Closing summary
It has gone 6pm in Kyiv and in Moscow. We will be closing this blog soon, but you can stay up to date on the Guardian’s Russia and Ukraine coverage here.
Here is a recap of today’s latest developments:
The suspected murder of two Ukrainians by a Russian in southern Germany is being investigated for a possible political motive, prosecutors said on Monday. The public prosecutor’s office in Munich, responsible for investigating politically motivated crimes, has taken over the case because such a motive “cannot be ruled out”, a spokesperson told AFP.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that vital US weapons were starting to arrive in Ukraine in small amounts and that the process needed to move faster as advancing Russian forces were trying to take advantage. The Ukrainian president told a joint press conference in Kyiv alongside visiting Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg that the situation on the battlefield directly depended on the speed of ammunition supplies to Ukraine.
Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday that it was “not too late” for Ukraine to win the war, agreeing with president Volodymyr Zelenskiy that Kyiv needs more weapons. “Ukraine has been outgunned for months, forced to ration its ammunition … But it’s not too late for Ukraine to prevail,” he said.
Stoltenberg also told Ukrainians on Monday that his Nato’s members had failed to live up to their promises of military aid in recent months. However, Stoltenberg said the flow of arms and ammunition would now increase. “The United States spent six months to agree a package and European allies have not delivered the ammunition we promised. But now I’m confident that things will change,” he said.
The US secretary of state Antony Blinken said that the international coalition supporting Ukraine has meant that Vladimir Putin has failed in his ambition. Speaking at a World Economic Forum (WEF) gathering in Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, he said: “… the designs that Vladimir Putin had on Ukraine to begin with, to erase it from the map, to subsume it into Russia, that no longer exists. That’s failed.”
At the WEF gathering in Riyadh on Monday, Blinken criticised China for supplying Russia’s defence industry, saying the Chinese can’t “have it both ways” in seeking an end to the conflict and better relations between China and Europe, while also providing goods that are building what Blinken termed “the greatest challenge to European security since the end of the cold war”.
Polish farmers stopped protesting at the last blocked border crossing with Ukraine on Monday, Kyiv and Warsaw said, suspending a blockade that has dragged on for months and soured bilateral relations. Ukraine’s farm minister hailed “constructive work” by Poland to lift the blockade in a statement, saying negotiations with Warsaw and industry associations had not been easy but that “the main thing is that we have a result”. Trucks had started crossing the border in both directions on Monday morning, said Ukrainian border guard spokesperson Andriy Demchenko.
Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine has given a fresh impetus to the European Union’s drive to admit more countries, the bloc’s chairman said on Monday. “Because of the war launched by Russia against Ukraine, there is a new impetus, a reinvigoration of the [EU] enlargement strategy,” said European Council president Charles Michel ahead of the 20th anniversary on Wednesday of the EU’s “big bang” enlargement.
Michel also said that Kyiv would need special transition arrangements as it will need to rebuild after the war, while the EU would also have to tread carefully in fully opening up to Ukraine’s large population and food exports.
Russian forces have taken the village of Semenivka in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, Russia’s defence ministry said on Monday. On Sunday, the ministry announced the capture of Novobakhmutivka, another village near Berdychi, which has become a focal point of fighting in recent days.
Ukraine said on Monday it had foiled 55 Russian attacks in the eastern Donetsk region, a day after it admitted to a worsening situation on the frontline. The Ukrainian army said it had “repulsed 55 attacks” in several villages north and west of Novobakhmutivka. These included Ocheretyne, where heavy fighting was reported on Sunday.
A 60-year-old man was killed on Monday when Russian forces attacked the village of Kizomys in the Kherson region, according to the Kyiv Independent. Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said that residential areas were targeted in the Russian attack on the village. The man reportedly died from severe injuries en route to the hospital.
Russian forces launched attacks against 18 settlements of Kherson oblast over the past day, damaging five houses, a kindergarten, critical and transport infrastructure facilities, and an agricultural enterprise, reported the Kyiv Independent on Monday, citing local authority sources.
Ruslan Stefanchuk, the speaker of Ukraine’s parliament said a group of lawmakers from the two chambers of the Polish parliament visited Ukraine on Monday. According to the Kyiv Independent, Stefanchuk met Polish members of the Ukraine-Poland Parliamentary Friendship Group to “discuss military aid for Kyiv and sanctions against Russia, among other topics”.
