In the statement, which is discussed by Reuters, it is said that Ukraine launched the offensive on Sunday with six mechanized infantry battalions and two tank battalions. – The aim of the enemy was to break through our defense lines in what they believe are the most vulnerable sectors of the front. – The enemy did not achieve their goals. They had no success. The governing authorities further claim that 250 Ukrainian soldiers were killed, and that 16 tanks, 21 armored vehicles and several armored personnel carriers were destroyed. The ministry has also published a video of what they claim are several Ukrainian armored vehicles on a plain, exploding during an attack. A Ukrainian official walks into a trench near the frontline town of Bakhmut, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 30 May 2023 Photo: Reuters There has been no comment on the claim from Kyiv, and the information has not been independently verified. Russia’s defense chief Valery Gerasimov is said to have been present at a checkpoint when Ukraine’s attack took place on Sunday, according to Russian state media. They have not informed how he fared during the attack. Map of the Ukrainian region of Donetsk and the Russian region of Belgorod. Counter-offensive pending Ukrainian authorities have said several times that a long-awaited counter-offensive is on the way. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal on Saturday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that he believes Ukraine is militarily capable of breaking Russia’s defense line. – In my view, as of today, we are ready to do that, he told the newspaper. The time and place for such a military operation is kept, naturally enough, secret. How long it can last is unknown – including for the president. A woman stands in her house in the village of Horlivka, which is still controlled by the Russians. The building has been damaged by fighting in recent days. Photo: ALEXANDER ERMOCHENKO / Reuters – To be honest, this can happen in many ways, but we will carry out an offensive, and we are ready. Ukraine’s deputy defense minister also refers to a video that has been shared on social media, where the message is that there will not be enough announcement about the start. This is probably about the offensive, write the online newspaper The Kyiv Independent. Russian soldiers captured in Belgorod Forces critical of the authorities in Moscow said on Sunday evening that they had captured several Russian soldiers in the region of Belgorod. This lies inside Russia, but borders Ukraine, and has been exposed to attack several times in recent weeks. The claim about Russian prisoners came from those who call themselves the Russian Freedom Legion (FRL), who claim the statement was in consultation with the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK). Russian rockets are fired at Ukraine from Russia’s Belgorod region, as seen from Kharkiv, Ukraine, late Sunday, June 4, 2023 Photo: AP Both paramilitary groups want to end the rule of President Vladimir Putin, and oppose Russia’s war of invasion in Ukraine. The top leader in Belgorod, Vyacheslav Gladkov, claims he has agreed to meet those who have taken the soldiers prisoner, as long as they are still alive. But the two groups say that such a meeting has not yet taken place, according to the BBC. Ukrainian authorities have denied that they are directly involved in the fighting inside Russia. They still say that the two paramilitary groups consist of Russian citizens who want to create a “safe zone” for Ukrainians inside Russia. Several residents who live close to the Ukrainian border in Belgorod have been evacuated from their homes. Here some humanitarian donations are collected in the village of Sjebekino. Photo: OLGA MALTSEVA / AFP Reports of new drone crashes in Russia A power plant in the Russian region of Belgorod is said to have also been attacked by a drone early on Monday, according to the governor of the region. Two additional drones are said to have crashed over a highway in the Russian Kaluga region, says local governor Vladislav Sjapsa on the messaging app Telegram. – There was no detonation. The area has been cordoned off, he wrote further. Neither has this information been confirmed by independent sources.
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Russia claims to have stopped major Ukrainian offensive – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
