holdover
.475 A&M Magnum
Various pro west, pro Russian reports on the Ukraine counter offensive.
Ukrainian offensive is ‘taking place in several directions,’ says official
By Nathan Hodge, Sebastian Shukla, Olga Voitovych and Sana Noor Haq, CNN
CNN —
A Ukrainian offensive is “taking place in several directions,” Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar told Ukrainian television on Monday, heightening speculation that a major push by Kyiv to recapture land held by Russia’s occupying forces could be getting underway.
“It is not only about Bakhmut. The offensive is taking place in several directions. We are happy about every meter. Today is a successful day for our forces,” she said.
Recent weeks have seen Ukraine’s military stepping up shaping operations – attacks on Russian targets like fuel depots and weapons dumps far behind frontlines – which typically precede a major advance by ground forces. But government officials in Kyiv have been at pains to say the start of any counteroffensive would
In a post on its official Telegram feed, the Russian Defense ministry said the assault took place at “five section of the front in the southern Donetsk direction.”
The ministry claimed the goal of the Ukrainian operation was “to break through” Russian defenses in what it considered to be “the most vulnerable area of the front.”
Further south, a Russian-appointed official in Zaporizhzhia said Ukrainian troops were attempting to break through a defense line to reach the coast of the Sea of Azov.
“The goal of the [Ukraine Armed Forces] militants is to reach the Azov Sea coast and cut the land corridor,” Vladimir Rogov said, according to Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti.
In a Monday Telegram post, Maliar said the country’s troops were “carrying out offensive actions” on the eastern front and had “advanced in several directions” around the city of Bakhmut: near the settlements of Orikhovo-Vasylivka and Paraskoviivka to the north, and near Ivanivske and Klishchiivka to the southwest.
Serhii Cherevatyi, spokesman for the Eastern Grouping of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, also spoke of “an offensive assault” by the Ukrainians “on the southern and northern flanks of Bakhmut” on national TV on Monday.
“These actions were successful,” Cherevatyi said. “Despite the enemy’s fierce resistance, our airborne assault and mechanised units managed to advance along the Siverskyi Donets-Donbas Canal in the direction of Klishchiivka, Orikhovo-Vasylivka, Zaliznianske, and Bohdanivka to a distance of 300 meters to 1 km in various parts of the frontline.”
CNN cannot verify the battlefield reports.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan tells Fareed the US is supporting Ukraine on the battlefield to strengthen Ukraine's position at the negotiating table.
00:49 - Source: CNN
(Not to win but to negotiate, Do you see the train now?)
Russia says it thwarted major Ukrainian offensive, Kyiv says Moscow spreads lies
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Russia says it thwarted major Ukrainian offensive, Kyiv says Moscow spreads lies
It was unclear whether the reported attack represented the formal start of a Ukrainian counteroffensive to recapture some of the territory taken by Russian forces after the invasion.
www.reuters.com
The defence ministry in Moscow said Ukraine had attacked with six mechanised and two tank battalions from two brigades in five sectors of the front in Donetsk.
Zelenskiy said Ukraine did not have all the western weapons it had wanted to start the counteroffensive but could no longer wait. He warned that “a large number of soldiers will die”.
Ukraine has readied 12 brigades, an estimated 60,000 troops, to spearhead an attack it hopes will show it can force the Russian invaders, who total about 300,000, from its territory, some of which has been occupied since 2014.
Ukraine: significant escalation in fighting reported in Donetsk region
Russia claims to have fought off ‘major offensive’ and killed hundreds of Ukrainian troops in attack
www.theguardian.com
Last Report by Russian Defense Ministry on Donbas Failed Attempt.
UPDATE ON JUNE, 6, 2023 – 1 AM CETThe Russian armed forces have destroyed 1,500 Ukrainian troops that were attempting to attack and 8 German-made Leopard tanks, the Russian Defense Ministry (MOD) said on Tuesday, according to TASS Russia News Agency.
“Total losses of Ukrainian troops in the southern Donetsk Region area were more than 1,500 Ukrainian servicemen, 28 tanks, of them 8 German-made Leopard tanks, 3 wheeled French-made АМХ-10 tanks, and 109 armored fighting vehicles,” the ministry said (video on tanks destroyed below and full detailed statement at the bottom of this article).
Two ammunition depots of the 24th Mechanised Brigade of the AFU has been destroyed near Dzerzhinsk (Donetsk People’s Republic), one of the AFU 60th Motorised Infantry Brigade has been destroyed near Malinovka (Kharkiv region), and another of AFU 126th Brigade of the Territorial Defence of Ukraine near Nikolskoye (Kherson region).
This is the first Russian answer to the counter-offensive launch by the Kyiv regime in Donbas.
