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Russia's invasion of Ukraine at 'bit of a stalemate' - US intel official
Russia's three-month-long war in Ukraine is at a "bit of a stalemate" and Russian President Vladimir Putin appears to be preparing for a long conflict, top US intelligence officials have said.
Russia, which calls the invasion "a special military operation," poured more troops into Ukraine for a huge offensive last month in the eastern part of the country but its gains have been slow.
Russia's assault on Kyiv was beaten back in March by Ukrainian resistance.
"The Russians aren't winning and the Ukrainians aren't winning and we're at a bit of a stalemate here," Lieutenant General Scott Berrier, the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, said before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
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He added that so far, between eight and 10 Russian generals have been killed in the deadly war.
Russia's war has killed thousands of civilians, sent millions of Ukrainians fleeing and reduced cities to rubble. Moscow has little to show for it beyond a strip of territory in the south and marginal gains in the east.
President Vladimir Putin exhorted Russians to battle in a defiant Victory Day speech yesterday but was silent about plans for any escalation in Ukraine despite Western warnings that he might use his Red Square address to order a mobilisation.
During the same hearing, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said that a Russian victory in the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine might not end the war.
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"We assess President Putin is preparing for a prolonged conflict in Ukraine during which he still intends to achieve goals beyond the Donbas," Ms Haines told politicians.
She added that Mr Putin was counting on the Western resolve to weaken over time and as the conflict continued, there was concern about how it would develop in the coming months.
"Combined with the reality that Mr Putin faces a mismatch between his ambitions and Russia's current conventional military capabilities ... the next few months could see us moving along a more unpredictable and potentially escalatory trajectory," Ms Haines said.
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US House to vote on $40bn Ukraine aid package tonight, says Pelosi
The US House of Representatives will vote on a $40bn military and humanitarian aid package for Ukraine tonight, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.
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Russian troops pushed back in Ukrainian counter-offensive
Ukraine said its forces had recaptured villages from Russian troops, pressing a major counter-offensive in the northeast of the country that could signal a shift in the war's momentum and jeopardise Russia's main advance.
Tetiana Apatchenko, press officer for the 92nd Separate Mechanised Brigade, the main Ukrainian force near Kharkiv, confirmed that Ukrainian troops had recaptured the settlements of Cherkaski Tyshky, Ruski Tyshki, Borshchova and Slobozhanske, in a pocket north of Kharkiv in recent days.
Yuriy Saks, an adviser to Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov, said the successes were pushing Russian artillery out of range of parts of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city, which has been under bombardment since the war's earliest days.
"The military operations of the Ukrainian armed forces around Kharkiv, especially north and northeast of Kharkiv, are sort of a success story," Mr Saks said.
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"The Ukrainian army was able to push these war criminals to a line beyond the reach of their artillery."
The counterattack could signal a new phase in the war, with Ukraine now going on the offensive after weeks in which Russia mounted a massive assault that Ukrainian troops mostly held off.
By pushing back Russian forces who had occupied the outskirts of Kharkiv since the early days of the war, the Ukrainians are moving into striking distance of the rear supply lines sustaining the main Russian attack force further south.
"They're trying to cut in and behind the Russians to cut off the supply lines, because that's really one of their (the Russians') main weaknesses," said Neil Melvin of the RUSI think-tank in London.
"Ukrainians are getting close to the Russian border. So all the gains that the Russians made in the early days in the northeast of Ukraine are increasingly slipping away."
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The setbacks near Kharkiv deal a blow to Moscow's war plans at precisely the moment when Western capitals believed President Vladimir Putin had been hoping to present a major victory for a holiday marking the end of World War II.
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Fighting rages in Ukraine's east as US warns of long war
The US Director of National Intelligence, Avril Haines, has said Russian President Vladimir Putin will not end the war with the Donbas campaign and is determined to build a land bridge to the Russian-controlled territory in Moldova.
US intelligence also views it as increasingly likely that Mr Putin will mobilise his entire country, including ordering martial law, and is counting on his perseverance to wear down Western support for Ukraine.
Washington's bleak prediction of a long war came after Ukraine said its membership of the European Union was a question of "war and peace" for the whole continent as it faces up to Russia, well over two months after Moscow invaded.
Violence raged in the south, where the missile strikes in Odessa overnight destroyed buildings, set ablaze a shopping centre and killed one person, just hours after a visit by European Council President Charles Michel.
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Breakaway Georgian region awaits 'signal' before referendum on joining Russia
The new leader of the Georgian breakaway region of South Ossetia has said it would wait for a signal from Moscow before holding a referendum on joining Russia.
Moscow recognised South Ossetia and the coastal region of Abkhazia as independent after fighting a brief war with Georgia in 2008. It has provided them with extensive financial support, offered Russian citizenship to their populations and stationed troops there.
