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9:10 PM

Minister: Only half of bomb shelters in Kyiv ready to receive people.

After more than 15 months of Russia's war against Ukraine, only half of the 1,078 bomb shelters in Kyiv checked by a government commission are ready for use, Strategic Industries Minister Oleksandr Kamyshin reported on June 4.

8:05 PM

Official: Up to 20 Ukrainian men arrested every day for illegally crossing border.

Andriy Demchenko, a spokesman for Ukraine's State Border Guard, reported on June 4 that border guards detain up to 20 men trying to go abroad illegally every day.

6:58 PM

Anti-Kremlin militia claims to have yet another incursion in Belgorod Oblast, seeks meeting with local governor.

Governor of Russia's Belgorod Oblast Vyacheslav Gladkov claimed on June 4 that he was ready to meet the Russian anti-Kremlin militia behind the latest incursion in Belgorod Oblast.

6:33 PM

Ukraine's first lady: ‘A threat to our children is a threat to all children’.

On June 4, Ukraine commemorates the children killed by Russia's war. The latest victim is a 2-year-old girl killed by a missile attack on June 3.

5:46 PM

Clinic guard arrested over locked bomb shelter that led to civilian deaths in Kyiv.

In an unexpected turn that left many commentators dissatisfied, the June 3 arrest hearing appeared to put the majority of responsibility for the tragedy on the clinic's elderly night guard.

3:43 PM

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1:49 PM

Danilov: Ukraine lost 7.5 times fewer troops than Russia in Bakhmut.

Ukraine's losses in the Battle of Bakhmut were lower than Russia's by a factor of 7.5, National Security and Defense Council chief Oleksiy Danilov told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.

1:33 PM

Russian proxy in Crimea said occupiers destroyed 9 drones overnight.

Russian-installed head of occupied Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov, claimed that the occupiers brought down nine hostile drones on the night of June 4.

1:20 PM

Estonian PM: NATO threatens Russia's imperialism, not its security.

Speaking to the media from a security conference in Singapore, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said that Russia's narrative that NATO had a role to play in its invasion of Ukraine sees a great deal of play in Asia and must be refuted.

12:54 PM

UK Defense Ministry: 'Paranoid' Russian officials crack down on blue and yellow colors in public.

Russia is sporadically cracking down on people wearing blue and yellow, interpreting it as symbolism in support of Ukraine, according to the U.K. Defense Ministry's June 4 intelligence update.

12:11 PM

Parliament speaker meets with Azovstal defenders in Turkey.

Chairman of the Ukrainian parliament Ruslan Stefanchuk went to Turkey and met with Azovstal defenders who have been freed from Russian capture and are now under the protection of the Turkish government, the press service of Verkhovna Rada reported on June 4.

11:19 AM

Air Force: Russian cruise missiles hit operational airfield near Kropyvnytskyi.

Two Russian missiles struck an active Ukrainian airfield near Kropyvnytskyi in Kirovohrad Oblast on June 4, according to Air Force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat.

10:10 AM

Governor: Russian forces strike with tanks, helicopters in Kharkiv Oblast.

Russian forces attacked multiple settlements in Kharkiv Oblast on June 4, Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported.

9:51 AM

General Staff: Russia has lost 209,940 troops in Ukraine.

According to the report, Russia has also lost 3,837 tanks, 7,512 armored fighting vehicles, 6,305 vehicles and fuel tanks, 3,555 artillery systems, 1,132 cruise missiles, 583 multiple launch rocket systems, 344 air defense systems, 313 airplanes, 298 helicopters, 3,175 drones, and 18 boats.

9:32 AM

Air Force: Ukraine downs 4 cruise missiles, 3 drones launched by Russia.

Ukrainian air defenses shot down four of six cruise missiles and three of five drones that Russia used to attack military facilities and critical infrastructure on the night of June 4, the Air Force of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported.

8:26 AM

Update: Two-year-old killed, 22 injured in Russian missile attack near Dnipro

A two-year-old girl was found dead in the rubble of a residential building that was hit by a Russian missile strike on the town Pidhorodne in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on June 3, regional Governor Serhii Lysak said in a post on Telegram on June 4.

5:46 AM

Kyiv official: City's air defenses intercept all incoming missiles, drones Russia launched overnight.

