Explosions were reported overnight in the Ukrainian cities of Dnipro and Kirovohrad and in the Mykolaiv region. The local media reported it, adding that the anti-aircraft alarm was activated in all Ukrainian oblasts. The military administration of the Kyiv region has warned residents of possible air threats and said that air defense is ready to protect the region. They also urged residents to stay in shelters.
Russian bombings hit the Ukrainian regions of Kharkiv and Odessa overnight, according to local media reports. Russian forces have attacked Kharkiv oblast at least 15 targeting critical infrastructure, regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Telegram, specifying that a private residence was damaged. Energy infrastructure was targeted in Odessa oblast, according to Governor Maksym Marchenko. The electricity supply was partially cut off. At the moment there are no casualties reported.
“We cannot rule out that Bakhmut could fall in the next few days”. NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg expresses his concern arriving at the informal defense council in Stockholm, but minimizes the effects of a possible capture of the city symbol of resistance. “It won’t necessarily be a turning point in the war but it just highlights that we must not underestimate Russia and we must continue to support Ukraine”. President Zelensky yesterday raised the alarm: Russian forces will have an “open road” to key cities in eastern Ukraine if they take control of Bakhmut.
With Kiev soldiers in a trench near Bakhmut
According to Wagner, Russian forces have taken full control of the eastern part of the city. “Everything east of the Bakhmutka River is completely under Wagner’s control,” mercenary group founder Evgeny Prigozhin said on his Telegram channel.
Moscow: ‘Bakhmut crucial to continue the offensive’
The summit was also attended by Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov who, upon his arrival, asked for more weapons in a short time. We need ammo, ammo, ammo – Reznikov then added – But that’s not all. Also air defense systems, infantry fighting vehicles and other tanks such as the Leopard. At that point we will have the iron fist we need for the counter-offensive”. “Procedures are the right thing”, he said about the times of the EU, “but as the NATO secretary general said in times of war the speed saves lives. That’s why we need to move forward as quickly as possible.”
Reznikov then denied any involvement of Kiev in the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipeline. “We have nothing to do with the sabotage operation: it would be a nice compliment to our special services but when the investigation is concluded it will be seen that Ukraine has nothing to do with it,” he said.
And Moscow has also intervened in the matter. Media reports of the attacks on the Nord Stream gas pipeline are a coordinated effort to divert attention, and the Kremlin is puzzled how US officials can assume anything about the attacks without an investigation, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti. “Obviously, the perpetrators of the attack want to divert attention. It is clear that this is a coordinated operation to fill the media,” Peskov said, referring to news published yesterday by the New York Times and some German media. “How can US officials assume anything without an investigation?” he added, stressing that the shareholder countries of Nord Stream should insist on an urgent and transparent investigation. “We are not yet admitted to the investigation. Only a few days ago we received notes on the matter from Danes and Swedes”, he concluded: “This is not just strange. There is the smell of a monstrous crime”.
ANSA agency
The NYT: ‘Nothing suggests that Zelensky is involved’. German media for ‘Ukrainian track’. Kiev government evacuates children from Bakhmut. According to the ISW, Russian forces control 40% of the city. Soldier killed in video shock identified