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☆ Ukraine to fire all regional military recruitment chiefs
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced the dismissal of the heads of all the country's regional military recruitment centres on Friday amid concerns about corruption. Zelenskiy said a review of Ukraine's recruiting centres revealed signs of professional abuse ranging from illegal enrichment to transporting draft-eligible men across the border despite a wartime ban. Kyiv has made cracking down on graft a key priority as it fends off Russia's full-scale invasion and seeks membership of the European Union. Ukraine has faced recruitment challenges as the war with Russia nears the 18-month mark and the military is occasionally hit by scandals revealing graft or heavy-handed recruitment tactics. Reporting by Dan Peleschuk; editing by Tom BalmforthOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Valery Zaluzhny, Dan Peleschuk, Tom Balmforth Organizations: European Union, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia

☆ Three killed, Chinese consulate damaged in Russian attack on Ukraine's port cities
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Viktoria Lakezina | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Rescuers work at a site of an administrative building heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Odesa, Ukraine July 20, 2023. In Odesa, a security guard was killed and at least eight other people were hurt, including a child, Kiper said. A Russian attack on the port of Chornomorsk on Wednesday damaged grain export infrastructure as well as the agricultural products Zelenskiy said were meant for China. Ukrainian officials see the air strikes as an attack on global food security because Kyiv is a major grain exporter. Authorities in the northeastern region of Kharkiv said separately a 61-year-old man had been killed there by Russian shelling on Thursday.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Oleh Kiper, Zelenskiy, Kiper, Oleksandr Senkevych, Vitaliy Kim, Mykhailo Podolayk, Dan Peleschuk, Timothy Organizations: Press, State Emergency Service of, Companies, Regional, Fire, UN Security Council, Twitter, Authorities, Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Odesa, State Emergency Service of Ukraine, Handout, Ukrainian, Russia, MYKOLAIV, Black, Beijing, China, Moscow, Mykolaiv, Chornomorsk, Kyiv, Kharkiv

☆ Ukraine says fighting in east has intensified
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KYIV, July 16 (Reuters) - Fighting in eastern Ukraine has "somewhat intensified" as Ukrainian and Russian forces clash in at least three areas on the eastern front, a senior Ukrainian defence official said on Sunday. Separately, the Ukrainian military indicated it had taken control of part of a southeastern village in Donetsk region, near a string of small settlements Ukraine recaptured in June. Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on Telegram that Russian forces have been attacking in the direction of Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region for two successive days. Maliar also said the two armies were pummelling one another around the ruined city of Bakhmut but that Ukrainian forces were "gradually moving forward" along its southern flank. Kyiv has made incremental gains in parts of the east and south since launching its long-awaited counteroffensive.

Persons: Hanna Maliar, Maliar, Vladimir Putin, Dan Peleschuk, Nick Starkov, Elaine Monaghan, David Holmes, Alexandra Hudson, Sandra Maler Organizations: Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Ukrainian, Donetsk region, Staromayorske, Russia's, Kupyansk, Kharkiv, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Kyiv

☆ Last ship leaves Ukraine port ahead of Black Sea grain-deal deadline
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, July 16 (Reuters) - The last ship to travel under a U.N.-brokered deal that allows the safe Black Sea export of Ukrainian grain left the port of Odesa early on Sunday ahead of a deadline to extend the agreement, according to a Reuters witness and MarineTraffic.com. A United Nations spokesman said on Friday that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was waiting for a response from Russian President Vladimir Putin on a proposal to extend the deal. Russia has repeatedly threatened to quit the deal, brokered by the U.N. and Turkey in July 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Ukrainian officials did not immediately comment on whether the ship, the Turkish-flagged TQ Samsun, had left Odesa. Ukraine and Russia are among the world's top grain exporters.

Persons: Antonio Guterres, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Cyril Ramaphosa, Iryna Nazarchuk, Dan Peleschuk, Barbara Lewis Organizations: United Nations, South, Thomson Locations: Russia, Moscow, Turkey, Ukraine, Turkish, Samsun, Odesa

☆ Frontline videos offer grim, close-up view of Kyiv's counteroffensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Oleksandr Ratushniak /File PhotoKYIV, July 11 (Reuters) - Vivid helmet camera videos filmed by Ukrainian soldiers at the front line can give viewers a visceral feel of combat as Kyiv's counteroffensive finally unfolds, even though experts warn against drawing strong conclusions about how the war is going. The information vacuum has been partially filled by a steady stream of video filmed by soldiers themselves and often compiled, edited and released by their units. Later, an exhausted commander lets out an expletive at the camera after a Russian artillery strike on his unit's position. Reynolds added that the videos can also provide a feel for the artillery-scarred terrain Ukrainian troops are fighting on. 'SO YOU ALL KNOW THE PRICE'Troops releasing videos say that depicting the intensity of combat helps convey to the public their forces' commitment, bolstering support.

