Victory Chronicles-DAY 1150

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated on April 17 that China is supplying Russia with artillery, gunpowder, and may be involved in the production of certain weapons on Russian territory. Citing intelligence from Ukraine’s security services and defense agencies, Zelenskyy claimed that Kyiv now possesses documented evidence of such cooperation between Beijing and Moscow.

“We have information from our intelligence and security services about artillery, gunpowder, and even potential weapon manufacturing involving Chinese representatives on Russian soil,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Ukraine will release more detailed findings next week. 

He also recalled that during previous diplomatic contacts, Chinese President Xi Jinping had promised not to provide Russia with weapons. Beijing has maintained that it strictly controls dual-use items and its foreign arrairs ministry said that it has never supplied any warring side with weapons.

Still, Zelenskyy called the new evidence a “bad sign” and noted that the documents related to this cooperation would soon be shared with Ukraine’s international partners. Beijing also maintained that its position on the war in Ukraine remains “consistent and clear,” stating it continues to support a peaceful resolution and efforts to end hostilities through negotiations.

Ukrainian forces hit nearly 5,000 Russian artillery systems since January. Ukrainian forces have targeted nearly 5,000 Russian artillery systems since the beginning of 2025, according to Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi.

In a post shared on social media, Syrskyi stated that the Defense Forces have struck 4,910 enemy artillery systems in just over three months, as part of a systematic campaign to degrade Russian firepower along the front lines.

“We continue to systematically neutralize the occupiers’ artillery along the entire front line,” Syrskyi said of the tactic. “Since the beginning of the year alone, nearly five thousand enemy artillery systems have been targeted.”

He added that since January 2024, Russia has lost a total of 17,960 artillery systems as a result of Ukrainian operations. The Commander-in-Chief also thanked Ukrainian troops for their precision and effectiveness in combat.

Massive fire contained in Mykolaiv after Russian drone strike. A large-scale fire broke out at a private warehouse facility in the southern city of Mykolaiv after a Russian drone strike on the evening of April 17. The dronehit a site that stores household goods, causing a blaze that spread across 700 square meters due to the presence of highly flammable materials.

Fifty emergency responders and nine firefighting vehicles were deployed to the scene. Despite difficult conditions, crews successfully extinguished the fire. No casualties were reported.

Russian drone strike hits bakery in Sumy, kills entrepreneur picking up Easter bread. A Russian Shahed drone struck a major bakery and confectionery plant in the northeastern city of Sumy early on April 18 – on Good Friday –, damaging the production site for traditional Easter bread and killing a local entrepreneur who had come to collect goods.

The attack occurred around 5 a.m., targeting a facility known for producing baked and holiday confectionery items, including pasky, a traditional Easter bread in Ukraine. Authorities confirmed that the drone hit a confectionery workshop, resulting in significant damage to the production line. The victim was a local business owner who had arrived to collect products ahead of the Easter. 

Key Takeaways:

• Russian officials continue to reiterate Kremlin ruler Vladimir Putin’s non-negotiable demands for extensive territorial concessions from Ukraine while noting that ongoing peace negotiations are unlikely to achieve results quickly.
• Russian forces recently conducted a roughly battalion-sized mechanized assault across a wide front in western Zaporizhia Oblast, representing an inflection in recently observed Russian mechanized assault tactics.
• The Kremlin is adopting increasingly threatening rhetoric towards Europe aimed at preventing Europe from supporting Ukraine and defending itself.
• Russia is increasingly adapting its drones to facilitate chemical weapons strikes against the frontline and rear areas of Ukraine — in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), of which Russia is a signatory.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that the United States and Ukraine are making progress towards signing a bilateral mineral deal.
• European countries continue to increase their domestic defense production, including in support of Ukraine.
• Ukrainian forces recently advanced near Toretsk. Russian forces recently advanced in Kursk Oblast and near Kupyansk, Toretsk, Pokrovsk, Novopavlivka, and Velyka Novosilka and in western Zaporizhia Oblast.

In Memoriam: Ukrainian soldier Mykhailo Uhryniuk, a hero of Ukraine’s defense forces. Sr. Sgt. Mykhailo Uhryniuk, 56,was killed in action Nov. 23, 2023, near the village of Novobakhmutivka in Donetsk Oblast. Known by the call sign “Mytnyk,” he died after being fatally wounded in a kamikaze drone strike while carrying out a combat mission.

Born in the town of Kuty in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Uhryniuk earned degrees from the Lviv University of Trade and Economics and Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. Beginning in 1996, he worked in Ukraine’s customs service, serving as a state inspector at the “Lviv Postal” customs post. He held the rank of lieutenant colonel in the customs service. He was passionate about mountaineering, skiing, hunting and mushroom foraging.

Uhryniuk was mobilized into the Armed Forces in November 2022. He initially served with the 24th Mechanized Brigade and later joined the “Legio V” unit and the 14th Separate UAV Regiment. At the time of his death, he was the senior sergeant of a UAV platoon within a drone company.

He fought in Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Donetsk sectors and returned to the front after being wounded in combat. His story was covered by The Washington Post and Austrian television.

“He deeply loved his homeland and hated the enemy,” said his wife, Olena. “He didn’t hesitate to leave a prestigious job and take up arms. He had served in the airborne forces, was an experienced hunter, and knew weapons well. He was respected by his comrades. His motto was: ‘I’ll fight to the end – it’s my job.’”

Uhryniuk was posthumously awarded the Order “For Courage,” Third Class. He was laid to rest at the Alley of Glory in the city of Stryi, Lviv Oblast. He is survived by his mother, two brothers, widowed wife, daughter, son and three grandchildren.

*Mykhailo’s story on the Heroes Memorial – a platform for stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine.

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