Russian troops fail to advance as Ukraine garners military, financial aid
Al Jazeera
Battles continue in Kharkiv as President Putin signs a strategic agreement with North Korea, which includes a defensive alliance.
Ukraine and Russia have pursued international military agreements as their forces remained largely stalemated during the past week.
Russia was unable to make headway in eastern Ukraine and even lost ground in its newest incursion in the northern Kharkiv region, which was designed to distract Ukrainian defenders.
On Tuesday, Ukrainian troops recaptured positions southwest of Vovchansk, the main prong of Russia’s incursion in Kharkiv, and reportedly recaptured the settlement of Tykhe, west of Vovchansk.
On Wednesday, Colonel Yuriy Povkh, spokesman for Ukraine’s Kharkiv forces, said “dozens” of Russian soldiers were pinned down in central Vovchansk. Other reports put the number of Russian soldiers at 200.
On June 13, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he signed 10-year security agreements with Japan and the United States at the G7 summit in Apulia, Italy. The agreement with Japan would give Ukraine $4.5bn in military, humanitarian and financial aid this year alone, he said.