Persons: Oleksandr Ratushniak, Nick Reynolds, Reynolds, Oleh, Valerii Markus, we'll, Dan Peleschuk, Peter Graff Organizations: REUTERS, Separate Assault Brigade, Royal United Services Institute, Reuters, Troops, Mechanized Brigade, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Neskuchne, Donetsk region, Ukrainian, Bakhmut, Russian, London, Crimea, Russia

☆ Ukraine reports 'particularly fruitful' few days in counteroffensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"The last few days have been particularly fruitful," he said, without providing any details from the battlefield. On Monday, Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said fighting had surged around the eastern city of Bakhmut, captured by Russian forces in May. She said the Ukrainian military had taken back 37.4 square kilometres (14.4 square miles) of territory overall in heavy fighting in the past week. He said the Ukrainian military was managing to hold back an attempted advance by Russian forces in the Lyman, Avdiivka and Marinka directions in eastern Ukraine. Russian shelling on Tuesday morning killed a man and a woman in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, the local prosecutor's office said.

Persons: Read, Oleksiy Danilov, Ukraine's, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Valeriy Shershen, Hanna Maliar, Andriy Kovalev, Avdiivka, Aleksandar Vasovic, Timothy Organizations: SIRKO TEAM, 225TH, Russian, National Security, Defence Council, Russia, Ukraine's Defense Forces, Ukraine's National Security, Defence, Twitter, Ukraine, Lyman, Reuters, Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: Russian, Northwest Bakhmut, Donetsk Region, Ukraine, KYIV, Ukrainian, Moscow, Bakhmut, Russia, Kherson

☆ Russian drones kill two, Ukraine's Zelenskiy seeks better air defences
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Images posted by Ukraine's state emergency service showed mangled buildings and courtyards scattered with debris as rescue workers tackled a fire. "Unfortunately, our country does not yet have a sufficient number of high-quality air defence systems to protect our entire territory and shoot down all enemy targets," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address. "We will do everything possible and impossible to make our air defences the strongest." Ukraine, he said, needed to protect its own territory and "in future become the basis of a European air shield. He said Ukrainian air defences had downed more than 3,000 targets of various types over the 16 months of war.

Persons: Read, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Dan Peleschuk, Timothy Heritage, Andrew Heavens, Ron Popeski Organizations: Press, State Emergency Service of, Ukraine, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Sumy, State Emergency Service of Ukraine, KYIV, Russian, Ukrainian, Moscow, Russia

☆ Three killed in latest Russian air strikes on Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Rescuers work at the site of an apartment building damaged during Russian missile strikes, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine June 24, 2023. REUTERS/Valentyn OgirenkoJune 24 (Reuters) - At least three people were killed in Kyiv early on Saturday after Russia unleashed its latest overnight air strikes on Ukraine, Ukrainian officials said. Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said missiles had targeted at least five regions across the country. Ukraine's military said air defences had destroyed 41 out of 51 cruise missiles, as well as two drones, launched by Russia in the assault. Moscow began stepping up regular air strikes on Ukraine in May as Kyiv's military was planning a counteroffensive, which is now ongoing, to retake Russian-occupied territory in the east and south.

Persons: Valentyn, Ihor Klymenko, Serhiy Popko, Mayor Vitalii Klitschko, Serhiy Lysak, Oleh Synehubov, Ron Popeski, Dan Peleschuk, Sandra Maler, William Mallard, Toby Chopra, Frances Kerry Organizations: Russian, REUTERS, Interior, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, Russia, Dnipropetrovsk, Dnipro, Russian, Kharkiv, Ukraine's, Moscow

A Russian-installed official said on Sunday that Ukraine had taken control of the village, Piatykhatky, in the southern Zaporizhzhia region. Ukraine's Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said Ukrainian forces had not only retaken Piatykhatky but had advanced by up to seven km (4.3 miles) into Russian lines in two weeks, capturing 113 square km (44 square miles) of land. The reported capture of the villages reflects incremental gains for Ukraine that highlight the challenge of breaking through lines Moscow has spent months strengthening. Russia says it invaded Ukraine to "denazify" it, an argument Ukraine and its Western allies call a pretext for a land grab. While Ukraine conducts what Western governments and analysts say are probing attacks to test Russian forces, officials from two NATO member states said Moscow is redeploying some of its forces as it seeks to predict where Ukraine will strike.

