Ukrainian military begins counterattack

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Monday that the military has received enough weapons to start a counterattack against Russia but will need more weapons to finish it. Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said the military has started the offensive at several points along the front line. The Ukrainian Army is not strong enough to advance across the entire front, according to U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. Instead, it must find and exploit weaknesses.

What has Russia said? Russia says it thwarted a Ukrainian attack Sunday in the illegally annexed Donetsk region. It was the most vulnerable part of the front line, the Russian Defense Ministry said. It also accused Ukraine of trying to carry out terrorist attacks in the Russian Belgorod region. Russia said it also stopped those attacks. Ukrainian officials say Russia is spreading false information.

Dig Deeper: Listen to Mary Reichard’s report on The World and Everything in It podcast about a Russian mercenary group leader calling the Kremlin to task for high casualty counts.