Russia’s war in Ukraine
Vladimir Putin has said that 1,000 to 1,500 volunteers are signing contracts to join the Russian army a day, a sign of the pressure Moscow is under from Ukraine’s counteroffensive.
Mr Putin was responding to a question about whether Russia needed to introduce a new compulsory mobilisation to boost its forces during an appearance in Vladivostok.
It comes as Ukraine says it is a step closure to recapturing Crimea after recapturing strategic gas and oil drilling platforms from Russia in the Black Sea.
“Russia has been deprived of the ability to fully control the waters of the Black Sea, and this makes Ukraine many steps closer to regaining Crimea,” Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate said.
Earlier, an armoured train carrying North Korean leader Kim Jong-un arrived in Russia for talks with Mr Putin. The train crossed the Khasan station in “an atmosphere of absolute secrecy” this morning, Russian news agency Interfax reported.
Western intelligence agencies expect the Russian and North Korean leaders to discuss Pyongyang supplying weapons and ammunition to support Mr Putin’s war machine in Ukraine. with Moscow expending thousands of shells a day.