Persons: Ukraine Zelenskiy, Hanna Maliar, Piatykhatky, Maliar, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Vladimir Rogov, Margo Grosberg, Michael Kofman, Denise Brown, Dan Peleschuk, Lidia Kelly, Wendell Roelf, Philippa Fletcher, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Russian Defence Ministry, NATO, Russia, Western, Estonian Defense Forces, Twitter, Russia's Defence Ministry, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, French, KYIV, Russian, Piatykhatky, Moscow, Ukrainian, Novodonetske, Donetsk, Sweden, Estonian, Dnipro, Estonia, U.S, Great Salt, Kherson region, Kyiv, West

[1/5] Ukrainian service members are seen on their position at a front line, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 18, 2023. "The enemy's 'wave-like' offensives yielded results, despite enormous losses," the official, Vladimir Rogov, said on the Telegram messaging app. A separate statement from Russia's Vostok group of forces said Ukraine had failed to take the settlement. Ukrainian officials have imposed an information blackout to help operational security, but say that Russia has suffered much greater losses than Ukraine has during its new assault. "In all these areas, Ukraine continues to pursue offensive operations and has made small advances," it said on Twitter.

Persons: Anna Kudriavtseva, Piatykhatky, Vladimir Rogov, Russia's, Vladimir Putin, Cyril Ramaphosa, Putin, Ramaphosa, Dmitry Peskov, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Antonio Guterres, Hola Prystan, Tamara, Dan Peleschuk, Tom Balmforth, Wendell Roelf, Mark Trevelyan, Frances Kerry Organizations: REUTERS, Ukrainian, Twitter, South, Initiative, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Donetsk region, Ukrainian, Russia, Moscow, Kyiv, Russian, Donetsk, Kherson, Bakhmut, St Petersburg, Africa, Hola, London

☆ One killed in latest Russian air strike on Ukraine, Kyiv says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Firefighters work at a site of a car wash heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the town of Uman, Cherkasy region, Ukraine, in this handout picture released June 9, 2023. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Cherkasy region/Handout... Read moreKYIV, June 9 (Reuters) - Russia unleashed a new air strike on Ukraine overnight, killing at least one person in a combined assault of cruise missiles and attack drones, Ukrainian authorities said. The interior ministry said one person had been killed, three were wounded, and four buildings were destroyed from falling debris. The air force also said two cruise missiles had struck a civilian object in the central Ukrainian region of Cherkasy during an earlier attack on Thursday evening. Moscow in recent weeks has stepped up regular air strikes against Ukraine as Kyiv prepared for a counteroffensive to try to take back Russian-occupied territory.

Persons: Read, Ihor Taburets, Dan Peleschuk, Clarence Fernandez, Timothy Organizations: Press, State Emergency Service of, Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Uman, Cherkasy, State Emergency Service of Ukraine, KYIV, Russia, Ukrainian, Moscow

☆ Ukraine reports 'heavy combat' after Putin says offensive has begun
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

"We can state for sure that this offensive has begun," Russian President Vladimir Putin said in Sochi. "Ukrainian troops did not achieve their goals in any sector." Ukrainian military analyst Oleksander Musiyenko, interviewed on Ukrainian NV Radio, said Ukraine was making gains but dismissed Russian reports of a major counter-offensive in south-central Zaporizhzhia region. The counteroffensive is ultimately expected to involve thousands of Ukrainian troops trained and equipped by the West. Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said only that battles were continuing for Velyka Novosilka and Russian troops were mounting "active defence" at Orikhiv.

Persons: Putin, Zelenskiy, Vladimir Putin, Voldymyr Zelenskiy, Oleksander Musiyenko, Musiyenko, Ben Barry, They've, Barry, Hanna Maliar, Velyka Novosilka, Prystan, Oksana, Ukraine Denise Brown, Mark Trevelyan, Olena Harmash, Ron Popeski, Peter Graff, Diane Craft, Angus MacSwan, Nick Macfie, Andrew Heavens, Philippa Fletcher, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Press, State Emergency Service of, Ukrainian NV, West, United, Kyiv, International Institute for Strategic Studies, U.S, Bradley, Deputy, Reuters, United Nations, Kremlin, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Zviahel, Zhytomyr region, State Emergency Service of Ukraine, Zhytomyr ., Russia, Ukrainian, KYIV, Moscow, Kyiv, U.S, Sochi, United States, Orikhiv, Crimea, Tokmak, Europe, Dnipro, Voronezh, Belgorod, Kursk

