What relevance might a pair of naval disasters 40 years and two oceans apart mean for the outcome of a current war? Berkshire Eagle foreign affairs columnist answers that question in detail in the first item linked below. Next, beginnings of Associated Press and Reuters updates on the war, both linked to the news services’ other Ukraine-related stories. Then, (also in today’s Eagle) the latest of AP’s latest weekly “look at what DIDN’T happen last week” feature, three quarters of which is related, directly or indirectly, to the Ukraine war. — MCM
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When political fortunes sink with warships, by James Brooke | The Berkshire Eagle My journalism career has been bracketed by two large naval disasters: The May 2, 1982, sinking of the Argentine Navy cruiser the Belgrano and, 40 years later, the April 14 sinking of the Moskva, the flagship of the Russian Navy’s Black Sea fleet. Britain’s torpedoing of the Belgrano, one month into the Falklands War, had a major impact on the war. With the loss of 323 sailors, the sinking was a punch in the gut for Argentine public opinion. For the military, this deadly demonstration of Britain’s submarine power took the Argentine Navy out of war. After the Belgrano sank, Argentine ships never again ventured out of port. Ukraine’s successful missile attack on the Moskva, a missile cruiser twice the length of an American football field, may well have a similar impact. It could take Russia’s Navy off the chessboard for the rest of the Ukraine-Russia war. After Russia’s Army failed to take Kyiv last month, now its Navy has been humiliated in the eyes of . . . Berkshire Eagle subscribers can click HERE to read the rest of the analysis.
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Ukraine reports Russians trying to storm Mariupol plant, by David Keyton and Yesica Fisch | The Associated Press KYIV — Russian forces attacked a steel plant in the shattered Ukrainian port city of Mariupol today, Ukrainian officials said, apparently seeking to eliminate the last pocket of Ukrainian resistance in the strategic city the Kremlin claims its military has otherwise seized. . . . [A]n estimated 1,000 civilians sheltered in the Azovstal plant alongside the remaining Ukrainian fighters, while Russian forces pressed their offensive elsewhere in the eastern Donbas region amid fierce Ukrainian counterattacks. . . . [Presidential advisor Oleksiy Arestovich said] Russian forces had resumed air strikes on the massive seaside plant and were trying to storm it, which would represent a reversal from an order Russian President Vladimir Putin gave two days earlier. READ MORE . . .
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Russia renews assault on Mariupol, intensifies Luhansk bombardment, Ukraine says, by Pavel Polityuk | Reuters * Luhansk governor says barrage in east intensifying * Ukraine official says Russia attacking last Mariupol defenders * UK says Russian forces have made no major gains in 24 hours | KYIV/MARIUPOL, Ukraine — Russia resumed its assault on the last Ukrainian defenders holed up in a giant steel works in Mariupol, a Ukrainian official said today, days after Moscow declared victory in the southern port city and said its forces did not need to take the factory. Russian forces were hitting the Azovstal complex with air strikes and trying to storm it, presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych said, adding “the enemy is trying to strangle the final resistance of Mariupol’s defenders”. The biggest battle of the conflict has raged for weeks as Russia seeks . . . READ MORE . . .
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NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn’t happen this week. By The Associated Press. CLAIM: Photo of woman in a military uniform shows “Ukrainian beauty” who “blew up 52 invading Russian tanks.” THE FACTS: The woman in the photo is a military doctor, not a combat soldier, according to news reports, posts on her Facebook account and messages from her mother. A misrepresented photo of a trauma doctor in Ukraine is the latest example of false propaganda and disinformation that have overwhelmed social media in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine over the past seven weeks. The widely-shared photo showed a young woman in a camouflage jacket decorated with medals and pins, including one with a Ukrainian flag. Twitter posts touted her as a combat hero, responsible for destroying Russian military vehicles. “This Ukrainian beauty blew up 52 invading Russian tanks,” read one tweet . . . READ MORE . . .
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TO BE CONTINUED