Russia-Ukraine war – latest: Putin’s soldiers ‘forced to retreat’ as Kyiv ‘retakes key Donetsk village’

Russian soldiers have actually been required to pull back as Ukraine has actually retaken a crucial town in Donetsk, according to reports.

Moscow’s forces have actually abandoned their positions in Urozhaine, which is a strategically-significant southeastern town that Kyiv has actually been trying to regain for days as part of its counteroffensive.

In reports that The Independent has actually been not able to separately confirm, it has actually been recommended that Ukrainian soldiers utilized United States wise bombs that were delivered over in March.

There is a “realistic possibility” the Russian state no longer funds the Wagner Group, the UK Ministry of Defence has actually said.

In its latest Defence Intelligence update on the scenario in Ukraine, it specifies: “Since the abortive mutiny of June 2023, the Russian state has acted against some other business interests of Wagner owner Yevgeny Prigozhin. There is a realistic possibility that the Kremlin no longer funds the group.”

The update recommends the Belarusian authorities are “the second most plausible paymasters”, however includes, “The sizable force would be a significant and potentially unwelcome drain on modest Belarusian resources.”

Overall, the MOD composes of the mercenaries presently experiencing “financial pressure”. It says: “The Wagner Group is likely moving towards a down-sizing and reconfiguration process, largely to save on staff salary expenses at a time of financial pressure.”

Ukrainian forces are attempting to pierce Russian lines in the western parts of Donetsk area where waves of Kyiv’s fighters were utilized to get a grip to the east of the town of Staromaiorske, a Russian-set up authorities said.

Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-set up authorities in parts of Zaporizhzhia managed by Moscow, said that there had actually been extreme combating south of Velyka Novosilka – because location – as Ukrainian soldiers attempt to pierce Russian lines to lower to the coast on the Sea of Azov.

“The opponent handled to get in and get a grip in the northern part of Urozhaine after 2 weeks of the heaviest and bloodiest fights for this settlement,” Rogov said, describing the very same part of the frontline.

He said Russian soldiers still managed the southern part of Urozhaine, including that Ukrainian forces were plainly intending to take control of a town even more south, Staromlynivka.

Ukraine released a counteroffensive in June, trying to retake swathes of area caught by Russia in the south and east of the nation. It has actually regained numerous towns in the south and some area around the destroyed city of Bakhmut in the east, however has up until now not attained significant gains versus well-dug in Russian soldiers.

Moscow says the Ukrainian counteroffensive has actually stopped working.

Russia’s emergency situation service said on Sunday that a big fire broke out at a storage facility in the town of Ramenskoye in Moscow area, Russian state news company TASS reported.

“The size of the fire is 1,800 square metres,” TASS priced quote the declaration.

Another state news company, RIA, reported that the fire broke out at a fertiliser storage.

Videos of the fire published online program thick black smoke and a flame, seen from numerous metres away.

The video listed below, tweeted by a consultant to the Ukrainian federal government, has actually not been separately validated by The Independent.

A Russian warship opened alerting fire on a Palau-flagged dry freight ship in the southwestern Black Sea on Sunday as it made its method to Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry has actually said.

Russia said its Vasily Bykov patrol ship fired with automated weapons on the “Sukru Okan” vessel after the captain did not react to a demand to stop for an assessment.

The Sukru Okan was making its method towards the Ukrainian port of Izmail, the defence ministry said.

“To by force stop the vessel, alerting fire was opened from automated weapons,” the Russian defence ministy said.

The Russian military boarded the vessel with the help of a Ka-29 helicopter.

“After the evaluation group finished its deal with board, the Sukru Okan advanced its method to the port of Izmail,” the defence ministry said.

Shipping databases note the Sukru Okan as a Palau-flagged vessel with a tonnage of 2155 whose home port is Istanbul.

A child is amongst the 6 civilians who were killed when Russian forces shelled 2 towns in the southern Ukrainian area of Kherson on Sunday, Ukrainian authorities have actually said.

A couple, their 23-day-old kid and another man were killed in the town of Shyroka Balka, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said. The couple’s 12-year-old boy was seriously injured.

Two individuals were killed and one injured in the neighbouring town of Stanislav, which Klymenko said was struck 12 times with weapons.

“The terrorists will never ever voluntarily stop eliminating civilians,” Klymenko composed in a Telegram post in addition to 2 pictures of broken homes. “The terrorists should be stopped. With force. They do not comprehend anything else.”

Ukraine’s military recovered the western part of the Kherson area from Russian profession last November however Kremlin forces have actually continued frequently shelling the location from throughout the Dnipro River.

At least 3 Ukrainian drones have actually been released over western areas of Russia on Sunday early morning, Moscow’s defence ministry has actually said.

Russian air defences shot down 2 drones over the Belgorod area and another over the Kursk area, it said.

Drone air strikes deep inside Russia have actually increased because a drone was destroyed over the Kremlin in early May. Civilian locations of the capital were struck later on in May and a Moscow business district was targeted two times in 3 days previously this month.

Russia has actually promised vengeance after declaring to have actually shot down Ukrainian rockets targeting a crucial bridge connecting them with the annexed Crimea.

Videos on social networks appeared to reveal smoke increasing from near Kerch Bridge, an essential resupply path for Russian forces.

The Kremlin implicated Ukraine of terrorism, while likewise declaring to have actually warded off an attack by 20 drones targeting Crimea over night.

Russian foreign representative Maria Zakharova composed on Telegram: “There can be no justification for such barbaric actions and they will not go unanswered.”

Poland’s defence minister said on Saturday that the nation has actually increased the variety of soldiers safeguarding its border with Belarus as a deterrent in the middle of “destabilising” actions by its pro-Russian neighbour.

Mariusz Blaszczak fulfilled in Jarylowka, in eastern Poland, with a few of the soldiers just recently released near the Belarus border.

He firmly insisted that the increased military existence is simply a deterrent relocation, not a hostile act, as Minsk and Moscow are declaring.

“There is no doubt that the Belarus regime is cooperating with the Kremlin and that the attacks on the Polish border are intended to destabilise our country,” Mr Blaszczak said.