Ukraine must ‘knock out the occupiers,’ Zelenskyy says; Severodonetsk cut off after all bridges destroyed

As Russia gradually seizes more territory in Ukraine and continues to pound various targets in the Donbas, analysts fear that Ukrainian fighters are losing the upper hand in the conflict and that a war of attrition is underway.

“I am worried about it,” William Alberque, director of strategy, technology and arms control at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, told CNBC. “There are huge risks that Ukraine will continue to lose land incrementally.”

Alberque said there was still the possibility that the Russian line will collapse somewhere but what made this inflection point of the invasion dangerous was that Russia was now throwing everything it has at fully occupying eastern Ukraine.

“This is the part of the war that one really worries about because it’s a war of attrition because it’s just Russia throwing tons and tons of crap equipment into the battle. It’s them using the Donetsk and Luhansk fighters as cannon fodder. It’s them just drawing upon their huge human resources and there is the chance [Ukraine is] going to lose more land.”

Read more here: ‘Frozen conflict’: Ukraine war could last 10 years or more if Russian forces aren’t pushed back

— Holly Ellyatt

Although Russia’s main objective remains the assault against the Severodonetsk pocket in the Donbas, the U.K.’s Ministry of Defense said Russian forces “have likely made small advances in the Kharkiv sector for the first time in several weeks.”

The ministry, posting its latest intelligence update on Twitter Tuesday, also noted that Russia could be starting to leverage its industrial base for the war effort.

On June 10, the U.K. noted, an official within Russia’s Military-Industrial Commission predicted that state defense spending will increase by 600-700 billion rubles (up to $12 billion), which could approach a 20% increase in Russia’s defense budget.

“Russian government funding is allowing the country’s defense industrial base to be slowly mobilized to meet demands placed on it by the war in Ukraine,” the U.K. said. “However, the industry could struggle to meet many of these requirements, partially due to the effects of sanctions and lack of expertise.”

The ministry said Russia’s production “of high-quality optics and advanced electronics likely remain troubled and could undermine its efforts to replace equipment lost in Ukraine.”

— Holly Ellyatt

The city of Severodonetsk in the Luhansk province — one of the last strongholds of Ukrainian forces in the area — has now seen all of its bridges destroyed, according to the governor of Luhansk, who said the evacuation of civilians is now impossible.

Severodonetsk has been the focus of severe fighting for weeks as Ukrainian soldiers have tried desperately to prevent the city from falling into Russian hands. The relentless bombardment from Russia has taken its toll, however, and at least 70% of the city is now controlled by its forces.

After an update on Monday in which he said only one bridge into the city was left, and that was critically damaged, Luhansk Governor Serhiy Haidai updated the situation on Facebook Monday night saying “all bridges are destroyed, but Severodonetsk is not blocked. Communication with the city is there!!”

“Evacuation and transport of human cargo is impossible,” he added

He added that the Russians have not completely captured Severodonetsk and that a part of the city was still under Ukrainian control.

— Holly Ellyatt

The United States could announce new military aid for Ukraine as early as this week, a defense official and administration official said.

The additional aid is likely to come from the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which can be used for training, equipping, and advising Ukrainian forces. The U.S. has used more than $6 billion for USAI funds in fiscal year 2022.   

Another military aid package, with additional weapons and equipment, could also be announced as early as next week through the Presidential Drawdown Authority, the defense official said.

That would be the 12th drawdown of U.S. arms and equipment for Ukraine’s defense.

Last month, Congress approved an additional $40 billion for aid to Ukraine after President Joe Biden’s request for $33 billion.

— Chelsea Ong

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the capital city of Kyiv will “rebuild everything that was destroyed by the occupiers.”

“We are dealing with absolute evil. And we have no choice but to move on,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly address to the nation, delivered on the 110th day of its invasion by Russia.

He added that Ukrainian forces will “knock out the occupiers from all our areas.”

“We will rebuild everything that was destroyed by the occupiers, from Volnovakha to Chortkiv, because this is Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.

“And it was our destiny to return and strengthen it.”

— Amanda Macias

Russian servicemen patrol the ruins of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, amid the ongoing Russian military action in Ukraine. 

The Russian military had besieged the strategic port city for three months, only taking complete control in late May after a group of Ukrainian soldiers who holed up in the steel plant surrendered.

-Yuri Kadobnov | AFP | Getty Images