Our live coverage of Russia's war in Ukraine has moved here.
Ukrainians say they're ready for a counteroffensive. Here's the latest
From CNN staff
Ukraine’scounteroffensive appears imminent.
The country's front lines are abuzz with vehicle movement and artillery strikes, with regular explosions hitting vital Russian targets in occupied areas. President Volodymyr Zelensky has assured a counteroffensive “will happen," while demurring on any exact start date.
It may have already started. It may be weeks away. We don’t know — but Ukrainians, whom CNN spoke to in Kyiv, are pinning their hopes on this much-anticipated counteroffensive.
Here's the latest headlines:
- Ukrainian solider says military is prepared or counteroffensive: A Ukrainian soldier, who goes by the pseudonym Artur, told CNN that his brigade is prepared for a much-anticipated counteroffensive. "We are ready and have been waiting for a counteroffensive for a long time. We have completed our resupply," he said in a text message.
- No exact date for counter offensive: Yurii Sobolevskyi, first deputy head of Ukraine’s Kherson regional council, said he doesn't think a specific date will be announced for an expected counteroffensive in the south. He expressed optimism that Ukraine will be able to take back its territory from Russia.
- Signs of bipartisan support for Ukraine aid in US: The White House on Tuesday offered rarepraise for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy after hesaid he supports aid to Ukraine and called outRussianatrocities resulting from the invasion. While McCarthy has said he supports Ukraine,he has also told reporters that he would not support “a blank check” for aid requested by the Biden administration.
- US company that owns major dating apps pulling out of Russia: The US-based owner of dating app Tinder, Match Group, announced it is withdrawing from the Russian market by June 30. The company's global portfolio of brands includes the dating apps Hinge, OkCupid and PlentyOfFish.
There could be no exact date for counteroffensive start, according to member of Kherson council
From CNN's Olga Voitovych
Yurii Sobolevskyi, first deputy head of Ukraine’s Kherson regional council, said he doesn't think a specific date will be announced for an expected counteroffensive in the south.
"In fact, what the Ukrainian Armed Forces are doing in our southern sector may be considered a counteroffensive: maintaining fire control, constantly destroying military targets, and reducing the enemy's combat capability," he said.
"Therefore, I don't think there will be a date from which it will be considered that the counteroffensive has already begun," Sobolevskyi said.
He expressed optimism that Ukraine will be able to take back its territory from Russia.
"Because what is happening now in the temporarily occupied territory is just a nightmare. This should not happen in the 21st century. These are torture chambers, forced passportization, and deportation of children, etc.," he alleged.
"All Ukrainians now have a single wish: our victory and peace, because Ukraine never wanted war, and now it is forced to defend itself. We want everything to end in our victory so that we can resume our lives, the development of our country in the European family and the entire civilized world. For me personally, this is important because our people, the people of Kherson, are there [on the occupied territories] now, and I feel responsible for them as well. It is very hard indeed for our people in the temporarily occupied territories," Sobolevskyi said.
Remember: In November 2022, Ukrainian troopsadvanced throughmuch of the city of Kherson and its surrounding area, forcing Russian fighters to retreat to the Dnipro River's east bank.
Owner of dating app Tinder says it's withdrawing from Russia
From CNN’s Sarah Dean in London
The US-based owner of dating app Tinder has announced it is withdrawing from the Russian market.
"We are committed to protecting human rights. Our brands are taking steps to restrict access to their services in Russia and will complete their withdrawal from the Russian market by June 30, 2023," Match Group said in its Annual Impact Report published on Monday.
Match Group's global portfolio of brands includes the dating apps Hinge, OkCupid and PlentyOfFish.
Ukrainian soldier says troops are ready for an expected counteroffensive: "We have completed our resupply"
From Yulia Kesaieva
A Ukrainian soldier, who goes by the pseudonym Artur, told CNN that his brigade is prepared for a much-anticipated counteroffensive.
"We are ready and have been waiting for a counteroffensive for a long time. We have completed our resupply," he said in a text message.
