Sergey Aksyonov, the Russian-appointed leader of Crimea, said yesterday (June 15) that nine unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were shot down or jammed in the peninsula overnight and early the same day, according to TASS news agency. One of the UAVs exploded in the village of Dokuchayevo, breaking the windows of several houses.
"Attack and defend"
Crimea comes under new attack as Ukrainian troops counterattack in the country's eastern and southern regions.
Quick Look: Russian Campaign Day 476, Counterattack on Ukraine Needs F-16; US Will Provide Depleted Uranium Ammunition
Yesterday, TASS quoted Oleg Chekhov, a spokesman for Russia's Eastern Combat Group, as saying that the group had repelled an overnight Ukrainian offensive in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic. Chekhov also said that the Eastern Combat Group had prevented Kyiv's attempts to regroup its forces in the Zaporizhzhia region.
Several houses in Kramatorsk city, Donetsk province were destroyed during the Russia-Ukraine conflict on June 14.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said on June 14 that the Russian army had increased its attacks and heavily mined open areas to prevent Kyiv's counterattack, but that Ukrainian forces were "advancing confidently," according to The Kyiv Independent . Ms. Maliar added that fierce fighting was taking place, with Ukrainian soldiers in a state of "offensive and defensive action" in different directions.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said yesterday that NATO's support for Ukraine is making a difference on the battlefield, according to Reuters. Earlier, The Wall Street Journal , citing several sources, revealed that the US planned to send Ukraine depleted uranium shells capable of effectively penetrating the armor of Russian tanks.
Australia plans to send FA-18 aircraft to Ukraine
Challenges ahead
To prepare for a new counterattack, Ukraine has created 12 armored brigades, nine of which have been trained and equipped by the West, Reuters reported citing several analysts.
Among them, Polish analyst Konrad Muzyka said that so far only 3 of the 12 brigades are fighting in the southeast. He said that the Ukrainian army "did quite well" in the first days of the counteroffensive, but after 5-6 days, their progress seemed to stop for unknown reasons. He estimated that in a week of fighting, Ukraine may have lost up to 15% of its Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and several percent of its Western-supplied Leopard tanks.
Analysts say the key challenges in Kyiv's counter-offensive are still ahead, as the Ukrainian army is still quite far from Russia's main defense line, according to Reuters. "The risk for the Ukrainians is that before they reach the Russian defense line, they will suffer too much attrition and it will be very difficult to penetrate that defense line," said analyst Rob Lee, of the Foreign Policy Research Institute (USA).
Expert says Ukraine's counterattack lacks key element: F-16
The Russian military is believed to have prepared thousands of defensive positions from the western edge of the country to the Crimean peninsula, such as minefields, anti-tank ditches and concrete barriers. Those positions are concentrated mainly in the strategically important south, where Kyiv may want to cut the land bridge connecting Russia to Crimea and divide Moscow's forces, according to Reuters. Analyst Lee said Moscow's strategy in the south may be aimed at maximizing Ukrainian casualties before Kyiv can reach Russia's main defense line about 10 to 15 kilometers away.
Australia blocks Russia from building embassy near parliament in Canberra
The Australian Parliament yesterday passed a bill to cancel the lease of land adjacent to Parliament House in Canberra to build a new embassy, according to ABC News. Nearly a year ago, the Australian government decided to end the lease of the land, arguing that Russia had not been active on the land since it was granted permission to build a new embassy there in 2011. However, that argument was rejected by the Australian Federal Court last month, forcing the Canberra government to turn to national security laws, according to AFP.
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