Story By: Ana Marjanovic, Sub-Editor: Michael Leidig, Agency: Newsflash
This is the moment Ukrainian troops shell a Russian tank and two infantry fighting vehicles.
The 81st Airmobile Brigade said they used British M777 howitzers to destroy the Russian military vehicles.
The Command of the Assault Troops of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said on 18th June: “Gunners of the 81st Brigade of the DShV [Ukrainian Air Assault Forces] destroyed one tank and two infantry fighting vehicles of the Russian invaders.
“The video shows the successful work of artillery soldiers of the 81st Airmobile Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine who, using British M777 155-mm field howitzers, destroyed equipment and manpower of the racists.
“In particular, one tank and two infantry fighting vehicles of the Russian occupiers – along with their crews – were turned into scrap metal.
“Death to the Russian occupiers! DShV – Always First! Glory to Ukraine!”
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24th February in what the Kremlin is calling a “special military operation” to “liberate the Donbass”. Today marks the 117th day of the invasion.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that between 24th February and 20th June, Russia had lost about 33,800 personnel, 1,477 tanks, 3,588 armoured combat vehicles, 749 artillery units, 235 multiple launch rocket systems, 98 air defence systems, 216 warplanes, 181 helicopters, 601 drones, 130 cruise missiles, 14 warships, 2,527 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 55 units of special equipment.
The new head of the British Army, Gen Sir Patrick Sanders, has told British forces that they need to be ready to face Russia on the battlefield and said the British Army needs to be capable of defeating Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has visited Ukraine’s southern frontline as Ukrainian forces mount a counter attack in the region to push back Russian troops.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said that the war in Ukraine could last years, adding that while the costs were high, the cost of allowing Russia to achieve its military goals would be even greater.
Washington told China last week that it risked ending up on the “wrong side of history” following Chinese President Xi Jinping’s assurance to Russian President Vladimir Putin that Beijing supports Russian “sovereignty”. Russia has now become China’s top oil supplier amid ongoing sanctions on Russia over the war in Ukraine.
Thousands of civilians remain trapped in the key eastern Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk, where the water supply is reported to be dwindling. Hundreds of civilians are taking shelter in the bunkers beneath the city’s Azot chemical plant.
Luhansk Oblast governor Serhiy Haidai said all three bridges into Sievierodonetsk had been destroyed, making delivering supplies and evacuating civilians impossible.
United States President Joe Biden has promised Kyiv another USD 1 billion in security assistance and weapons. And US General Mark Milley says Russia has lost around 20 to 30 per cent of its armoured force during the ongoing invasion.
Former Russian president and staunch Vladimir Putin ally Dmitry Medvedev has derided French, German and Italian leaders visiting the Ukrainian capital Kyiv as “fans of frogs, liverwurst and spaghetti”.
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi held talks in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv with President Zelenskyy on 16th June.
President Zelenskyy said that a “historic week” has begun as Kyiv awaits a decision from Brussels regarding its EU candidate status.
