Sitrep for November 14–15 (as of 13:00)

In addition to the story about Yevgeny Nuzhin (the Russian convict reportedly executed by Wagner mercenaries), the important thing here is to understand the following: the Wagner Group servicemen are not "soldiers of fortune" from an elite professional unit (as pro-Russian media try to portray them). They are the ones who came with impunity to kill and wreak havoc.

Despite the fact that members of the Human Rights Council (HRC) under the President of Russia have appealed the Russian Investigative Committee to look into the video of the alleged murder of the Wagner group member, and Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova stated that the investigating authorities have already begun checking the information, a fair punishment for those responsible is not to be expected. Most likely, the investigation will have the same result as one into the murder of Mohammed Taha Ismail al-Abdullah by Wagner mercenaries in Syria in 2017 — that is, none.

The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in liberated Kherson, took part in the ceremony of raising the Ukrainian flag and awarded the AFU servicemen. Among those awarded, one can see a soldier from Belarus with a patch of the Kastuś Kalinoŭski Regiment and a serviceman with a patch which depicts the American flag.

Another Russian soldier dressed in civilian clothes was captured in Kherson. He served in the 69th Separate Covering Brigade.

The situation on the frontline

Pro-Russian telegram channels report that heavy fighting is going on near Novomykil's'ke, south of Svatove. This settlement is located near Makiivka, Luhansk region, the liberation of which was confirmed on November 14, as it was also reported in the pro-Russian Telegram channel ”WarGonzo project”.

There are reports regarding settlements on the left bank of the Dnipro: Hola Prystan' is reported to be under the control of Ukraine now, the mayor of Oleshky settlement hinted that it had been liberated, but later deleted his post. There has been no official information about this fact yet, it is quite likely to be part of a psyop.

Continuing on the topic of the combat readiness of the Russian mobilized troops, it is important to note that although some of the mobilized are on the frontline with virtually no weapons and combat skill and scatter in all directions when their positions are shelled, some are trained and receive heavy weapons: anti-tank systems and howitzers, as well as Uragan MLRS. Thus, the further the war goes, the more combat-ready the mobilized will become.

In Kharkiv, Russian forces shelled the Industrialny district, reportedly targeting some kind of industrial facility.

During shelling last week, Russia seriously damaged one of the key facilities of Ukrenerho (Ukrainian national power company). This affected the power supply of Kyiv and the surrounding region, Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Sumy, Kharkiv, Poltava, and Donetsk regions.

According to the head of the Dnipropetrovsk region’s military administration, Valentyn Reznichenko, on the night of November 15th, Russian forces shelled the Nikopol region, mainly targeting Marhanets and Krasnohorivka communes. In Marhanets, the power line supplying the pumping station of the water utilities was damaged. As a result, 45,000 families in Marhanets and surrounding areas were left without water.

Several explosions thundered near Luhansk, Most likely, this is a HIMARS strike at the village of Sabivka, 8 km west of Luhansk, which was reported in the pro-Russian sources.

A video appeared showing the entry of separatist forces into the village of Zaitseve near Horlivka. There are also reports about the capture of neighboring Mayorsk settlement, there are geolocated photographs.

As a result of Ukrainian shelling of the border areas of Belgorod region, four Russian motorized riflemen were injured, and a diesel fuel container caught fire in the village of Kozinka.

As a result of the shelling of the border areas of the Kursk region, a sapper of the Russian Armed Forces was killed, two more were injured. We remind you that these are legitimate military targets.

It appears that Lieutenant Colonel Sergei Koshelev of the 137th Guards Airborne Regiment was killed in action, according to his sister, 2010 volleyball world champion Tatiana Kosheleva. He probably was killed while defending Russian positions on the Dnipro's right bank.

On November 11, a lieutenant colonel of the Ukrainian Air Force was killed. According to reports, he was killed when a Ukrainian helicopter was downed near Berestove, Kherson region.

