8.32 p.m: Ukrainian forces went on the offensive in Kherson Oblast inflicting losses to the Russian invading troops, Ukrainian Army General Staff has reported.
Russians had to withdraw to disadvantageous positions next to the villages Andriivka, Lozove, and Bilohirka.
The fight has been going on.
6.16 p.m: Attempts to offer a compromise to Putin to save his face will not end the war in Ukraine. On the contrary, it will increase the risks of Russian aggression in the future, Ann Applebaum, a historian and journalist wrote in an opinion piece for the Atlantic.
The expression off-ramp has a pleasing physicality, evoking a thing that can be constructed out of concrete and steel. But at the moment, anyone talking about an off-ramp in Ukraine—and many people are doing so, in governments, on radio stations, in a million private arguments—is using the term metaphorically, referring to a deal that could persuade Vladimir Putin to halt his invasion.
Some believe that such an off-ramp could easily be built if only diplomats were willing to make the effort, or if only the White House weren’t so bellicose. It’s a nice idea. Unfortunately, the assumptions that underlie that belief are wrong.
1.22 p.m: Russians shelled residential districts of Mykolaiv, mayor Oleksandr Senkevych has reported.
Casualties have been reported, he said, promising to reveal details soon.
One person was killed and six were wounded in the attack, Mykolaiv Oblast Council reported later.
12.45 p.m: More Western weapons coming to Ukraine, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said.
Reznikov called the cooperation of the partner states, which provide Ukraine with weapons and equipment, unprecedented. He also spoke about new models of Western weapons Ukrainian soldiers have already been using at the front in Ukraine.
According to Reznikov, three types of 155-mm artillery are already “successfully working” on the front line – M777 howitzers, FH70 howitzers, CAESAR ACS.
“It was simply impossible to imagine it back in March,” the minister said.
Morning Digest
Overnight, Russian forces shelled Sumy Oblast, northeastern Ukraine, from Russian territory. Russian forces used artillery and rockets to attack the Ukrainian region, which was recently occupied by Russians. As the result, an agricultural enterprise was destroyed, Sumy Governor Dmytro Zhyvitsky said in a statement.
Ukraine’s defense forces inflicted heavy losses on the Russian army and forced it to retreat in the areas of the settlements of Novopil (Donetsk Oblast) and Novodarivka (Zaporizhzhya Oblast).
Although yesterday Russian propaganda media RIA reported that Ukraine has lost control over Luhansk Oblast, Ukrainian troops are still fighting for the region.
Severodonetsk, a city, almost surrounded by Russian forces and mostly destroyed by invaders’ shelling, is still under Ukrainian control. Ukrainian forces have managed to push the Russian troops farther away the city, Ukraine’s General Staff said.
“Street fighting broke out in some places, but the Russian army was pushed back to its previously occupied positions, Luhansk Oblast Governor Serhiy Hayday said.
According to him, another bridge between Severodonetsk and Lysychansk was damaged, but travelling between the cities remains possible.
In total, Ukrainian forces repelled eight attacks in Donbas over the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian Army General Staff reported in its morning update from the front.
Five tanks, 10 armored vehicles, and four enemy vehicles were destroyed. Air defense units destroyed a Russian Orlan-10 drone.
The Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has destroyed a Russian tactical company group with equipment and manpower. In the Kharkiv Oblast Ukrainian stormtroopers shot down a Russian modern Ka-52 attack helicopter.
The Russians are trying to push forward in the Bakhmut area of Donetsk Oblast. The invading forces have been trying to reach the rear of Ukrainian troops and disrupt logistics. With the support of mortar and artillery fire, the Russians carried out offensive and assault operations in the areas of the settlements of Nagirne, Vasylivka, and Komyshuvakha, but with no success so far.
Overall Russia has lost 30,000 soldiers killed in action in Ukraine since the start of its full-scale invasion in February. However, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has no intention to stop the massacre and has been conducting hidden mobilization in Russia, the Ukrainian General Staff has said.
