No significant progress has been made since the start of the Ukrainian counter-offensive, but around ten towns have been recaptured.
According to military analysts, for several weeks the Ukrainian army has been attacking in three main directions: south of Orichiv towards Tokmak, in the Zaporizhia region; around Rivnopil, not far from Vougledar; and also on the Eastern Front, around Bakhmout.
Fighting raged on around the town captured by Wagner’s troops at the end of May.
The Ukrainian army said Monday it had liberated Rivnopil, a southern front town in the Donetsk region, in the area where troops from Kyiv have made slight advances in recent weeks.
Ukraine is also reportedly attempting a breakthrough on the left bank of the Dnieper near Kherson.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to the Donetsk region, where the Ukrainian army claims to have taken the city of Rivnopil on Monday. The President of Ukraine handed out medals to the soldiers and then took some photos with them.
British planes intercepted by Russia
Russia said on Monday it had taken off two of its fighter jets to meet two British fighter jets that were said to be approaching its border over the Black Sea.
“As the Russian fighter jets approached, the foreign fighter jets turned and fled away from Russia’s border,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
According to him, they were two British Army Typhoon fighters escorted by an RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft.
“The Russian planes safely returned to their original airfield. There was no violation of the Russian border,” the ministry added.
Incidents of this type involving Russian and Western aircraft have multiplied in recent months against the background of the conflict in Ukraine over the Black Sea, but also the Baltic Sea.