Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the paramilitary Wagner Group, and Russian President Vladimir Putin, claim to have taken full control of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. According to a Kremlin statement, Putin has congratulated the Wagner Group’s attackers and the Russian troops for their successful operation to “liberate Artyomovsk”, the Russian name for Bakhmut. Despite these claims, Ukraine denies that the city has been captured.
Fighting has been going on in Bakhmut for ten months, making it the most protracted and bloody battle of the ongoing war in Ukraine. Prigozhin has announced that the Wagner group will leave the city on 25 May and hand it over to the Russian army. The Kremlin also announced that all those who distinguished themselves in the fighting will be recommended for the state medal.
The Russian Defense Ministry supports the claims that it is in control of Bakhmut, and Putin has congratulated the forces on the ground. At the same time, Ukraine stresses that the fighting is still ongoing, and that the situation is “critical”. The Russian data has not yet been confirmed by any independent party.
Even if Russian control over Bakhmut is declared, pro-Western analysts argue that it is unlikely to change the outcome of the war. They argue that, contrary to previous statements, the capture of the city does not provide any significant tactical or operational advantage for the Russians to continue offensive operations or to defend against potential Ukrainian counterattacks.
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The number of civilian casualties continues to rise on both sides in the Ukraine war. The image shows victims of a Russian shelling attack against the Kharkiv region in northeastern Ukraine in June this year.
The number of civilian casualties in Ukraine reached its highest level since 2022 during June 2025, according to a new report from the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in the country. At least 232 civilians were killed and 1,343 injured during the month – figures that testify to a dramatic escalation in how the war affects the civilian population.
The UN report shows that Russia conducted 10 times more missile attacks during June 2025 compared to the same month the previous year. The attacks hit 16 regions in Ukraine, including the capital Kiev, and caused deaths and injuries far from the front lines.
“Civilians across Ukraine are facing levels of suffering we have not seen in over three years”, says Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.
According to the report, almost half of all civilian casualties were caused by missiles and aerial bombs in densely populated areas. Meanwhile, short-range drone attacks continued to kill and injure civilians near the front lines.
Targets of the Russian attacks
Based on reports from the conflict, Russian attacks primarily target energy infrastructure such as power plants, gas storage facilities, and power lines. Russia has systematically attacked Ukraine’s energy supply in an attempt to paralyze the country, with over 2,400 attacks on energy facilities since February 2022.
Military recruitment centers and other strategic targets have also been subject to Russian attacks. The Russian Defense Ministry often justifies attacks on energy and fuel facilities by claiming they are used by the Ukrainian military.
Despite these facilities potentially having military significance, the civilian population is severely affected when they are attacked. Civilian casualties occur both from direct hits and from debris from downed missiles when Ukrainian air defenses respond.
Several of the civilian deaths have occurred in nighttime attacks on the capital Kiev, where attacks were previously uncommon. During massive attacks during the night against Thursday in the Kiev region that lasted almost ten hours, Russian forces used 397 Shahed drones and 18 missiles against Ukrainian targets. At least two people were killed and 22 injured in that attack on Kyiv.
Woman who became a victim of heavy Russian bombing in northeastern Ukraine on June 7 this year. Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU)
Sharp increase during 2025
The total number of civilian deaths and injuries during the first half of 2025 is 6,754 people, which is 54 percent more compared to the same period in 2024. During the first six months of 2025, the number of civilian deaths increased by 17 percent and injuries by 64 percent.
Since the war broke out on February 24, 2022, the UN monitoring mission has registered at least 13,580 civilian deaths, including 716 children. Additionally, 34,115 injured civilians were reported, including 2,173 children.
The UN monitoring mission warns that the actual figures for civilian casualties may be significantly higher than what is reported, given the challenges and time required for adequate verification of all deaths and injuries.
“No place in Ukraine is completely safe”
Danielle Bell from the UN monitoring mission has previously warned: “Almost half of the civilian casualties over the past three months have died far away from the front lines. We can conclude that no place in Ukraine is completely safe”.
