Russia deploying 9,000 additional soldiers per month, Ukraine says
The Russian military aims to form another 10 divisions by the end of the year, Syrskyi wrote on Facebook.
"We therefore have no choice but to continue mobilization measures, improve combat training and strengthen the drone component of our armed forces," the army chief said.
Syrskyi put the number of Russian casualties in the war at more than 33,000 soldiers in July.
Syrskyi said the situation was particularly critical in the frontline sections near Pokrovsk, Dobropillia and Novopavlivka in eastern Ukraine.
In recent days, military observers from both sides have reported Russian territorial gains particularly near Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad in the Donetsk region.
Remaining Ukrainian forces are increasingly threatened to be cut off, with the remaining corridor to Ukrainian controlled areas only measuring some 15 kilometres, according to the reports.
The situation for Ukrainian forces is reportedly also deteriorating in Kostiantynivka, a former industrial hub in the area.
Ukraine has been defending itself against a full-scale Russian invasion since February 2022.
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NBC News
2 hours ago
- NBC News
NATO to coordinate regular and large-scale arms deliveries to Ukraine. Most will be bought in the U.S.
BRUSSELS — NATO has started coordinating regular deliveries of large weapons packages to Ukraine after the Netherlands said it would provide air defense equipment, ammunition and other military aid worth 500 million euros ($578 million). Sweden also announced Tuesday it would contribute $275 million to a joint effort along with its Nordic neighbors Denmark and Norway to provide $500 million worth of air defenses, anti-tank weapons, ammunition and spare parts. Two deliveries of equipment, most of it bought in the United States, are expected this month, although the Nordic package is expected to arrive in September. The equipment is supplied based on Ukraine's priority needs on the battlefield. NATO allies then locate the weapons and ammunition and send them on. 'Packages will be prepared rapidly and issued on a regular basis,' NATO said Monday. Air defense systems are in greatest need. The United Nations has said that Russia's relentless pounding of urban areas behind the front line has killed more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians. Russia's bigger army is also making slow but costly progress along the 620-mile front line. Currently, it is waging an operation to take the eastern city of Pokrovsk, a logistical hub whose fall could allow it to drive deeper into Ukraine. European allies and Canada are buying most of the equipment they plan to send from the United States, which has greater stocks of ready military materiel, as well as more effective weapons. The Trump administration is not giving any arms to Ukraine. The new deliveries will come on top of other pledges of military equipment. The Kiel Institute, which tracks support to Ukraine, estimates that as of June, European countries had provided 72 billion euros ($83 billion) worth of military aid since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, compared to $65 billion in U.S. aid. Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans said that 'American air defense systems and munitions, in particular, are crucial for Ukraine to defend itself.' Announcing the deliveries Monday, he said Russia's attacks are 'pure terror, intended to break Ukraine.' President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to the Netherlands, posting on social media that 'Ukraine, and thus the whole of Europe, will be better protected from Russian terror.' He said the deliveries are coming 'at a time when Russia is trying to scale up its strikes. This will definitely help protect the lives of our people!' Germany said Friday it will deliver two more Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine in the coming days. It agreed to the move after securing assurances that the U.S. will prioritize the delivery of new Patriots to Germany to backfill its stocks. These weapon systems are only made in the U.S. As an organization, NATO provides only non-lethal assistance to Ukraine like uniforms, tents, medical supplies and logistics support. The 32-nation military alliance has mostly sought to protect NATO territory from possible Russian attack and avoid being dragged into a war against a nuclear power. But its support role has expanded since U.S. President Donald Trump took office in January, even as his administration insists European allies must now take care of their own security and that of their war-ravaged neighbor. Trump has made no public promise of weapons or economic support for Ukraine. Trump said on July 28 that the U.S. is 'going to be sending now military equipment and other equipment to NATO, and they'll be doing what they want, but I guess it's for the most part working with Ukraine.'


