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Renovation continues in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. This Monday, Kiev announced the resignation of its deputy ministers, including Hanna Maliar, one of the most prominent public faces of the war effort, responsible for daily publications on the evolution of the situation on the ground. Ukrainian media reports that the decision came from new Defense Minister Rustem Umerov (who replaced Oleksii Reznikov last week). The names of the substitutes who will join Umerov’s team are not yet known.

On the Russian side, there is a threat that Moscow could abandon the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice if the Hague-based UN institution rules in favor of Ukraine in a complaint under the Genocide Convention. This is a complaint from kyiv against Moscow filed on February 26, 2022, two days after the start of the invasion. This development comes a day after the Center for National Resistance, which belongs to the Ukrainian government, reported that the Kremlin plans to bring North Korean workers to the occupied regions of eastern Ukraine.

The day was also marked by the final preparations before the United Nations General Assembly. Several world leaders have already begun arriving in New York, including Volodymyr Zelensky, who will participate in the meeting and give a speech. This Monday it was learned that Zelensky will meet with Lula da Silva, at a time of tension in relations between Ukraine and Brazil. In an interview with CNN International, UN Secretary General António Guterres considered that the divisions in the Security Council “are unprecedented since World War II.”

Six Ukrainian deputy defense ministers fired

Here is a summary of other events marking this 572nd day of war in Ukraine:

What happened during the night?

• Iran’s president rejected Western accusations and denied that his country is supplying drones to Russia, and challenged those who accuse Tehran to present evidence of sending weapons;
• Germany announced a new military aid package, valued at around €400 million, to help Ukraine’s war effort;
• Kim Jong Un is already back in North Korea after his six-day visit to Russia;
• The Pope met with the new Russian ambassador to the Vatican, where they discussed Francis’ efforts for peace in Ukraine.

What happened in the afternoon?

• Ukrainian General Oleksandr Syrsky stated this Monday that Ukrainian troops broke the Russian defense line near Bakhmut, in eastern Ukraine;
• Ukrainian forces continue shelling Donetsk. This Monday they will have arrived at the headquarters of the pro-Russian government that took over the region;
• Ukraine filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization against three countries of the European Union (Poland, Slovakia and Hungary) for prolonging the embargo on the import of Ukrainian grains despite the lifting of restrictions by Brussels;
• A Ukrainian shipping company has asked the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta for permission to transfer grain between ships, which would allow it to almost double the ships’ export capacity;
• The president of Russia stated that the country’s economy has so far managed to withstand the “unprecedented pressure” of Western sanctions;
• Russia sent a MiG-31 fighter to intercept a US Navy P-8A Poseidon patrol plane approaching Russian airspace over the Barents Sea;
• Russia fired cruise missiles over the Bering Strait, which separates eastern Russia from Alaska, in what it said was an exercise to protect the northern Arctic sea route;
• Pierre Levy, the French ambassador in Moscow, was called to the Russian Foreign Ministry for the alleged “Russophobic” behavior of French officials during the last G20 summit, in New Delhi, India.

What happened in the morning?

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed, on Sunday night, the reconquest of the town of Klishchiivka, near Bakhmut;
• The Russian Defense Ministry reportedly prevented drone attacks in several parts of Crimea and two border regions;
• The head of Chinese diplomacy, Wang Yi, began a four-day trip to Russia, in which both countries are expected to commit to deepening mutual political trust;
• The Bulgarian Defense Ministry sent a special unit to inspect and disable a drone containing explosives that landed Sunday night in the Black Sea town of Tyulenovo. Bulgaria later confirmed the destruction of the device.