Russian officials have reported renewed conflicts and another attack in the border region of Belgorod. Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly been briefed regarding the attack and resulting casualties in the Grayvoronsky district near the border with Ukraine. Officials in Kyiv have denied the attack claiming that Russian citizens from 2 paramilitary groups were responsible for the attack.
Russia has extended another harsh warning to the U.S. regarding potential future attacks on Russian-controlled Crimea. “Strikes on this territory are considered by us as an attack on any other region of the Russian Federation. It is important that the United States is fully aware of the Russian response,” Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s ambassador to the U.S. said on Sunday.
Senior Ukrainian official, Major General Kyrylo Budanov, who leads the country’s military intelligence service, confirmed in an interview with The Times of London that Kyiv has assassinated “quite a few” Russian civilians who have backed both Putin and his war in Ukraine. Budanov also vowed that there would be more attacks in the future.
Two months ago, Ukraine was widely criticized for “indoctrinating” its children after a video circulated through mainstream media that showed Ukrainian children handling military weapons as part of a program that is designed to prepare them for the military.
On Thursday, another Russian train derailed in Crimea in what many sources are describing as sabotage. According to a statement released by the Crimean Railways, the derailment was caused by “interference from outside persons.” No specifics of the alleged sabotage have been released.
This week Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba met with Chinese special envoy Li Hui to discuss both countries’ respective peace plans to potentially end Russia’s war in Ukraine. During the talks, Kuleba made it clear that any plan that required Ukraine to cede territory to Russia was a non-starter for Kyiv.
As the brutal battle for Bakhmut rages on, Ukraine this week has claimed that it has made significant advances around the ruined city in the Donetsk region, while Russia’s Wagner paramilitary group has said that its fighters have made gains as well.
On Tuesday, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has recently had ‘friendly’ relations with Russia, announced that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have agreed to host a delegation of leaders from a handful of African countries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled to the Vatican Saturday and met with the Pope for the first time since the Russian invasion to discuss the “humanitarian gestures” of the Pontiff in assisting with the repatriation of Ukrainian children from Russia and Crimea where it is estimated that 19,500 children have been forcibly held since the start of the war in February 2022.
As Russia’s relations with Poland continue to race to a new low due to the war with Ukraine and a U.S. and NATO military build-up along its borders, Moscow is considering taking drastic diplomatic measures as punishment against Warsaw for its outspoken stance against the war caused by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.