Russia-Ukraine war latest: Zelensky says Kyiv could be on brink of big breakthrough: ‘They will run’

In an interview with The Economist published yesterday, Volodymyr Zelensky said that steady progress was essential to maintaining Ukrainian morale.

“It is crucial to keep morale high. That’s why even limited progress on the front lines is essential,” Mr. Zelensky told the publication.

“Now we have movement. It’s important,” the publication quoted him as saying.

“If we push them from the south, they will flee,” he said, suggesting a major breakthrough may still come before Ukraine’s notorious wet fall weather makes movement on the battlefield difficult.

Ukraine had some success in dismantling the first of Russia’s three main defense lines in the Zaporizhzhia region after suffering initial losses in the initial phase of the counteroffensive.

Mr. Zelensky added that victory would not come “tomorrow or the day after.” The Russian army is losing “a lot of people,” Mr. Zelensky said, adding that the invading country had to redeploy its reserves to stop the Ukrainian advance.

“That means they lose,” he said.

Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian troops planning a counteroffensive against Russian occupying forces advanced on the southern front last week, while there was also movement near Bakhmut in the east.

“In the last seven days we have made progress in the Tavria (southern) sector,” Mr. Zelensky said in his evening video address.

“There is movement in the Bakhmut sector. Yes, there is movement.”

He added that Ukrainian forces were holding their own on other fronts to the east – Avdiivka and Marinka, near the focus of Russia’s main attacks, and Lyman and Kupyansk, which also face Russian advance attempts north.

The president’s recent wartime comments confirm other officials’ assessment of the, albeit modest, gains in the East and South.

Near Avdiivka, the head of the local military administration said Ukrainian troops had taken advantage of Russian forces concentrated in one sector to advance and capture part of the village of Opytne south of the city.

Russia’s air defense systems destroyed two drones over the Belgorod region in the early hours of today, the Russian Defense Ministry said on its Telegram channel, claiming to have thwarted an attack by Ukraine.

According to Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, no immediate injuries were reported after drone debris fell on a road in Yakovlevsky District.

A charity confirmed that four of its staff in the Bakhmut region were hit by Russian shells as they tried to reach civilians caught in the crossfire.

According to a Road to Relief spokesperson, their vehicle was attacked by the Russians, causing the van to catch fire and roll over. In the vehicle were German medical volunteer Ruben Mawick, Swedish volunteer Johan Mathias Thyr, Canadian volunteer Anthony “Tonko” Ihnat and Spanish volunteer and Road to Relief director Emma Igual. According to the charity, Ruben and Johan were seriously injured from shrapnel wounds and burns but are now in a stable condition.

Tragically, Tonko’s death has been confirmed, while Emma’s current status remains unknown as the organization is unable to determine her whereabouts.

Ukraine’s president says Europeans must prepare for a long war as Kiev makes “modest” progress three months after counteroffensive began.

In an interview with The Economistthe leader expressed an apparent shift in morale among Western leaders as Kiev makes “modest” progress.

In conversation with The economist, He said: I have this intuition to read, hear and see their eyes [when they say] “We will always be with you.”

“But I see that he or she is not here, not with us.”

The former TV actor is aware of the importance of Western economic support.

Mr Zelensky added: “If you are not for Ukraine, you are for Russia, and if you are not for Russia, you are for Ukraine.” And if partners do not help us, it means that they are helping Russia to win become. That’s it.”

Russia launched an airstrike on Kiev early Sunday, with explosions heard in the Ukrainian capital and its region for nearly two hours and drone debris falling on several central districts of the city, Ukrainian officials said.

Ukraine’s Land Forces said the country’s air defense systems destroyed 25 of 32 Iranian-made Shahed drones launched by Russia, most of them targeting Kiev and the Kyiv region.

Reuters witnesses heard at least five explosions across Kiev, and Ukrainian media footage showed several cars were damaged.

“Drones came toward the capital in groups and from different directions,” Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv city military administration, said on the messaging app Telegram.

Two foreign aid workers were killed this morning when shells hit their van, causing it to catch fire and overturn.

Canadian Anthony “Tonko” Ihnat was one of the volunteers who lost their lives in the attack.

Paracrew Humanitarian Aid, an organization he previously worked for, shared its grief on Facebook.

They wrote: “His compassion, empathy and strength will forever be an inspiration to us all. And we will keep his memory alive by working to help Ukraine in every way we can. Rest in peace, dear friend.”

A 34-year-old Spanish humanitarian worker was named as one of the victims of a Russian attack in Kiev this morning.

Emma Igual was the director of Road to Relief, a Ukrainian-registered humanitarian NGO founded in March 2022 with the aim of helping Ukrainian civilians.

The charity’s main objectives are to evacuate civilians, provide humanitarian assistance and mobile healthcare.

According to the Huff Post She dedicated her life to helping others and previously volunteered in Kenya, Morocco. Greece and Myanmar.

President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian troops had advanced on the southern front and made movements near Bakhmut in the east.

“In the last seven days we have made an advance in the Tavria (southern) sector,” Zelensky said in his evening video address.

“There is movement in the Bakhmut sector. Yes, there is movement.”

Zelensky said Ukrainian forces were holding out on other fronts to the east – Avdiivka and Marinka, near the focus of Russia’s main attacks, and Lyman and Kupyansk, which also face Russian pushes north.

Near Avdiivka, the head of the local military administration said Ukrainian troops had taken advantage of Russian forces concentrated in one sector to advance and capture part of the village of Opytne south of the city.

“In my opinion, this is very significant,” Vitaliy Barabash told national television. “To be honest, the enemy overlooked this southern direction a bit.”

Zelensky and other officials said the counteroffensive took time and dismissed criticism in Western media that it was moving too slowly due to tactical errors.

In an interview with The Economist Zelensky said steady progress was essential to maintaining morale.

He hinted that a major breakthrough could be imminent.

The G20 summit did not end in the usual harmonious manner this Sunday, with some members questioning the omission of Russia and the “cautious” language in the communiqué.

Previous drafts of the statement reportedly contained tougher language regarding Russia, but a senior European Union official involved in the negotiations told reporters here at the summit on Sunday that if this had happened, it would have spelled the end of the G20 as an organization would have been the case. You had not agreed to the weakened version.

The official said: “Ukraine was the most contentious issue. To find a consensus, extremely different viewpoints were on the table, but it was the presidency of India and we believe in consensus, so we had to accept that.”

Read the whole story here: