WAR IN UKRAINE: June 15, 2023
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Day 477
"Extremely fierce battles" are raging in parts of Ukraine as Kyiv's forces continue their counter-offensive, the country's deputy defence minister says. Hanna Maliar wrote on Telegram that Ukrainian forces had managed to advance near Bakhmut in the east and Zaporizhzhia in the south. But she conceded Russian forces were mounting a stiff defence in some areas. The Ukrainians say their troops have recaptured seven settlements and at least 90 sq km (35 sq miles) since starting their counter-offensive. Ms Maliar wrote on Telegram that Ukrainian troops had advanced around the city of Bakhmut, long the centre of a grinding and bloody street-by-street battle with Russian forces - BBC
In the early hours of Thursday morning, overnight attacks hit industrial facilities in the Dnipropetrovsk region, according to Ukraine's army. Regional military spokesperson Serhiy Bratchuk said a series of drone attacks on the Black Sea region of Odesa were repelled by air defence systems. The previous day, a strike on a warehouse and a shopping centre in the city of Odesa had killed three people - BBC
Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted that his military is lacking high-precision ammunitionand attack drones as Moscow continues its assault on Ukraine. "During the special military operation, it became clear that we don't have enough of some things ... unfortunately, we need greater quantities," Putin said in a rare admission to reporters in Moscow. Some analysts say Putin may be trying to find a soft landing for himself if the war in Ukraine fails. Meanwhile, on the ground, Ukrainian forces are claiming some success in their offensives in the south and east. Kyiv's top general said this week that his troops have seen "certain gains." - CNN
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov says one of his senior military commanders is alive and well, contradicting reports that he had been wounded or killed in Ukraine - RFE/RL
Ukraine’s security needs, both immediate and long-term, are expected to dominate the discussion when NATO defense ministers meet Thursday and Friday in Brussels, where Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov will brief the participants on the progress of the war. The most urgent of those needs, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar told VOA in an interview Wednesday, is ammunition for her country to defend its skies against Russian aerial attacks and to sustain its long-awaited bid to recapture some Russian-held Ukrainian territory that began last week - VOA