Two Russian journalists were arrested by their government on “extremism” charges and ordered by courts there on Saturday to remain in custody pending investigation and trial on accusations of working for a group founded by the late Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny. Konstantin Gabov and Sergey Karelin both denied the charges for which they will be detained for a minimum of two months before any trials begin.
Additionaly, a journalist for the Russian edition of Forbes magazine, Sergei Mingazov, was detained on charges of spreading false information about the Russian military, his lawyer said on Friday.
Chinese president Xi Jinping is due to make a state visit to France on 6 and 7 May, Paris announced on Monday, with war in Ukraine and the Middle East expected to be high on the agenda. “Exchanges will focus on international crises, first and foremost the war in Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East, trade issues, scientific, cultural and sporting cooperation,” French president Emmanuel Macron’s office said in a statement.
Here are some of the latest images on the newswires:
Killing of two Ukrainians by Russian in southern Germany investigated for political motive, say prosecutors
The suspected murder of two Ukrainians by a Russian in southern Germany is being investigated for a possible political motive, prosecutors said on Monday, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The public prosecutor’s office in Munich, responsible for investigating politically motivated crimes, has taken over the case because such a motive “cannot be ruled out”, a spokesperson told AFP.
A 57-year-old Russian suspect was arrested after the two Ukrainian men were found with stab wounds in a shopping centre in the Bavarian town of Murnau on Saturday evening. The circumstances remain unclear, according to investigators.
The two victims aged 36 and 23 were Ukrainian soldiers who were in Germany for medical rehabilitation, according to the foreign ministry in Kyiv.
The suspect was arrested on Saturday in his apartment not far from the crime scene and remains in custody, reports AFP.
Foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba thanked German investigators for the quick arrest.
Bavarian interior minister Joachim Hermann said on Sunday there were no indications that the crime was a “reflection of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine”, according to the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.
Witnesses said the three men had been seen together in the town before the incident and had been drinking heavily, the newspaper said.
Updated
Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine has given a fresh impetus to the European Union’s drive to admit more countries, the bloc’s chairman said on Monday, reports Reuters.
According to the news agency, European Council president Charles Michel spoke ahead of the 20th anniversary on Wednesday of the EU’s “big bang” enlargement that added 10 mostly ex-communist nations such as Poland and Hungary but also the Mediterranean islands of Malta and Cyprus to a bloc that had then comprised just 15 members.
“It was a call of history to unite European countries,” Michel told reporters of the 2004 enlargement.
“Twenty years later we face a similar challenge because there is this geo-political chaos, including because of this war by Russia against Ukraine. And facing this chaos is the geo-political strategy to reunify once again,” he said.
Michel, a former Belgian prime minister, said the 2004 accession countries had seen their shared gross domestic product (GDP) per capita rise from about half of the EU’s average back then to 80% now.
“Because of the war launched by Russia against Ukraine, there is a new impetus, a reinvigoration of the [EU] enlargement strategy,” said Michel.
“It is challenging. But what is the alternative? The alternative would be a terrible, irresponsible mistake from the EU,” he said, calling for the EU and candidate countries to carry out by 2030 the reforms necessary for a new enlargement.
According to Reuters, Michel said Kyiv would need special transition arrangements as it will need to rebuild after the war, while the EU would also have to tread carefully in fully opening up to Ukraine’s large population and food exports.
'It's not too late for Ukraine to prevail', says Nato secretary general
Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday that it was “not too late” for Ukraine to win the war, agreeing with president Volodymyr Zelenskiy that Kyiv needs more weapons, while Russian forces advance.
“Ukraine has been outgunned for months, forced to ration its ammunition … But it’s not too late for Ukraine to prevail,” the Nato secretary general said at a press conference with Zelenskiy, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
He said months-long delays in US military aid to Ukraine had “serious consequences on the battlefield”. Stoltenberg said that “more support is on the way”.
“Our allies are looking into what more they can do and I expect new announcements soon. So we are working hard to meet Ukraine’s urgent needs,” he promised.
Updated
Russia exploiting delays in arms supplies from allies, says Zelenskiy
Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that vital US weapons were starting to arrive in Ukraine in small amounts and that the process needed to move faster as advancing Russian forces were trying to take advantage.
The Ukrainian president told a joint press conference in Kyiv alongside visiting Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg that the situation on the battlefield directly depended on the speed of ammunition supplies to Ukraine.
“Timely support for our army. Today I don’t see anything positive on this point yet. There are supplies, they have slightly begun, this process needs to be sped up,” he said.