In comments to TASS news agency, Alan Glagoev, who defeated incumbent Anatoly Bibilov in a presidential vote at the weekend, said South Ossetia needed for Russia to be on board with a referendum on joining the country if it were to be held.
"This is not a unilateral process," TASS news agency quoted him as saying. "We must understand our strategic partner (Russia).
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"As soon as there will be a signal, as soon as there will be an understanding that the time has come, we certainlywill hold this referendum."
Any move by South Ossetia to join Russia would be certain to draw strong condemnation from the West. Georgia has said that any plans by it to hold a referendum are unacceptable.
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Russia's Medvedev lashes out at US aid to Ukraine
Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has accused the United States of waging a "proxy war" against Russia after the House of Representatives approved a $40billion aid package for Ukraine, and said the US economy would suffer.
Writing on the messenger app Telegram, Mr Medvedev said that the bill approved by the House on Tuesday was a bid "to deal a serious defeat to our country and limit its economic development and political influence in the world."
Mr Medvedev said: "It won't work. The printing press by which America is constantly increasing its already inflated government debt will break faster."
Mr Medvedev, who has served as deputy chairman of Russia's security council since resigning as prime minister in January 2020, blamed "insane" prices for US fuel and groceries on what he called America's "Russophobic authorities".
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Lavrov says Russia has enough energy buyers apart from West
Russia has enough buyers for its energy resources outside of Western countries, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, as European Union countries try to sharply reduce their reliance on Russian oil and gas.
"Let the West pay more than it used to pay to the Russian Federation, and let it explain to its population why they should become poorer," Mr Lavrov said at a news conference in Muscat after talks with his Omani counterpart.
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Pro-Russia authorities in Ukraine's Kherson to seek annexation - reports
The Moscow-installed authorities in Ukraine's southern Kherson region have said today that they plan to appeal to President Vladimir Putin for the region to become part of Russia.
"There will be a request to make Kherson region a full subject of the Russian Federation," said Kirill Stremousov, an official in the Moscow-controlled region, Russian news agencies have reported.
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UN chief does not see Ukraine peace negotiations any time soon
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the time would come when there are peace negotiations over Ukraine, but he did not see that time in the immediate future.
"This war will not last forever. There will be a time when peace negotiations will take place," Mr Guterres told a news conference with Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen.
"I do not see that in the immediate future. But I can say one thing. We will never give up," he added, in remarks translated into German by an official translator.
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Nearly a third of jobs lost in Ukraine since invasion: UN
The UN has said that 30% of jobs in Ukraine - 4.8 million in total - have been lost since the Russian invasion, with the outlook even worse if the war drags on.
"Economic disruptions, combined with heavy internal displacement and flows of refugees, are causing large-scale losses in terms of employment and incomes," the UN's International Labour Organization said.
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Russia will respond to Finland's NATO accession - foreign ministry
Russia said it would be forced to respond to Finland's decision to join NATO.
"Finland joining NATO is a radical change in the country'sforeign policy," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
"Russia will be forced to take retaliatory steps, both of amilitary-technical and other nature, in order to stop threats to its national security arising." -
UN launches inquiry into Russian atrocities
The United Nations Human Rights Council voted overwhelmingly to launch an inquiry into alleged serious violations committed by Russian troops in Ukraine, heaping further diplomatic pressure on Moscow.
The council voted 33-2 in favour of a draft resolution brought by Ukraine to create an investigation into alleged violations in the Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Sumy regions in late February and in March, "with a view to holding those responsible to account".
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G7 allies vow to support Ukraine ‘until victory’
Leading democracies have pledged unwavering support for Ukraine in its war with Russia while the European Union promised to hike military support for Kyiv by more than half a billion dollars.
Foreign ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) met on the second day of a three-day meeting in the Germany resort of Wangels, joined by their counterparts from Ukraine and Moldova.French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said the G7 were "very strongly united" in their will to "continue in the long term to support Ukraine's fight for its sovereignty until Ukraine's victory."
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Depp or Heard?
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Ukraine forces thwarts Russian armoured column
Ukrainian forces destroyed a pontoon bridge and parts of Russian armoured column as it tried to cross a river in the Donbas region, video footage released by Ukraine's military showed today, and a Russian naval ship was set afire in the Black Sea.
Ukraine has driven Russian troops back from the second-largest city of Kharkiv in the fastest advance since Kremlin forces pulled away from Kyiv and the northeast over a month ago.
Reuters journalists have confirmed Ukraine is now in control of territory stretching to the banks of the Siverskyi Donets River, around 40km east of Kharkiv. The city, which had been under fierce bombardment, has been quiet for at least two weeks but fighting continued to the north. -
〓∞Persephone∞〓 wrote:
DeppDepp or Heard?
