WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Ukrainian forces press southward, say strategic village recaptured from Russians Ukrainian forces pressed their counteroffensive through the Russian-occupied southeast on Thursday, capturing the village of Staromaiorske in a campaign to drive a wedge through Russian defensive positions. The counteroffensive has focused on securing villages on the southward push and areas around the eastern city of Bakhmut, taken by Russian forces in May after months of battles. Ukrainian officials have reported slow, steady progress. Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged intensified Ukrainian attacks over the last few days, but said they had made no headway. He told Russian television that…

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE Russian military repels ‘massive’ Ukrainian offensive – defense ministry Russian troops have stopped an “intensive” effort by the Ukrainian military to break their defensive lines near the village of Orekhov in Russia’s Zaporozhye Region. The village and its surroundings have been the scene of fierce fighting for weeks, as Ukraine’s floundering counteroffensive drags on. Kiev’s forces “resumed intensive offensive operations” just south of Orekhov on Wednesday morning, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that evening. Despite the Ukrainian army launching a “massive”assault with three battalions backed by tanks, Russia’s 810th Marine Brigade, and 71st Motorized Rifle…

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE US military aid for Ukraine for first time includes Black Hornet spy drone The U.S. Department of Defense announced $400 million in additional security assistance for Ukraine on Tuesday, including air defense missiles, armored vehicles and small drones, as Ukraine's counteroffensive against Russia grinds on. The new aid package, which was first reported by Reuters, will include for the first time U.S. furnished Black Hornet surveillance drones made by Teledyne FLIR Defense, part of Teledyne Technologies. The Norwegian-built Hornet is being used in Ukraine through donations by the British and Norwegian governments, the company said. FLIR Unmanned Aerial…

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Russia talks of retaliation after 'Ukrainian drone strike' near Moscow army HQ Russia spoke of taking harsh retaliatory measures against Ukraine after two drones damaged buildings in Moscow early on Monday, including one close to the Defence Ministry's headquarters, in what it called a brazen act of terror. Nobody was hurt in the attack, of which a senior Ukrainian official said there would be more, but one drone struck close to the Moscow building where the Russian military holds briefings on what it calls its "special military operation", a symbolic blow which underscored the reach of such drones.…