Russia is “executing soldiers” who are trying to retreat from a new bloody offensive in eastern Ukraine where Russian forces have suffered “significant” losses, the White House announced Thursday, October 27 . “We have information that the Russian military is executing soldiers who refuse to follow orders,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said at a press briefing.
“We also have information according to which Russian commanders are threatening to execute entire units if they seek to evade Ukrainian artillery fire,” added this American official without providing further details on these alleged executions and how Washington would have had access to this information.
For several weeks, Russia has been intensifying its attacks against Avdiivka, a front-line town located a few kilometers north of occupied Donetsk. Moscow reportedly deployed considerable forces to try to encircle the city, suffering heavy losses in manpower and equipment, kyiv said. This was also confirmed by John Kirby, who said that since October 11, Russia had lost “at least 125 units of armored vehicles around Avdiivka and more than a battalion of military equipment.”
Washington announces new military aid to Ukraine
The United States announced Thursday a new tranche of military aid to Ukraine in support of the difficult counter-offensive led since the beginning of June by Ukrainian forces against the Russian army. These approximately 150 million dollars mainly concern air defense means, artillery ammunition and anti-tank weapons, according to a press release from the State Department.
“Ukrainian forces are courageously fighting to reconquer territories seized by Russian forces, and this additional support will help them continue to progress,” assured American Secretary of State Antony Blinken quoted in the press release. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked his counterpart Joe Biden and the American people on X (formerly Twitter) for this new aid.
Denmark donates almost 500 million euros in military equipment to Ukraine
Denmark will give Ukraine military equipment worth 3.7 billion crowns (495 million euros), the Defense Ministry announced on Thursday, confirming the Scandinavian country’s “unwavering support”. “This donation includes tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, artillery ammunition, drones and small arms,” the ministry said in a statement.
Moscow denounces Ukraine talks in Malta this weekend
Russian diplomacy strongly attacked Malta on Thursday, accusing it of hosting “anti-Russian” talks on Ukraine, despite the participation in this format of discussions of countries allied to the Kremlin. “It is obvious that steps (like the meeting in Malta on October 28 and 29, editor’s note) have absolutely no future, they are just counterproductive,” declared the spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova.
“We can only regret that Malta […] has today become the forum for a deeply biased and anti-Russian event, which has nothing to do with a peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian crisis,” she added. This meeting at the level of diplomatic advisors of several dozen of countries is planned this weekend behind closed doors in Malta, the third meeting of its kind after those in Copenhagen in June, then Jeddah in August.
Ukrainian pilots training on F-16s in Arizona
The American ambassador in kyiv said that Ukrainian pilots were receiving training on F-16 fighter jets in the United States. This was announced by a spokesperson for the American Air Force on Wednesday. specialized media Air & Space Forces Magazine. “Ukrainian pilots are currently training with the Arizona Air National Guard on F-16s,” wrote, Thursday evening, Bridget Brink on X (ex-Twitter).