His 46th Separate Airmobile Brigade, which is located in the direction of the southern Zaporizhzhia region, has been buoyed by volunteers who've donated money for drones, cameras, clothing and even cars, he said.
"We know that our command is able to conduct a counteroffensive — the operations near Kyiv and Kharkiv are a good example. That is why we believe in the command. And the main thing is that we will be liberating our homeland, which gives us strength. This is the most important thing," he said.
But Artur did note that a few aspects of the potential counteroffensive do cause concern for his fellow soldiers.
"First of all. We will not have an element of surprise. Because every smartphone is shouting about this counteroffensive. So, the [Russians] may not know where it will be, or maybe they do.And if they do, they will be prepared," he said.
Artur said the Russian forces have been able to gather reserves after President Vladimir Putin announced a controversial "partial mobilization" in September 2022 — which also caused rare protests and long lines of cars to flee Russia — following a successful Ukrainian counteroffensive.
"Thirdly. The more we wait and accumulate forces, the more they hit our warehouses and places of deployment. And they are constantly attacking the front line of defense with aircraft. If we keep stalling, we may not live to see a counteroffensive. Moreover, if they are hitting our warehouses, it means they have the [location] information," he added.
Artur also said Ukrainian forces are no longer waiting for fighter jets, which President Volodymyr Zelensky and other leaders have repeatedly asked Western nations to provide. "We are learning how to fight with what we have. Tanks and HIMARS should do the job," he said.
Some background on the expected counteroffensive: Russian defenses have been built up for hundreds of miles across the meandering southern front – where the Ukrainian forces are expected to concentrate their counteroffensive. Several satellite images shared with CNN by Maxar Technologies show extensive trenches east of the town of Polohy in the Zaporizhzhia region.
NATO officials say that 98% of the fighting vehicles pledged to Ukraine are now in the country as well.
White House offers rare praise for House Speaker McCarthy over comments supporting aid to Ukraine
From CNN's Maegan Vazquez
The White House on Tuesday offered rarepraise for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy after hesaid he supports aid to Ukraine and called outRussianatrocities resulting from the invasion.
“We’re glad to hear that Speaker McCarthy agrees it is vital to keep supporting Ukraine. It was good to hear him push back on propaganda put forth by Russian state news outlets, as we have seen,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during the press briefing.
In Israel on Monday, a Russian reporter asked McCarthy if the US posture of sending supplies and aid to Ukraine will change and implied that the speaker did not support Ukraine.
“Did he say I don't support aid to Ukraine? No. I voted for aid for Ukraine. I support aid for Ukraine. I do not support what your country has done you do to Ukraine. They do not support your killing of the children either. And I think for one standpoint, you should pull out, and I don't think it's right. And we will continue to support, because the rest of the world sees it just as it is,” he said.
While McCarthy has said he supports Ukraine,he has also told reporters that he would not support “a blank check” for aid requested by the Biden administration.
On Tuesday, Jean-Pierre underscored that “the widespread bipartisan support that we’ve seen in Congress for Ukraine has been critical to those efforts, and we agree that it is important for that support to continue. And we’re glad to hear that from Speaker McCarthy.”
Ukrainians are pinning their hopes on a spring counteroffensive
From Olga Voitovych and Yulia Kesaieva
Ukraine’scounteroffensive appears imminent.
The country's front lines are abuzz with vehicle movement and artillery strikes, with regular explosions hitting vital Russian targets in occupied areas. President Volodymyr Zelensky has assured a counteroffensive “will happen," while demurring on any exact start date.
It may have already started; it may be weeks away. We don’t know – but Ukrainians, whom CNN spoke to in Kyiv, are pinning their hopes on this much-anticipated counteroffensive.
Tetiana Kolle-Kolesnikova, 35, left her town Volnovakha in the Donetsk region in the first days of Russia's full-scale invasion. Now she lives and works in Kyiv as a manicurist.
“I expect that our army will win in any case and take back all the occupied territories. And our family will finally be able to return home and see their homeland. We miss home very much," she told CNN.