The US passed a $61bn aid package last week, ending months of congressional deadlock and raising hopes in Kyiv that its critically low stocks of artillery shells would soon be replenished.
“The Russian army is now trying to take advantage of a situation when we are waiting for supplies from our partners … and that is exactly why the speed of deliveries means stabilising the front,” Zelenskiy said. “Russia is preparing for offensive actions,” he added.
Updated
Nato boss Jens Stoltenberg told Ukrainians on Monday that his alliance’s members had failed to live up to their promises of military aid in recent months, Reuters reports. However, Stoltenberg said the flow of arms and ammunition would now increase.
In an unannounced visit to Ukraine, the secretary general of the transatlantic military alliance held talks with president Volodymyr Zelenskiy and was due to address Ukraine’s parliament, the Rada.
His visit – the third since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 – comes at a difficult time on the battlefield. After a failed Ukrainian counter-offensive last year, Russian forces have gained the initiative – at least in part due to a dearth of arms and ammunition from Kyiv’s western partners.
“I will also be very honest with president Zelenskiy and also with the Rada that Nato allies have not delivered what we have promised over the last months,” Stoltenberg said on the train taking him into Kyiv on Monday.
“The United States spent six months to agree a package and European allies have not delivered the ammunition we promised. But now I’m confident that things will change,” he said.
Updated
Ruslan Stefanchuk, the speaker of Ukraine’s parliament said a group of lawmakers from the two chambers of the Polish parliament visited Ukraine on Monday, reports the Kyiv Independent.
According to the news outlet, Stefanchuk met Polish members of the Ukraine-Poland Parliamentary Friendship Group to “discuss military aid for Kyiv and sanctions against Russia, among other topics”.
“Ukraine urgently needs additional air defence systems to protect cities from missile attacks by the Russian Federation,” Stefanchuk wrote on Facebook, according to the Kyiv Independent.
According to the English-language Ukrainian online newspaper, Stefanchuk said he and the Polish delegation also discussed Nato’s July summit in Washington and Kyiv’s 10-point peace formula.
“This plan remains the only realistic and comprehensive plan to restore Ukraine’s territorial integrity and guarantee security and justice for the international community,” he added.
Updated
Ashifa Kassam, the Guardian’s European community affairs correspondent, has written a feature on the many Roma people on the frontlines of the war on Ukraine and how campaigners across Europe are calling on Kyiv to recognise the contribution of the marginalised community.
You can read the piece here:
The Kyiv Independent reports that a 60-year-old man was killed on Monday when Russian forces attacked the village of Kizomys in the Kherson region.
According to the news outlet, governor Oleksandr Prokudin said that residential areas were targeted in the Russian attack on the village. The man reportedly died from severe injuries en route to the hospital.
Russian forces launched attacks against 18 settlements of Kherson oblast over the past day, damaging five houses, a kindergarten, critical and transport infrastructure facilities, and an agricultural enterprise, reports the Kyiv Independent citing local authority sources.
Russian forces take control of village in Ukraine's Donetsk region
Russian forces have taken the village of Semenivka in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, Russia’s defence ministry said on Monday, according to Reuters.
On Sunday, the ministry announced the capture of Novobakhmutivka, another village near Berdychi, which has become a focal point of fighting in recent days.
Updated
US secretary of state Antony Blinken has criticised China for supplying Russia’s defence industry, saying the Chinese can’t “have it both ways” in seeking an end to the conflict and better relations between China and Europe, while also providing goods that are building what Blinken termed “the greatest challenge to European security since the end of the cold war”.
Speaking at a World Economic Forum gathering in Saudi Arabia, Blinken said
We have engaged with China from the start of the Russian aggression against Ukraine, and urged them not to provide Russia with arms, with weapons that would fuel the aggression.
And I think it’s fair to say that China has not directly supplied Russia with weapons, with missiles, with munitions. Iran is doing it. North Korea is doing it.
However, what China is doing, is providing invaluable support to Russia’s defence industrial base that’s helping Russia deal with the massive pressure that’s been exerted through sanctions, through export controls and other measures.
If you look at what Russia has done over the last year, in terms of its production of munitions, missiles, tanks and armoured vehicles, it has produced them at a faster pace than at any time in its modern history, including during the cold war as the Soviet Union.
How has it been able to do that? Because it is getting massive inputs of machine tools, micro electronics, optics, mostly coming from China. Now these are dual-use items, but we know very clearly where so many of them are going. And this poses two problems.
