Ukrainian service members of the 35th Separate Marines Brigade attend a military drill near a frontline, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk region, Ukraine July 31, 2023. Much of Russian military activity focused on air attacks that damaged grain infrastructure in Ukraine's Danube port of Izmail. Kyiv also says it has retaken areas near Bakhmut, an eastern city seized by Russian forces in May after months of battles. Deputy Ukrainian Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said Russian forces had "tried quite persistently to halt our advance in the Bakhmut sector. Oleksiy Danilov, the Secretary of Ukraine's Security Council, said Russian forces had ample time in months of occupation to prepare defences and lay extensive minefields.

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Persons: Viacheslav, Hanna Maliar, Oleksiy Danilov, Danilov, Volodymyr Zeleskiy, Chasiv Yar, Ron Popeski, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Marines Brigade, REUTERS, Russia's Defence, Russian, Ukrainian, Ukraine's Security, Russia's, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Donetsk region, Donetsk, Izmail, Ukrainian, Russian, Azov, Crimean, Kyiv, Bakhmut