Ukraine War, Putin Begins Tests With Yars Ballistic Missiles Kiev attack on Russian occupied Melitopol

The situation is “under control” in the city of Pakmut, which is besieged by the Russians in the Donbass. The Kiev military said heavy fighting was now concentrated in various areas in eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Ukrainian forces have repelled last-ditch attempts by Russian forces to advance, notably repelling 24 Russian attacks in the past 24 hours.

19,514 Ukrainian children illegally deported to Russia: This is what emerges from the latest update published by the Ukrainian Reintegration Ministry on the state website ‘Children of War’: national media reported. To this figure should be added 4,390 orphans, with only one parent or without parental care, according to the same ministry – as announced yesterday – in the occupied territories or in Russia. To date, only 327 children have been returned to Ukraine.

The Russian Armed Forces this morning began exercises to test the new Yars ICBM. The Moscow Defense Ministry announced that several thousand troops were involved in the exercise. “In total, more than 3,000 soldiers and around 300 pieces of equipment are involved in the exercise,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement on Telegram.

The Ukrainian military shelled Russian-occupied Melitopol, south of the Zaporozhye region in southeastern Ukraine, and the attacks resulted in a power outage to the city. This was stated by Ivan Fedorov, the exiled mayor of the city of Melitopol, which has been occupied by Russian forces since March last year.

Canada will provide Ukraine with a C$2.4 billion (more than €1.6 billion) loan next fiscal year to shore up Kiev’s finances. International media reports this. The move is part of the latest federal budget presented to Parliament yesterday by Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland. The new loan for Ukraine will be disbursed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It builds on Canada’s previous tax assistance to Ukraine aimed at compensating for the economic devastation caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion. Kyiv has so far received $5.4 billion (€3.66 billion) in Canadian aid, including more than $1 billion in military aid.