Lawyer and Kyiv resident, Yurii Holovach, is also hoping for a positive outcome from the counteroffensive, but he also doesn't want the Ukrainian forces to feel rushed.
"They need to be trained and prepared. Even if it takes more time to get prepared — it's better, because then we will get more weapons. We need long-range weapons for the counteroffensive to go successfully," he said.
Tetiana Kravets, 26, an administrator in a notary firm in Kyiv, hopes that the counteroffensive is successful so the country could return to its pre-war conditions.
Contrary to their expectations, 56-year-old Ruslan Stryk living in Kyiv thinks there may not be a counteroffensive at all. Recounting his observations from the early days of April 2022 in Mariupol — before he evacuated with his wife — he said, a successful counteroffensive would need military aircraft.
"We don’t have planes! I remember in Mariupol, the sky was theirs [Russians’]. So without the military aircraft, there can be no counteroffensive. Or maybe the long-range weapons can do the trick, to be able to destroy their logistics in the rear. But without it, it’s very dangerous," he said.
"I want to [go] back home. But we need combat aircraft and long-range artillery. Otherwise, there will be big personnel losses,” he added.
It's evening in Ukraine. Catch up here on the latest developments in the war
From CNN staff
The latest intelligence update from Britain’s defense intelligence agency said Moscow has constructed some of the most sprawling and complex defensive trenches "seen anywhere in the world for many decades," along the northern border of annexed Crimea, and "well inside" Russia's southern Belgorod and Kursk regions.
"The defences highlight Russian leaders’ deep concern that Ukraine could achieve a major breakthrough," the agency said.
Catch up on other key developments today from Russia's war in Ukraine:
Russia rejects US casualty estimates: The White House on Monday estimated that the Russianmilitary has suffered at least 100,000 casualties— both wounded and dead — in Ukraine in the past five months. Washington said more than 20,000 military members have been killed, half of which were Wagner fighters.
On Tuesday, the Kremlin pushed back, with spokesperson Dmitry Peskov saying that Washington has “absolutely no way” to give accurate estimates of Russian losses in Ukraine. Peskov said numbers from the Russia defense ministry "will publish in due time." The last Russian casualty count was released last September.
Russian official defends actions on children: Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian commissioner for children’s rights, who was issued an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court along with Russian President Vladimir Putin, spoke about the charges against her in an interview with Vice News. The warrants were issued in March for the alleged "unlawful deportation and transfer of children" from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia.
In the interview, she dismissed the allegations against her and said she is fostering a 16-year-old Ukrainian boy who she called "my child," adding, "We love each other madly."
US ambassador to China's comments: US Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns said Beijing needs to "push Russia to withdraw its troops."
"It’d be helpful if China pushed Russia to cease bombing of Ukrainian schools, and Ukrainian hospitals, and Ukrainian apartment buildings," he said. His remarks come after a phone call between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, the first since Russia's full-scale invasion.
Explosion in Melitopol: A Russian-installed deputy head of a regional police department was hospitalized by an explosive device in the Russian-occupied southern Ukrainian city of Melitopol on Tuesday, Russia's investigative committee said.
The incident comes after another police chief in Melitopol, Oleksandr Mishchenko, was killed on April 27 when an improvised device exploded at the entrance to the apartment building where he lived.
Russian-installed official hospitalized by explosive device in Melitopol, Russian investigators say
From CNN's Uliana Pavlova, Yulia Kesaieva and Sarah Dean
A criminal investigation was launched after a Russian-installed deputy head of a regional police department was hospitalized by an explosive device in the occupied southern Ukrainian city of Melitopol on Tuesday, Russia's Investigative Committee said in a statement.
The incident happened at the gate of a residential building, the statement added.
"An improvised explosive device was planted, which was set off when the deputy head of the Russian Central Internal Affairs Directorate for the Zaporizhzhia region opened the gate on his way to work. As a result, the man suffered a mine-explosive injury. The victim was admitted to a medical facility," it said. The statement did not name him.
"Investigative and operational-search measures are being taken to identify those involved in the commission of this crime," it added.
The exiled Ukrainian mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov, said that an explosion was heard on Tuesday morning by residents in the northern districts of the city.
