Russia-Ukraine Crisis: Luhansk governor says Russian forces are largely in control of Severodonetsk, the city in which Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the fate of the Donbas is being decided. Two British nationals and a Moroccan captured while fighting for Ukraine could face the death penalty in one of Russia’s proxies in eastern Ukraine.
Russia and Turkey have voiced support for a safe corridor in the Black Sea to allow Ukrainian grain exports, but Kyiv has rejected qthe proposal, saying it is not credible. A mayoral aide in the city of Mariupol says about 50 to 100 bodies have been found in high-rise buildings searched, calling it an “endless caravan of death”.
US and China are expected to use the upcoming Shangri-La Dialogue – which attracts top-level military officials, diplomats and weapons makers from around the globe – to trade blows over everything from Taiwan’s sovereignty to the war in Ukraine. Russian forces are using psychological tactics to damage the morale of Ukrainian soldiers, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has said.
An adviser to Zelenskyy’s office has said Russian troops had changed their tactics in the battle for Severodonetsk. Zelenskyy has said that for Russia to join in negotiations to end the war “is simply not possible now because Russia can still feel its power”.