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༺ ᗪᗰᒪ ༻ wrote:
Oh Russia 😂 Finland will end them.Russia will respond to Finland's NATO accession - foreign ministry
Russia said it would be forced to respond to Finland's decision to join NATO.
"Finland joining NATO is a radical change in the country'sforeign policy," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
"Russia will be forced to take retaliatory steps, both of amilitary-technical and other nature, in order to stop threats to its national security arising." -
℣į₭ϊ₦Ǥ👹 wrote:
What does Finland have strategically over Russia? Russia is getting closer to nuking the world. Putin is dieing and has nothing to lose. He said there is no world without mother Russia.༺ ᗪᗰᒪ ༻ wrote:
Oh Russia 😂 Finland will end them.Russia will respond to Finland's NATO accession - foreign ministry
Russia said it would be forced to respond to Finland's decision to join NATO.
"Finland joining NATO is a radical change in the country'sforeign policy," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
"Russia will be forced to take retaliatory steps, both of amilitary-technical and other nature, in order to stop threats to its national security arising." -
Zelensky met with Klaus Schwab. Zelensky met with Klaus Schwab. Zelensky met with Klaus Schwab.
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Russian agents 'believe Putin is terminally ill' after top-secret memo, report claims
Speculation around Vladimir Putin's health has circulated for several years, but has only intensified since he ordered the invasion of Ukraine.
Now, New Lines magazine reports it has obtained an audio recording of an oligarch close to the Kremlin who describes the Russian president as "very ill with blood cancer", although the type of blood cancer was not specified.It says a "top-secret memo" was sent out by the headquarters of the FSB, Russia’s domestic security agency, to all its regional directors.
Christo Grozev, the head of investigations at Bellingcat, a well-respected forensic research website, said: "The memo instructed the regional chiefs not to trust rumours about the president's terminal condition.
"The directors were further instructed to dispel any rumors to this effect that may spread within the local FSB units. -
US seeking to 'clarify' Turkey's opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO
The United States is seeking to clarify Turkey's opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO at a meeting this weekend.
On Friday, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country is "not favourable" towards the Nordic nations joining the alliance.
His comments indicated that turkey could use its membership to veto moves to admit the two countries.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Washington is "working to clarify Turkey's position" and believes there is "broad support" among NATO members for the two countries to join.
Both countries were prompted to reconsider their traditions of military non-alignment due to the war in Ukraine.
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, is also scheduled to meet his counterparts in the alliance, including the Turkish foreign minister, this weekend. -
Russia lost '73 tanks' in river battle
Ukrainian military has claimed it has destroyed at least 73 Russian tanks and other equipment during a battle over a river in the Donbas region.
Footage released by Ukrainian forces appeared to show several burnt-out military vehicles and segments of a bridge partially submerged after the fight over the Siversky Donets River in Bilohorivka.
Reuters
Reuters
The UK's Ministry of Defence said Russia lost “significant armoured manoeuvre elements" of at least one battalion tactical group in the attack.
A Russian battalion tactical group consists of about 1,000 troops.
“Conducting river crossings in a contested environment is a highly risky manoeuvre and speaks to the pressure the Russian commanders are under to make progress in their operations in eastern Ukraine,” the ministry said in its daily intelligence update. -
Russia's response to Finland and Sweden joining NATO will depend on what alliance deploys to the countries - RIA
Russia has warned its response to Finland and Sweden joining NATO would depend on what infrastructure the alliance would deploy to the two countries, RIA has reported.
The Russian state news agency cited the country's deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov in its report.
Interfax, an independent Russian news agency, reported Mr Ryabkov as saying Russia has no "hostile intentions" towards the two countries.
Sweden and Finland have sought NATO membership following the war in Ukraine.
An expansion of NATO would be a blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who undertook the war in what he said was a bid to thwart the alliance's easterly advance. -
UKRAINIAN President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to join the Davos Forum, an annual meeting run by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
The Davos Forum, which is set to be held from May 22 to 26, is the 51st edition of the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting and will largely be devoted to the Ukraine war, with president Zelensky scheduled to speak remotely to the international non-governmental and lobbying organisation.
Scheduled for Graubünden, a canton in eastern Switzerland, it is the first in-person meeting for three years and will feature the 44-year-old, who is set to address world political, economic and social leaders on May 23.
“The President of Ukraine, @ZelenskyyUa, will join our Annual Meeting virtually as the war continues to devastate his country. Watch his special address on our website and across social media,” a WEF tweet read on Friday, May 13.
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50.000 Turkish lira on Ukraine to win Eurovision tonight this should be easy $€£
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