Latest news with #115thMechanizedBrigade
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Russia breaks through Ukrainian lines in Kursk
Russian forces have broken through Ukrainian lines, severing the Kursk offensive in two and threatening a major supply route. Live maps of the front lines show major gains thought to have been made with the help of North Korean troops fighting for Moscow. The only Ukrainian road into the town of Sudzha could now be in range of Russian first-person view drones, complicating Ukrainian efforts to hold the Kursk region and carry out a retreat if needed. The move will put pressure on some 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers who are currently fighting inside Russia. Ukraine seized parts of the Kursk region last summer in a surprise offensive that has given it considerable leverage in possible negotiations to end the war. There are an estimated 10,000-12,000 Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region from around five brigades. They include elite Ukrainian units from the 95th Air Assault Brigade and the 115th Mechanized Brigade. The Russian advance on the key road came shortly after the US halted intelligence sharing to Ukraine. By limiting surveillance, the US will have allowed Russians to operate more freely behind lines and plan attacks without Ukrainian knowledge, experts believe. A military intelligence officer in Kyiv told The Telegraph the freeze amounted to 'more or less a total blackout'. It was initially reported the intelligence cuts only applied inside Russia, where Friday's assault took place. The assault came as Donald Trump also banned private American companies and commercial services from providing satellite data for Ukraine, prompting aerospace company Maxar Technologies to cut off Ukraine's access to its satellite imagery. Maxar is the main supplier of commercial satellite images to Ukraine, showing the movement of Russian troops, as well as the status of important operations, including those inside of Russia. The intelligence cuts also affect Ukraine's ability to predict Russian missile and drone strikes. On Friday, Russia also launched a 'massive missile and drone' strike on Ukrainian gas facilities, just hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for a truce covering attacks on critical infrastructure. Kharkiv, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk, Odesa and Ternopil were targeted as Russia launched missiles from the sea and air. The operational command of Polish armed forces said it has scrambled fighter jets and put air defence systems on alert in response to Russia's strikes. Yesterday, at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, Mr Zelensky backed plans for a partial truce to stop air, sea and critical infrastructure attacks and test whether Putin is prepared to end his war on Ukraine. Senior Ukrainian and US officials will discuss the plans, as well as a large-scale prisoner exchange between Kyiv and Moscow, at a meeting in Saudi Arabia next week. Ukraine invaded the Kursk region in August of 2024, initially capturing around 1,300 square kilometres of Russian territory. The offensive was intended to be used as a bargaining chip in potential peace talks, pushing Russia to agree to more equitable conditions. The potentially devastating situation in Kursk follows Mr Trump's decision to cut off intelligence sharing with Ukraine. Ukrainian soldiers told The Telegraph the end of the intelligence sharing was even more catastrophic given the recent end of US military aid. 'It is impacting the soldiers' morale,' said a 30-year-old medic serving in the Donetsk region. 'With everything Donald Trump has done, it feels like we are being abandoned.' The medic fears the situation for Ukraine will deteriorate even further in the coming weeks due to improving conditions on the battlefield. 'Clearer and warmer weather conditions cause a higher intensity of fighting,' he said. According to Ukraine's General Staff, Russian casualties in Kursk have reached nearly 40,000 over the course of six months of fighting, with more than 16,000 killed as of February. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
07-03-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Russia breaks through Ukrainian lines in Kursk
Russian forces have broken through Ukrainian lines, severing the Kursk offensive in two and threatening a major supply route. Live maps of the front lines show major gains thought to have been made with the help of North Korean troops fighting for Moscow. The only Ukrainian road into the town of Sudzha could now be in range of Russian first-person view drones, complicating Ukrainian efforts to hold the Kursk region and carry out a retreat if needed. The move will put pressure on some 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers who are currently fighting inside Russia. Ukraine seized parts of the Kursk region last summer in a surprise offensive that has given it considerable leverage in possible negotiations to end the war. There are an estimated 10,000-12,000 Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region from around five brigades. They include elite Ukrainian units from the 95th Air Assault Brigade and the 115th Mechanized Brigade. The Russian advance on the key road came shortly after the US halted intelligence sharing to Ukraine. By limiting surveillance, the US will have allowed Russians to operate more