In statements on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Kyiv’s counteroffensive has started. “Counteroffensive and defensive actions are being taken in Ukraine,” Zelensky announced in Kyiv alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Zelensky’s remarks came days after international press reports had indicated that Ukraine’s much-anticipated counteroffensive had finally begun.
According to statements from the Russian judiciary, Travis Michael Leake was arrested and detained on Saturday. A statement released on Telegram by Moscow’s courts of general jurisdiction said Leake was arrested after “the Khamovniki District Court of Moscow took a preventive measure against an American citizen.”
As NATO’s summit approaches, former NATO Secretary-General Anders Rasmussen has warned that some of the alliance’s Eastern European states are considering sending their troops to Ukraine if NATO does not make substantial pledges to Ukraine during the summit.
Russia has accused Ukraine of sabotaging the Tolyatti-Odesa pipeline, which runs some 2,500km and is the longest ammonia pipeline in the world. It is utilized by Russia to export the chemical for industrial use as it is a core component of fertilizers. According to a Wednesday statement by the Russian Defense Ministry (MoD), “A Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group blew up the Tolyatti-Odesa ammonia pipeline” near the village of Masyutovka in Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine.
On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the Nova Kakhovka dam sabotage for the first time in public comments blaming the Ukrainian government and military for the “barbaric act.” Putin’s comments came after the Russian defense and foreign ministries had accused Ukraine of the “catastrophic” attack.