"According to the specified data, this morning's explosion ‘knocked on the door’ of the deputy head of the so-called Department of Internal Affairs of the temporarily occupied part of Zaporizhzhia region when he was opening the gate," Fedorov added.
It follows a similar blast last week: The incident comes after another police chief in Melitopol, Oleksandr Mishchenko, was killed on April 27 when an improvised device exploded at the entrance to the apartment building where he lived.
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said Tuesday three suspects "of a sabotage and reconnaissance group, which included a citizen of Ukraine and two citizens of Russia" allegedly involved in Mishchenko's death were detained.
Last week, Fedorov commented on Mishchenko’s death on Telegram, writing: "Before the full-scale invasion, Mishchenko was the head of the Pryazovia police department. After the occupation, not only he did defect to the enemy, but he also persuaded his employees to become traitors."
FAQs
What was the name of Ukraine before it became Ukraine? ›
1936–1941: Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. 1941–1944: There was no Ukrainian state under Nazi occupation (though one was declared); the territory was governed as Reichskommissariat Ukraine (RKU) 1941–1991: Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.
Are there any talks going on between Russia and Ukraine? ›There have been several rounds of peace talks to halt Russia's 2022 invasion in Ukraine and end the Russo-Ukrainian War in an armistice.
Why did Ukraine leave Russia in 1991? ›Back in 1991, competing visions for a post-Communist era in Moscow held up Ukraine's drive for separation from Russia.
How much land did Russia take from China? ›Thus, by pure diplomacy and only a few thousand troops, the Russians took advantage of Chinese weakness and the strength of the other European powers to annex 350,000 square miles (910,000 km2) of Chinese territory.
What language is spoken in Ukraine? ›Ukrainian, the official language, belongs with Russian and Belarusian to the East Slavic branch of the Slavic language family. Ukrainian is closely related to Russian but also has distinct similarities to the Polish language.
What was the international response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine? ›Public reaction
The invasion received widespread public condemnation internationally. Protests and demonstrations were held worldwide including in many post-Soviet countries and some in Russia itself. Russian monuments across Europe were subject of vandalism with some even demolished.
The national flag of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Прапор України, romanized: Prapor Ukrayiny) consists of equally sized horizontal bands of blue and yellow. White with a blue Saint George's cross that extends to the edges of the flag, with the national bicolour in the canton.
How did the Russian Revolution impact World War I Brainly? ›The Russians pulled out from the war, enabling the Germans to focus on the Western front.
How did Russia get so much land? ›By the early 18th century, Russia had vastly expanded through conquest, annexation, and the efforts of Russian explorers, developing into the Russian Empire, which remains the third-largest empire in history.
When did Ukraine give up nuclear weapons? ›Ukraine, a republic of the former Union of Socialist Soviet Republics (USSR) from 1922–1991, once hosted Soviet nuclear weapons and delivery systems on its territory.
Why does Ukraine want to join NATO? ›
Membership with NATO would significantly increase Ukraine's international military backing, allowing for NATO military action within Ukraine and alongside members of its military. This guarantee of military might would act as a firm deterrent to Russian aggression.
Why did Russia sell Alaska? ›Defeat in the Crimean War further reduced Russian interest in this region. Russia offered to sell Alaska to the United States in 1859, believing the United States would off-set the designs of Russia's greatest rival in the Pacific, Great Britain.
When did Russia sell Alaska? ›Prints and Photographs Division. On March 30, 1867, the United States reached an agreement to purchase Alaska from Russia for a price of $7.2 million. The Treaty with Russia was negotiated and signed by Secretary of State William Seward and Russian Minister to the United States Edouard de Stoeckl.
Who is Russia's largest trading partner? ›The value of total exports from Russia to its major trade partner — China — amounted to nearly 69 billion U.S. dollars in 2021.
What is hello in Ukraine? ›The first and most crucial greeting to say hello or hi in Ukrainian is Добрий день! (dobryi den”). You will often use this formal word when meeting new Ukrainian people. If you are talking with close friends, however, and would like to speak informally, you can say Привіт!
