Ukraine warns of new Russian offensive

Rescuers at a site after a military strike on Bakhmut, Donetsk region Wednesday. Pic/AFP

Ukraine said Russia had started creating a military strike force aimed at President Volodymyr Zelensky' hometown of Kryvyi Rih, while NATO moved closer to its most significant expansion in decades as the alliance responds to the invasion of Ukraine.

The U.S. Senate and the Italian parliament both approved on Wednesday Finland and Sweden's accession to the 30-member North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). Under NATO membership, which must be ratified by all 30 member states, an attack on one member is an attack against all. "This historic vote sends an important signal of the sustained, bipartisan U.S. commitment to NATO, and to ensuring our Alliance is prepared to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow," U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement.

The war in Ukraine is the most dangerous moment for Europe since World War Two, and Russia must not be allowed to win, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday. "It's in our interest that this type of aggressive policy does not succeed," Stoltenberg said in a speech in his native Norway. "This is the most dangerous situation in Europe since World War Two," he said.

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