Lviv - Ukrainian troops moved closer to recapturing towns east of Kyiv and Russian forces who had been trying to seize the capital are falling back on overextended supply lines, Britain said on Friday, one of the strongest indications yet of a shift in momentum in the war.
The mayor of a suburb east of Kyiv said Ukrainian troops had recaptured a nearby village and thousands of civilians were now leaving the area, answering a call from the authorities to get out of the way of the counter-attack.
A month into the invasion, Russian troops have failed to capture any major Ukrainian city. An offensive Western countries believe was aimed at swiftly toppling President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's government was halted at the gates of Kyiv.
U.S. President Joe Biden left Brussels for a first-hand look at the refugee crisis, which has seen 3.6 million Ukrainians flee abroad. He will visit Rzeszów in Poland, where U.S. troops are based roughly an hour’s drive from the Ukrainian border.
He will be briefed on the humanitarian response to the refugees streaming out of Ukraine and those still suffering inside the country. He also will meet with U.S. service members from the 82nd Airborne Division, who serve alongside Polish troops.
New partnership to undercut Russian energy
The United States and European Union on Friday announced a new partnership to reduce the continent’s reliance on Russian energy, a step top officials characterized as the start of a years-long initiative to further isolate Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine.
Biden said the partnership he announced jointly with a top European Union official will turn that dynamic on its head by reducing Europe’s dependence on Russian energy sources, as well reducing the continent’s demand for gas overall.
Cutting reliance will mean increasing imports and generating more renewable energy.
The longer-term aim is to ensure, until at least 2030, about 50 billion cubic metres per year of US gas, up from last year's 22 billion cubic metres.
Biden said the long term benefits of the deal would outweigh the short term pain that reducing Russian gas supplies would cause.
Anatoly Chubais, who was President Vladimir Putin’s envoy to international organizations on sustainable development, resigned and moved abroad.
A number of public figures have condemned the invasion of Ukraine and left their posts at state-run institutions and companies, which could signal divisions in Russia’s official ranks over the war. So far there have been no indications that the resignations have reached into Putin’s inner circle.
UK meanwhile said some 20,100 visas have been issued to Ukrainian refugees with family links to the UK, the Country’s Home Office has said, reported BBC.
As of Thursday, the government had received 35,500 applications under the Ukraine family scheme, which launched earlier this month.
-BBC/AP/Reuters