A Ukrainian military official described Moscow’s announcement that it would increase military operations “in all operational areas” as Russia is preparing for the next phase of its offensive in Ukraine.
Reuters news agency wrote that the contribution of the West’s long-range weapons shipments to Ukraine in the war began to be seen, cities were hit with Russian rockets and missiles in this process, and Kiev reported that dozens of people died in these attacks.
“This is not just air and sea missile attacks. We can see bombardments along the entire contact line, along the entire front line. Tactical aviation and attack helicopters are actively used,” Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman Vadym Skibitskyi said on Saturday.
“It is clear that preparations are being made for the next stage of the attack,” the spokesperson said.
The Ukrainian military said Russia is regrouping its troops for an offensive against Sloviansk, a Ukrainian-held and symbolically important city in the eastern region of Donetsk.
‘Russia fortifies its defense in the south of Ukraine’
The UK’s Ministry of Defense said on Sunday it was fortifying Russia’s defenses in the areas it occupied in southern Ukraine, in the face of Kiev’s promises to repel Russian forces.
Ukraine says at least 40 people have been killed in Russian shelling of urban areas since Thursday.
Russia says it is conducting a “special military operation” to demilitarize Ukraine and root out nationalists, using high-precision weapons to disrupt Ukraine’s military infrastructure and protect its own security. Moscow denies targeting civilians.
Russian minister’s order to ‘intensify attacks’
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has ordered military units to intensify operations to prevent Ukrainian attacks on eastern Ukraine and other Russian-held territories. Shoigu said that Kiev could hit civilian infrastructure or residents, according to a statement from the ministry.
Shoigu’s remarks on Saturday are considered a direct response to a series of attacks that he said Kiev carried out against 30 Russian logistics and munitions centers using multiple rocket launch systems supplied by the West.
A spokesperson for the Ukrainian defense ministry said that these attacks, especially using American-made HIMARS rocket systems, adversely affected the Russian supply chain and reduced its attack capacity.
Russian-backed separatists said Ukrainian forces hit the city of Alchevsk, east of Slovyansk, with these rockets on Saturday, killing two civilians and causing significant damage.
Russian missiles hit Mikolayiv
It was reported that an infrastructure facility in the industrial city of Mikolayiv in the south of Ukraine was hit by Russian missiles.
The mayor of the city, Oleksandr Senkevic, said that there is no clear information about the loss of life yet.
Located on the Black Sea coast between Russia’s annexed Crimea and Ukraine’s main port, Odessa, Mikolayiv has been subject to regular missile attacks in recent weeks after the Russian army declared that it aimed to seize Ukraine’s entire Black Sea coast.