Fighting intensifies in Ukraine
Kyiv claims gains in counteroffensive
— Fierce fighting raged Thursday in southeastern Ukraine, where a Western official said Kyiv has launched a major push and Russian President Vladimir Putin said “hostilities have intensified significantly.”
Battles in recent weeks have taken place on multiple points along the over 600-mile front line as Ukraine wages a counteroffensive with Western-supplied weapons and Western-trained troops against Russian forces who invaded 17 months ago.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated his troops on reclaiming control of a village, while Putin praised Russian troops’ “heroism” in repelling attacks in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region.
Putin insisted on state TV that the Ukrainian troops’ push “wasn’t successful” and charged that they suffered heavy casualties, although it was not possible to independently verify his claim. Putin was in St. Petersburg at a summit of African leaders.
Ukrainian troops have made incremental gains since launching a counteroffensive in early June, and Putin has repeatedly claimed Ukraine has suffered heavy losses, without offering evidence.
Ukraine has committed thousands of troops in the region in recent days, said a Western official who was not authorized to comment publicly on the matter.
A U.S. official said Ukraine has begun to commit troops from the 10th Corps, although it’s not certain all of its units are moving into the fight. Ukraine had been holding the 10th Corps in reserve, with the expectation it would be used to exploit gaps or soft spots the ground forces opened up. Those additional new forces would be used to take advantage of places where Ukrainian troops have been able to break through some of Russia’s defenses.
The U.S. official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing military operations.
Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Pentagon reporters last week that Ukraine was “preserving their combat power” and that a “significant” amount of it had not yet entered action.