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WASHINGTON POST ... JUNE 4TH 2022 Summary of main news for Sunday, June 4th 2022 Original article: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/06/05/russia-ukraine-war-putin-news-live-updates/ Peter Burgess COMMENTARY Peter Burgess | ||
War in Ukraine
Donbas region
How far will Biden go?
Russia-Ukraine war live updates
Putin threatens new targets if Ukraine gets advanced rockets; missiles hit Kyiv
LATEST UPDATES
Pope Francis says he’s waiting for ‘right time’ to visit Ukraine
8:05 a.m.
Russia using ‘poorly equipped’ reservists in Severodonetsk, U.K. says
7:31 a.m.
Russian missile flew ‘critically low’ over nuclear plant, operator says
6:55 a.m.
Key update
Putin warns Russia would hit new targets if Ukraine gets rocket systems
6:21 a.m.
Key update
Kyiv, Moscow accuse each other of sparking fire at monastery
5:55 a.m.
Kyiv hit by missile strikes; 1 hospitalized
5:35 a.m.
Milley visits Sweden in show of support for NATO bid
4:51 a.m.
New U.S. ambassador to Ukraine visits Borodyanka
4:10 a.m.
Key update
Battle for Severodonetsk rages, as Ukraine claims it regained ground
3:29 a.m.
Ukraine denounces Macron’s call not to ‘humiliate’ Russia
3:00 a.m.
Fire engulfs towering wooden monastery in eastern Ukraine
2:43 a.m.
Key update
Key battlefield updates: Kyiv’s forces say they’re slowing Moscow’s eastern advance
2:42 a.m.
Key updates
Putin warns Russia would hit new targets if Ukraine gets rocket systems
Kyiv, Moscow accuse each other of sparking fire at monastery
Battle for Severodonetsk rages, as Ukraine claims it regained ground
Ambassador to Ukraine says U.S. will support Ukraine in war crime probe
1:05
U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink said the U.S. will support the investigation of possible war crimes committed by Russian forces. (Video: Reuters)
By Rachel Pannett, Julian Duplain, Bryan Pietsch and David Walker
Updated June 5, 2022 at 8:05 a.m. EDT|Published June 5, 2022 at 2:42 a.m. EDT
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Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a television interview broadcast Sunday that if Ukraine gets advanced rocket systems from Western countries, Moscow will hit targets “we have not yet struck.” Ukraine has lobbied hard for such weapons and President Biden last week confirmed the U.S. would provide systems that can pinpoint an enemy target nearly 50 miles away.
Explosions rocked Kyiv as two districts were hit by missile strikes Sunday morning, leaving one person hospitalized, its mayor said. Ukraine’s capital has largely been spared from strikes in recent weeks as Russia focuses its military might on Ukraine’s east in an effort to capture the Donbas region.
An intense street-by-street fight continues for territory in the key eastern city of Severodonetsk and surrounding areas, where Kyiv’s forces said they have regained ground. While Moscow says Ukraine is suffering “critical losses” and retreating, the Ukrainian counterattacks are “likely blunting the operational momentum Russian forces previously gained,” according to the latest assessment from Britain’s Defense Ministry. Severodonetsk is one of the last cities standing in the way of Russian control of the entire Luhansk region.
Here’s what else to know
--------------------------- Milley visits Sweden in show of support for NATO bid Return to menu By Dan Lamothe4:51 a.m. Link copied Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, meets with Navy Capt. Tom Foster, the commanding officer of the USS Kearsarge, aboard the vessel on June 4. (Dan Lamothe/The Washington Post) Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, meets with Navy Capt. Tom Foster, the commanding officer of the USS Kearsarge, aboard the vessel on June 4. (Dan Lamothe/The Washington Post) STOCKHOLM — The United States prepared Saturday to launch a sprawling naval exercise in the Baltic Sea with Sweden, Finland and 13 NATO allies, a visible sign of an expanding partnership as Stockholm and Helsinki apply to join the military alliance following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Baltic Operations exercise involves more than 40 warships and has been held annually for decades, but will shift this year to include more involvement from Finland and Sweden, said Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He visited Stockholm on Saturday in a show of support for Sweden’s membership bid, one day after a similar stop in Finland. The two countries have long partnered with the U.S. military but resisted applying to join NATO until last month out of concerns that it would anger Moscow. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, however, that changed with significant shifts in public opinion in favor of joining the military alliance in both countries. Read the full story --------------------------- New U.S. ambassador to Ukraine visits Borodyanka Return to menu By Christine Armario4:10 a.m. Link copied The new U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, on Saturday visited Borodyanka, a community northwest of Kyiv hit hard by Russian forces at the start of the war. Photos of the trip show Brink walking in front of a destroyed building, devastation that she said “strengthens my resolve to do everything we can to hold the perpetrators of these awful crimes to account,” she wrote on Twitter. The United States reopened its embassy in Kyiv in May, nearly three months after shuttering the office when Russia’s invasion started in February. Brink was confirmed as ambassador around the same time as operations resumed in Ukraine’s capital. Ukraine had not had a U.S. ambassador since 2019, when President Donald Trump removed Marie Yovanovitch from the position, a move scrutinized during his first impeachment inquiry. Washington Post reporters visited Borodyanka in April and witnessed scenes of devastation. The city is one of several