Russia is believed to be trying to bring infantry closer to Avdiivka.
Neither Russia nor Ukraine appear to have made any significant territorial gains in recent months . However, both President Zelensky and the Kremlin have dismissed the possibility that the conflict is at a stalemate.
Ukraine accuses Russia of stepping up attacks
On his social media account on November 14, President Zelensky said that "the Ukrainian military has recorded an increase in attacks by Russia." Accordingly, Russian units are exerting strong pressure around the cities of Donetsk, Kupyansk and Avdiivka.
Flashpoints: Ukrainian intelligence cracks with allies; tragedy at hospital under Israeli siege
A day ago, the Ukrainian military updated the fighting situation around Avdiivka. Accordingly, the Russian side deployed Su-35 fighter jets to fire guided bombs, while trying to improve the infantry's advance here, according to Reuters.
The Office of the Chief of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces later updated that its forces had repelled 15 Russian attacks near the town of Maryinka, east of Avdiivka, as well as 11 more near Bakhmut in the northeast and six near Kupiansk.
For their part, Russian forces claimed to have repelled several Ukrainian attacks in villages outside Bakhmut as well as elsewhere.
As fighting continues to rage, President Zelensky warned that Russia is likely to increase airstrikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure before winter, a repeat of last year's situation.
Ukrainian President's Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington on November 13 (US time) to convince the US to maintain arms aid from the West.
US must pay 5 times more to buy Gepard anti-aircraft guns for Ukraine
Next, Mr. Yermak also met with US national security adviser Jake Sullivan and UK and European security and foreign policy advisers to discuss the situation on the battlefields.
Mr Yermak said Russia was increasing its military presence in Ukraine and Kyiv needed to maintain international support.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken
Secretary of State Blinken pledges support for Ukraine
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken promised Mr. Yermak that the US would maintain support for Ukraine, including during the winter period.
Mr. Blinken met with the Ukrainian president's chief of staff during a brief trip back to Washington after a trip to the Middle East and before heading to San Francisco, California, to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
Mr. Blinken discussed with Mr. Yarmak steps to help Ukraine strengthen its infrastructure for the coming winter.
As the Middle East conflict draws the attention of the US and the West, US President Joe Biden has pledged to maintain tens of billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine. However, this promise is in jeopardy as the US House of Representatives has yet to agree to provide more aid to Kyiv.
Former NATO leader wants Ukraine to join despite lack of territorial integrity
Mr. Biden convinced the US Congress to spend $61 billion for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel. However, the Republican Party controlling the US House of Representatives only approved aid for Israel and did not mention Ukraine.
The US government is currently facing the risk of shutting down on November 17 if the US House of Representatives fails to pass a rescue plan.
EU unlikely to fulfill commitment to supply ammunition to Ukraine on time
Germany says EU cannot provide enough ammunition to Ukraine
On November 14, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius warned that the European Union (EU) would not meet its target of providing 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine, according to AFP.
Last year, the EU pledged to provide Ukraine with enough ammunition to fight Russia by March 2024.
However, up to now, EU countries have only managed to supply 300,000 bullets from available stocks.
Countries are coordinating orders for 155mm artillery shells, but there are doubts about whether military contractors can complete orders on time.
"Unfortunately, the warning voices have now been proven correct," Minister Pistorius said at a meeting with EU counterparts in Brussels, Belgium.
US officials discuss possibility of Ukraine negotiating peace with Russia
"The target of 1 million artillery shells cannot be achieved. We are forced to draw that conclusion," said Mr. Pistorius.
EU officials have insisted that it is too early to draw such conclusions. However, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell pointed out that the main problem here is that European defense companies export around 40% of their artillery shells to other countries. Therefore, countries need to re-prioritize if they want to fulfill their commitments to Ukraine.
Source link
Comment (0)