New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
Trump envoy Witkoff urged to take tough approach with Putin in make-or-break meeting to end Ukraine war before sanctions
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is giving Russian President Vladimir Putin one more chance to show he's serious about ending his 41-month-old invasion of Ukraine. As more than six months have passed with no diplomatic progress, well-placed sources tell The Post special envoy Steve Witkoff has been encouraged to take a sterner approach with Moscow's leader ahead of Wednesday's make-or-break meeting — in line with President Trump's recent expressions of disgust at Putin's continued attacks on Ukrainian civilians. Whether Witkoff will take that advice remains unclear. Advertisement 3 President Trump is giving Russian President Vladimir Putin one last chance to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine that started over 3 years ago. via REUTERS A spokesperson for the special envoy declined to comment on the record for this story. Meanwhile, the White House national security team responsible for the Ukraine war held multiple meetings on Tuesday, trying to work out how Washington might best persuade Russia to silence its guns, according to people familiar with the matter. Advertisement Trump himself said Tuesday he would wait to see how the sitdown went before making a final decision on whether to enact secondary sanctions and slapping more tariffs on countries that provide Russia with its main source of income: oil purchases. 'We have a meeting with Russia tomorrow, we're going to see what happens. We'll make a determination at that time,' said the president, before denying that he had promised to set the additional rates at 100% — as he appeared to suggest last month. 'I never said a percentage, but we'll be doing quite a bit of that. We'll see what happens over the next fairly short period of time.' 3 U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will allegedly take a sterner approach in the crucial make-or-break meeting on Wednesday in an effort for the war in Ukraine to end for good. Getty Images Advertisement A source familiar with discussions insisted that sanctions are not inevitable when Trump's deadline is reached Friday, saying the administration is 'pushing hard for a deal. That's always the president's preferred outcome.' As part of his prep, Witkoff has been briefed on the historical motivations behind Putin's war on Ukraine — namely his desire to reconstitute as much of the former Soviet Union as possible, according to a US official. Last month, as Trump's rhetoric toward Moscow began to toughen, Special Presidential Envoy to Ukraine retired Gen. Keith Kellogg said that the president 'now realizes that Putin is not a business partner.' 3 President Trump said he'll see if tomorrow's sit-down will be effective before making a final decision on whether he'll slap more tariffs on Russia. REUTERS Advertisement The commander in chief — so often praised for his businesslike, transactional approach to politics — is up against a ruler who represents the opposite of that approach. That's why the earlier, more cordial approach — complete with Witkoff jovially greeting Putin at the Kremlin — did not work, according to one source. Subsequent offers of reduced sanctions and off-ramps for Russia to end its war were also not enough to persuade Moscow to change its calculus. Russia, for its part, is hoping for more of the same. Witkoff's Wednesday trip comes at the behest of the Kremlin, which invited the envoy after Trump threatened to levy the secondary sanctions. Meanwhile, as Trump's words toward Putin have grown increasingly harsh, Kremlin thought leaders have been denigrating the US president on X. Russian philosopher and Putin confidant Alexander Dugin declared Monday that Trump was crazy, an about-face from a year ago, when Dugin — nicknamed 'Putin's brain' for his purported heavy influence on the Russian leader — endorsed Trump for president in 2024. 'I come to very sad conclusion: Donald Trump is totally mad. It is the shame. We loved him,' Dugin posted to X. Last week, ex-Russian president and current deputy chair of the Kremlin's security council Dmitry Medvedev also blasted Trump for threatening sanctions.


The Hill
4 hours ago
- The Hill
Russia breaks self-imposed freeze on intermediate-range missiles
Moscow justified its move by pointing to efforts by the U.S. and its allies to develop and deploy similar weapons systems in Europe and Asia. 'Since our repeated warnings in this regard have been ignored and the situation is developing along the path of the actual emplacement of the US-made ground-launched INF-range missiles in Europe and the Asia-Pacific, the Russian Foreign Ministry has to state that the conditions for maintaining a unilateral moratorium on the deployment of similar weapons have ceased to exist, ' the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a lengthy statement on Monday. 'The Ministry is authorized to declare that the Russian Federation no longer considers itself bound by the relevant previously adopted self-restrictions,' the ministry added. Russia imposed the moratorium after the U.S. backed out of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) in 2019, accusing Moscow of breaching the agreement, which barred both military powers from deploying intermediate-range missiles that have a range of between 310 miles and 3,400 miles. The Foreign Ministry did not say when or where Russia may deploy the weapons. The announcement came just days after President Trump said the U.S. military was moving two nuclear submarines closer to Russia in response to 'highly provocative statements' made by Dmitry Medvedev, the former Russian president who is currently the deputy chair of Russia's Security Council. Russia's move also comes after Trump shortened the deadline for Moscow to reach a ceasefire with Ukraine and get on a path toward a potential peace agreement. Trump, who has called for the end of the war in Eastern Europe that has raged for nearly three-and-a-half years, spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday, exchanging assessments of the situation on the ground, going over potential sanctions against Russia and joint efforts by European nations to supply Ukraine with more weapons. Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to travel to Russia this week for what the president said was the Kremlin's 'last chance' to reach a peace deal before Washington's sanctions kick into place.