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Russia now appears to have the initiative over Ukraine in the battle for the Donbas, in the country's east, the UK's Ministry of Defence has said. On the war's 100th day, the UK said Russia holds 90% of the Luhansk region - half of the Donbas - and is likely to complete control of it in two weeks. It said these tactical successes had been achieved "at significant resource cost" with the concentration of forces. On Thursday, Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Western nations must be prepared to support Ukraine over the long haul, as the conflict becomes a "war...

DONETSK OBLAST, Ukraine — The ambulances hurtled into the parking lot one after the other, each carrying wounded troops directly from the nearby front line. One young man stared straight ahead, his face swollen, his neck and back dripping with blood. Others lay silently under foil blankets.Some stumbled out the back doors and collapsed into wheelchairs as staff rushed to push them inside. Nearby, bloodied cots sat propped against a tent and other wounded soldiers lingered about, their faces grim, their heads, arms or legs bandaged as the sound of outgoing artillery boomed across the sky.About 10 wounded soldiers arrived...

Hanna Maliar, Deputy Defence Minister, said that the Russians were currently storming Ukrainian positions on several fronts at the same time.Source: Maliar on FacebookQuote: "Currently, the situation at the front remains difficult and shows signs of worsening further.The enemy has used all forces and means to capture the territory and encircle our troops.The enemy is firing along the entire front line. The fighting has reached its maximum intensity. The enemy is storming the positions of our troops simultaneously on several fronts.We have an extremely difficult and long stage ahead of us in the struggle for the complete liberation of our...