Proxy leader says Russian-occupied parts of Luhansk Oblast may be annexed by Russia.

Russia launched overnight strikes across southern and eastern Ukraine early on May 19, hitting infrastructure and residential areas in Odesa Oblast and Kharkiv, according to local authorities.

The organization's Executive Committee has "decided to lift all restrictions applicable to Russian and Belarusian athletes since February 2022, with immediate effect."

The Ukrainian advance was confirmed by footage of Ukrainian troop movements released by HUR, which shows soldiers from the "Artan" special unit of Ukrainian military intelligence engaging Russian forces in Stepnohirsk.

The latest extension is the second time the Trump administration has renewed the sanctions relief despite earlier public statements indicating it would not do so.

Natus Vincere — known as NAVI — took home their second championship trophy of the year as well as $125,000 in prize money after beating German team GamerLegion 2-1 in the popular first-person shooter video game.

The exercises have added significance as they come amid growing warnings from Kyiv that Russia is trying to draw Belarus deeper into its war against Ukraine, while also expanding military infrastructure that could support future Russian operations against Ukraine or NATO's eastern flank.

Russia is grappling with brewing internal pressure due to battlefield failures in Ukraine and domestic economic difficulties, Kaupo Rosin, head of the Estonian Foreign Intelligence Service, told the Kyiv Independent.

The statement offers a stark picture of the deteriorating situation north of Pokrovsk, where Ukrainian troops say Russian drone superiority has made troop rotations, evacuations, and resupply missions nearly impossible.

"Importantly, this is specifically a Russian internal assessment — one they are trying to conceal both from the world and from their own domestic audience," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

The development is significant because glide bombs are a primitive yet highly destructive weapon widely used against front-line areas. Russia has continuously modified the bombs to increase their range and destructive power, turning them into one of the biggest threats to both Ukrainian troop positions and civilians near the front line.