Sanctions against bookmakers, the situation in Bakhmut, Zelenskyy being denied a speach at Oscars: today's highlights

Sanctions against betting companies

On March 10, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy enacted the decision of the National Security and Defense Council to impose economic sanctions for 50 years against 120 individuals and 287 legal entities, among which are betting companies, including Parimatch, which is registered in Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that this decision had been prepared for some time, was thoroughly elaborated, and closes schemes “worth tens of billions”.

Bakhmut and the counteroffensive

Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of the Eastern Military Grouping, explained that forces and resources are being used to defend Bakhmut, which “prevent the Russians from realizing their plan, disrupt their plans and force them to abandon their advance”.

“It is necessary to gain time to accumulate reserves and launch a spring counteroffensive, which is just around the corner,” noted Syrskyi.

Serhii Cherevaty, a spokesperson for the Eastern Military Grouping, added that 53 firefights took place in the Bakhmut sector over the last day, 23 of which were in the Bakhmut area alone.

At the same time, the UK Ministry of Defence, citing its intelligence, claims that over the past four days, the forces of the private military company Wagner have taken control of a large area of the eastern part of the city of Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast. In the city center, the Bakhmutka River now marks the front line.

Zelenskyy was denied a speech at the Oscars

According to Variety, this year, WME agent Mike Simpson asked the American Film Academy to include Zelenskyy's speech in the Oscars broadcast but was denied. The Academy declined to comment.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called the denial of the speech “an example of hypocrisy”.

Last year, Oscar producer Will Packer also refused to allow Zelenskyy to speak. Sources said that Packer was concerned that Hollywood was paying attention to Ukraine only because the war victims were white.

Shelling

On March 11, Russian occupation forces once again shelled Kherson. The attack killed three people and injured two others.

And in Zaporizhzhia, Russians damaged a life support facility with a missile. A fire broke out in one of the city's districts.

Mariupol, Kherson, and Bucha on a road sign in Antarctica

Ukrainian polar explorers have de-Russified a road sign near the Akademik Vernadsky station, which shows the distance to different cities. For the first time in 20 years, Mariupol, Kherson, and Bucha have appeared there.

In addition, Kirovohrad was “decommunized” into Kropyvnytskyi, and the transliteration of Vinnytsia and Odesa was “de-Russified” on the sign.

Other news for the day

• The Offensive Guard units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs have been mostly formed. Additional volunteers are now being recruited to form a reserve.
• The United States has officially handed over to Ukraine items of historical and cultural heritage that were attempted to be illegally exported from Russia. The returned artifacts include a Bronze Age axe head, Scythian swords, and a Polovtsian saber.
• Ukrainian human rights activist and prisoner of war Maksym Butkevych, who was “convicted” by the occupiers for allegedly shelling the entrance to a residential building in Sievierodonetsk, was not in Donbas on the day in question.
• The Iranian mission to the UN announced the finalization of the contract for the purchase of Russian Su-35 fighter jets.
• Norway announces that it will provide Ukraine, along with the United States, with two more NASAMS anti-aircraft missile systems to defend Ukrainian airspace. The Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is ready to send anti-aircraft missile troops to Norway for training as soon as possible.
• The UK government has written to the largest sponsors of the Olympic Games calling on them to put pressure on the International Olympic Committee over its proposal to allow Russians and Belarusians to compete again in international sports and at the 2024 Paris Games.