Ukrainian troops block Russian river crossing, Turkey could block Finland and Sweden from joining NATO
Russia’s military has suffered a heavy blow in Ukraine, where local forces have destroyed a pontoon bridge used by enemy troops to try to cross a river, according to officials in Kyiv and London.
Keyword:
- Britain’s defense minister said the operation saw Russia lose “significant armored maneuvers”.
- Turkey has expressed opposition to Finland and Sweden joining NATO
- The nation can veto the nations that join the alliance if it so chooses
Ukraine’s airborne command released photos and video of what they said was the damaged Russian pontoon bridge over the Siversky Donets River and several destroyed or damaged Russian military vehicles nearby.
Ukrainian news reports said troops thwarted an attempt by Russian forces to cross the river earlier this week, leaving dozens of tanks and other military vehicles damaged or abandoned.
The command said its troops “drowned the Russian occupiers”.
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The British Ministry of Defense said Russia lost “significant armored maneuvers” from at least one tactical battalion group as well as equipment used to deploy the makeshift floating bridge.
[Video – Mariupol]
Turkey “unfavorable” to Finland, Sweden joining NATO
With Ukraine appealing for more weapons to ward off the invasion, the EU foreign minister has announced plans to give the country another 500 million euros ($ 752 million) to buy heavy weapons.
At the same time, Finland’s and possibly Sweden’s plans to join NATO have become dubious, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country “does not have a positive view” of the idea.
He accused Sweden and other Scandinavian countries of supporting Kurdish militants and others whom Turkey considers terrorists.
Erdogan did not say outright that he would block the two countries from joining NATO, but the military alliance makes its decisions by consensus, which means that each of its 30 members has a veto over who can join.
An enlargement of NATO would be a blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who began the war in Ukraine in part as an attempt to counter the Alliance’s advance to the east.
But the invasion of Ukraine has raised fears in other countries along Russia’s flank that they could be targeted by Moscow next time.
With Ukraine appealing for more weapons to ward off the invasion, the EU foreign minister has announced plans to give the country another 500 million euros ($ 752 million) to buy heavy weapons.
Losses force Russia to reduce targets
The battle for Ukraine’s Donbas region has turned into a village by village, with no major breakthroughs on either side and little ground gained.
The Ukrainian military chief of the Luhansk region of Donbas said on Friday that Russian forces opened fire 31 times on residential areas the day before, destroying dozens of homes, particularly in the villages of Hirske and Popasnianska, and a bridge in Rubizhne.
In the south, Ukrainian officials claimed another success in the Black Sea, saying their forces took out another Russian ship, although there was no confirmation from Russia and no fatalities were reported.
The logistics vessel Vsevolod Bobrov was seriously injured but is not believed to have sunk when it was hit while trying to deliver an air defense system to Snake Island, says Oleksiy Arestovych, a Ukrainian presidential adviser.
In April, Ukraine sank Moscow, a guided missile cruiser that was the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet. In March, it destroyed a landing craft.
Justin Crump, a former British tank commander who is now a security consultant, said Moscow’s losses had forced the country to reduce its targets.
He said the Russians had been forced to use devices that had not been trained together and were therefore less effective.
“I think the Russian side is very clear that this will take a long time.”
Schools reopen in makeshift classrooms
As the war continues, teachers try to restore a sense of normalcy to children.
In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, lessons are given in a metro station that has become home to many families.
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Children walk with their teacher Valeriy Leiko around a table to learn about art history, with young people’s drawings along the walls.
“It helps to support them mentally,” Leiko said.
“Because now it’s war, and many lost their homes … some people’s parents are fighting now.”
He said the lessons help students “feel that someone loves them”.
ABC / wiring