Ukrainian air defenses destroyed all of the missiles and drones that Russia launched at Kyiv overnight on June 4, Serhii Popko, the head of the Kyiv City Military Administration reported on Telegram.

5:12 AM

Drone reportedly shot down in Russian-occupied Crimean city.

A drone was reportedly shot down over the Russian-occupied Crimean city of Dzhankoy early in the morning of June 4, the Kremlin-affiliated news channel "Shot" said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.

4:14 AM

Media: Explosions heard in Kropyvnytskyi.

Explosions were heard in the city of Kropyvnytskyi early in the morning of June 4, the Suspilne news outlet reported at around 3:30 a.m. local time.

4:08 AM

Kremlin bans Western journalists from Russian Economic Forum.

No journalists from what Moscow deems "unfriendly countries" will be allowed to attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Russian state-controlled Tass news agency on June 3.

3:16 AM

Russian forces in occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast withhold insulin to residents who refuse Russian passports.

Withholding medical services is being used as a coercion tactic to force residents in Russian-occupied parts of Zaporizhzhia Oblast to become Russian passport holders, according to the Ukrainian military's National Resistance Center.

2:45 AM

Land Forces chief says Russia continues to suffer 'significant' losses in Bakhmut.

Russia continues to suffer "significant losses" in Bakhmut, Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of Ukraine's Land Forces, reported on June 3 following a visit with frontline troops in the embattled city.

12:28 AM

Update: 20 injured, including 5 children, in Russian missile attack near Dnipro.

A Russian attack on a residential area in the town of Pidhorodne in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast injured 20 people, including five children, Governor Serhii Lysak reported on June 3.

11:20 PM

Russian forces attack residential area near Dnipro, injuring 13, including 3 children.

A Russian attack on a residential area in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast's Dniprovskyi District injured 13 civilians, including three children, Governor Serhii Lysak reported on June 3. Three boys were injured in the attacks, including a six-year-old, 11-year-old and 15-year-old.

10:31 PM

Russian forces attack 4 communities in Sumy Oblast, injuring 1 person.

Russian forces attacked the northern region of Sumy Oblast 10 times, injuring one civilian, and damaging infrastructure, the regional military administration reported on June 3.

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Czech Republic denies plans to supply Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine.

by The Kyiv Independent news desk January 21, 2023 12:43 PM 2 min read

This audio is created with AI assistance

On Jan. 20, the Czech Defense Ministry denied media reports that the Czech Republic and Slovakia are ready to supply Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine.

The media reports claimed that the Czech Republic and Slovakia were willing to deliver to Ukraine the Leopard 2 tanks supplied by Germany. The Leopard 2 tanks had been delivered by Germany in exchange for Slovak and Czech T-72 tanks sent to Ukraine.

No one has asked or invited the Czech Republic to provide these Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, the Czech Defense Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry also said that “nothing of the sort” had been discussed during the Jan. 20 meeting at the Ramstein Air Base, which gathered defense ministers from some 50 countries to discuss further support for Ukraine.

“The speculation that the Czech Republic would receive U.S.-made Abrams tanks in exchange for Leopard tanks is equally false,” the ministry added.

At the Ramstein meeting, Ukraine's allies failed to reach an agreement on supplying German-made Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine due to Germany's reluctance to approve tank deliveries.

Poland, Finland and other countries are ready to supply German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine but they need approval from the German government.

Since the beginning of Russia's all-out invasion in February 2022, the German government has been criticized for delaying and blocking arms supplies to Ukraine. Amid pressure from the media, the public and NATO allies, Germany has increased its arms supplies to Ukraine but German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is still accused of being reluctant to antagonize Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

There have been media reports that Scholz had agreed to supply Leopard 2 tanks only if the U.S. delivers Abrams tanks to Ukraine. The German government has denied the reports.

The U.S. has so far refused to supply Abrams tanks to Ukraine.

Some U.S. politicians have called on the U.S. government to supply Abrams tanks to Ukraine as a way to get the Germans on board.

"Scholz wants to be in lockstep with the US," Rep. Seth Moulton told CNN after discussing the matter with Scholz in Davos. "I think the US should give a few tanks if that is what is required for Germany. That is called leadership."

The Kyiv Independent news desk

We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.

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