☆ Russia reports heavy fighting in southern Ukraine, Kyiv silent on counterattack
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Zhytomyr... Read moreKYIV, June 9 (Reuters) - Russia reported heavy fighting along the front in southern Ukraine on Friday, where bloggers described the first sightings of German and U.S. armour, signalling that Ukraine's long-anticipated counterattack was under way. The counteroffensive is ultimately expected to involve thousands of Ukrainian troops trained and equipped by the West. Russia, which has had months to prepare its defensive lines, says it has withstood attacks since the start of the week. Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar described heavy fighting in the east, where she said Ukrainian troops had mainly held off Russian attacks. On the southern front she said only that battles were continuing for the settlement of Velyka Novosilka and that Russian troops were mounting "active defence" at Orikhiv.

Persons: Read, Ben Barry, They’ve, Barry, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, it's, Hanna Maliar, Ihor Taburets, Mark Trevelyan, Peter Graff, Angus MacSwan, Nick Macfie Organizations: Press, State Emergency Service of, West, Kyiv, International Institute for Strategic Studies, U.S, Bradley, Kremlin, Ukrainian, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Zviahel, Zhytomyr region, State Emergency Service of Ukraine, Zhytomyr ., KYIV, Russia, U.S, Orikhiv, Crimea, Tokmak, Dnipro, Moscow, Bakhmut, Europe, Velyka, Ukrainian, Cherkasy, Voronezh, Kyiv

☆ Kyiv says it intercepted call showing Russia blew up Kakhovka dam
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The destruction of the facility on Tuesday unleashed mass flooding, forcing thousands of residents to flee and wreaking environmental havoc. Russia, which has accused Kyiv of destroying the dam, did not immediately comment on its content. That was our sabotage group," said one of the men on the recording, described by the SBU as a Russian soldier. "The interception by the SBU confirms that the Kakhovskaya HPP (Hydroelectric Power Plant) was blown up by a sabotage group of the occupiers," the SBU said in a statement. "The invaders wanted to blackmail Ukraine by blowing up the dam and staged a man-made disaster in the south of our country."

Persons: Ukraine's, SBU, Vasyl Malyuk, Vladimir, Putin's, Dan Peleschuk, Timothy Heritage, Andrew Heavens Organizations: Security Service of Ukraine, Reuters, Russian Federation, Thomson Locations: Russia Moscow, Ukraine, KYIV, Russian, Russia, Kherson

☆ Ukraine's Zelenskiy visits flood-hit area after Kakhovka dam collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] A view shows flooded residential buildings after the Nova Kakhovka dam breached, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kherson, Ukraine June 8, 2023. REUTERS/Vladyslav SmilianetsKYIV, June 8 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited the flooded southern region of Kherson on Thursday to discuss emergency operations after flooding caused by the destruction of a huge dam. "Also, the prospects for restoring the region's ecosystem and the operational military situation in the man-made disaster area." Kherson lies on the Dnipro, about 60 km (37 miles) downstream from the Kakhovka dam. "It is important to calculate the damage and allocate funds to compensate residents affected by the disaster and develop a program to compensate for losses or relocate businesses within the Kherson region," Zelenskiy said.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Dan Peleschuk, Timothy Organizations: REUTERS, Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Kherson, Vladyslav, KYIV, Moscow, Dnipro

☆ Ukraine warns over reservoir level after Kakhovka dam collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] A column of water from the explosion during a Russian military strike is seen during an evacuation local residents from a flooded area after the Nova Kakhovka dam breached, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine in Kherson, Ukraine June 8, 2023. REUTERS/StringerKYIV, June 8 (Reuters) - The water level at a reservoir in southern Ukraine is approaching a dangerous low after the destruction of the dam at the nearby Kakhovka Hydroelectric Station, the state company overseeing the facility said on Thursday. Moscow and Kyiv blamed each other for the collapse of the dam on Tuesday, which unleashed flood water from the Dnipro River on a wide area of southern Ukraine. Ihor Syrota, general director of Ukrhydroenergo, told Ukrainian television that a drop below the current water level at the Kakhovka Reservoir could affect the nearby Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station and water supply to other regions. Ukraine's nuclear energy company said on Thursday the situation was "stable and under control" at the Zaporizhzhia plant on Thursday morning.

