Sputnik and AFP
The newspaper La Jornada
Wednesday, September 18, 2024, p. 25
Moscow. Russian troops have taken control of the town of Ukrainsk in the Donetsk republic as they continue their advance, mainly in eastern Ukraine, security forces reported yesterday.
This morning the town of Ukrainsk passed under the control of the Russian armythe Sputnik source said. Security forces released photos showing Russian fighters hanging a flag in the ventilation shaft of a mine located on the outskirts of the town.
The Russian military also destroyed energy facilities essential for the operation of Ukrainian military enterprises, the Defense Ministry said.
Russian tactical aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, missile batteries and artillery destroyed several energy facilities that ensured the operation of Ukrainian military industry enterprises.the daily report highlighted.
He stressed that Russia’s anti-aircraft defenses shot down a missile in the last 24 hours. Himars of American manufacture and 36 unmanned aerial devices and that Ukraine lost up to 1,960 soldiers.
It will increase its army to 1.5 million soldiers
Russia decided to increase the number of its army troops, in response to the threats Westerners, the Kremlin said.
President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday evening to increase the number of Russian soldiers by 15 percent to a total of 1.5 million. The increase makes Russia’s army the second largest in the world, behind China’s, Russian media reported.
Between 2008 and 2022, the number of Russian troops was approximately one million, but the start of the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has led to a progressive increase. The latest increase took place last December, from 1.15 to 1.32 million.
Meanwhile, Germany has announced a new aid package worth 100 million euros for Ukraine, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said yesterday.
The United States, meanwhile, has deployed more than 100 soldiers with portable rocket launchers to a desolate island in the Aleutian Islands west of Alaska.