Ukrainian soldiers wave flag at entrance of Russian-controlled Donetsk town
Ukraine is in full control of the eastern logistics hub of Lyman, Kyiv’s most significant battlefield gain in weeks.
“As of 1230 (0930 GMT), Lyman is fully cleared,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a short video clip on his Telegram channel today.
It comes as the US defence secretary Lloyd Austin has welcomed Ukraine’s capture of the city and said the taking of the former Russian stronghold makes the war “more difficult” for Putin.
Mr Austin told a news conference on Sunday he was “very encouraged” after Saturday’s success by Ukrainian military forces.
He noted that Lyman was positioned across supply lines that Russia has used to push its troops and materiel down to the south and to the west, as the Kremlin presses its more than seven-month-long invasion of Ukraine.
“Without those routes, it will be more difficult. So it presents a sort of a dilemma for the Russians going forward.”
Ukrainian soldiers announced the capture on Saturday in a video recorded outside the town council building in the centre of Lyman and posted on social media by Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of president Volodymyr Zelensky’s office.
1664750169Thanks for following along with our coverage this evening. We are pausing the live blog for now but here is the latest story from Ukraine:
Key Donetsk town liberated and under full Ukrainian control, Zelensky saysVideo appears to show Ukrainian soldiers raising national flag at entrance to town
Holly Bancroft2 October 2022 23:36
1664749944US defence secretary: Putin may not be bluffing on nuclearThe US defence secretary has said that Vladimir Putin may not be bluffing with his threats on nuclear weapons.
Lloyd Austin told CNN: “There are no checks on Mr Putin. He made the irresponsible decision to invade Ukraine, he could make another decision.”
The White House has been examining how they would respond to a potential nuclear attack on Ukraine by Putin, according to The New York Times.
Holly Bancroft2 October 2022 23:32
1664748144Petraeus: US would destroy Russia’s troops if Putin uses nuclear weaponsFormer CIA director David Petraeus has said that the US would destroy Russia’s troops and equipment in Ukraine if Vladimir Putin uses nuclear weapons in the country.
He told ABC News: “Just to give you a hypothetical, we would respond by leading a Nato – a collective – effort that would take our every Russian conventional force that we can see and identify on the battlefield in Ukraine and also in Crimea and every ship in the Black sea.”
(AP)
Holly Bancroft2 October 2022 23:02
1664745804Zelensky: Success not limited to recapture of LymanUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday that the success of the country’s soldiers is not limited to the recapture of Lyman.
“The story of the liberation of Lyman in the Donetsk region has now become the most popular in the media,” Zelenskiy said in his nightly address. “But the successes of our soldiers are not limited to Lyman,” he added without providing any details.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky (C), Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal (R) and Ukraine’s Parliament chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk (L) posing with the document requesting fast-track Nato membership.
(UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SER)
Holly Bancroft2 October 2022 22:23
1664743691Zelenksy: Abduction of the director general of Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is act of terror Ukraine‘s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday that the abduction of the director-general of Ukraine‘s Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is an act of Russian terror.
“This is another instance of clear act of Russian terror, for which the terrorist state must bear an ever-increasing punishment,” Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.
A Russian patrol detained Ihor Murashov on Friday, the state-owned company in charge of the plant said on Saturday, and the International Atomic Energy Agency said Russia had confirmed the move.
Holly Bancroft2 October 2022 21:48
1664741704Russians fleeing the draft tell of three-day queues and bribes to cross borderRussian men desperate to avoid fighting in Ukraine following Vladimir Putin’s conscription order have told of three-day long border queues and bribing security officials with hundreds of pounds at makeshift “checkpoints”.
Bel Trew reports.
Joe Middleton2 October 2022 21:15
1664739004Sanctioned Russian billionaire’s superyacht goes on sale for nearly €30mA 168-foot superyacht linked to sanctioned Russian billionaire Igor Kesaev is up for sale for €29.5m, it has been reported.
The sale of the MySky superyacht, which comes complete with a gym and a helicopter landing deck, was disclosed in an advert emailed seen by Reuters from a US-based yacht broker to undisclosed recipients on 14 September.
It comes amid concerns from Western governments and campaigners that billionaires such as Mr Kesaev have been able to work around a patchwork of international sanctions targeting their luxury assets such as yachts.
Joe Middleton2 October 2022 20:30
1664736304Ukraine presses counteroffensive after Russian setbackRussia attacked the Ukrainian president’s hometown with suicide drones on Sunday, and Ukraine pushed ahead with its counteroffensive after taking back control of a strategic eastern city.
Russia’s loss of Lyman, which it had been using as a transport and logistics hub, is a new blow to the Kremlin as it seeks to escalate the war by illegally annexing four regions of Ukraine.
“The Ukrainian flag is already in Lyman,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly address. “Over the past week, there have been more Ukrainian flags in the Donbas. In a week there will be even more.”
Ukraine presses counteroffensive after Russian setbackRussia has attacked the Ukrainian president’s hometown with suicide drones Sunday Ukraine pushed ahead with its counteroffensive that has embarrassed the Kremlin
Joe Middleton2 October 2022 19:45
1664733604Denmark, Norway and Germany to deliver 16 wheeled armoured howitzers to UkraineGerman defense minister Christine Lambrecht on Sunday announced the delivery of 16 wheeled armoured howitzers produced in Slovakia to Ukraine next year.
The Zuzana systems would be produced in Slovakia and financed jointly with Denmark, Norway and Germany, the German minister told public broadcaster ARD after returning from her first trip to Ukraine since the start of the war there.
The Zuzana howitzer is the flagship product of the Slovak defense industry and the only heavy weapon system produced in the country, dpa reported. According to the manufacturer, it can fire all types of NATO 155 millimeter caliber ammunition.
The German ministry put the total value of the procurement at 92 million euros ($90 million), with the three countries financing it equally.
Joe Middleton2 October 2022 19:00
1664730904Key Donetsk town liberated and under full Ukrainian control, Zelensky saysA town in the Donetsk region of Ukraine crucial to Russia’s war plans has been liberated and is now under full Ukrainian control, president Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
Russia on Saturday pulled its troops out of Lyman, which had a pre-war population of around 20,000, because Kyiv’s forces had closed in and threatened to encircle them amid ongoing counter-offensives in the north and east of the country.
Videos posted online at around 11.20am on Sunday – and shared by Mr Zelensky’s office – showed Ukrainian soldiers raising the country’s national blue and yellow flag at the entrance to the town.
Matt Mathers reports.
Key Donetsk town liberated and under full Ukrainian control, Zelensky saysVideo appears to show Ukrainian soldiers raising national flag at entrance to town
Joe Middleton2 October 2022 18:15
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