The situation in Ukraine\u2019s east has \u201cworsened significantly,\u201d with Russian troops stepping up attacks during a spell of warm and dry weather, according to Ukraine\u2019s commander-in-chief.<\/p>\n
Russian forces continue to advance along the Lyman, Bakhmut, and Pokrovsk axis, Oleksandr Syrskyi said Saturday on Telegram. Ukraine\u2019s response includes deploying air defense and electronic warfare weapons to the most problematic areas, he said. <\/p>\n
The online war monitor DeepState said Kremlin troops have captured Bohdanivka, a village within miles of their next key target in the Donetsk region. Ukraine said the village remains under its control. <\/p>\n
Bohdanivka is less than 6 miles (10 kilometers) from Chasiv Yar, which lies on high ground and is regarded as a strategic point for Ukraine\u2019s defense in the area to the west of Bakhmut. <\/p>\n
If Russia takes Chasiv Yar, \u201cthey could potentially increase the rate of advance deeper into Donetsk oblast as part of an expected summer offensive,\u201d Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute, said in a post on X. <\/p>\n
President Vladimir Putin\u2019s forces are pressing ahead in Ukraine\u2019s east in pursuit of an occupation of entire Donetsk region, one of the goals of the Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion in 2022. <\/p>\n
After capturing the stronghold of Bakhmut about a year ago and sustaining severe casualties in the process, Russia\u2019s next major target is Chasiv Yar, whose elevated position makes it crucial to Ukraine\u2019s defense of the region. <\/p>\n
Russian forces are exploiting Ukraine\u2019s shortages in manpower and ammunition, exacerbated by a months-long delay to approval of a U.S. military aid package worth more than $60 billion. <\/p>\n
Ukraine\u2019s military authorities and their Western allies are concerned that without replenishment of Kyiv\u2019s troops and the provision of badly-needed aid, the nation\u2019s defense may ultimately collapse.<\/p>\n
Russia\u2019s troops may resume a large-scale offensive, the first since 2022, this summer targeting the cities of Kharkiv in the far northeast and Odesa on Ukraine\u2019s Black Sea coast, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg news in February.<\/p>\n
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