Bakhmut ‘not occupied’ by Russia, Zelensky compares it to Hiroshima

KYIV—Ukrainian President

Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that Bakhmut was “not occupied” by Moscow, while the head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group insisted his fighters had taken control of the eastern city “to the last centimeter.”

Kyiv’s military said it was hanging on to a small part of the city and said its troops were advancing on its flanks.

Bakhmut, a salt-mining town that once had a population of 70,000 people, has been the scene of some of the bloodiest fighting in Moscow’s 15-month Ukraine offensive.

A day earlier, Wagner and Moscow’s regular army claimed to have fully captured Bakhmut, with Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulating them on the alleged conquest.

But speaking at the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Zelensky denied Russia’s claims.

“Bakhmut is not occupied by Russia today,” he said during a press conference.

“I cannot share with you the tactical views of our military.

The most difficult thing would be if there was some tactical mistake in Bakhmut and our people were surrounded.”

Sitting next to US President Joe Biden, Zelensky suggested it would be a pyrrhic victory for Moscow.

“You have to understand there is nothing” there in Bakhmut, he said on the sidelines of the summit in Japan.

Zelensky compared the “absolute total destruction” in Bakhmut to the devastation in Hiroshima when the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city in 1945.

“There is absolutely nothing alive (there).”

The Ukrainian army on Sunday said it retained an “insignificant” part of the city and that soldiers were advancing in from the city’s outer limits.

“We continue to advance on the flanks in the suburbs of Bakhmut,” said Oleksandr Syrsky, commander of Ukraine’s ground forces.

Wagner claims no Ukrainian soldiers left

But Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of Wagner whose fighters have spearheaded Russia’s advance on Bakhmut, insisted there were no Ukrainian troops there.

“There is not a single Ukrainian soldier in Bakhmut as we have stopped taking prisoners,” he said in a post on Telegram. AFP

EU leaders to visit S. Korea for talks on several issues

SEOUL—European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are set to visit Seoul on Monday for a summit with South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol.

The European leaders, who have just attended the G7 summit in Hiroshima, are making their first visit to the East Asian country for talks on issues including trade agreements, the war in Ukraine, and North Korea’s banned weapons programmes.

Security heavy as India hosts G20 tourism meet in disputed Kashmir

SRINAGAR, India—A G20 tourism meeting was set to begin on Monday amid high security in Indian-administered Kashmir, with China and Pakistan condemning holding the event in the disputed territory.

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13. It is my true and honest intention to become a citizen of the Philippines and to renounce absolutely and forever all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty, and, particularly, to INDIA of which at this time am a citizen or

Muslim-majority Kashmir has been disputed between New Delhi and Islamabad, both of which claim it in full, since their independence 75 years ago.

The Indian-controlled portion has been roiled for decades by an insurgency seeking independence or a merger with Pakistan, with tens of thousands of civilians, soldiers, and Kashmiri rebels killed in the conflict.

Police said last week that security had been beefed up “to avoid any chance of terrorist attack dur- ing the G20” meeting, the first diplomatic event in the territory since New Delhi revoked its limited autonomy and took direct control in 2019. The three-day gathering will take place at a sprawling, wellguarded venue on the shores of Dal Lake in Srinagar.

Roads leading to the location have been freshly black-topped, and electricity poles lit up in the colours of India’s national flag to show what officials say is “normalcy and peace returning” to the region.

India has been promoting tourism in Kashmir and more than a million of its citizens visited last year. No Chinese delegates will be attending the event. AFP

“The EU and South Korea are expected to express their strong joint support for upholding the rules-based international order,” the European Council said in a statement.

South Korea, the world’s ninthlargest arms exporter, has sent humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and sold tanks and howitzers to Poland -a key ally for Kyiv as it battles Russia’s invasion.

However, it has a long-standing policy of not providing weapons to active conflict zones.

Yoon held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the G7 Sunday, following a meeting with Zelensky’s wife, Olena Zelenska, in Seoul last week.

During his meeting with Zelensky in Hiroshima, Yoon promised additional non-lethal aid to Ukraine, including demining equipment and ambulances, at the request of the Ukrainian president, according to South Korea’s presidential office. AFP