A rescuer was killed on Tuesday, June 20, and eight others were injured by a Russian strike on Kherson, in southern Ukraine, announced Interior Minister Igor Klimenko. The balance sheet is “one dead and eight wounded [parmi] rescue service workers in Kherson”, he said on Telegram. According to the general prosecutor’s office, which confirmed this assessment in a press release, the “group of rescue workers came under Russian fire while working to eliminate the consequences of the floods” caused by the destruction of the dam of Kakhovka at the beginning of June. Follow our live.
The countries of the European Union will train 30,000 Ukrainian soldiers. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry announced on Tuesday that several thousand of its soldiers would be trained by its European allies in 2023, as its army launched a counter-offensive aimed at liberating the territories occupied by Russia. “In 2023, within the framework of the EU military assistance mission to Ukraine, it is planned to train 30,000 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including soldiers of the Territorial Defense Forces”the ministry said in a statement posted on Telegram.
Brussels is asking for an extension of 50 billion euros. The European Commission on Tuesday asked member states for a budget extension to help Ukraine until 2027. “We are proposing a financial reserve for the next four years of 50 billion euros. This includes both loans and grants”, said the president of the European executive, Ursula von der Leyen, during a press conference. This extension to the 2021-2027 multi-annual budget will have to be approved unanimously by the Member States, and receive the approval of the European Parliament.
Russia threatens to hit Ukrainian “decision-making centers”. In the event of bombardments on Russian soil or on annexed Crimea with Western weapons, Moscow warns kyiv that it will retaliate by hitting its decision-making centres. “According to our information, the leaders of the Ukrainian Armed Forces are planning to strike the territory of Russia, including Crimea”said Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.