Sharing battle footage recorded on their body cameras, Ukrainian soldiers recounted their role in liberating Russian-occupied Klishchiyivka in the Donetsk region. Speaking to RFE/RL's Maryan Kushnir, they described chaos among the enemy as some tried to surrender while other Russian troops fought to the end. The costly victory allowed Ukraine to keep control of the route from Horlivka to Bakhmut, marking another move forward on the country's eastern counteroffensive against occupying Russian forces.
Ukraine said Russia launched missile and drone attacks early on September 17, targeting mainly the southern parts of the Odesa region as Moscow and other regions of Russia reported Ukrainian drone strikes.
Remotely piloting fast, light FPV (or First-Person View) drones, a Ukrainian aerial attack unit has become adept at chasing down Russian targets. RFE/RL's Maryan Kushnir travels to the front with the operators who are hunting down enemy artillery with increasing accuracy.
Village by village, Ukraine’s summer counteroffensive is grinding forward but the pace is slow, and Russia is already counterattacking in some places. Worries are growing in the West about whether Kyiv can pull off a repeat of last year’s sweeping battlefield successes.
Here's what we know six weeks into a major counteroffensive that Kyiv hopes will change the course of the war: It’s not happening. At least not yet. Whether the sluggish pace is trouble, underscoring Ukrainian weaknesses, Russian strengths, or something else, depends on whom you ask.