Spring counteroffensive, Russian plane blown up and aid package from Estonia: highlights of the day

The strategic goal of the counteroffensive

The Deputy Chief of Ukraine's Defense Intelligence Vadym Skibitsky said that one of the strategic goals of the upcoming counteroffensive of the Defense Forces will be "to drive a wedge into the Russian front in the south — between Crimea and the mainland of Russia."

Skibitsky believes that the Ukrainian army will be ready for a counteroffensive in the spring. But the exact date depends on a number of factors, including the supply of Western weapons.

Russian military plane blown up in Belarus

In the morning of February 26, a Russian military airborne early warning and control aircraft A-50 was blown up in Belarus. Belarusian partisans claimed responsibility for the attack.

A total of two explosions occurred, damaging the front and center parts of the aircraft, including avionics and a radar antenna.

Estonia announces new military aid package

On February 26, Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur met with his Ukrainian counterpart Oleksii Reznikov in Kyiv and announced a new military aid package.

In total, the country has already provided military aid to Ukraine worth almost €400 million, which is more than 1% of Estonia's GDP.

Day of resistance to occupation of Crimea

It has been celebrated annually in Ukraine on February 26 since President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree in 2020.

On this day in 2014, thousands of Crimean Tatars, Ukrainians, and representatives of other nationalities gathered in front of the Supreme Council of Crimea in Simferopol. They began to resist the Russian occupiers, which continues to this day.

Zelenskyy emphasized that by returning Crimea, Ukraine would restore peace.

Musk considers the Revolution of Dignity a "coup"

American entrepreneur Elon Musk has said that the Revolution of Dignity was a "coup."

Advisor to the Head of the President's Office Mykhailo Podolyak urged him to stop reading Russian newspapers.

"Free societies influence states via dialogue/elections. Enslaved societies take to the streets to get rid of repressive states. This is the basis of Freedom, Elon Musk. There have never been coups in Ukraine, but there have always been free people. Stop reading Russian newspapers," Podolyak said on Twitter.

Other news:

• Ukraine and Saudi Arabia have signed documents formalizing a $400 million humanitarian aid package consisting of $100 million in humanitarian aid and $300 million in oil products.
• Ukrainian films "It's a Date" and "Waking Up in Silence" win awards at the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale).
• The Russian Federation stopped supplying oil to Poland's largest oil company through the Druzhba pipeline.
• The German government denied that it is considering an agreement with Ukraine that would give wider access to weapons to encourage negotiations with Russia, along with the United Kingdom and France.
• Ukrainian border guards destroyed an assault group of occupiers in close combat in Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast. Also, in the area of Avdiyivka, the Defense Forces shot down a Russian Su-25 attack aircraft.