Russia says it captures 3 more settlements in east Ukraine
Ukraine has for months reported Russian attempts to seize parts of Sumy, but never confirmed any losses. (AP pic)
MOSCOW : Russian troops advancing slowly on the eastern front of the war in Ukraine have captured two settlements in Donetsk region as well as one in Ukraine's northern region of Sumy, the Russian defence ministry said on Saturday.
Since their failed advance on the capital Kyiv in the first weeks of the war, Russian forces have focused on capturing the Donbas in the east, made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
In recent months, Moscow has also tried to advance in Sumy region, particularly after Russia's military said it had ousted Ukrainian troops from the Russian border region of Kursk.
A Russian defence ministry statement said its forces had captured the village of Stupochky in Donetsk region, east of Kostiantynivka, a town under recent Russian pressure.
It also said it had taken control of Otradne, a village further west along the 1,000km front and announced the capture of Loknya, a village inside the Russian border in Sumy region.
The general staff of Ukraine's military acknowledged no such losses, referring to Otradne as one of several towns where Ukrainian troops had halted 18 frontline Russian attacks. It referred to Stupochky earlier this week as part of an area under Russian attack.
For months, Ukraine has reported attempts by Russian forces to occupy areas of Sumy region, but has never acknowledged the capture of any of them.
Reuters could not independently verify battlefield accounts from either side.
Ukraine's popular DeepState military blog, which uses open source reports, said Russian forces had for the first time 'been able to take up positions' along a line of border villages.
Russia's defence ministry on Friday announced the capture of Radkivka, a village outside the northeastern city of Kupiansk, which has been under pressure for months.
On Saturday, Kupiansk Mayor Andrii Besedin said the attacks were taking a toll, including two city workers killed on Friday.
'We are seeing awful losses among our people, our colleagues who give their lives so the city can go on living,' Besedin told national television. 'Sadly, as of now, the city is 90% destroyed.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
33 minutes ago
- The Star
Taiwan warns of rise in Chinese military activity around region
This image released by the Taiwan Ministry of National Defence shows China's Shandong aircraft carrier sailing near Taiwan on March 31. - Taiwan Ministry of National Defence/AP TAIPEI: Taiwan said China escalated military pressure around the region in May, deploying dozens of warships and government vessels daily in what it described as an extreme pressure campaign. China sent an average of 50 to 70 vessels per day across the first island chain - a key strategic arc stretching from Japan through Taiwan and the Philippines - between May 1 and 27, said a senior Taiwanese security official, who asked not to be identified, citing government protocol. The official, who spoke at a briefing on Thursday (May 29), called it a record high for May, though did not provide comparable figures from last year. A document shared at the briefing showed the scale and range of the deployments stretching from the Yellow Sea to the East and South China Seas. Tensions have steadily risen since President Lai Ching-te took office in May last year. Beijing, which views the democratic island as part of its territory, has called Lai a separatist and carried out at least seven sets of military drills around the island since his inauguration, a pace not seen in previous years. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday urged partners in Asia to raise defense spending toward five per cent of gross domestic product, warning that more urgency is needed to prepare for a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan. Chinese activity peaked around May 27, when more than 70 vessels - mostly naval - were observed operating in the region, according to the Taipei official. Two aircraft carriers, the Shandong and Liaoning, took part in the activities last month, with the Liaoning conducting takeoff and landing drills for warplanes in the East China Sea for the first time, the official said. Chinese patrols also appeared to press closer to Taiwan's 24-nautical mile boundary during joint combat exercises, which the Taipei official said go far beyond Beijing's defense needs. Separate data from Taiwan's Defence Ministry shows around 254 Chinese warships and government vessels were spotted around the archipelago over May 1-27, averaging nine a day, according to Bloomberg calculations. That's slightly up from an average of seven a day last year, the data shows. - Bloomberg
Malay Mail
an hour ago
- Malay Mail
Russia says it has Ukraine's peace proposal ahead of Istanbul talks
