Russia-Ukraine war live updates: Moscow launches a new phase of the conflict

Photos appear to show Russian warship damaged after blast

Pictures that appear to show the Russian warship Moskva with major damage have circulated on social media, though they remain unverified.

The pictures have circulated in the open-source intelligence community, which collects and attempts to substantiate images and video and has been particularly active around the war in Ukraine.

Naval experts have said the pictures appear to match the Moskva, a Slava-class cruiser that sank last week, but cannot be certain. The Pentagon has also said the images cannot be verified.

Ukraine and Russia offered conflicting reasons for the ship’s loss. Kyiv said it hit the ship with two missiles, an assessment eventually supported by a senior U.S. defense official, while Russia maintains that the warship was damaged in an explosion and then sank in the stormy sea while being towed for repairs. The vessel was considered the Russian flagship in the Black Sea.

James Stavridis, a retired navy admiral, said there is a high likelihood that the pictures are of the Moskva.

“In today’s world, with the ability to produce deep fakes of just about anything, I wouldn’t bet my life on an assessment,” he said. “I would say this is in fact the Moskva. It certainly appears to be a Slava-class cruiser. They are utterly distinctive with the missile tubes up forward. No other Slavas or similar ships have been sunk in distress that I know of or can find. Occam’s Razor tells me this is very probably the Slava class cruiser Moskva.”

Russia says it destroyed more than 1,260 Ukrainian military assets

Russian missiles destroyed more than 1,260 military assets during renewed attacks in eastern Ukraine on Monday night, according to the Russian defense ministry.

The destroyed assets included 25 command posts, two anti-missile rocket launchers and two weapons depots, the ministry said in a statement on its Telegram channel Tuesday.

Russia has destroyed thousands of Ukrainian military assets since the beginning of its invasion, including 140 aircraft, 2,353 tanks and other armored combat vehicles and 1,014 field artillery, the ministry said.

Battle of Donbas begins

Japan to send protective equipment to Ukraine

Japan’s defense minister said Tuesday that his country will send protective masks, clothing and drones to the Ukrainian government.

The Japanese government started providing Ukraine with bulletproof vests and helmets last month. Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said the drones will be used for monitoring and will not be capable of carrying weapons.

Russian troops kill 5 in Donetsk, Ukrainian national police says

Russian troops killed five civilians and injured six more during renewed attacks on the region of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine over the course of Monday, Ukraine’s national police said. One child was among the injured.

Russian troops fired on 17 settlements in the region, the national police said on Tuesday in a statement on its Telegram channel.

“The enemy fired rockets at the civilian population, from Grad multiple rocket launchers, tanks, and heavy artillery,” the statement read.

Wreckage piled high in Irpin

Russia trying to ‘establish full control’ over the Donbas region, Ukraine says

Max Burman

2h ago / 7:50 AM UTC

Russian forces are seeking “to establish full control over the territory of Donetsk and Luhansk,” which together make up the eastern Donbas region, the general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said early Tuesday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an address late Monday that the long-anticipated ‘battle for the Donbas’ had begun.

Russia has been building up forces for a new offensive in the east for weeks, refocusing its efforts on Ukraine’s industrial heartland after failing to seize the capital, Kyiv, and suffering a series of setbacks through the first phase of the war.

Russian forces attacking along a broad front in the east, Ukraine says

Russian forces are attacking along a broad front, over 300 miles long, Ukrainian officials said late Monday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s forces were increasing assaults in the Luhansk and the Donetsk regions — both of which are part of the Donbas — as well as in the area of Zaporizhzhia, they said.

“The occupiers attempted to break through our defenses,” Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s national security council, said. “Fortunately, our military is holding out. They passed through only two cities — this is Kreminna and another small town.”

He added: “We are not giving up any of our territories.”