It is enabling Russia to continue the aggression against Ukraine. So it’s perpetuating a war that China says it would like to see come to an end. As all of us would.
But second, it’s also enabling Russia to rebuild a defence industrial base that countries throughout Europe are deeply concerned will be turned against them after Ukraine is done.
And so at the very time that China is seeking better relations with countries in Europe, it is also fueling the greatest challenge to European security since the end of the cold war. And as I shared with my Chinese colleagues, you can’t have it both ways.”
Putin's 'designs' on Ukraine have 'failed', says US secretary of state
Speaking at a World Economic Forum gathering in Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, the US secretary of state Antony Blinken said that the international coalition supporting Ukraine has meant that Vladimir Putin has failed in his ambition.
He told the audience:
On Ukraine, we were able to bring so many countries together, not just in Europe, but beyond, because countries recognise that there was an aggression, not only against Ukraine, but against some of the foundational principles of the international system.
And if we let that challenge go with impunity, then it was likely that would-be aggressors everywhere would take note, and we would have a world of more conflict, not less conflict.
And having brought many countries together effectively, we helped the incredibly courageous Ukrainians repel the aggression, and now it’s an ongoing effort, and ongoing struggle, but the designs that Vladimir Putin had on Ukraine to begin with, to erase it from the map, to subsume it into Russia, that no longer exists. That’s failed.
And we also have an alliance in Europe that’s stronger, that’s also larger than it was, and I think [we have] a plan to enable Ukraine to be a success over time. A strong country: militarily, economically democratically.”
Updated
Polish protesters lift months-long blockade at Ukraine border
Polish farmers stopped protesting at the last blocked border crossing with Ukraine on Monday, Kyiv and Warsaw said, suspending a blockade that has dragged on for months and soured bilateral relations, writes Reuters.
According to the news agency, Ukraine’s farm minister hailed “constructive work” by Poland to lift the blockade in a statement, saying negotiations with Warsaw and industry associations had not been easy but that “the main thing is that we have a result”.
“Fortunately, we have all directions on the border with Poland unblocked,” Ukrainian border guard spokesperson Andriy Demchenko said, adding that Polish farmers had freed access to the Rava-Ruska crossing. Trucks had started crossing the border in both directions on Monday morning, he said.
Polish border guard spokesperson Andrzej Juzwiak told Reuters access via all crossings to Ukraine was “without hindrance”.
Polish farmers and truckers have blocked border crossings with Ukraine since late autumn last year amid concerns over unfair competition. They have cited government inaction over a loss of business to foreign competitors since Russia’s war on Ukraine, with truckers from Ukraine exempt from seeking permits to cross the Polish border.
Trucks transporting grain products, the central issue that has angered Polish protesters, will still face some restrictions, the Ukrainian Border Service said.
“At the same time, trucks transporting grain crops will not be allowed to enter Poland. This type of cargo can only travel through Poland in transit mode,” the service said via Telegram messaging app, reports Reuters.
“I believe that such blockades are a thing of the past,” Ukraine’s ambassador to Poland Vasyl Zvarych wrote on Facebook. “Instead of blocking, we will cooperate even more closely.”
The protests drew sharp criticism from Ukrainian decision makers as the tensions on the border escalated in the winter.
Warsaw and Kyiv have been engaged in talks at different levels to try to find a solution, with Ukraine calling upon the European Union to intervene.
In March, Ukraine and Poland hailed progress on agricultural import talks but the deal remained elusive as the countries tried to close the gap between their positions on economic and security interests.
Updated
Ukraine's farm minister welcomes end of Polish border blockade
Ukraine’s farm minister welcomed the ending of a months-long border blockade by Polish protesters, which he said followed productive talks with Poland, reports Reuters.
“The negotiations that took place were not easy, but the main thing is that we have a result,” Mykola Solsky was quoted as saying in a statement from the ministry.
Here are some of the latest images on the newswires:
Updated
Polish protesters unblocked all border crossing points with Ukraine on Monday morning, a Ukraine border guard spokesperson said on a Ukrainian TV broadcast, reports Reuters news agency.
“Fortunately, we have unblocked all directions on the border with Poland,” the border guard spokesperson Andriy Demchenko said of Polish farmers ending the blockade.
He added that the trucks transporting grain products will still face restriction
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has shared an update on a peace summit he is working on, which is to be hosted by Switzerland in June.
