WAR IN UKRAINE: March 15, 2023
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Day 385
A Russian Su-27 fighter jet struck a U.S. Air Force MQ-9 Reaper Drone over the Black Sea early Tuesday, the US military said. Two Su-27 aircraft were said to be flying in international waters in an "unsafe and unprofessional manner." The incident resulted in the downing and "complete loss" of the MQ-9, US European Command (USEUCOM) said in a statement. Several times before the collision, the Russian jets dumped fuel on and flew in front of the MQ-9 drone, US said. “In fact, this unsafe and unprofessional act by the Russians nearly caused both aircraft to crash” USEUCOM said.
Commenting on the U.S.-Russian close encounter, a CNN analyst wrote: “The incident marks the first time Russian and US military aircraft have come into direct contact since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine just over a year ago and is likely to increase tensions between the two nations.”
Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov arrived at the State Department in Washington on Tuesday afternoon after being summoned following the incident that resulted in the downing of a US Reaper drone over the Black Sea. Antonov, who is expected to meet with Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Karen Donfried, was summoned to “convey our strong objections,” State Dept spokesman Ned Price said on Tuesday.
The Netherlands will give Ukraine two minesweepers, drone radars, and an M3 amphibious bridge-bulding system, Dutch Defence Minister Kajsa Ollongren said at a press conference in Odesa today. Speaking alongside her Ukrainian counterpart, Oleksii Reznikov, she told me The Netherlands “will leave no stone unturned,” in regards to the search for further evidence & suspects related to Russia’s downing of MH17. In Feb. the Dutch-led investigation said it was suspending its probe into the 2014 downing, in which all 298 aboard died. “The suspension was because there was no way that at this moment we could take the leads any further.”
Declaring this week that defending Ukraine against Russia’s invasion was not a vital interest for the United States, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida cemented a Republican shift away from hawkish foreign policy that has played out over the past decade and accelerated with Donald J. Trump’s political rise. Mr. Trump and Mr. DeSantis — whose combined support makes up more than 75 percent of Republican primary voters in the nascent 2024 presidential contest — are now largely aligned on Ukraine, signaling a sharp break from the interventionist approach that drove former President George W. Bush’s invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan - NYT
The Biden administration said on Monday that thousands of Ukrainians who fled to the United States in the first months after Russia invaded their country would be eligible to extend their stay, as the war in Ukraine continues into a second year. About 25,000 Ukrainians and their family members who came into the country through Mexico at a U.S. port of entry between Feb. 24 and April 25 last year were allowed to stay for a year. The Department of Homeland Security said it would consider one-year extensions for that group - NYT
Required reading…
Ukraine must do more to counter Russian narratives in the Global South
Ukraine cannot hope to compete with the Kremlin’s billion dollar media budgets and must instead build relationships with existing local mainstream media. Brazil’s TV Globo is the second-largest commercial TV network in the world and can bring Ukrainian perspectives to huge domestic Brazilian audiences. Likewise, engagement with Spanish-language channels can help reach millions across Latin America. A comprehensive media strategy is needed in order to close the information gap and counter the current dominance of Russia’s narratives in the non-Western information space.
Read more her in this Atlantic Council Ukraine Alert article here