Russia claims advancing toward Krasnoarmeysk, Ukraine says expelling Russian offensives

Russia on Wednesday said its armed forces continued to advance toward the direction of Krasnoarmeysk (known as Pokrovsk in Ukraine) and Ukraine claimed beating back dozens of Russian offensives.

In a report released on Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry stated that Russian troops are advancing on multiple fronts in Krasnoarmeysk, Donetsk region, including the western part of the city, the area northwest of the city center, the eastern blocks, and the western industrial zone. Russian forces repelled nine Ukrainian attacks within a single day.

Meanwhile, in Kupiansk, Kharkiv region, Russian forces attacked encircled Ukrainian units and repelled attacks by Ukrainian assault teams, it said.

Earlier, the ministry reported that Russian forces had gained full control of the eastern districts of Kupiansk and also seized more settlements in the Zaporizhzhia region.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces reported on the same day that as of 08:00 local time, 217 combat engagements occurred along the front lines over the past day.

Ukrainian forces repelled dozens of Russian offensives in areas including Pokrovsk, and destroyed Russian armored vehicles, multiple rocket launchers, and air defense systems.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces struck the infrastructure belonging to the Stavrolen company in Budyonnovsk, Stavropol Krai, Russia.

This factory is a core supplier for Russian military equipment, producing components for various weapons and drones. Multiple explosions and fires were recorded in the targeted area, with the specific impact of the strike still being verified, it said.

On Wednesday, Ukrainian media cited statements by First Deputy Foreign Minister Sergiy Kyslytsya during an interview, saying that since multiple rounds of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine this year failed to yield substantive progress, relevant dialog had been suspended and no new negotiations will take place before the end of the year.

On the same day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova responded that Ukraine's decision to halt negotiations demonstrated its lack of willingness to achieve peace.

Additionally, Ukraine had violated the latest agreement reached between the two sides regarding the exchange of prisoners of war. Of the 1,200 individuals agreed to be exchanged, less than 30 percent have actually been swapped, she said.

France's finance minister Roland Lescure stated at the Eurozone finance ministers' meeting in Brussels on Wednesday that European Union (EU) member states had reached a consensus on how to expedite the implementation of the European Commission's proposal to provide Ukraine with a 140-billion-euro loan using frozen Russian assets.

However, the European Commission still needs to resolve some complex technical details.

The EU will continue discussions on Thursday regarding the pathways and mechanisms of providing financial support to Ukraine.

Russia claims advancing toward Krasnoarmeysk, Ukraine says expelling Russian offensives

Russia is taking all necessary measures to ensure its national security amid the growing presence and military activities of NATO member states in the Arctic region, a Russian diplomat said on Saturday.

RIA Novosti quoted Russian Ambassador to Norway Nikolai Korchunov as saying that recent military preparations by Norway, Britain and other NATO countries on the alliance's northern flank pose direct security risks to Russia, destabilize the Arctic region and increase the likelihood of dangerous incidents.

It is clear that the intensified militarization of Norway's northern regions and the internationalization of military activity in the Arctic will not strengthen security but instead fuel military-political tensions and escalation, Korchunov said.

He stressed that these negative trends cause justified concern and compel Russia to take all necessary steps to safeguard its security.

Britain and Norway signed a new defense cooperation agreement on Thursday. The agreement includes joint maritime patrols in waters between Greenland, Iceland, Britain and Norway to monitor movements of Russian Navy submarines. It also provides for increasing the number and duration of British Royal Marines deployments on Norwegian territory, and envisages the possible creation of supporting military infrastructure in the country's northern regions.

NATO's Arctic activities pose security threat to Russia: ambassador