“Their forces have likely established a bridgehead south of the Ingulets River, which forms the northern boundary of Russian-occupied Kherson,” the British Defense Ministry said in one of its latest intelligence assessments of the fighting. For once, though, it is the Ukrainian fighters who have the initiative. Russia is reportedly moving to reinforce its positions in the city, and a major battle could be brewing. Kyiv’s forces planned to isolate Russian troops and leave them with three options: “retreat, if possible, surrender or be destroyed.” Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovich told reporters in Kyiv that the operation to retake Kherson was underway. Kherson was the first large city to fall when Russian forces invaded Ukraine in late February. It would be a strategic and symbolic breakthrough for the Zelenskyy government. The target, analysts say, is Kherson, a major economic center in the southern section of the country. Having fought off the initial Russian onslaught in the spring and then ceded territory around the breakaway separatist enclaves in Luhansk and Donetsk in the east, Ukraine’s military appears to be mustering its forces for its first major counteroffensive in the disputed Donbas region. Ukraine wants even tougher sanctions imposed on Russia, including disconnecting the country’s banking system from the international SWIFT financial clearinghouse, a key pillar of the financial world that banks use to securely send messages to one another. “Sanctions are a great help from all European countries.” Zelenskyy told reporters after a meeting with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda. “Even if Russia says everywhere in the media that they do not have problems sanctions, it is not true,” Mr. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday that economic sanctions against Russia are important but added that tougher action is needed. Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, also came under a barrage of shelling overnight, its mayor told The Associated Press. He is guilty of crimes against Belarusians and Ukrainians and must be held accountable.” Lukashenko, she said, “can’t fool anyone. “Horrified to see how Russia continues to use Belarus to attack Ukraine,” she tweeted. SEE ALSO: Kremlin: No agreement yet on a prisoner swap for Griner, Whelan The attack prompted a fierce condemnation from Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the exiled opposition leader challenging longtime Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko. The Guardian newspaper reported that the missiles were launched from an airport near Gomel in southeastern Belarus. The launchpad is Belarus,” Ukrainian lawmaker Lesia Vasylenko said in a Twitter message. Russia has gone mad this morning, attacking Kyiv and Chernihiv regions. In Ukraine, officials from Kyiv’s Operational Command North confirmed there had been casualties from the missile attack in Chernihiv, about 90 miles from Kyiv, but the exact figures had not been determined. policy, the White House is under intense pressure to bring Ms. Although it doesn’t want to encourage hostage-taking by adversaries hoping to influence U.S. The Biden administration is in a tough spot regarding the potential prisoner swap. Whelan, a corporate security executive from Michigan, was sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2020 after he was convicted on espionage charges. Griner, who played basketball in Russia during the WNBA’s offseason, admitted having vape cartridges with cannabis in her luggage in February but insisted she didn’t intend to violate the law. SEE ALSO: Pentagon chief Austin signs off on treating Ukrainian troops at U.S. “Look, since there are no agreements now that would be finalized, then, accordingly, I have nothing more to add to what has been said,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters from multiple outlets on his daily conference call.
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