ISTANBUL, June 2 — A senior Russian official said on Sunday that Moscow has received Ukraine's draft memorandum outlining a possible peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict, Anadolu Ajansi (AA) reported. Putin's adviser, Vladimir Medinsky, who would head the Russian delegation during peace talks in Istanbul on Monday, told Russia Today that the document was submitted in both Ukrainian and English languages. 'The Russian delegation previously received a version of the memorandum concerning a peaceful resolution from Ukraine,' Medinsky said. He added that the language of the document was not an issue and noted that key points had already appeared in Western media. Medinsky also said Russia would announce its stance on the Ukraine issue on Monday. On Sunday, Ukraine's president said that his government will strive to achieve 'at least some progress on the path toward peace' during talks set to take place in Istanbul, despite not receiving any ceasefire memorandum from Russia. — Bernama-Anadolu
Malay Mail
5 hours ago
- Malay Mail
UK to unveil major defence review to confront ‘new era of threat' amid rising Russian aggression
LONDON, June 2 — Britain is set to publish on Monday a major review of its defence strategy and armed forces as the government warned of 'growing' Russian aggression and the changing nature of modern warfare. Prime Minister Keir Starmer cautioned on Sunday that the UK was being 'directly threatened' by hostile states as his government announced a raft of new defence measures. 'We will restore Britain's war-fighting readiness as the central purpose of our armed forces,' Starmer wrote in a statement published by The Sun. The UK has been racing to rearm in the face of the threat from Russia and fears that US President Donald Trump will no longer help protect Europe. On Monday, the Labour government will publish its Strategic Defence Review, a document that will assess threats facing the UK and make recommendations. The review warns that Britain is entering 'a new era of threat' as drones and artificial intelligence transform modern warfare, The Guardian newspaper reported over the weekend. Starmer said it would serve as 'a blueprint for strength and security for decades to come'. His government pledged in February to lift defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2027 in the 'largest sustained increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War'. And despite budget constraints, it aims for spending to rise to 3 per cent in the next parliamentary term, due in 2029. The Labour government has said it will cut UK overseas aid to help fund the spending. 'Daily' attacks The last such defence review was commissioned in 2021 by the previous Conservative government, and was revised in 2023 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Based on the recommendations of the review, which is led by former Nato secretary general George Robertson, Starmer announced measures to boost stockpiles and weapons production capacity, which could be scaled up if needed. This includes £1.5 billion (RM8.6 billion) for building 'at least six munitions and energetics factories', procuring 7,000 domestically built long-range weapons, and spending £6 billion on munitions over the current parliamentary term. The government also said it would build 12 new attack submarines as part of its AUKUS military alliance with Australia and the United States, and invest £15 billion in its nuclear warhead programme. The defence ministry last week pledged £1 billion for the creation of a 'cyber command' to help on the battlefield. 'We're in a world that is changing now... and it is a world of growing threats,' Defence Secretary John Healey told the BBC in an interview Sunday. 'It's growing Russian aggression. It's those daily cyberattacks, it's new nuclear risks, and it's increasing tension in other parts of the world as well,' he said. 'Sophisticated challenge' While launching the review, Robertson said it would tackle with threats from Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, calling them a 'deadly quartet'. But in his op-ed in The Sun, Starmer did not mention China, while warning that 'The Kremlin is working hand in hand with its cronies in Iran and North Korea.' The softer rhetoric on China is in line with the Labour government's efforts to thaw relations with Beijing, which reached new lows under former prime minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative government. The review describes Russia as an 'immediate and pressing' threat, but calls China a 'sophisticated and persistent challenge', according to The Guardian. At a time when Washington is demanding that its Nato allies bolster their own defences, Britain is considering strengthening its deterrent by buying nuclear-missile capable aircrafts from the United States, The Sunday Times reported. Without confirming or denying, Healey said Sunday that 'strong deterrence is absolutely essential in order to keep Britain and the British people safe'. — AFP
