LIVE – War in Ukraine: Russian forces briefly enter a formerly occupied city

A woman was sentenced this Thursday to eight years in prison in Russia for “discrediting” the Russian army and “advocating terrorism” on social networks. His posts on social media were related to the conflict in Ukraine, according to the state agency Ria Novosti.

In her posts, Anastassia Berejinskaya, aged around forty, violently attacked Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling for his assassination, and blamed the Russian army for the Boutcha massacre.

The European Union announced on Friday that it had, for the first time, financed the joint purchase of arms by the 27, most of which were for Ukraine. The EU had already financed arms purchases to help kyiv, but outside its budget, thanks to an ad hoc financial instrument.

“This is the first time that we have used the EU budget to support member states in the joint purchase” of weapons, underlined Thursday the vice-president of the European Commission Margrethe Vestager, quoted in a press release. The EU has invested 300 million euros to help around twenty member states buy anti-aircraft defense equipment, armored vehicles and munitions, most of which will go to Ukraine at war, according to this text.

Russia claimed Thursday the capture of a village near Kurakhové, in eastern Ukraine, one of the sectors of the front where its troops are advancing against a Ukrainian army that has been in retreat for several months.

Russian forces “continued to advance deep into the enemy's defenses and liberated the town of Voznesenka” in the eastern region of Donetsk, the Russian Defense Ministry said in its daily report of the fighting.

This is news that should worry the government in kyiv. Tulsi Gabbard, a former soldier and defector from the Democratic Party, was appointed to the national intelligence directorate by President-elect Donald Trump. This official was very critical of Ukraine after its attack by Russian troops in February 2022.

“This war and this suffering could have been avoided if the Biden administration and NATO had simply taken into account Russia's legitimate concerns about Ukraine's possible entry into NATO,” she said on the social network X just after the invasion of the country, in February 2022.

Foreign fighters who volunteer to fight in Ukraine are united within the Foreign Legion. A Frenchman involved in this section agreed to testify on LCI. He describes incessant Russian assaults.

“It’s quite crazy,” describes this anonymous person, who speaks under the name Lucci. “Indeed, there is no retreat, there is no withdrawal. I think that behind it, there must be leaders who push and the soldiers have no choice: they are forced to advance. Those who retreat are shot, it is direct death.

Hello everyone and welcome to this live dedicated to the news of the war in Ukraine.