Ukraine: Daily Briefing – September 17, 2018, 5 PM Kyiv time

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense reported at 12:30 PM Kyiv time that in the last 24 hours, no Ukrainian soldiers were killed or wounded in action. In the last 24 hours, Russian-terrorist forces opened fire on Ukrainian positions on the Luhansk and Donetsk sectors of the front 30 times in total. Returning fire, Ukrainian forces killed 3 and wounded 3 enemy combatants in the last 24 hours.

The Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group (KHPG) reported, “The report that Volodymyr Balukh is in severe pain after being beaten in prison has not been confirmed or refuted, but only because both his lawyer and Archbishop Kliment, his civic defender, were prevented from visiting him on 15 September.  Balukh has been on total or near-total hunger strike since March and is very weak anyway, making reports of ill-treatment of immense concern.

           On 14 September, Akhtem Chiygoz, the Crimean Tatar Mejlis leader who was himself held prisoner for nearly three years in the same Simferopol SIZO [remand prison], reported that Balukh had been taken out of his cell by the head of the SIZO Sergei Berezhnoy who ordered him to get on his knees.  He refused, after which he was kicked to the concrete floor, and beaten around the head, liver area and legs.  According to his information, Balukh was, as a result, suffering pain to the head and liver.

           Balukh’s lawyer immediately contacted the duty officer at the SIZO who asserted that there had been no incidents at all.  The lawyer said he wished to ascertain this for himself, and was told that he could come the next day (Saturday) and, if the head of the SIZO agreed, see Balukh.

           The lawyer arrived early on Saturday, and was forced to wait for Berezhnoy’s arrival.  When the latter finally arrived, he refused permission to see Balukh until Monday, claiming that this was because it was the weekend.  He further asserted that he had seen Balukh, and that everything was fine with him.  Since the information that Chiygoz received suggests that Berezhnoy was responsible for the reported ill-treatment, his acknowledgement that he saw Balukh can hardly be deemed reassuring.

           After Archbishop Kliment arrived, he and the lawyer phoned the Crimean Penitentiary Service but were very rudely refused permission, with the excuse also being that it was the weekend. […]

          Balukh’s persecution is directly linked with the Ukrainian flag he refused to remove from his home, and his unwavering opposition to Russia’s occupation of his Ukrainian homeland.”

The full report from KHPG is available here: Lawyer prevented from seeing Volodymyr Balukh, Ukrainian political prisoner jailed in Russian-occupied Crimea after reports he was beaten

Op UNIFIER Combat Medic Senior Instructor, Sergeant Norman Vanderweil, offers himself as a learning aid during ‘Care under Fire’ training. Students perform basic medical tasks after a brief run in full military gear to test their procedural recall and ability to safely provide medical care in tense situations. Photo – CAF Operations

Writing for the Maple Leaf, Sergeant Norman Vanderwiel, Chief Combat Medical Instructor, Operation UNIFIER, stated, “Operation UNIFIER’s Combat Medical Training Team has been working with the staff and instructors of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) since the mission started in 2015. The importance of this training was reflected in 2017 when the AFU established the Main Military Medical Directorate in Kyiv, as well as the 205th Tactical Medical Training Centre (TMTC) in Desna. Operation UNIFIER’s medical training staff have key roles in both of these establishments. They also contribute to the hands-on first-aid training the soldiers receive before rotating into the Joint Forces Operation zone. […]

           The training received at the 205th TMTC helps Ukrainian soldiers on the frontlines to save lives. It gives them the knowledge and training to apply life-saving first aid, as well as other crucial techniques that can either prevent those with minor injuries from leaving their post, or increase the survival rate of more serious injuries that need advanced care away from the frontlines.

           The training model at the 205th TMTC is based on the American 68W program; the US Combat Medic specialization has been modified to reflect the AFU’s combat medical needs. Ukrainian instructors who have completed this training are eager to teach others and have offered to stay and help the training center grow. The mentorship provided by the Operation UNIFIER staff has given the AFU instructors confidence while ensuring that the correct information is being taught and applied. […]

           The centre still has a long way to go to produce the number of qualified Combat Medics that is needed in the AFU, as well as changing the perception of this new asset; there are some units that are learning how to effectively employ their Combat Medics. The Operation UNIFIER Combat Medical Training Team is working to show how this training can be a force multiplier, as well as providing guidance on changes that will shorten the training program and formally establish a Combat Medic trade.

          With all these changes still in the works, the staff in the 205th TMTC do what they do best: teach and mentor the AFU staff and students with an eye towards further development in this important field.”

Stars and Stripes reported, “Ukraine announced plans to establish a naval base along the Sea of Azov, a move that came a day after the U.S. said it is mulling more military assistance for Kiev to counter Russia’s actions.

          ‘This (base) will create conditions for rebuffing the aggressive actions of the Russian Federation in this region,’ the Ukrainian government said in a statement on Sunday.

          U.S. military officials have been watching as tensions have increased in the Sea of Azov and the strategic Kerch Strait, which connects Ukrainian port cities to the Black Sea and from there to the Mediterranean.

          Since April, Russia has delayed the transit of hundreds of commercial ships attempting to sail through the Kerch Strait. Some security analysts have described Russia’s actions as a de facto blockade.

          Kurt Volker, the U.S. special envoy, said in Kyiv on Saturday that the Trump administration was open to giving the country more lethal weaponry to address capability gaps. Earlier this year, the U.S. provided Ukraine with 210 anti-tank Javelin missiles to support government forces fighting Russian separatists in Ukraine’s east.

         ‘And wherever those gaps are, we are prepared to sit down and talk with Ukraine about what their needs are. They can buy things through our foreign military sales,’ Volker told reporters.

          Volker also told Radio Free Europe that Ukraine’s short supply of naval and air defense assets was worrying because it means the Russians ‘feel they can assert dominance there (in the Sea of Azov).’

          ‘I think that’s going to be the focus as we develop the next steps in our defense cooperation,’ he said.”