In a social media post on X, Zelenskiy wrote:
We are preparing for the first, inaugural peace summit in June. Our team works with the teams of our key partners to ensure that the summit is truly global.
We can certainly say that countries from all continents will be represented, from various parts of the world and with different perspectives on global development.
They are all, however, in agreement that the UN Charter and foundational international conventions are binding documents for all countries, including countries like Russia, where insanity reigns.
The global majority must force Russia to make peace, and it can do it. The path to just peace can start in June.”
We are preparing for the first, inaugural Peace Summit in June. Our team works with the teams of our key partners to ensure that the Summit is truly global.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) April 28, 2024
We can certainly say that countries from all continents will be represented, from various parts of the world and with… pic.twitter.com/PQrLvUr4dc
Two Russian journalists were arrested by their government on “extremism” charges and ordered by courts there on Saturday to remain in custody pending investigation and trial on accusations of working for a group founded by the late Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny.
Konstantin Gabov and Sergey Karelin both denied the charges for which they will be detained for a minimum of two months before any trials begin, reports the Associated Press (AP). Each faces a minimum of two years in prison and a maximum of six years for alleged “participation in an extremist organization,” according to Russian courts.
They are just the latest journalists arrested amid a Russian government crackdown on dissent and independent media that intensified after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago.
The Russian government passed laws criminalizing what it deems false information about the military, or statements seen as discrediting the military, effectively outlawing any criticism of the war in Ukraine or speech that deviates from the official narrative, writes the AP.
According to the AP’s report, Gabov and Karelin are accused of preparing materials for a YouTube channel run by Navalny’s Foundation for Fighting Corruption, which has been outlawed by Russian authorities. Navalny died in an Arctic penal colony in February.
Gabov, who was detained in Moscow, is a freelance producer who has worked for multiple organisations, including Reuters, the court press service said. Reuters did not immediately comment on the ruling by the court.
Karelin, who has dual citizenship with Israel, was detained on Friday night in Russia’s northern Murmansk region. Karelin, 41, has worked for a number of outlets, including for the AP. He was a cameraman for German media outlet Deutsche Welle until the Kremlin banned the outlet from operating in Russia in February 2022.
“The Associated Press is very concerned by the detention of Russian video journalist Sergey Karelin,” the AP said in a statement. “We are seeking additional information.”
Additionaly, a journalist for the Russian edition of Forbes magazine, Sergei Mingazov, was detained on charges of spreading false information about the Russian military, his lawyer said on Friday.
Updated
Chinese president Xi Jinping is due to make a state visit to France on 6 and 7 May, Paris announced on Monday, with war in Ukraine and the Middle East expected to be high on the agenda, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The visit to France marks the Chinese leader’s first European tour since the coronavirus pandemic.
“Exchanges will focus on international crises, first and foremost the war in Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East, trade issues, scientific, cultural and sporting cooperation,” French president Emmanuel Macron’s office said in a statement.
China and Russia have ramped up economic cooperation and diplomatic contacts in recent years and their partnership has only grown closer since the invasion of Ukraine, writes AFP.
Beijing says it is a neutral party in the Ukraine conflict but has been criticised for refusing to condemn Moscow for its offensive.
Luke Harding reporting from Kyiv:
Russia has consolidated recent battlefield gains in the east of Ukraine, and is attempting to break through Ukrainian defensive lines before a long-awaited package of US military assistance arrives at the frontline.
On Sunday Russian troops advanced near the city of Avdiivka. They seized two villages and expanded a narrow corridor around the rural settlement of Ocheretyne, which the Russians entered a week ago. Ukrainian security officials described the situation in the Donbas region where Russia is attacking on multiple fronts as “very difficult”. It was “not critical or catastrophic”, they added.
The fighting in Ocheretyne followed a surprise Russian attack. The manoeuvre enabled Russian combat units to bypass a network of Ukrainian trenches and to establish a salient. They have since overrun neighbouring hamlets – Solovyove and Novokalynove – and are attempting to push farther west.
Ukraine’s eastern command said its forces controlled two-thirds of Ocheretyne, where there was fierce fighting.
You can read more of Luke Harding’s report here:
Updated
Ukraine says resisting heavy attacks in east amid Russian advance
Ukraine said on Monday it had foiled 55 Russian attacks in the eastern Donetsk region, a day after it admitted to a worsening situation on the frontline, according to a report by Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Moscow over the weekend claimed another eastern village, Novobakhmutivka, as struggling Ukrainian forces await the arrival of crucial US weapons.
