7:43 am: Breakthrough in the Russian lines
In the northeast, the ongoing Ukrainian counter-offensive was resulting, on the 200th day of the conflict, in significant breakthroughs in the Russian lines. “Since the beginning of September, more than 3,000 km2 have returned to Ukrainian control,” proclaimed Valeri Zaloujny, the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, according to whom his troops are “50 kilometers from the Russian border”.
On June 2, President Zelensky acknowledged that 20% of the total area of his country, or some 125,000 km2, was in Russian hands, including more than 43,000 km2 (Crimea and part of the Donbass basin) conquered before the outbreak of the invasion on February 24.