Below is a summary of the livestream between Ukraine’s Advisor to Presidential Office Head Aleksey Arestovych and a Russian journalist in exile Mark Feygin for 7 June 2022. The summary is provided by Atis: https://twitter.com/savaadaak

Frontline situation

• Night of 🇺🇦 artillery:

Last night 🇺🇦 military make a number of powerful and precise artillery hits, within the corridor from Izyum to Popasna, good hits also near Zaporozhye, Kherson, reducing 🇷🇺 offensive potential. 🇷🇺 didn’t start the advance, despite having concentrated significant forces in the area. Near Kharkiv – possibly even Russian retreat. Small tactical movements on both sides, artillery shelling. Pause from 🇷🇺 probably means, that they haven’t finished troop transfers, 🇷🇺 still moving forces near Popasna, preparing to cut off Bakhmut-Lysychansk highway. Unclear, why 🇷🇺 is so careful, perhaps the new command realises that they don’t have any more reserves.

• Sievierodonetsk:

Situation changing many times per day therefore very difficult to say exactly what happened. Different reports at different times of the day, thus the information appears conflicting. 🇷🇺 aviation being very careful and selective, afraid of 🇺🇦 air-defense and friendly fire. Strong 🇷🇺 artillery presence, 🇺🇦 artillery responding. 🇷🇺 did attempt minor attacks on Komyshuvakha and few other locations

 

• Zaporizhye: 🇷🇺 attempted an advance, got pushed back.

 

• Kherson: 🇺🇦 carried out artillery strikes with good hits, 🇷🇺 counter-battery barrage, in general no movements.

 

• Grain crisis:

Attempts By Russia to damage 🇺🇦 grain producers, and gain advantage to 🇷🇺 producers, simultaneously trying to achieve removal of sanctions. 🇷🇺 stealing grain from Kherson, moving to Crimea. 🇷🇺 bombing hit large grain silo in Mykolaiv couple of days ago. Grain crisis won’t be solved without involvement of 🇺🇦. Turkey potentially looking at purchasing Ukrainian grain from Russian with a discount.

• Azovstal:

2500 defenders of Azovstal were taken as prisoners of war. Task to free each one of them was given to Defense Intelligence chief Kirill Budanov. 🇺🇦 has 🇷🇺 prisoners as well, there are international guarantees given by 🇷🇺. Exchange of bodies of Azovstal defenders took place recently (from 🇷🇺 sources). Two 🇬🇧 citizens on trial in DNR, execution threats is an attempt to raise their exchange value – for example to remove sanctions imposed by Britain.

🇩🇪 (Scholz and few individual Germans) considering to keep doing business with 🇷🇺,  don’t stop business schemes for personal gains. As for peace in 🇪🇺, they trust Putin’s promises of not attacking. 🇪🇺 were warned by 🇺🇸 of 🇷🇺 attack, but they did not believe. 🇪🇺 doesn’t need to be in touch with reality to live in idealistic world.

• Weapons supplies:

🇵🇱 and 🇺🇦 signed € 600m deal for weapons manufacturing, including 54 AHS KRAB 155mm howitzers and ammo. ETA in several months, no earlier. 🇳🇴 20 M109 howitzers already being used for 2 weeks. Important to keep in mind most information is delayed by approximately 2 weeks. Last night artillery attacks required significant artillery resources, so they are available to Ukraine. In 2-3 weeks, there could be news about weapons delivered by large transport ships.

Ramstein meeting in June 15th, can expect more countries to help, and announcements of more weapon supplies. At beginning of July, there could be well visible signs of lend-lease in action. Most delivery data (items, amounts) is secret of both governments – the sender and the receiver.

People tend to get annoyed, if they don’t see immediate results, however war is marathon, not a sprint. 🇺🇦 is doing systematic and slow progress. Everyone who is rushing to sprint, will loose breath. 🇺🇦 needs slow and continuous grinding.  Only when 🇷🇺 potential is destroyed, 🇺🇦 can continue – either with positional war, or counter-offensive – this directly depends on weapons supplies. 🇺🇦 will win, regardless of when. 

• Mariupol:

Rumours of a potential cholera outbreak as bodies remain decomposing on the streets. Previous escape route from Mariupol was through Vasylivka, that is currently holding significant numbers of 🇷🇺 army troops who are under constant shelling by Ukrainian artillery. Most roads in Mariupol and Zaporizhye are zones of actives hostilities. Few people manage to escape, but routes are very dangerous. Possible escape route through Crimea, to mainland 🇷🇺,  then 🇧🇾, Baltics, and back to 🇺🇦 through 🇵🇱. People are not recommended to travel, only if they themselves feel confident they can pull it off.

🇺🇦 is about to allow males (sailors and other specific professions) to leave country. Laws not worked out yet, but made significant progress. 🇺🇦 still has more military personnel than weapons. Not allowing males to work abroad damages the economy, which is already in not that good of a shape.