A fresh barrage of Russian shelling killed at least 10 Ukrainian civilians and wounded 20 others in a day., the Office of the President of Ukraine has said. Regional officials said cities and towns in the east and south that are within range of Russian artillery suffered the most. Six people died in the Donetsk region, two in Kherson and two in the Kharkov region, officials said.
A day earlier, missiles and self-propelled drones fired by Russia were said to have been used hit deeper into Ukrainian territory, killing at least 11 people.
Ukrainian troops were engaged in “heavy” fighting with Russian troops on Friday for the control of the city of Vugledar, southwest of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. Both sides claimed success in the small administrative center, a short distance from the strategic prize village of Pavlivka, Agence France-Presse reported. “Soon Vugledar can become another very important success for us,” Denis Pushilin, the Moscow-appointed leader of the Donetsk region, told Russian news agencies. But Kiev said the city remained contentious.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy described the situation on the frontline as “extremely acute”, particularly in the eastern Donetsk region, where Russia is stepping up its offensive. The Ukrainian president reported major battles for Vuhledar and Bakhmut, in the northeast. Local Ukrainian officials reported heavy shelling in the north, northeast and east.
The Ukrainian army claims to have killed 109 Russian soldiers in a single day and wounded another 188 in fighting around Vuhledar. Serhii Cherevatyi, a spokesman for the Eastern Operational Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said the death toll was registered on Thursday, adding: “Fighting is fierce. The enemy is indeed trying to achieve an interim success there, but thanks to the efforts of our defenders, it is not possible.”
Poland will send another 60 tanks to Ukraine on top of the 14 German-made Leopard 2 tanks it has already pledged, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told CTV News.
Several countries have promised a total of 321 heavy tanks to Ukraine, the Ukrainian ambassador to France said on Friday. Vadym Omelchenko told French TV station BFM that “delivery conditions vary by case and we need this help as soon as possible,” without specifying the number of tanks by country.
Belgium announced an additional package of €93.6 million ($104.7 million / £84.5 million) in military aid for Ukraine in what according to the Belgian Prime Minister, Alexander De Croo, – including previous expenditures – was the largest of its kind that Belgium had ever given to another country.
Ukraine says it is setting up drone attack companies within its armed forces that will be equipped with Starlink satellite communications as it moves forward with an idea to build an “army of drones,” Reuters reported. Commander-in-chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi signed on to create the units in a project that would involve several ministries and agencies, the general staff said.
Ten regions of Ukraine institute emergency power cuts Due to a power shortage in the network after Thursday’s Russian attacks, the Ukrainian state broadcaster reports. Repairs to damaged facilities continue.
The Kremlin claims that Joe Biden holds the key to ending the conflict in Ukraine by ordering Kiev to settle, but he is unwilling to use it. “The key to the Kiev regime is largely in the hands of Washington,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday. “Now we see that the current White House leader … does not want to use this key. On the contrary, he chooses the way to continue pumping weapons to Ukraine.” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova accused Washington of a “hybrid war” against Moscow.
The European Union wants swift accountability for “heinous” crimes in Ukrainesaid EU justice ministers at their meeting in Stockholm. But member states differ on whether to prosecute, search for evidence or fund reparations for war damage. .
Hungary will veto European Union sanctions against Russia affecting nuclear power. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told state radio on Friday.
Russia violates the “fundamental principles of child protection” in wartime by giving Ukrainian children Russian passports and giving them up for adoption, the head of the UN refugee agency, Filippo Grandi, said.
