NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880/AP) -- Two days after Russia announced it would significantly scale back operations near Kyiv, heavy fighting raged on the outskirts of the capital and other zones Thursday amid indications the Kremlin is using talk of de-escalation as cover while regrouping and resupplying its forces and redeploying them for a stepped-up offensive in eastern Ukraine. As the war enters its sixth week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video address that his country is seeing “a buildup of Russian forces for new strikes on the Donbas, and we are preparing for that.” Meanwhile, a new round of peace talks was scheduled for Friday. And Russian troops left the Chernobyl nuclear site, reportedly after panicking over radiation sickness.
THURSDAY, MARCH 31, 2022
12 p.m. - Russians leaving Chernobyl site: Ukrainian nuclear operator
Russian troops were leaving the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and heading towards Ukraine’s border with Belarus, the Ukrainian nuclear operator company said Thursday.
The operator, Energoatom, said that the Russian military was also preparing to leave Slavutych, a nearby city where power plant workers live.
Energoatom also said reports were confirmed that the Russians dug trenches in the Red Forest, the nearly four-square-mile area surrounding the Chernobyl plant within the Exclusion Zone, and received “significant doses of radiation.”
The Russian troops “panicked at the first sign of illness,” which “showed up very quickly,” and began to prepare to leave, the operator said. The claim couldn’t be independently verified.
Energoatom said the Russians have signed a document confirming the handover of the Chernobyl plant and stating that the plant’s administration doesn’t have any complaints about the Russian troops who were “guarding” the facility.
11 a.m. - Putin has ‘already lost’ in Ukraine: head of Britain’s military
The head of Britain’s military says Russian President Vladimir Putin has “already lost” in Ukraine and is weaker than he was before the invasion.
Adm. Tony Radakin at a think-tank seminar Thursday in London said Moscow’s aim to “take the whole of Ukraine” fell apart. He added that the coming weeks “will continue to be very difficult” for Ukraine.
“But in many ways, Putin has already lost,” he said. “Far from being the far-sighted manipulator of events that he would have us believe, Putin has damaged himself through a series of catastrophic misjudgements.”
Radakin also said there was “disquiet” at all levels of Russia’s military about the campaign, from troops who were not told they were invading Ukraine up to senior commanders.
Western officials say Putin’s small inner circle is not giving him the true picture of the war, and his isolation may have contributed to miscalculating the strength of resistance Russian troops would meet.
10 a.m. - Russia has ‘repeatedly lied about its intentions’ in Ukraine: UN secretary-general
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Russia does not appear to be scaling back its military operations in Ukraine but is instead redeploying forces to the eastern Donbas region.
Russia promised during talks in Istanbul on Tuesday that it would de-escalate operations near Kyiv and Chernihiv to “increase mutual trust and create conditions for further negotiations.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the West were skeptical.
Stoltenberg told reporters Thursday that “Russia has repeatedly lied about its intentions,” and must be judged on its actions alone, not the word of its leaders.
“According to our intelligence, Russian units are not withdrawing but repositioning. Russia is trying to regroup, resupply and reinforce its offensive in the Donbas region,” he said.
At the same time, he said pressure is being kept up on Kyiv and other cities and “we can expect additional offensive actions bringing even more suffering.”
The U.S. said Russia has begun to reposition less than 20% of its troops that had been arrayed around Kyiv. The Pentagon said that most moved north, although some crossed into Belarus where they could be resupplied and sent back into Ukraine.
9 a.m. - Kremlin expresses ‘concern’ over US reports Putin misled by advisers
The Kremlin has expressed “regret” and “concern” over U.S. officials’ reports that the Russian president is being misinformed by advisers about his military’s performance in Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Thursday that “neither the State Department nor the Pentagon possess the real information about what is happening in the Kremlin.”
“They simply don’t understand what’s going on in the Kremlin, they don’t understand President Putin, they don’t understand the mechanism of decision-making, they don’t understand the way we work,” Peskov said.
“It is not just regrettable, it elicits concern, because this complete lack of understanding leads to erroneous decisions, tragic decisions that could have very bad consequences,” he added.
U.S. intelligence officials said Putin is being misinformed by advisers about his military’s poor performance in Ukraine, according to the White House. The advisers are scared to tell him the truth, the intel says.
8 a.m. - 134,500 new conscripts to be added to Russian army by Putin decree
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree on the spring draft, with 134,500 new conscripts to be added to the Russian army amid the country’s war on Ukraine.
Both Putin and Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu have said that conscripts will not be taking part in the operation in Ukraine. Earlier this month, however, the Russian military admitted that a number of conscripts ended up in Ukraine and were even captured there.
The decree signed on Thursday outlines the draft which will kick off on April 1 and last through July 15.
7 a.m. - Zelenskyy addresses Dutch, Australian parliaments
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the Dutch and Australian parliaments via video.
Zelenskyy called on the Netherlands to be prepared to stop importing Russian energy, to halt trade with Russia and to provide more weapons.
He also addressed Prime Minister Mark Rutte, saying “Our EU membership depends on you.”
Rutte had told Zelenskyy at an EU summit earlier this month that Ukraine’s EU accession can’t be sped up. “There isn’t something like a fast track, a fast procedure,” Rutte said at the March 11 summit in Versailles.
Zelenskyy also asked for armored vehicles and tougher sanctions from Australian lawmakers, who gave him a standing ovation at the start and end of his 16-minute address.
Zelenskyy called for Russian vessels to be banned from international ports. And he specifically asked for Australian-manufactured Bushmaster four-wheel drive armored vehicles.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison had earlier told Zelenskyy that Australia would provide additional military assistance including tactical decoys, unmanned aerial and unmanned ground systems, rations and medical supplies.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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