'The Russians were waiting for us.'

Russian authorities have accused Kyiv of yet another attack on Moscow and its surroundings with drones. One of the drones on Tuesday hit the same building in the capital that was damaged by a drone just days ago in a similar attack early Sunday.

Russian officials have claimed that the intensified attacks on the capital region reflect failures in Ukraine’s counteroffensive. The repeated drone strikes underscore Moscow’s vulnerability as Russia’s war in Ukraine drags into its 18th month. 

Hi, I'm Nicole and welcome to another edition of Paste BN's Russia-Ukraine newsletter. We have the latest news from the front lines.

Months of preparation and improved military tactics by Russia have made advancement particularly slow and treacherous for Ukraine’s counteroffensive, which is gaining ground at a very high cost.

The liberation of the southeastern village of Staromaiorske in Donetsk province last week was such an example. Ukrainian soldiers who survived the bloody military operation told Reuters they encountered stiffer resistance than expected before claiming the country’s biggest gain in weeks, an abandoned settlement of about 1,000 people before the war.

“The Russians were waiting for us,” said a soldier who goes by the call-sign Bulat. Ukraine continues to press the action on three fronts in an effort to spread out Moscow’s troops and create a weak spot that may open the way for a drive toward the Sea of Azov coast, which would split Russia’s so-called land corridor in the southeast and cut off its supply lines.

More Russia-Ukraine news updates:

• Rescue workers were scrambling through rubble searching for survivors Monday after Russian missiles slammed into the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, killing at least six people and injuring dozens more in the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, authorities said. The attack came a day after three Ukrainian drones damaged buildings in Moscow, prompting Zelenskyy to say it was "inevitable, natural and absolutely fair" to bring the war to Russian territory.
• Ukraine may have found an alternative to export its grain through Croatian ports on the Danube River and the Adriatic Sea after the countries reached a deal “on the possibility” Monday, according to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.
• Ukraine's birth rate fell by 28% in the first six months of 2023 compared with the first six months of 2022, the Ukraine data firm Opendatabot reported. The biggest previous decline also came during war, the firm reported: After Russia attacked and seized Crimea in 2014, birth rates fell by about 12% the next year.

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