First, links to reports from the Associated Press, Tass, Agence France-Presse, and Reuters; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. — MCM
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War’s longest battle exacts high price in ‘heart of Ukraine,’ by Hanna Arhirova | The Associated Press KYIV — Visitors used to browse through Bakhmut’s late 19th century buildings, enjoy walks in its rose-lined lakeside park and revel in the sparkling wines produced in historic underground caves. That was when the city in eastern Ukraine was a popular tourist destination. No more. The . . . READ MORE . . .
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Artyomovsk not in operational encirclement yet – PMC Wagner founder. From Tass. MOSCOW — The founder of PMC Wagner Yevgeny Prigozhin has said that Artyomovsk (Ukrainian name – Bakhmut) today is not yet in the operational encirclement of Russian forces. “Operational encirclement implies . . . READ MORE . . .
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Russia slams Macron comments on Ukraine arms deliveries and warns Israel. From AFP. Russia today criticized comments by French President Emmanuel Macron, who refused this week to rule out delivering fighter jets to Ukraine, while warning against the risk of escalation. “Forgive me but this is absurd,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said at a press briefing. “Is the president . . . READ MORE . . .
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U.S. to provide 31 Abrams tanks to Ukraine amid Russian warnings. From AFP. The United States announced today that it would provide 31 Abrams tanks to help Ukraine repel Russia’s forces, mirroring a similar move announced earlier in the day by Germany and in spite of dire warnings against escalating the conflict from Moscow. The twin announcements . . . READ MORE . . .
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Ukraine raids home of billionaire in war-time anti-corruption crackdown, by Tom Balmforth and Olena Harmash | Reuters * Security services make sweeping raids before EU summit * Homes of billionaire, former interior minster searched * New U.S. weapons would nearly double Ukraine’s range * Ukrainian soldier says fighting Russian forces in Bakhmut | KYIV — Security services searched the home of one of Ukraine’s most prominent billionaires this moving against a figure once seen as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s sponsor in what the authorities called a war-time anti-corruption purge. The action, days before a summit with the European Union, appears . . . READ MORE . . .
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MAY BE CONTINUED