What is traditional Ukrainian food? ›The most famous traditional Ukrainian dishes are borshch, varenyky, holubtsi, Chicken Kyiv, banosh, and syrnyky, and it surely is not an exhaustive list. Borshch (sometimes written as borsch, borsht, bortsch, or borshch) is a sour soup with distinctive red colour.
What is the reason for conflict between Russia and Ukraine? ›There are no diplomatic or bilateral relations between Ukraine and Russia. An international armed conflict has existed between the two states since Russia invaded the Crimean peninsula in February 2014, and Russian-controlled armed groups seized Donbas government buildings in May 2014.
Why are sanctions imposed on Russia? ›Western countries and others imposed sanctions on Russia after it recognised the independence of its allied territories, the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, on 21 February 2022 in a speech by Vladimir Putin.
What does a half yellow half blue flag mean? ›Ukraine Flag Trivia
After being banned during its years under Soviet control, the flag of Ukraine re-emerged in 1991 depicting a blue and yellow bicolour, representing fields of wheat under a blue sky.
The Ukrainian flag consists of two horizontal bands of equal width, with blue on the top and yellow on the bottom. The combination is commonly decoded as the sky above and the endless fields of wheat beneath it.
Who stopped the Bolsheviks? ›
In the July Days of 1917, the Menshevik and Socialist Revolutionary parties supported the suppression of the Bolsheviks, who were forming part of a rival government in Petrograd.
What are the 8 central powers? ›| Country | Population (millions) | |
|---|---|---|
| German Empire (1914) | Total | 77.7 |
| Austria-Hungary (1914) | 50.6 | |
| Ottoman Empire (1914) | 23.0 | |
| Bulgaria (1915) | 4.8 | |
On November 7, 1917, members of the Bolshevik political party seized power in the capital of Russia, Petrograd (now St. Petersburg). This conflict, ultimately, led to a Bolshevik victory in the Russian civil war that followed, and the establishment of the Soviet Union in 1922.
Why is Russia so powerful? ›It has enormous natural resources, particularly oil and natural gas. It is the world's eleventh-largest economy by nominal GDP, and the sixth-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). Due to a volatile currency exchange rate, Russia's GDP as measured in dollars fluctuates sharply.
Who owns the most land in Russia? ›The current largest landowner, Miratorg, managed to expand its farmland 47% to 1 million hectares within a year, leaving the former ranking leader Prodimex + Agrokultura with a figure of 865,000 hectares behind.
Does Russia own the most land in the world? ›Russia (Russian: Россия) is the largest country in the world, covering over 17,125,192 km2 (6,612,074 sq mi), and encompassing more than one-eighth of Earth's inhabited land area.
Does Mexico have nuclear weapons? ›Mexico is one of few countries possessing the technical capability to manufacture nuclear weapons. However, it has renounced them and has pledged to only use its nuclear technology for peaceful purposes following the Treaty of Tlatelolco in 1967.
How many nukes does USA have? ›...
Nuclear weapons of the United States.
| United States | |
|---|---|
| Total tests | 1,054 detonations |
| Peak stockpile | 31,255 warheads (1967) |
| Current stockpile | 3,750 (2021) |
| Maximum missile range | ICBM: 15,000 km (9,321 mi) SLBM: 12,000 km (7,456 mi) |
- Russia (5,977 warheads)
- United States (5,428)
- China (350)
- France (290)
- United Kingdom (225)
- Pakistan (165)
- India (160)
- Israel (90)
George Robertson, a former Labour defence secretary who led Nato between 1999 and 2003, said Putin made it clear at their first meeting that he wanted Russia to be part of western Europe. “They wanted to be part of that secure, stable prosperous west that Russia was out of at the time,” he said.
Why was Ukraine not allowed to join NATO? ›
Plans for NATO membership were shelved by Ukraine following the 2010 presidential election in which Viktor Yanukovych, who preferred to keep the country non-aligned, was elected President. Yanukovych fled Ukraine in February 2014 during the Revolution of Dignity.
