Moscow [Russia], July 1: Russian news agency TASS and military bloggers reported on June 30 that the country's army had just gained control of the first village in Dnipropetrovsk province in Ukraine, specifically the village of Dachnoye.
Russian forces claimed control of more than 200 square kilometers in Ukraine's Sumy region and began moving toward the Dnipropetrovsk region last month. However, Ukraine has since denied that Russia has entered Dnipropetrovsk. According to the Ukrainian website Deep State , Russia now controls 113,588 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory, an increase of more than 943 square kilometers in two months. The areas under Russian control include more than 99 percent of the Luhansk region, more than 70 percent of the Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions, all in eastern or southeastern Ukraine, as well as parts of Kharkiv, Sumy, and now Dnipropetrovsk.
In another development, The Kyiv Independent reported on June 30 that the Crimean Bridge connecting the Crimean peninsula with mainland Russia was temporarily closed on the evening of June 29, after reports of explosions and anti-aircraft fire in the city of Kerch (Crimea). The Telegram Wind channel in Crimea said that explosions were heard in the city and Russian air defense forces opened fire, while the lights on the Crimean Bridge were turned off. Traffic on the bridge was suspended for about an hour, but it was not clear whether it was out of caution or due to damage. Russian media later reported that a Ukrainian intelligence agent involved in preparing explosives had been arrested by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).
In another development, TASS on June 30 quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov criticizing NATO members' agreement to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP as a "disaster" and could eventually cause the alliance to collapse.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper