On the 104th day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, fighting is concentrated in eastern Ukraine. Heavy fighting continues in Severodonetsk, a key city in eastern Ukraine under heavy Russian fire. The bombing also intensified in the nearby city of Lysiceansk, which is very close and higher in altitude, which makes it strategic for the Ukrainian defense. The situation is changing every hour, authorities say.
The Russians are more and more powerful, but Kyiv’s forces are resisting and can retaliate, President Zelensky said. A few days ago, a Ukrainian counterattack made it possible to recapture half of Severodonetsk. On the streets, however, fierce fighting and an artillery duel continue. The Russians are destroying everything so that there is nothing left to defend, the local governor accused.
Meanwhile, in Mariupol there is a risk of a cholera epidemic due to the corpses and garbage gathered in the city. Russian officials in Mariupol have closed the southern port city for quarantine over a possible cholera outbreak, according to Ukrainian authorities. Petro Andryushchenko, an adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, said the Russian-occupied city was at risk of an epidemic as corpses and garbage piled up in the city.
Moreover, about 2,500 Ukrainians at the Azovstal plant in Mariupol are currently being held by Russians in Donetsk and Luhansk, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He added that Russia’s plans for the treatment of prisoners are changing day by day.
On the other hand, the families of members of the Russian National Guard who died in Ukraine and Syria will receive a one-time payment of 5 million rubles (£ 65,000 or $ 80,000), according to a Kremlin decree.
At the same time, Russian forces are firing on the Dnipropetrovsk region with hurricane missile launchers. Dnipropetrovsk Governor Valentyn Reznichenko reported that the Kryvorizky district in the region was attacked by Russia on the night of June 7. A man was injured and is currently hospitalized, according to the Kyiv Independent.
Zelensky: Russians aim Zaporozhy, Sievierodonetsk and Lisichansk “are dead cities now”
Peace talks with Russia are at “zero level”, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday, adding that the Kremlin wants to conquer Zaporozhye, The Guardian reports, quoting the Associated Press.
The president of Ukraine believes that Russian troops intend to capture Zaporozhye, a city in the southeast of the country, which would allow the Russian army to advance closer to the central areas. The city, which has a population of about 720,000, is the capital of the region of the same name and one of the largest industrial hubs in that part of the country. Russia is already occupying large areas of the region and has previously captured Kherson and Mariupol, other large cities in southern Ukraine.
Zelensky said Russia’s progress had created “the most threatening situation” but that his country’s forces were struggling to fight. “The enemy wants to … occupy the city of Zaporozhye. There are more, they are stronger, but we have all the chances to fight in this direction”, he said. Earlier in the day, Zelensky acknowledged that Russian forces had a numerical advantage in the battle for the eastern city of Severodonetsk, but insisted that the Ukrainian army was “resisting” even though it was in a “difficult” situation. Sievierodonetsk and Lisichansk “are dead cities now,” he said, adding that the Ukrainian command “will make decisions depending on the situation.”
The Ukrainian army attacked the positions of the Russians in the south of the country
However, while the situation in eastern Ukraine remains largely unchanged, the Ukrainian military announced on Tuesday morning that it had launched several airstrikes during the night on Russian positions in the south of the country.
“Ukrainian helicopters hit large groups of enemy forces in the Kherson region, and planes – ammunition depots in the Mikolaiv (Nikolaev) region,” the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff announced on Tuesday.
Until now, Ukraine has rarely used its own air force in the war because of Russia’s air superiority.
After Ukraine recaptured several villages along the border between the Mikolaiv and Kherson regions on the Black Sea, a Russian counteroffensive in the direction of Lozove and Bila Krinitsa (in Kherson) was unsuccessful, despite its support with artillery and artillery strikes. air force
US, Europe call on Putin’s regime to stop sexual violence by Russians in Ukraine
The US and Europe on Monday called on Russia to stop alleged sexual violence by its military and supporters in Ukraine at a UN Security Council meeting in Albania, while Moscow denounced accusations fundamentally, reports AFP.
“Russia must take action in its army and its supporters to comply,” the UN Resolution 1820 on Sexual Violence, adopted in 2008, which bans it from becoming a weapon of war, said US Ambassador Linda Thomas -Greenfield. “Russia is responsible for stopping the rape, violence and atrocities committed by its soldiers. It is up to Russia to end this atrocious, unprovoked war against the Ukrainian people,” she said. In his turn, European Council President Charles Michel has also denounced Russia’s “atrocities”. “These crimes will be punished,” “we need evidence,” and “we will help gather them,” the senior European official said.
During conference at the UN Security Council, European Council President Charles Michel even invited the Russian ambassador out, if he did not want to hear the truth. The senior European official condemned the sexual violence used as a weapon of war by Russian soldiers and pleaded guilty to trial.
Antony Blinken: Information that Russia is stealing Ukrainian grain to sell is “credible”
The head of US diplomacy, Antony Blinken, considers “credible” the information that Russia “steals” Ukrainian grain for export, but which is blocked due to the conflict, and then sells it for its own profit. He also accused Vladimir Putin of resorting to “blackmail” in the grain crisis in order to lift international sanctions. “Everything is deliberate,” the head of US diplomacy said on Monday at a video conference on food insecurity.
He accused Moscow of imposing a naval blockade on the Black Sea that prevented the transportation of Ukrainian crops around the world. At the same time, Russia is stockpiling its own food for export. According to Reuters, Blinken said the alleged theft was part of Russia’s broader actions in its war against Ukraine, aimed at blocking the invaded country’s ability to export wheat, leading to a worsening of the global food security crisis.
US explains why it declassified secret information before Russia’s invasion
US President Joe Biden has declassified the secret information before Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, as the American officials’ information on an imminent attack had been regarded with “skepticism” by the US allies and partners, the director of the US intelligence service, Avril Haines told CNN.