Infrastructure hit by airstrikes, Ukraine worries about gas problem again

Russia declares control of 2 towns in eastern Ukraine

In Russia’s campaign on the eastern front in Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on February 21 that its forces had taken control of the town of Nadezhdynka, an area about 10 km east of the border between Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk provinces. Moscow also said it had taken control of the Novosilka settlement in Donetsk. This is another step forward for Russia in its goal of controlling strategic areas in the Donbass region.

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More broadly, Russia announced that since February 15-21, Moscow forces have controlled seven settlements in the provinces of Donetsk, Kharkiv and Kursk. TASS quoted Russian military expert Andrey Marochko as saying that Moscow's army is expanding the area of ​​control near the settlement of Yampolivka and has begun an operation to control the town of Myrne in Donetsk.

Russian media reported on February 21 that Ukraine had intensified its shelling of Kherson province, accusing Kyiv of launching 36 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and 66 shells at Belgorod province (Russia). Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said the attack injured a 15-year-old boy and damaged several buildings.

Ukrainian air defense intercepted Russian UAV targeting Kyiv on February 21

Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials accused the Russian military of using guided bombs to drop on the town of Kostiantynivka in Donetsk on February 21, killing one person and injuring two. Kyiv said Russia also carried out bombing raids in Kharkiv province, injuring four people, according to the Ukrainska Pravda newspaper. The Ukrainian military also said it had tried to prevent Russian airstrikes on the capital Kyiv on February 21, accusing Moscow of launching 160 UAVs to attack several provinces in Ukraine.

The US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that the Ukrainian military has made some gains in fighting near the city of Pokrovsk. However, Russia has recently been exerting pressure around Pokrovsk and the town of Velyka Novosilka. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine announced that on February 20-21, the Russian military lost more than 1,200 soldiers, 12 tanks and four multiple rocket launchers. Russia and Ukraine have not responded to their opponents' claims. It is impossible to verify the figures given by the two sides in the conflict.

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Ukraine loses 40% of gas production

Reuters reported on February 21 that Ukraine plans to import up to 800 million ^cubic meters of gas from Europe in February and March to make up for a 40% drop in production after factories were damaged by Russian airstrikes.

Ukraine's state gas company Naftogaz and private energy group DTEK accused Russia of attacking their facilities at least twice in February. Before the airstrikes, the facilities produced about 52 million ^cubic meters of gas, while the country's peak winter consumption is about 110-140 million ^cubic meters. The shortfall is taken from gas reserves in Ukraine.

“We may not need imports, but attacks on production facilities are forcing us to import gas to compensate for the reduction in production,” Reuters quoted an unnamed source in Ukraine as saying.

Ukrainian firefighting robots help extinguish fires in Poltava province on February 21.

Ukraine’s gas production facilities are located in frontline provinces such as Kharkiv and Poltava, which have been hit by recent Russian airstrikes. Energy experts warn that Ukraine’s gas reserves are at an alarming level, with only about 10% of its total capacity of 30 billion cubic ^meters . The gas import plan is supposed to allow Ukrainian households to live normally without restrictions on use.

Russia sets conditions for using $300 billion in frozen assets?

Russia is said to be willing to let $300 billion in frozen assets in Europe be used to rebuild Ukraine, but only on the condition that the money is spent rebuilding territories controlled by Moscow's military.

Russia can keep the initiative in Ukraine for another year

Reuters, citing three unnamed sources, said one idea that has been discussed in recent talks between Russia and the United States is to use frozen Russian assets to rebuild Ukraine as part of a peace deal. Russia has repeatedly criticized the decision to freeze Moscow’s assets in Western countries. Much of eastern Ukraine has been devastated by bombing. The World Bank estimated in 2024 that reconstruction and recovery in Ukraine could cost $486 billion.

The Kremlin did not comment on the information. Negotiations on a peace settlement in Ukraine are still in the early stages and Kyiv was not present at the meeting between the Russian and US delegations in Saudi Arabia on February 18.

On February 20, Keith Kellogg (US President Donald Trump's special envoy for Russia and Ukraine) met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv to discuss a peaceful solution. Mr. Kellogg said that he had a "positive" exchange with the Ukrainian leader. Writing on social network X on February 21, the US special envoy praised Mr. Zelensky as "a courageous and resilient leader of a country at war."

Ukraine produces 10 times more UAVs

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on February 21 that the number of UAVs produced by Ukraine in January was 10 times higher than the same period in 2024. In the report, Mr. Shmyhal added that the Ukrainian government has decided to allocate an additional $190 million to buy UAVs, according to Ukrainska Pravda .

In 2023 and 2024, the number of artillery vehicles produced in Ukraine will triple, the production of armored personnel carriers will increase fivefold, anti-tank weapons will double and ammunition will increase 2.5 times, according to Mr. Shmyhal. The Ukrainian government also aims to produce weapons that meet 50% of its needs.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/chien-su-ukraine-ngay-1094-ha-tang-bi-khong-kich-ukraine-lai-lo-bai-toan-khi-dot-185250221231358654.htm