Persons: Stringer KYIV, Ihor Syrota, Ukrhydroenergo, Syrota, Dan Peleschuk, Timothy Organizations: REUTERS, Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Kherson, Kakhovka, Moscow, Dnipro

☆ Counting central Ukraine’s military losses, with a spreadsheet
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Reuters has not been able to independently verify widely varying claims of battlefield losses on both sides of the conflict. But the spreadsheet offers a glimpse into the human cost of the war in one of Ukraine's 27 regions. Ukraine's defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Ukraine's losses. According to his spreadsheet, at least 25 soldiers from the 116th Territorial Defence Brigade were killed there that month. "The entire region felt these losses," Tkachenko said.

Persons: Denys Bondarev, Dan Peleschuk, Viktor Tkachenko, Tkachenko, Kyiv's, Poltava's, Istomin, Andriy Karpov, Tetiana, Bondareva, Mike Collett, White, Alex Richardson Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Facebook, 116th Territorial Defence Brigade, Thomson Locations: Poltava, Ukraine, Dan Peleschuk POLTAVA, Sumy, Kharkiv, Russia, Poltava city, Russia's, Soledar, Bakhmut

☆ Situation at nuclear plant under control after dam blast - Ukraine atomic agency
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, June 6 (Reuters) - The destruction of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine poses a threat to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, but the situation at the facility is under control, Ukraine's state atomic power agency said on Tuesday. The U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, said on Twitter it was closely monitoring the situation but that there was "no immediate nuclear safety risk at (the) plant" which is also in southern Ukraine. It said the water level of the Kakhovka Reservoir was rapidly lowering, posing an "additional threat" to the Russian-occupied facility - Europe's largest nuclear power plant - which both sides have blamed one another for shelling. "Water from the Kakhovka Reservoir is necessary for the station to receive power for turbine capacitors and safety systems of the ZNPP (Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant)," Energoatom said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app. "Currently, the situation at the ZNPP is under control, Ukrainian personnel are monitoring all indicators," it said.

Persons: Energoatom, Dan Peleschuk, Timothy Organizations: International Atomic Energy Agency, Twitter, Russian, Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Russia

☆ Kyiv dismisses Russian reports of Ukrainian counteroffensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, June 5 (Reuters) - Russian reports that Ukraine has begun a counteroffensive are meant to distract attention from losses Russian forces are taking around the eastern city of Bakhmut, Ukrainian deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said on Monday. Moscow said it had thwarted a major Ukrainian assault involving six mechanised and two tank battalions in the south of Ukraine's Donetsk region. In a post on the Telegram messaging app, Hanna Maliar said Ukrainian forces were "shifting to offensive actions" in some areas along the front line but dismissed suggestions that this was part of a major operation. Russia's private Wagner militia captured Bakhmut last month after the longest battle of the war and handed its positions there to regular Russian troops. Maliar said the area around Bakhmut remained the "epicentre" of fighting and that the Ukrainian military was "moving along a fairly wide front".

Persons: Hanna Maliar, Moscow, Russia's, Bakhmut, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Maliar, Dan Peleschuk, Timothy Organizations: Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Bakhmut, Ukrainian, Ukraine's Donetsk

☆ Pro-Ukraine Russian partisans plan to give prisoners to Kyiv
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

KYIV, June 4 (Reuters) - A pro-Ukraine group of Russian partisans on Sunday said it had captured several soldiers during a cross-border raid into southern Russia and would hand them over to Ukrainian authorities. The Russian Volunteer Corps made the claim in a video statement released on Telegram in the wake of a raid into the Russian region of Belgorod. The one minute and 26 second video clip showed what appeared to be around a dozen Russian soldiers being held captive, with two lying on hospital beds. The governor of Belgorod, Vyacheslav Gladkov, earlier agreed to meet the group if the soldiers were still alive. Members of the Russian Volunteer Corps are seen, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the Russian border, in Ukraine May 24, 2023.

