(Reuters) – The head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group said on Wednesday his forces had taken full control of the eastern part of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, scene of one of the bloodiest battles of the year-long war.
FIGHTING
* Russian forces made more than 30 unsuccessful attacks over the past day near Orikhovo-Vasylivka alone, 20 km (12 miles) northwest of Bakhmut, the General Staff of the Ukraine’s Armed Forces said on Wednesday.
* Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the seizure of Bakhmut would allow Moscow’s forces to mount further offensive operations deeper inside Ukraine. Kyiv has vowed to keep defending the town.
Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports.
ECONOMY/DIPLOMACY
* A concert cellist linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin moved millions of francs through Swiss bank accounts without any proper checks, Swiss prosecutors will allege on Wednesday at the opening of a trial of four bankers accused of helping him.
* U.S.-led international sanctions on Russia have begun to erode the dollar’s decades-old dominance of international oil trade as most deals with India – Russia’s top outlet for seaborne crude – have been settled in other currencies.
* Western media reports on the blowing-up of the Nord Stream gas pipelines are a coordinated bid to divert attention and Russia is perplexed that U.S. officials can assume anything without an investigation, the Kremlin said on Wednesday.
* Ukraine has broadened a request for controversial cluster bombs from the United States to include a weapon that it wants to cannibalize to drop the anti-armour bomblets it contains on Russian forces from drones, according to two U.S. lawmakers.
* Existing European funds will need to be prioritised for procuring ammunition for Ukraine before any decision on fresh funds can be expected, the European Union’s top diplomat Josep Borrell said on Wednesday.
* South Korea approved export licences for Poland last year to provide Ukraine with Krab howitzers, which are built with South Korean components, a defence acquisition official in Seoul said on Wednesday.
STORIES ABOUT THE FIRST ANNIVERSARY SINCE THE WAR BEGAN
* TIMELINE – Major developments since Russia’s invasion
* Ukraine’s Zelenskiy has defied Putin against the odds
* Putin, secure in power, has set the stage for long war
* A year on, Ukraine and its government have not just survived. They’ve fought back
* Toughened by war’s scars, Kyiv presses on
* Graphics of a year of war and the financial markets
* Russian economy holds up but road back to prosperity may be long
* Moscow’s decades-old gas ties with Europe lie in ruins
* Top brands pull out of Russia, but goods easy to find
* Can U.S. support for Ukraine last?
* External backers pour billions into Ukraine
* How has China stood by ‘no limits’ partner Russia?
* Life and death in Mariupol – a survivor’s tale of war
* Family mourns Bucha victim who became symbol of war
(Compiled by Reuters editors)