where war crimes investigations are underway. --------------------------- Key update Battle for Severodonetsk rages, as Ukraine claims it regained ground Return to menu By Rachel Pannett, Meryl Kornfield and Julian Duplain3:29 a.m. Link copied Ukrainian service members drive on a damaged road near the front line in the city of Severodonetsk on June 2. Ukrainian service members drive on a damaged road near the front line in the city of Severodonetsk on June 2. (EPA-EFE/Shutterstock) Ukraine and Russia are locked in an intense street-by-street fight for territory in the strategic city of Severodonetsk and surrounding areas, with Ukraine’s forces saying they have clawed back ground under a barrage of artillery attacks in recent days. “With the support of artillery, the Russian army continues storming operations in Severodonetsk,” said Serhiy Haidai, governor of the Luhansk region. “It controls the eastern part of the city.” But Ukrainian forces are pushing back, he said early Sunday. “In the past 24 hours, five enemy attacks have been repulsed, and three tanks, four artillery systems, 11 armored combat vehicles and 26 vehicles have been destroyed,” he said, adding that a combat helicopter and two drones were shot down. The resistance from Ukrainian forces is “likely blunting the operational momentum” that the Russians previously achieved in the city, the British Defense Ministry said in its latest update. On Saturday, Haidai said in a television interview that Ukrainian forces now control about half of the city. Russia’s military had captured up to 70 percent of it last week. He also downplayed an earlier assessment by British defense officials that the entire Luhansk region could fall into Russian hands in the next two weeks, saying Ukrainian troops have enough reinforcements to defend their positions and launch more attacks. Severodonetsk is one of the last cities standing in the way of Russia controlling the region. Fighting has escalated over the past three days, Oleksandr Stryuk, the head of the city’s military administration, said Saturday in an interview in Ukrainian media. About half of the residential areas have been taken over by invading forces, Stryuk said, but he offered an optimistic assessment. “The situation is tense, but there is hope and we are sure that everything will work out,” he said. Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said in a Telegram post that Ukrainian forces are suffering “critical losses” in the fight for Severodonetsk and are retreating. Neither side’s claims could be independently verified. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said recently that Ukraine is losing up to 100 soldiers daily in the conflict. Analysts from the Institute for the Study of War said Ukraine appears to be having some success slowing Russia’s advance, and its defenses “remain strong,” but its troops are likely “more degraded” than Haidai’s statements imply. Zachary Nelson contributed to this report. --------------------------- Ukraine denounces Macron’s call not to ‘humiliate’ Russia Return to menu By Bryan Pietsch3:00 a.m. Link copied Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba criticized a comment by French President Emmanuel Macron that the West should not “humiliate” Russia, saying Saturday that such a statement “can only humiliate France and every other country that would call for it.” Macron said in an interview published Saturday with French newspapers that “we must not humiliate Russia, so that the day when the fighting stops, we can build an exit ramp through diplomatic channels.” The statement was in response to a question about whether the desires of countries such as Sweden and Finland to join NATO risked escalating tensions. Macron said he was “convinced that it is France’s role to be a mediating power.” Since Angela Merkel stepped down as German chancellor in December, Macron has presented himself as Europe’s de facto representative on the world stage. “It is Russia that humiliates itself,” Kuleba said on Twitter. “We all better focus on how to put Russia in its place. This will bring peace and save lives.” Macron said in the interview that he has had countless conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin since December. He also said he told Putin that the Russian president had “made a historic and fundamental mistake for his people, for himself and for history. Nevertheless, Russia remains a great people.” --------------------------- Fire engulfs towering wooden monastery in eastern Ukraine Return to menu By Christine Armario2:43 a.m. Link copied A towering wooden monastery that is part of a revered centuries-old Ukrainian Orthodox Church site caught fire and sustained heavy damage, officials said Saturday. Ukrainian leaders said in a statement on Twitter that Russia bombed the All Saints Monastery, which is affiliated with Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church. Videos posted on social media showed flames engulfing the ornate building, which drew tourists and pilgrims before the war. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church said it had no information on whether Saturday’s attack caused deaths or injuries. Ukraine’s mission to the U.N. office in Vienna wrote, “Would Patriarch Kiril finally call president putin 2 end the war or would he continue blessing russia’s army?” Russia’s Defense Ministry denied that its forces were involved in the attack. Instead, it accused Ukrainian troops of firing at the monastery and sparking the blaze. