The Russian army is sending armored vehicles and cannons to the Kharkov region to better repel the Ukrainian counter-offensive. Russian news agencies reported this on Friday. The head of the region, appointed by Moscow, spoke of “violent fighting”.
These were to be carried out near the town of Balaklija, which Ukraine had repossessed on Thursday. Earlier, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had seen Ukraine’s advance in the northeastern region. “We are now seeing success in Kherson, we are seeing some success in Kharkov – and that is very, very encouraging,” he said in Prague on Friday.
The US would stay involved and make sure ‘we give them what they need to be successful’. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also cited support from NATO countries in connection with the counteroffensive and said on Friday that the war in Ukraine would now enter a “critical phase”.
Damage of more than 96.4 billion euros
In the first three months alone, the war in Ukraine caused at least $97 billion (equivalent to €96.4 billion) in damage. This is according to a joint report by the Ukrainian government, the World Bank and the European Commission, which was published on Friday. Residential construction is hardest hit (40 percent), followed by transport (31 percent) and trade and industry (10 percent each). In addition to Kharkov, Donetsk and Luhansk have been particularly hard hit regions.
Reconstruction for the country was estimated at at least $349 billion on June 1. Ukraine has announced that it wants to push through war reparations of at least €300 billion in the UN General Assembly.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
