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What happened on 30 May 2022 in the war?
Summary
An analysis of a day that combined fighting in Sievierodonetsk, strikes on civilians, a car bomb in Melitopol and a new European sanctions decision.
What did the war look like on 30 May 2022? It was a day when pressure on the battlefield in Luhansk Oblast ran alongside a major economic decision in Europe.
Fighting in the east
Ukrainian authorities said that Russian forces had entered Sieverodonetsk, leaving the city without water. Two days earlier, on 28 May 2022, Russian troops had been reported entering the strategic city, with heavy street-to-street fighting under way. Luhansk governor Serhiy Haidai said then that Ukrainian forces might have to retreat to avoid capture.
The fighting also cost civilian lives. Haidai said a French journalist was killed by Russian shelling in Luhansk Oblast. In Donetsk, rebel forces said Ukrainian shelling had killed five civilians, including a teenager, and injured 13.
Occupied territory
In Russian-occupied Melitopol, in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, a car bomb injured at least three people. Russian authorities blamed pro-Ukrainian residents for the incident.
Supplies and sanctions
On 28 May 2022, Ukraine confirmed it had received Harpoon anti-ship missiles from Denmark and self-propelled howitzers from the United States. These deliveries were part of the foreign aid meant to counter the Russian invasion.
The most significant economic step came on 30 May 2022. After weeks of deliberations, all European Union member states agreed to an embargo on most oil imports from Russia. Oil brought by pipelines was exempted, and the embargo was to be fully implemented by the end of the year. The member states also agreed to cut Sberbank off from SWIFT.
Sanctions were also having effects beyond Europe. On 28 May 2022, China denied its airspace to Boeing and Airbus aircraft that had been reregistered in Russia as a result of sanctions.
Why the day mattered
Taken together, the reports show two tracks moving at once. In Sievierodonetsk, Russian forces were pressing into a city whose defenders had already been warned they might have to withdraw, and water was cut off. Meanwhile, Ukraine was receiving new weapons, including anti-ship missiles and howitzers, and the EU had finally settled a long-debated oil embargo. The embargo's timeline, running to the end of the year, meant its full effect lay ahead, while the fighting around Sievierodonetsk was immediate.