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday evening called on Russian church leaders to make “a clear condemnation of each of those who condone aggression.” “Russia is deliberately and systematically destroying Ukraine’s cultural and historical heritage,” he said. The monastery is part of the Svyatogorsk Lavra, a sacred site along the Siversky Donets river. In March, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church said a bomb fell near a bridge and blasted the facility, breaking windows. Church leaders said more than 500 people were seeking refuge there at the time of the attack. UNESCO has included the Svyatogorsk Lavra on a list of cultural sites damaged during the war. The war has raised tensions between the Ukrainian and the Russian Orthodox churches; Christianity is the dominant faith in both nations. Kirill has been a supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the invasion. Religious and secular leaders in Ukraine and other countries have called on Kirill to take a stance against the war. In May, Pope Francis warned him not to be “Putin’s altar boy.” --------------------------- Key update Key battlefield updates: Kyiv’s forces say they’re slowing Moscow’s eastern advance Return to menu By Rachel Pannett2:42 a.m. Link copied Ukrainian forces appear to be slowing Moscow’s efforts to surround their troops in the eastern Luhansk region, including in Severodonetsk, through “prudent and effective local counterattacks” in the city and their defense of the western Siversky Donets riverbank, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW). Severodonetsk: Ukrainian forces are regaining land and now control about half of this city, according to the governor of the Luhansk region, Serhiy Haidai. Russian forces had captured about 70 percent last week. Fighting has escalated in the city’s streets over the past three days under a constant barrage of artillery attacks, said the head of the city’s military administration, Oleksandr Stryuk. Elsewhere in Luhansk: Haidai countered a Friday assessment by Britain’s Defense Ministry that Russian forces would probably control all of the heavily contested Luhansk region in the next two weeks. He said Ukraine’s troops have enough reinforcements to defend their positions and launch more attacks. ISW analysts said Ukraine’s forces are probably “more degraded” than his remarks imply, but defenses “remain strong.” They noted that Moscow’s military has “concentrated all of its available resources on this single battle to make only modest gains.” Kherson region: Russian forces are also facing strong resistance in this southern region, Ukraine’s military said in an update on Saturday. Moscow occupied the city of Kherson in the early days of the war and has apparently started issuing Russian passports in the city and in Melitopol to the east. Kyiv region: Two districts in Kyiv were hit by missile strikes Sunday morning, leaving one person hospitalized, the capital city’s mayor said. Ukrainian investigators have exhumed more than 1,300 bodies of civilians as part of the nation’s investigation of potential war crimes. The identities of more than 200 people found dead have not yet been determined, the Internal Affairs Ministry said in an update on Saturday. David Walker, Meryl Kornfield, Bryan Pietsch and Christine Armario contributed to this report. --------------------------- War in Ukraine: What you need to know The latest: Ukraine and Russia are locked in an intense street-by-street fight for territory in the eastern city of Severodonetsk and surrounding areas, with Kyiv’s forces saying they have clawed back ground under a barrage of artillery attacks in recent days and Moscow saying Ukraine is suffering “critical losses” and retreating. The Institute for the Study of War said Ukraine appears to be having some success slowing Russia’s advances and its defenses “remain strong.” Severodonetsk is one of the last cities standing in the way of Russia controlling the entire Luhansk region. The fight: A slowly regenerating Russian army is making incremental gains in eastern Ukraine against valiant but underequipped Ukrainian forces. The United States and its allies are racing to deliver the enormous quantities of weaponry the Ukrainians urgently need if they are to hold the Russians at bay. The weapons: Ukraine is making use of weapons such as Javelin antitank missiles and Switchblade “kamikaze” drones, provided by the United States and other allies. Russia has used an array of weapons against Ukraine, some of which have drawn the attention and concern of analysts. Photos: Post photographers have been on the ground from the very beginning of the war — here’s some of their most powerful work. How you can help: Here are ways those in the U.S. can help support the Ukrainian people as well as what people around the world have been donating. Read our full coverage of the Russia-Ukraine crisis. Are you on Telegram? Subscribe to our channel for updates and exclusive video. Show more --------------------------- UNDERSTANDING THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE CONFLICT HAND CURATED Maps of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine News• June 3, 2022 Why is Ukraine’s Donbas region a target for Russian forces? News• May 3, 2022 How far will Biden go in helping Ukraine? News• June 1, 2022 View 3 more stories --------------------------- Image without a caption By Rachel Pannett Rachel Pannett joined the Post's foreign desk in 2021 after more than a decade with The Wall Street Journal, where she was deputy bureau chief for Australia and New Zealand. Twitter --------------------------- Image without a caption By Julian Duplain Julian Duplain is a contributing reporter for The Washington Post. He worked for more than 25 years for the BBC as a radio producer and website editor. He was also a BBC correspondent in Prague and reported from countries in Central and Eastern Europe, including Romania, Bosnia, the Baltic states and Ukraine. --------------------------- Image without a caption By Bryan Pietsch Bryan Pietsch is a reporter covering breaking news for The Washington Post from its hub in Seoul. He previously covered breaking news for the New York Times in Colorado. Twitter
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