US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said Ukrainian forces had made significant progress in their counteroffensive against Russian troops, although it was too early to predict the outcome. “Clearly we’ve seen significant progress from the Ukrainians, particularly in the northeast, and that’s a product of the support we’ve provided, but first and foremost it’s a product of the extraordinary courage and resilience of the Ukrainian armed forces and the Ukrainian people,” Blinken told reporters in Mexico City. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said his country’s forces had recaptured 6,000 square kilometers (2,400 square miles) of Russian-held territory in the country’s south and east. Ukrainian forces continued their counterattack on Kharkiv, seeking to take control of almost the entire province. Ukrainian troops headed north, reportedly recapturing towns as far as the Russian border. The Ukrainian military says it liberated more than 20 settlements within 24 hours. In recent days, Kiev’s forces have seized territory at least twice the size of greater London, according to the British Ministry of Defence. Russian military commanders stopped sending new units to Ukraine after the counterattack, the general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said on its Facebook page on Monday. “The current situation in the theater of operations and distrust of higher command has forced a large number of volunteers to categorically refuse the prospect of service in combat conditions.” Russian troops have left behind stockpiles of ammunition and other supplies after Ukraine’s counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast, the Kyiv Independent reports. One analyst estimated that more than 300 vehicles, including tanks, self-propelled mortars and supply trucks, had been lost between September 7 and 11. Russia responded by launching missile strikes that knocked out power and water to the city of Kharkiv for the second time in less than 24 hours, defeating both on Monday morning, hours after city authorities had restored 80 percent of power of utilities that had been cut off during the night. Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared on state television on Monday night, presided over a meeting on the economy in which he made no mention of the military situation and said Russia was withstanding Western sanctions. “The economic blitzkrieg tactics, the attack they were counting on, didn’t work.” The US-based Institute for the Study of War think tank said “Ukraine has turned the tide in its favor, but the current counteroffensive will not end the war.” Ukrainian authorities have said they are capturing so many Russian prisoners of war that the country has no room to put them, the Associated Press reports. Municipal deputies from 18 districts of Moscow and St. Petersburg signed a public statement demanding that Vladimir Putin step down. “We, the municipal deputies of Russia, believe that the actions of President Vladimir Putin harm the future of Russia and its citizens,” said the statement released by Ksenia Torstrem, a municipal deputy of St. Petersburg’s Semenovsky district.
Important events Show only key events Please enable JavaScript to use this feature A group of Ukrainian civil society leaders say sweeping power cuts are part of Russia’s strategy, urging the US to step up support to maximize recent gains before winter, AFP reports. Much of eastern Ukraine was plunged into blackout on Sunday, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky blaming deliberate attacks from Moscow, as Kyiv made stunning gains on the battlefield. “Their approach is to get more cold before the winter season starts by destroying all critical infrastructure,” said Hanna Hopko, who heads the International Center for Ukrainian Victory, an umbrella group of civil society organizations. Hopko, speaking to reporters at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, said: “Putin really believes that neither Ukraine nor Europe will survive this winter. That’s what he’s really hoping for and that’s actually the central pillar around which he’s now developing his threats.” US leaders are careful not to declare early victory after a Ukrainian offensive forced Russian troops into a messy retreat in the north, the Associated Press reports. Although Ukraine’s gains were widely celebrated over the weekend, US officials know that Russian President Vladimir Putin still has troops and resources to draw on, and his forces still control large swaths of the east and south. “I agree there should be no spike because Russia still has cards it can play,” said Philip Breedlove, a retired US Air Force general who was NATO’s top commander from 2013 to 2016. “Ukraine is now clearly making steady changes to its east and north and I believe that if the West properly equips Ukraine, they will be able to maintain their gains.” Updated 06.06 BST
The main Russian military has been “severely degraded”, says the Foreign Ministry
The UK Ministry of Defense says Russia could take years to rebuild one of its most famous tank units after retreating from the Kharkiv region. In its latest intelligence update on Twitter, the Foreign Ministry said the 1st Guards Tank Army had been severely degraded, leaving Russia’s conventional forces “severely weakened”. Updated at 06.05 BST A Ukrainian soldier stands on top of a Russian self-propelled howitzer that was captured during a counterattack in the Kharkiv region. Photo: Ukrainian Armed Forces/Reuters As Russian forces retreat from the Kharkiv region, they are leaving behind hundreds of military vehicles, including tanks and trucks. Our image editors have put together this series of stunning pictures of abandoned equipment. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will speak with International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on Tuesday, two sources familiar with the plan told Reuters, as Ukraine continues to press the global lender for a full financing package. Ukrainian officials have said they are seeking an IMF program worth $15 billion to $20 billion, although such a large amount is considered unlikely to win IMF approval. The IMF’s Executive Board, in an informal meeting on Monday, discussed a plan that could provide Ukraine with $1.4 billion in emergency aid. Clashes broke out between the troops of Azerbaijan and Armenia, according to Russian news agencies, in a repeat of decades-old hostilities linked to the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan, which regained full control of the territory in a six-week conflict in 2020, has acknowledged casualties among its forces. Armenia did not report any casualties but said clashes continued overnight. Armenia’s government said it would invoke a cooperation agreement with Russia and appeal to a Russian-led security bloc, the Collective Security Treaty Organization, as well as the UN Security Council, Interfax reported. You can read the full story here: Updated at 05.36 BST US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken says Ukrainian forces have made significant progress in their counteroffensive against Russian troops, although it was too early to predict the outcome. “Clearly we’ve seen significant progress from the Ukrainians, particularly in the northeast, and that’s a product of the support we’ve provided, but first and foremost it’s a product of the extraordinary courage and resilience of the Ukrainian armed forces and the Ukrainian people,” Blinken told reporters in Mexico City. “It’s too early to say exactly where this is going. The Russians maintain very significant forces in Ukraine as well as equipment and weapons and ammunition. They continue to use it indiscriminately not only against the Ukrainian armed forces, but also against civilians and civilian infrastructure, as we have seen.” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaking in Mexico. Photo: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Summary and welcome
Good morning and welcome back to our live coverage of the war in Ukraine. It is now 7.30 in the morning in Kyiv. Here are the latest developments.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said Ukrainian forces had made significant progress in their counteroffensive against Russian troops, although it was too early to predict the outcome. “Clearly we’ve seen significant progress from the Ukrainians, particularly in the northeast, and that’s a product of the support we’ve provided, but first and foremost it’s a product of the extraordinary courage and resilience of the Ukrainian armed forces and the Ukrainian people,” Blinken told reporters in Mexico City. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said his country’s forces had recaptured 6,000 square kilometers (2,400 square miles) of Russian-held territory in the country’s south and east. Ukrainian forces continued their counterattack on Kharkiv, seeking to take control of almost the entire province. Ukrainian troops headed north, reportedly recapturing towns as far as the Russian border. The Ukrainian military says it liberated more than 20 settlements within 24 hours. In recent days, Kiev’s forces have seized territory at least twice the size of greater London, according to the British Ministry of Defence. Russian military commanders stopped sending new units to Ukraine after the counterattack, the general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said on its Facebook page on Monday. “The current situation in the theater of operations and distrust of higher command has forced a large number of volunteers to categorically refuse the prospect of service in combat conditions.” Russian troops left behind stockpiles of ammunition and other supplies after Ukraine counterattacked in Kharkiv…
