new six-year term.

Police briefly stopped Navalny and instructed him to avoid statements or actions that "do not correspond to the agenda of the gathering," which was held with the permission of the authorities.

Navalny told RFE/RL that he is very happy that the gathering was permitted by the Moscow authorities.

He told journalists he would call on the demonstrators to take part in a protest he is planning on May 5, two days before Putin's inauguration.

Navalny has not received permission to hold the rally, which the ardent Putin critic has dubbed "He Is Not A Tsar!"

rferl.org Click here for full access of entire article in English