Here is the situation on Wednesday, May 15, 2024.

Fighting

At least 20 people were injured in northeastern Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-biggest city, after Russia struck residential areas, including a high-rise apartment block, with guided bombs and artillery shells.

The United Nations said at least eight civilians had been killed and 35 injured since Russia began a new offensive in the northeastern region on Friday. It called on Russia to “immediately cease its armed attack against Ukraine – in line with the relevant resolutions of the UN General Assembly” – and withdraw to the internationally recognised borders.
Ukraine’s military said its forces pulled back to new positions in two areas of the Kharkiv region and warned of a Russian force buildup to the north near its Sumy region. Russia said it had made further inroads and taken a 10th border village, Buhruvatka.
Ukraine’s Air Force said defence systems destroyed all 18 attack drones that Russia launched over several regions, including the Kyiv region and the front line.
Russian officials said one person was injured and several buildings damaged in a Ukrainian air attack on the border city of Belgorod, with Russia’s air defence destroying 25 missiles over the broader Belgorod region.
Russian media said a Ukrainian drone attack derailed a cargo train and led to a fire in a diesel tank in the southern Russian region of Volgograd, mangling several hundred metres of track. Russian Railways said the incident was the result of “interference by unauthorised persons”.

Politics and diplomacy

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on a surprise visit to Kyiv, promised Ukraine that military assistance that would make “a real difference” on the battlefield was on its way.
Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit China from May 16-17 for talks with President Xi Jinping. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Hua Chunying said the two will discuss “bilateral ties, cooperation in various fields, and international and regional issues of common interest”.
South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol confirmed Seoul’s participation in a Ukraine peace summit that will be held in Switzerland in June, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X.
Russia’s Supreme Court rejected an appeal by Vladimir Kara-Murza, a dual Russia-United Kingdom national and prominent Kremlin and war critic, against a 25-year jail sentence on treason and other charges. UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron said the decision was an “outrage” and that Kara-Murza was a political prisoner.
International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan said he would not be intimidated by threats as his office investigates possible war crimes in Ukraine. Russia put Khan on its wanted list after the ICC issued an arrest warrant against Putin and Russia’s children’s commissioner for their role in the alleged deportation of Ukrainian children from occupied territories to Russia.
Ireland said it would slash a weekly payment for all Ukrainian refugees in state accommodation from 220 euros ($238) to just 38.80 euros ($41.96) from August. Just more than 100,000 Ukrainians have fled to Ireland since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. Nearly half are living in state-provided accommodation.

Weapons

Minister of Defence Sebastien Lecornu said France would send more Aster surface-to-air missiles for the Franco-Italian SAMP/T-MAMBA air defence system defending Kyiv.
Russia said its submarine-launched Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile had been put into service, a key element in the modernisation of its nuclear arsenal.