Ukraine and Russia: What you need to know right now

[ad_1]

June 5 (Reuters) – Kyiv was rocked by several explosions early on Sunday, the mayor of the Ukrainian capital said, a day after officials said troops had recaptured a swath of the battlefield city of Sievierodonetsk in a counteroffensive against Russia. read more

FIGHTING

* Ukrainian forces have counterattacked in Sievierodonetsk in eastern Ukraine, Britain’s defense ministry said, while the regional governor, Serhiy Gaidai, said Russian forces continue to storm the city, controlling its eastern part.

* Russia’s defense ministry said Ukrainian forces were retreating toward the city of Lysychansk after suffering “critical losses” of up to 90% in some units during fighting for nearby Sievierodonetsk.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com

Register

* Russia’s defense ministry said its forces shot down a Ukrainian military transport plane carrying weapons and munitions near the Black Sea port of Odesa.

* Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports.

DIPLOMACY, ECONOMY

* Putin will discuss the war in an interview due to be broadcast on national television on Sunday. In a brief excerpt, Russia’s RIA news agency quoted him as saying Moscow was easily coping with US weapons systems sent to Ukraine and had destroyed dozens of them.

* Ukraine rebuked France’s Macron for saying it was important not to “humiliate” Russia, a position Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba said “can only humiliate France”. read more

* Russia’s foreign minister said Western sanctions would have no effect on the country’s oil exports, predicting a big jump in profits from energy shipments this year. read more

* Finland and Sweden joining NATO would put Russia in a difficult military position in the Baltic Sea, top US General Mark Milley said in Stockholm before a military exercise. read more

QUOTES

* The terrible consequences of the war could be stopped at any moment, if one person in Moscow gave the order, Zelenskiy said in apparent reference to Putin. “And the fact that there is still no such order is obviously a humiliation for the whole world.”

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com

Register

Compiled by Lisa Shumaker and William Mallard

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

.

[ad_2]