Via Robert Brizel, Boxing News Reporter 24: World Heavyweight and Heavyweight Titles with dynamite trio. WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk joins the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Battalion, to fight in armed conflict with Wladimir Klitschko, Vitali Klitschko and Vasyl Lomachenko on the front lines.
There are already four current or former world boxing champions imaginable who could lose their lives in the coming days or hours during the Ukraine War with the Russian Federation in Ukraine. In a related development, the WBA, WBC, WBO, IBF and IBO have all withdrawn from the fighting cards in the Russian Federation during the War conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukraine.
“It’s time to unite! A worthy son of his State is a member of the Territorial Defense,” Usyk wrote on his social media page. Usyk can be seen dressed in black and carrying an assault rifle in a photo on his social media. Usyk has posted the photo accompanying this story and several videos on his social media page in recent days calling for a cessation of war.
In a video on social media, Usyk said, “Friends, we need to unite together and get through this, because we are facing special difficulties. I am very emotional, and I care a lot about my country and for our people. Friends, we have to stop this war and we have to do it together.”
In another social media video that Usyk posted, Usyk said, “I want to talk to the Russian people. If we consider us as brothers, Orthodox people, don’t send your children to our country, don’t go to war with us. Also, I am talking about this with the President (Russian Federation), Vladimir Putin. You can stop this war. Please just sit down and negotiate with us without any claim. Our children, our wives, our grandmothers are hiding in the basements. We are here in our country. We cannot do it any other way. We are on the defensive. Let’s stop this war. Stop. No war.”
Casualties are mounting for both sides as the onslaught of Russia on the neighboring country enters the second day of its second week. Russia acknowledged that nearly 500 of its soldiers were killed in the fighting and that about 1,600 were wounded. Ukraine, which has not yet released casualty figures for its armed forces, estimates the loss of Russian troops at 9,000. Ukraine’s Emergencies Service said more than 2,000 civilians were killed, although this claim could not be verified. The United Nations human rights office says it has recorded hundreds of deaths, including 17 people under the age of 18, and more than 500 injuries, since the start of the invasion on 24 February 2022. Millions of refugees are moving to cross Ukraine’s borders with Romania, Poland and other countries, a current humanitarian crisis.
Meanwhile, most of Ukraine’s major cities are under siege. Governor Hennadiy Lahuta said the government building in the Black Sea port city of Kherson where he governs has been occupied by Russian troops. Russia claims its troops have captured the city of 300,000 people. Soldiers are also attacking Mykolaiev, 40 miles northwest and home to nearly half a million Ukrainians, The New York Times reported. Citizens in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol were stranded without electricity, heating or water. Mariupol authorities have warned of a “critical” situation for residents amid intense shelling.
As of March 3, 2022, the Russian Federation said nearly five hundred soldiers had died in the invasion. Ukraine says the number is close to six thousand. Millions of refugees are fleeing to neighboring countries, including more than half a million children. The Russian Defense Ministry said 498 Russian soldiers had died in Ukraine and another 1,597 were injured, according to Russia’s RIA news agency. The Russians claimed that the war death toll of Ukrainian forces was 2,870, with the number of wounded approaching 4,000. Unicef has established blue-dot safe zones in Romania and Moldova for refugees arriving in these areas on the other side of the Ukrainian border.
The US Department of Homeland Security has announced Ukraine’s designation for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months. “Individuals eligible for TPS under this designation must have continuously resided in the United States as of March 1, 2022,” according to the press release.
The British BBC is reviving the use of shortwave radio for broadcasting in Ukraine and parts of Russia. The tactic, last used during the Second World War, uses frequencies that can travel over long distances and are accessible on hand-held radios.