The Ukrainian army said it had “repulsed 55 attacks” in several villages north and west of Novobakhmutivka. These included Ocheretyne, where heavy fighting was reported on Sunday.
The villages lie north of the hub of Adviivka, captured by Russian troops in February. Moscow’s forces have since pushed deeper into the Donetsk region.
According to the AFP report, Ukraine said its forces “continue to hold back the enemy” in several settlements west of the Moscow-held city of Donetsk, including the town of Krasnogorivka.
Ukraine said Russian forces had “with the support of aviation, tried 15 times to break through the defences of our troops.”
Krasnogorivka lies about 20 kilometres (32 miles) west of Donetsk and has served as a key stronghold for Kyiv.
It has become more vulnerable since the fall of nearby Marinka and Avdiivka, with reports of increased fighting in recent weeks, reports AFP.
Ukraine’s commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky said on Sunday that his troops had retreated to new defensive lines further to the west in some areas.
Kyiv has also warned that Russia will try to bring home some victories ahead of its patriotic 9 May holiday, writes AFP.
Updated
Opening summary
It has gone 10am in Kyiv and in Moscow. This is our latest Guardian blog covering all the latest developments over the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Ukraine said on Monday it had foiled 55 Russian attacks in the eastern Donetsk region, a day after it admitted to a worsening situation on the frontline, reports the Agence France-Presse news agency.
Moscow over the weekend claimed another eastern village, Novobakhmutivka, as struggling Ukrainian forces await the arrival of crucial US weapons.
According to AFP, the Ukrainian army said it had “repulsed 55 attacks” in several villages north and west of Novobakhmutivka. These included Ocheretyne, where heavy fighting was reported on Sunday.
More on that in a moment, but first, here are the other latest developments:
Ukraine’s troops have made a tactical retreat westwards from the villages of Berdychi, Semenivka and Novomykhailivka on the war’s eastern front, according to Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine’s military commander in chief. “The most difficult situation is in the Pokrovsk and Kurakhove directions, where fierce battles continue,” Syrskyi said, referencing two Ukrainian-held cities in the Donetsk region.
“The enemy has engaged up to four brigades in these directions, is trying to develop an offensive west of Avdiivka and Marinka, making its way to Pokrovsk and Kurakhove,” Syrskyi said, adding the retreat’s purpose was “preserving the lives and health of our defenders”. Syrski said Ukraine’s position on the battlefield had worsened. “In some sectors the enemy had tactical success, and in some areas our troops managed to improve the tactical position.”
It comes as Russia has consolidated recent battlefield gains and is attempting to break through Ukrainian defensive lines before new US military assistance arrives, Luke Harding reports from Kyiv. Ukrainian security officials described the situation on the battlefront in the Donbas region as “very difficult” but “not critical or catastrophic”.
Despite the developments, US-based thinktank the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has said Russia remains unlikely in the short term to make operationally significant gains west of Avdiivka. Ukrainian forces had so far reportedly been outnumbered three to one, but with limited resources had still prevented Russian forces from making the kinds of advances their greater combat power should allow. With Syrski having stated that refreshed Ukrainian units were being sent, this combined with additional weaponry would “force the Russian command to either accept that a near-term wider or deeper penetration is unlikely, or commit additional reserves to the area”, the ISW said.
There were unconfirmed reports that the Ukrainian military struck a Russian air defence unit at Cape Tarkhankut, on the western coast of occupied Crimea. Long-range Atacms missiles supplied this month by the US were used, Telegram channels said. Explosions were reported in the northern Crimean town of Dzhankoye after a previous attack there on an airfield and Russian missile launcher system.
Early on Sunday, Russian drones hit a hotel in the southern port city of Mykolaiv, said Vitaliy Kim, the region’s governor. A heat-generating plant was also damaged, he added.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ukraine’s president, said on Sunday: “We are still waiting for the supplies Ukraine was promised. We are expecting those volumes and scope that can change the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine’s interests.”
After speaking with the US House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, about US aid approved last week, Zelenskiy said: “In my conversation with Mr Jeffries, I underscored that Patriot systems are needed, and as soon as possible.”
On entry to the European Union, Zelenskiy said Ukraine had met all conditions for accession talks to start, “and now the EU must meet its obligations”. On entry to the Nato military alliance – which the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has said Ukraine will join eventually – Zelenskiy said that every country that shares common values and is ready to defend them “deserves an invitation to the alliance”.
