The Ministry of Defense of Russia on Thursday denied information about the breakthrough of the Ukrainian front line at several points and stated that the military situation is under control. Moscow reacted after Russian military bloggers reported Ukrainian advances north and south of the town of Bakhmut, with some suggesting a Ukrainian counteroffensive had begun.

The Ukrainian military fired a 120 mm mortar from a forest near BakhmutPhoto: Jose Hernandez / Shutterstock / Profimedia

Highlights of the war in Ukraine, day 443, LIVETEXT:

07:07 Washington approved the sale of helicopters to Germany for 8.5 billion dollars

06:33Financial Times: The West must learn from its own mistakes if it wants to shape a new world order

06:10​In an unusually late publication, the Ministry of Defense of Russia refutes reports of a Ukrainian offensive around the city of Bakhmut

01:10 VIDEO Zelenskyi: We have approved a comprehensive strategic plan for reforming our law enforcement system. We must ensure maximum security, freedom and respect for the law and people in Ukraine

A brief summary of recent events:

  • Zelensky said Ukraine’s long-awaited counteroffensive had not yet begun, even though his generals claimed some of the biggest successes on the battlefield in recent months.
  • A Ukrainian brigade commander who fought in Bakhmut said Russian mercenaries had stepped up shelling and artillery attacks in recent days and were not short of ammunition, despite his boss’s claims to the contrary. The head of the Russian mercenaries Yevgeny Prigozhin said that the situation on the flanks, near Bakhmut, is developing according to the “worst of the expected scenarios” and the Ukrainian counteroffensive has begun.
  • A Ukrainian drone attacked an oil depot in the border town of Bryansk with Russia, the local governor said on Thursday. No loss was recorded.
  • Russia’s military operation against Ukraine is “very difficult,” but certain goals have been achieved, Kremlin spokesman Dmytro Peskov said.
  • Officials from Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the U.N. on Thursday discussed U.N. proposals for a deal to allow safe grain exports from Ukraine across the Black Sea, which Moscow threatened to abandon on May 18 because of obstacles to its own grain and fertilizer exports.
  • The US representative in South Africa said he believed a Russian ship had taken weapons out of South Africa, possibly in violation of Pretoria’s declared neutrality in the conflict in Ukraine.
  • Britain supplied Ukraine with long-range Storm Shadow missiles, which would allow its forces to strike Russian troops and logistics centers far behind the front lines.
  • Zelensky is expected to meet with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Saturday, diplomatic sources said.
  • US senators have accused the Pentagon of undermining the prosecution of Russians for war crimes by blocking the sharing of US military intelligence with the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
  • Ukraine received record proceeds from the sale of small state assets in the first quarter of this year, despite Russia’s invasion, and plans to privatize thousands more as part of an economic overhaul, the head of the FSMU said.
  • A Russian court sentenced a former teacher to five and a half years in prison for comments on the Internet about Ukraine’s “gift” to Putler.
  • The federal budget of Russia in January-April had a deficit of 3,400 billion rubles (40.6 billion euros), which exceeds the deficit forecast for the whole year.

—————-

  • Thursday’s events related to Russian aggression were broadcast LIVE on HotNews.ro