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Ukraine managed to return the bodies of 79 fallen soldiers, the Ministry for Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories announced on its website on May 30. The bodies will be returned to their families and loved ones for burial.
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Ukraine’s parliament adopted a law allowing insurance of investments in Ukraine against war risks. The law expands the capabilities of the Export Credit Agency, allowing it to insure both domestic and foreign investments against the risks caused by armed aggression or terrorism.
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According to the report, Russia has also lost 3,802 tanks, 7,469 armored fighting vehicles, 6,219 vehicles and fuel tanks, 3,445 artillery systems, 575 multiple launch rocket systems, 332 air defense systems, 313 airplanes, 298 helicopters, 3,092 drones, and 18 boats.
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"Yesterday, Russian border guards celebrated their professional holiday. The fighters of the Russian Volunteer Corps congratulated them by successfully crossing the 'holey' state border once again," one of the Russian militia groups fighting on Ukraine's side said on May 29.
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Russian troops hit the villages of Kozatske and Zolota Balka in Ukraine's southern Kherson Oblast on May 29, the regional administration reported. A 61-year-old man was killed in his house as a result of the Kozatske shelling, according to the report.
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ISW: Russia 'weaponizes religion' to discredit Ukraine, achieve military goals

by The Kyiv Independent news desk April 10, 2023 3:22 PM 3 min read
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin (C), Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu (L) and Orthodox Patriarch Kirill (L) attend in blessing of a founding stone of new main Russian Army cathedral in the Patriot Expo Park in Kubinka, 50 km. southwest of Moscow, Russia, on Sept. 19, 2018. (Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Russia "continues to weaponize religion" to discredit Ukraine in the international arena and uses information operations about religion to achieve its military goals, the Institute for the Study of War wrote in its latest update.

According to the April 9 update, Moscow is conducting an information operation "falsely portraying Russia as a religiously tolerant state" and accusing Ukraine of "religious intolerance towards the Moscow Patriarchate."

"The Kremlin continues to use long-standing false narratives that the Ukrainian government is oppressing religious liberties as a moral justification for its refusal to negotiate with Ukraine, likely in the hopes of turning international public opinion against Ukraine," reads the report.

Ukraine has long accused the Russian-controlled Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) of serving as the Kremlin's propaganda arm on the religious front. The conflict between the Ukrainian government and the UOC-MP intensified during Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

High-level Ukrainian priest of Moscow-linked church charged for his pro-Russian statements
The head priest of the Moscow-linked Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Cherkasy Oblast was charged with justifying Russian aggression against Ukraine, the State Security Service (SBU) reported on April 6.

The ISW also wrote that Russia could use the upcoming Orthodox Easter holiday on April 16 to delay a Ukrainian counteroffensive. It may call for a ceasefire "out of respect for the Orthodox religion" despite showing no such respect for the religion in Ukraine's occupied territories.

"No combatant is obligated to accept a ceasefire on religious or any other grounds, however. Should Russia offer and Ukraine refuse a ceasefire over Orthodox Easter, the Kremlin will not thereby have demonstrated any greater devotion to the defense of Christianity or Christian values nor shown that Kyiv rejects those values. Putin will merely have demonstrated, once again, his cynicism."

According to the ISW, since the beginning of Moscow's all-out war on Feb. 24, 2022, Russian troops or occupation authorities have committed at least 76 acts of religious persecution in Ukraine.

Moscow-installed proxies in the occupied Ukrainian territories have reportedly closed, "nationalized," or forcibly converted at least 26 places of worship to the Kremlin-controlled Russian Orthodox Church, killed or captured 29 clergymen or religious leaders as well as looted, desecrated, or intentionally destroyed 13 places of worship.

"Russian religious persecutions are likely also part of an ongoing Russian cultural genocide and ethnic cleansing campaign aimed at extirpating the idea of an independent Ukrainian nationality or Ukrainian Orthodox Church," the ISW added.

This Week in Ukraine Ep. 2 – Why Ukraine is finally kicking out Russian church
“This Week in Ukraine” is a video podcast hosted by the Kyiv Independent’s reporter Anastasiia Lapatina. Every week, Anastasiia sits down with her newsroom colleagues to discuss Ukraine’s most pressing issues. Episode #2 is dedicated to Ukraine’s attempts to eradicate the influence of the Ukrainian…

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