What would happen if Ukraine joined NATO? ›If Ukraine were to join NATO, the collective defence principle would mean the whole of the alliance was at war with Russia. The West has been toeing a precarious line when it comes to direct conflict with Moscow, and trying its best to avoid becoming an active participant in the current Ukraine war.
What was ancient Ukraine called? ›A powerful medieval state called Rus' land or just Rus' was born and it developed into Ukrainian lands, meeting its golden age at the turn of the 11th century.
What was the Ukraine called before 1900? ›The formal name of the new political entity was the Zaporozhian Host; the Muscovites, however, referred to it as Little Russia, while the Poles continued calling it Ukraine. Hoping to establish a dynasty, Bohdan Khmelnytsky had arranged for his 16-year-old son Yurii Khmelnytsky to succeed him.
Who were the original inhabitants of Ukraine? ›The oldest known main inhabitants of Ukraine were Cimmerians. They were replaced in 5th century BC by Scythians, who ruled till 2nd century BC; Sarmatian tribes then replaced them. Later in 1st century AD the tribesmen of the dominant horde were called Alanis.
Where did Ukraine originate from? ›The history of Ukrainian nationality can be traced back to the kingdom of Kievan Rus' of the 9th to 12th centuries. It was the predecessor state to what would eventually become the Eastern Slavic nations of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine.
What did Romans call Ukraine? ›Crimea in the Roman era - Wikipedia.
What did the Vikings call Ukraine? ›Ukraine and Russia go back to Kievan Rus, a medieval Viking federation that ruled first from Novgorod to the north, and then from Kyiv. Its territory included what is now Ukraine, Belarus and part of Russia. Kievan Rus meant “the land of the Rus”. The word “Russia” derives from Rus.
What nationality are most Ukrainians? ›Overall, 77.8% of Ukraine's population self-identified as ethnically Ukrainian and 17.3% as ethnically Russian. Several other ethnic groups amounted to less than one percent of the country's population each – for example, Crimean Tatars 0.5%; Bulgarians 0.4%; Hungarians 0.3%; Jews 0.2%; Roma 0.1%.
What is the oldest civilization in Ukraine? ›Ukraine is the homeland of one of the most ancient civilizations, the Trypillian Civilization, which flourished on its territory about 7,000 years ago.
What are Ukrainian facial features? ›
Most Ukrainians of the southern belt are tall with even darker hair and eyes, round heads, high foreheads, medium-broad and elongated faces, and narrow, mostly straight but sometimes curved and aquiline, noses.
Are Ukrainians and Russians genetically the same? ›According to geneticists, "Ukrainians, Belarusians and Russians have almost identical proportions of Caucasus and Northern European components and have virtually no Asian influence".
Who do the Ukrainians descend from? ›Ukrainians, like most Europeans, largely descend from three distinct lineages: Mesolithic hunter-gatherers, descended from populations associated with the Paleolithic Epigravettian culture; Neolithic Early European Farmers who migrated from Anatolia during the Neolithic Revolution 9,000 years ago; and Yamnaya Steppe ...
Did Vikings settle in Ukraine? ›The Vikings started moving south from Scandinavia to Ukraine in the late 9th century and this settlement of about one square kilometre dates from that period.
Which religion followed in Ukraine? ›As of 2022, according to a survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), 85% of Ukrainians identified as Christians. 72% identified themselves with Eastern Orthodoxy, 9% to the Catholic Church (8% Eastern-rite, 1% Latin-rite) and 4% adherents of a Protestant Church or other Christian movement.
How old is Ukrainian language? ›Ukrainian is a lineal descendant of the colloquial language used in Kievan Rus (10th–13th century). It is written in a form of the Cyrillic alphabet and is closely related to Russian and Belarusian, from which it was indistinguishable until the 12th or 13th century.
When was Russia first mentioned? ›"Russia" (also spelled Rossia and Russie) was the dominant Romance-language form, first used by Liutprand of Cremona in the 960s and then by Peter Damian in the 1030s. It became ubiquitous in English and French documents in the 12th century.