freely behind lines and plan attacks without Ukrainian knowledge, experts believe. A military intelligence officer in Kyiv told The Telegraph the freeze amounted to 'more or less a total blackout'. It was initially reported the intelligence cuts only applied inside Russia, where Friday's assault took place. The assault came as Donald Trump also banned private American companies and commercial services from providing satellite data for Ukraine, prompting aerospace company Maxar Technologies to cut off Ukraine's access to its satellite imagery. Maxar is the main supplier of commercial satellite images to Ukraine, showing the movement of Russian troops, as well as the status of important operations, including those inside of Russia. The intelligence cuts also affect Ukraine's ability to predict Russian missile and drone strikes. On Friday, Russia also launched a 'massive missile and drone' strike on Ukrainian gas facilities, just hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for a truce covering attacks on critical infrastructure. Kharkiv, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk, Odesa and Ternopil were targeted as Russia launched missiles from the sea and air. The operational command of Polish armed forces said it has scrambled fighter jets and put air defence systems on alert in response to Russia's strikes. Yesterday, at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, Mr Zelensky backed plans for a partial truce to stop air, sea and critical infrastructure attacks and test whether Putin is prepared to end his war on Ukraine. Senior Ukrainian and US officials will discuss the plans, as well as a large-scale prisoner exchange between Kyiv and Moscow, at a meeting in Saudi Arabia next week. Ukraine invaded the Kursk region in August of 2024, initially capturing around 1,300 square kilometres of Russian territory. The offensive was intended to be used as a bargaining chip in potential peace talks, pushing Russia to agree to more equitable conditions. The potentially devastating situation in Kursk follows Mr Trump's decision to cut off intelligence sharing with Ukraine. Ukrainian soldiers told The Telegraph the end of the intelligence sharing was even more catastrophic given the recent end of US military aid. 'It is impacting the soldiers' morale,' said a 30-year-old medic serving in the Donetsk region. 'With everything Donald Trump has done, it feels like we are being abandoned.' The medic fears the situation for Ukraine will deteriorate even further in the coming weeks due to improving conditions on the battlefield. 'Clearer and warmer weather conditions cause a higher intensity of fighting,' he said. According to Ukraine's General Staff, Russian casualties in Kursk have reached nearly 40,000 over the course of six months of fighting, with more than 16,000 killed as of February.
The Independent
23-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Ecumenical Orthodox patriarch backs Ukraine's sovereignty in Mass marking 3 years of war
The top figure in Eastern Orthodox Christianity on Sunday declared that 'Ukraine's sovereignty is not up for debate, nor can it be negotiated under the guise of diplomacy,' as he celebrated Mass in Istanbul on the eve of the third anniversary of Russia 's war in Ukraine. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, who is considered the 'first among equals' in Eastern Orthodoxy, said any future peace agreement 'must include Ukraine as an equal participant.' He praised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for his 'tireless effort' to defend the country's independence. Most Ukrainians identify as Orthodox Christians, though the country remains split between an independent church based in Kyiv and another aligned with Moscow. Bartholomew, who has consistently shown support for Ukraine since the war began, recognized the Orthodox Church of Ukraine as independent from Moscow in 2019 — a move that prompted Russian Patriarch Kirill and the Russian Orthodox Church to sever contact. 'No force can extinguish the spirit of the people who refuse to be broken,' Bartholomew said in his sermon at a Mass attended by relatives and friends of Ukrainian soldiers who are missing or believed to be held in Russian captivity. 'No nation has the right to force its will upon another, and no power can erase a people's history.' The service drew tears from the participating Ukrainians. Among them was Tetiana Tantsiura, whose husband Oleg Naradko, a soldier in Ukraine's 115th Mechanized Brigade, went missing in action in July 2022. 'It's hard to talk about,' Tantsiura told the Associated Press, 'He disappeared July 2022. Until this time, the current year, I don't know anything. I only hope that he is alive, and he will return in Ukraine.' Although Russian President Vladimir Putin has tried to justify the invasion of Ukraine in part as a defense of the Moscow-oriented Orthodox Church, leaders of both Ukrainian Orthodox factions — and the country's significant Catholic minority — have strongly condemned the war. Ukraine's consul general to Istanbul, Nedilskyi Roman, thanked the patriarch for his 'personal and spiritual' support to Ukraine. 'Your prayers have given us the strength to stand and fight the insidious enemy for 3 years. Thank you for your personal and spiritual support to millions of Ukrainians around the world who were forced to leave their homes to save the lives of their children," Roman said.
