As the war enters its 474th day, these are the most important developments.
This is the state of affairs on Monday, June 11, 2023
To fight
- Ukraine said its troops recaptured three villages from Russian forces in the southeast, the first liberated settlements Ukraine has reported since the start of its latest counter-offensive.
- The Russian defense ministry said its forces shot down a Ukrainian Su-25 fighter jet in the Kherson region and repelled three Ukrainian attacks in the Zaporizhia region.
- Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko confirmed that six people were killed by flooding in the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions following last week’s explosion at the Nova Kakhovka dam, which was under Russian control. About 35 people, including seven children, are considered missing, he added.
- Kherson region governor Oleksandr Prokudin said three people were killed and 10 injured after Russia fired on a lifeboat that was supposed to evacuate people from the floods.
- Russia’s defense ministry said Ukraine attempted to attack one of its naval vessels monitoring major gas pipelines in the Black Sea with six submarine drones. It said they were all destroyed.
- Russia and Ukraine simultaneously announced the exchange of nearly 100 prisoners of war from both sides.
- Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the mercenary Wagner Group, said his soldiers would not sign contracts with the Russian Defense Ministry after it ordered all independent forces to do so at the end of June.
Diplomacy
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said an investigation into the Nova Kakhovka dam breach is underway, while International Criminal Court officials have visited the Kherson region in recent days.
- Zelensky approved a proposal by the country’s National Security and Defense Council to impose sanctions on 178 Russian citizens, including 81 people who also hold Ukrainian citizenship.
- Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there is currently no basis for a possible dialogue with Ukraine.