No peace is yet in sight in the over three-year-long armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine that continues with Western involvement.
Non-Russian citizens will now be allowed to enlist in the military, according to a law signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The state-run Russian news agency Tass reports that the new law enables stateless persons and foreigners to sign contracts and serve in the Russian military until the end of the mobilization period, the lifting of the state of emergency, or the end of martial law in Russia.
The law is said to have been expedited “in order to take urgent additional measures to restaff the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation” according to the explanation in the legal document.
Slovakia’s Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar believes that the war in Ukraine cannot be decided on the battlefield. Instead, he urges the Western world to seek a peaceful solution through direct dialogue with Russia – and warns that continued tensions could lead to a catastrophic large-scale war between NATO and Moscow.
– We do not want a war between Russia and NATO to break out, because that would be the Third World War. We want the conflict to be settled peacefully, Blanar said during a discussion program on Slovak public broadcaster STVR last Sunday.
Blanar emphasized the importance of diplomacy and called for a return to “respect for international law”. He also suggested that the Western world should seek ways to renew contact with Moscow – “and perhaps even forgive everything that has happened”.
Slovakia, like Hungary, has consistently pushed for de-escalation of the conflict and opposed additional EU sanctions against Russia.
The country’s president Peter Pellegrini has also urged EU member states to resume direct talks with Moscow and has simultaneously rejected demands for rapid military buildup within NATO, arguing that defense spending should reflect each country’s own priorities – rather than concerns about Russia.
Russia demands Ukrainian neutrality
Russian officials have condemned the US-led bloc’s decision last week that member countries should raise their defense budgets to 5 percent of GDP – a measure that NATO says will deter the “long-term threat posed by Russia to Euro-Atlantic security”.
The Kremlin has repeatedly stated that it has no intentions of attacking any NATO country and has called the accusations “nonsense” – a scare tactic that, according to Moscow, is used by the West to legitimize increased defense spending.
Moscow states that it seeks a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine war, and Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that a lasting agreement must include recognition of the actual situation “on the ground”, as well as Ukrainian neutrality.
According to Putin, contacts between Moscow and Kyiv are being maintained regarding a possible third round of peace negotiations. Previous talks have been held in Turkey, where the parties have exchanged draft peace proposals and carried out several prisoner exchanges.
It was previously often claimed that Russia would be defeated on the battlefield - today the picture is different, and more voices are advocating for peace through negotiations instead.
A majority of Ukraine’s population now indicates they are willing to accept compromises or make concessions to end the war with Russia.
This is shown in a new opinion poll conducted by the Ukrainian think tank Janus Institute for Strategic Studies and Forecasts, the polling institute SOCIS Centre for Social and Marketing Research, and the publication Barometer of Public Opinion, which compiles and disseminates opinion data.
According to the survey, 55.7 percent of respondents now support a solution through compromise with the involvement of international leaders. An additional 16.6 percent advocate for a temporary freezing of the war, with a ceasefire along the current line of contact.
Photo: facsimile/socis.kiev.ua
In total, this means that over 70 percent of respondents are open to some form of settlement or pause in the hostilities.
Meanwhile, 12.8 percent want to continue the war until Ukraine’s borders from 1991 are restored, while 8.6 percent indicate they prefer continued fighting until the borders from February 23, 2022 – the day before the Russian invasion began – are restored.
1.2 percent chose another option, and 5 percent of respondents refused to answer or could not take a position.
Photo: facsimile/socis.kiev.ua
The survey also shows that 57.6 percent believe elections should be held in Ukraine if peace negotiations with Russia lead to a temporary cessation of hostilities and an end to the state of war.
The opinion poll was conducted between June 6-11, 2025, and included 2,000 respondents aged 18 and older who were interviewed in person across Ukraine. The survey did not include residents in temporarily occupied areas or in areas where active fighting was ongoing at the time of data collection. The statistical margin of error is stated as ±2.6 percent.
