Bombings and bloody armed clashes continue to plague Ukraine invaded by Putin’s troops. Ukrainian authorities have accused Russian soldiers of opening fire on the town of Kostyantynivka, killing at least two people, including a 15-year-old girl, and injuring 10 others, including two teenagers. Kostyantynivka is only 25 kilometers from Bakhmut, where the bloodiest battle of this terrible war has been fought for months.
Kiev says its military is catching up in the region. But Moscow denies this. “Our soldiers are advancing in some areas of the front and the enemy is losing equipment and men,” said Ukrainian General Oleksandr Syrsky. While British intelligence claims that over the past four days, the Russian military has been disorganized from some positions on Bakhmut’s southern flank, allowing Ukrainian troops to gain “at least a kilometer”. However, neither Syrsky’s nor London’s statements can be independently verified. Neither did the Russian Defense Ministry, which yesterday claimed to have repelled all attacks by Ukrainian soldiers along a 95-kilometer front. However, Moscow also said it had moved some of its troops to Maloilyinovka in order to have a more advantageous line of defense: a move that several analysts say would actually amount to a withdrawal.
Meanwhile, what happened in the skies over Russia’s Bryansk region today remains a mystery. According to some Russian media, including the Kommersant newspaper, two Mi-8 helicopters and two Su-34 and Su-35 fighters may have been “shot down” in this area not far from the border with Ukraine. Tass – the official Russian news agency – reports that a jet and a helicopter went down, but does not explain why and there is no confirmation from either Moscow or Kyiv at this time. The governor of the Bryansk region, Alexander Bogomaz, only confirmed the crash of a helicopter near the small town of Klintsy. According to Kommersant, the Russian plane may have been shot down while preparing an attack on Ukraine’s Chernihiv region, and the military crews may have been killed. However, this is always news that cannot be verified at the moment.
Ukraine, in turn, accuses Russia of a new drone attack at night. A new raid that left dozens of civilians injured. Ukraine’s anti-aircraft guns say they shot down “17 of the 21 drones launched by Russian troops,” but local authorities still report nearly 30 people wounded in Khmelnitsky (according to the mayor, none of their lives were in danger). and three more in Mykolayiv. Five other civilians were also reportedly injured in other bombings in Kharkiv Oblast.
Meanwhile, Berlin has pledged new arms to Kiev worth 2.7 billion euros: it would be the largest military supply package Germany has sent to Ukraine since the invasion began. However, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Kuleba is pushing for more weapons, while several analysts are anticipating a possible Ukrainian counter-offensive in the near future. “We need ammunition and long-range missiles,” said the head of Kiev diplomacy. The main targets of the Ukrainian government are always the American F16s, which Washington has so far denied. Kuleba said he spoke with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and “did pay close attention to the importance of supplying Ukraine with F-16s.”
A few days ago, London announced the deployment of long-range Storm Shadow missiles to Kiev, and today Russia accused Ukraine of using those missiles to hit two industrial sites in Lugansk in Russian-held Donbass. Even this statement is currently not verifiable.