Persons: Moscow, Vyacheslav Gladkov, Gladkov, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Dan Peleschuk, Caleb Davis, David Ljunggren, Gareth Jones, Will Dunham Organizations: Sunday, Russian Volunteer Corps, Corps, of Russia Legion, Russia Legion, REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Russian, Belgorod, Viacheslav, Novaya Tavolzhanka

☆ Ukraine military urges 'silence' ahead of expected counteroffensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KYIV, June 4 (Reuters) - The Ukrainian military on Sunday renewed its plea for operational silence around a long-awaited counteroffensive against Russian forces, the latest in a stream of messages by Kyiv as it prepares for the assault. Anticipation has mounted around what is expected to be a broad attack by Ukrainian forces to retake Russian-occupied territory in the east and south. Authorities in recent days have also cracked down on citizens sharing images or footage of air defence systems shooting down Russian missiles. There will be no announcement of the start," the ministry said in a video posted to official Telegram channels, apparently referring to the counteroffensive. Kyiv's Western allies in recent months have provided weapons, armour and ammunition for the counteroffensive, which military experts have said could prove difficult against dug-in Russian forces.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Oleksii Reznikov, Dan Peleschuk, Emelia Sithole Organizations: Ukrainian, Sunday, Russian, Authorities, Kyiv, Wall Street, Defence, Thomson Locations: Ukrainian, Russian

☆ Ukraine minister in 'disbelief' at closed Kyiv bomb shelters
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, June 4 (Reuters) - A senior Ukrainian government official expressed "disbelief" on Sunday after learning that nearly half of Kyiv bomb shelters inspected during an initial audit were closed or unfit for use. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy ordered an inspection of all Ukrainian shelters on Friday, a day after three people were killed in Kyiv when they were unable to access one during a Russian air strike. "I greeted with disbelief that fact that half were open and considered ready," he wrote on the Telegram messaging app. "Yesterday, when we selectively checked the shelters in the Obolon district with our mayor, the absolute majority of the shelters were closed." Thursday's deaths caused a public outcry and a promise of a harsh response by Zelenskiy, which appeared aimed at Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko, who has clashed with the president before.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Oleksandr Kamyshin, Kamyshin, Vitali Klitschko, Klitschko, Dan Peleschuk, Nick Macfie Organizations: Thomson Locations: Ukrainian, Kyiv, Obolon, Ukraine, Russia

☆ Russian air strikes repelled over Kyiv, but hit regional airfield
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, June 4 (Reuters) - Russia launched a fresh wave of air strikes against Ukraine early on Sunday, striking an airfield in a central region but failing to hit the capital Kyiv, Ukrainian authorities said. Air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat told local television that four of six cruise missiles had been shot down by air defences but that two had struck an "operational airfield" near the central city of Kropyvnytskyi. He added that two of the five Iranian-made drones launched by Russia had struck infrastructure in the northern Sumy region. Kyiv officials said air defences had downed all projectiles that had been aimed at the capital before they reached the city. Separately, a 2-year-old girl was killed and 22 people were wounded in an earlier Russian missile strike on Sunday near the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, the regional governor said.

Persons: Yuriy Ihnat, Serhiy Popko, Gleb Garanich, Dan Peleschuk, Lidia Kelly, Daniel Wallis, William Mallard, Nick Macfie Organizations: Ukraine, Air, Telegram, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russia, Kyiv, Kropyvnytskyi, Sumy, Russian, Ukrainian, Dnipro, Ukraine, Melbourne

☆ Ex-comic sets sights on Ukraine reconstruction after helping fund war effort
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Now the comedian-turned-politician's charitable foundation is setting its sights on the next big battle: post-war reconstruction. Prytula, 41, led a campaign to acquire Turkish Bayraktar drones after Russia's full-scale invasion in February last year. The foundation also raised about $9.5 million for attack drones, which he said were ordered by Kyiv's military intelligence. After the war, Prytula wants to apply his crowdfunding acumen to help rebuild war-damaged parts of Ukraine. "All of this will need to be rebuilt, and after the war we'll begin measuring everything we've lost."

Persons: Serhiy Prytula, Mariia, Oleksandr, Prytula, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Anna Gvozdiar, Gvozdiar, isn't, we've, Ivan Lyubysh, Timothy Heritage, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Reuters, Foundation, Bank, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, KYIV, Turkish, Finnish, Crimea, Sumy

[1/5] A view shows an apartment building damaged during a massive Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine May 30, 2023. KYIV, May 30 (Reuters) - At least one person died and four were injured as a result of Russia's third attack on Kyiv in 24 hours, official said early on Tuesday, with Ukraine's air defence forces destroying more than 20 drones. Photos from Kyiv's officials and Reuters' witnesses showed flames bursting out from the top floors of the building and smoke rising from the roof. According to preliminary information, Tuesday's attacks were carried out only with Iranian-made Shahed drones, Kyiv's military administration said. "The enemy continues to attack the capital," Klitschko said in a post on the Telegram message.

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