Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday that his country’s armed forces were “actively crushing the enemy.”
In his late-night address, Zelenskyy said that forces on the country’s eastern and southern flanks were “physically cleaning up Ukraine.”
“Defending against terror means destroying terrorists. And it is a guarantee that the evil state will never have the opportunity to bring evil to Ukraine.”
Kiev launched a much-anticipated counteroffensive nearly two weeks ago. Although Zelenskyy did not initially comment on the launch, he has more recently commented on his military’s movements.
Also on Tuesday, Russian forces attacked military and infrastructure targets in Kiev and western areas away from the front lines.
Zelenskyi said Russian drones attacked Kiev for more than four hours.
Meanwhile, Russian authorities said Ukrainian forces used drones to attack a Russian-controlled city in the southern Kherson region. They said one woman was killed and four civilians injured in the attack.
Ukraine Counter-Offensive – Last Chance for Victory?
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Here are some of the other developments related to Russia’s war in Ukraine on Wednesday June 21:
Russia gets two nuclear submarines
The Russian Navy is to receive two new nuclear submarines, Russian media reported on Wednesday.
Alexei Rakhmanov, head of the United Shipbuilding Corporation, told the state news agency TASS in an interview that the ships will be operational by the end of the year.
The submarines are the missile cruiser Kaiser Alexander III. and the multipurpose ship Krasnoyarsk.
United Shipbuilding Corporation is Russia’s largest shipbuilding company.
The Pentagon overestimated military aid to Ukraine
The US Department of Defense has announced a miscalculation in assessing its appropriations for munitions, missiles and other equipment sent to Ukraine to help it fight Russia.
A Pentagon spokesman said the amount was overestimated by $6.2 billion due to an accounting error. Fiscal year 2023 accounted for $3.6 billion and fiscal year 2022 for $2.6 billion.
Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh said the bugs had no impact on support for Ukraine or the President’s Withdrawal Authority.
Britain announces $3 billion aid for Ukraine’s reconstruction
The UK is preparing to announce a massive $3 billion package for Ukraine at a two-day conference in London.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will announce the package in a speech during the conference, which begins on Wednesday.
The package includes $306 million in bilateral aid, as well as expanding UK international investment in Ukraine.
“Therefore, together with our allies, we will maintain our support for Ukraine’s defense and counter-offensive, and we will stand by Ukraine until it keeps winning this war,” Sunak said in an excerpt of his speech.
The US will also announce “a new, robust” aid package for Ukraine.
Addressing the conference on Tuesday evening, Zelenskyy stressed that the reconstruction of Ukraine is a “means and a guarantee of security” that would provide “protection against a repetition of Russian aggression”.
UN chief calls for faster exports under Black Sea Grains Agreement
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for a speeding up of grain shipments from Ukrainian ports across the Black Sea under a deal Russia is threatening to withdraw from next month.
Negotiated almost a year ago with mediation from the UN and Turkey, the deal allowed Ukraine to safely export grain from three ports despite the war. This helped avoid a global food crisis and helped Ukraine sell their grain.
However, Guterres reported a sharp drop in food exports from October 2022, when they were said to have been 4.3 million tonnes, to 1.3 million tonnes in May. UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq, speaking on behalf of Guterres, called the May figures “the lowest volume since the initiative began last year.”
Guterres expressed particular disappointment at the slowdown in ship inspections and the exclusion of Pivdennyi (Yuzhny) port – one of the three Ukrainian ports covered by the deal.
Russia has repeatedly complained that many terms of the agreement protecting its interests are not being upheld.
Russia rejoins grain export deal with Ukraine
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Ukraine accuses Russia of “mining” the Zaporizhia cooling pond
The head of Ukraine’s military intelligence service has accused Moscow of “mining” the cooling pool of the Russian-held nuclear power plant.
Kyrylo Budanov, head of the GUR agency, made the allegation in television statements on Tuesday. However, he did not provide any evidence to support his claims.
The reactor is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. Located in southern Ukraine, it has been occupied by Moscow since the country’s invasion in February 2022.
More DW content on the Russian war in Ukraine
Dmitry Muratov, Nobel laureate and editor-in-chief of the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, spoke at DW’s Global Media Forum. He called for help for political prisoners, from Alexei Navalny to US journalist Evan Gershkovic, and said that since the word “war” is banned in Russia, he will use the word “hell”.
The war in Ukraine was characterized by brutal attrition and trench warfare, but also by the innovative use of drones and robots. Is artificial intelligence revolutionizing modern warfare or just complementing old technology? Watch our report on how Ukraine uses artificial intelligence on the battlefield.
How Ukraine uses artificial intelligence on the battlefield
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Germany’s domestic intelligence service has warned that Russia’s espionage operations in Germany are likely to increase. The agency noted that far-right movements are using opposition to military support to Ukraine.
rmt/rt (AFP, Portal)