Russia’s Belgorod city faced air raids on Saturday morning following the White House’s approval of strikes using US-supplied weaponry in border areas used for attacks on Ukraine. Belgorod, located north of Kharkiv, is under intensified Russian attack.
In an interview with the Guardian, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, expressed the need for “powerful” long-range weapons to hit targets inside deep Russian territory, a request that the White House has denied.
Shelling in the Russian-controlled Ukrainian city of Donetsk resulted in five deaths and multiple injuries on Friday, according to the Russia-installed local regime. A prisoner swap involving 75 prisoners of war each took place between Ukraine and Russia, along with the return of bodies.
China’s involvement in the Swiss peace conference on Ukraine is uncertain as Russia refuses to participate. Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin’s government labeled a women’s group campaigning for the return of mobilized men from Ukraine as “foreign agents.”
Ukraine is set to receive US$2.2bn from the IMF, signaling a boost for the country’s economy. Additionally, the US will continue to keep tariffs suspended on Ukrainian steel for another year, as announced by President Joe Biden.