A few days before the official announcement of the Russian withdrawal from Kherson, the owner of the Taigan lion park located in the annexed Crimea Oleg Zubkov took some of the animals from the Kherson zoo. Among the stolen animals was a raccoon, about which pro-Russian commentator Anna Dolgareva wrote on her Telegram channel: "The only good news is that my friend was able to steal a raccoon from the Kherson zoo."

Oleg Zubkov was released from a Russian detention center at the end of October. He served a prison term in accordance with a court sentence. Zubkov was found guilty of providing services that do not meet the requirements of consumers' safety (a one-year-old child was attacked by a tiger in the Taigan park).

Сoncrete structures that were brought to the left bank of the Dnipro to use as a cover from Ukrainian attacks proved to be completely useless. When not covered with sandbags, they do not protect from direct hits by projectiles.

Satellite images show that Russian forces have been expanding the Belbek airfield in Crimea.

Belarusian Hajun project reports that Russia has moved out of Belarus 20 more missiles for S-300/400 air defense systems, which means that a Russian offensive from the territory of Belarus is not planned at least in the near future.

A Russian tank driver who, according to the Security Service of Ukraine, shot multi-story buildings in Mariupol from a tank, was sentenced to 12 years in prison in a Ukrainian court.

United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that the US will impose new sanctions on a transnational network of individuals and companies involved in the purchase and supply of military technology to Russia that contributes to the continuation of military actions in Ukraine.

US Presidential National Security Advisor Jack Sullivan said that, in the coming weeks, the US will announce another package of military assistance to Ukraine.

Economist Sergei Guriev said on "Popular Politics" (an opposition Russian YouTube channel) that Vladimir Putin's mobilization indicates that Russia is running out of money. We don't agree with this and hold the view that the mobilization had to be started not because the money for contracted volunteers ran out but because there were not enough people willing to volunteer. There were about 11-12 thousand men in the 3rd Army Corps, and that is why they had to begin forced mobilization.

The Financial Times published an article that highlights the relationship between Russia and China in light of this war. According to four Chinese representatives, even in a meeting on February 20, four days before the invasion, Putin did not warn Chinese President Xi Jinping that an attack was planned, putting China in an extremely awkward position. It also turned out that there were about 6,000 Chinese nationals living in Ukraine, and some of them died during the evacuation.

By now, Ukraine has liberated more than half of the territory seized by Russia since February 24.

Finland began training Ukrainian servicemen even before joining NATO. Twenty instructors are already training Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers in the UK. The EU plans to train 15,000 Ukrainian soldiers as part of the training mission.

Canada will provide Ukraine with $375 million worth of additional aid. As Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at the G20 summit, Ukraine will get military, intelligence and communications equipment, as well as fuel and medicine.

The UN General Assembly passed a resolution on reparations to Kyiv. Unlike the decisions of the UN Security Council, the resolutions of the General Assembly are advisory and not legally binding. But, nevertheless, documents adopted by the General Assembly are of great political importance.

Kremlin’s spokesman Dmitriy Peskov confirmed that Russian-American talks were held in Ankara. The meeting was attended by the head of the CIA, William Burns, and the head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, Sergei Naryshkin. Burns once again warned Russia about the inadmissibility of using nuclear weapons, and again raised the issue of Americans who are imprisoned in Russia.

The Lithuanian army handed over to Ukraine several armored personnel carriers equipped with Tampella 120 mm mortars. In total, 10 M113 armored vehicles and 2 fire control vehicles, as well as ammunition were provided.

One of the European countries violated the end user license and handed over Israeli Amir MRAPs to Ukraine without obtaining permission from the manufacturer.

Photos appeared from Donbass confirming the first destroyed Slovak Zuzana 2 self-propelled gun.

In Russia, a prisoner of war interviewing project “Mom, I'm fine” has appeared, similar to Ukrainian “Look for your own” project run by Volodymyr Zolkin.