This blog is now closed, thank you for joining us. These were the updates on the Russia-Ukraine war on Thursday, May 18.
This blog is now closed, thank you for joining us. These were the updates on the Russia-Ukraine war on Thursday, May 18.
- Ukraine’s military and Russia’s private Wagner Group army reported fresh Russian retreats on the outskirts of Bakhmut, as Kyiv pressed on with its biggest advance for six months ahead of a planned major counteroffensive.
- Dozens of Russian cruise missiles were fired in the Odesa region and the capital, Kyiv, overnight, Ukraine says, while claiming its defence forces shot down 29 out of 30.
- At least one person was killed in Odesa during the raids, according to Ukrainian officials. Moscow said it hit its military targets.
- Rail traffic has been suspended between Simferopol, the capital of the Crimean Peninsula annexed by Russia, after a train carrying grain derailed. Moscow-backed officials have called the incident a deliberate act.