Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Russian Ministry of Defense: 37 Ukrainian drones destroyed in 4 hours over regions of Russia and the Black Sea.
Sheikh Qassem: Our supporters make up more than half of Lebanon's population, and all of these people are united under the banner of protecting Lebanon, its Resistance, its people, and its integrity.
Sheikh Qassem: There will be no phased handing in of our arms. [The Israelis] must first enact the agreement before we start talking about a defensive strategy.
Sheikh Qassem: Be brave in the face of foreign pressures, and we will be by your side in this stance.
Sheikh Qassem: Stripping us of our arms is like stripping us of our very soul, and this will prompt us to show them our might.
Sheikh Qassem: We will not abandon our arms, for they gave us dignity; we will not abandon our arms, for they protect us against our enemy.
Sheikh Qassem: The US efforts we are seeing are aimed at sabotaging Lebanon and constitute a call for sedition.
Sheikh Qassem: If you truly want to establish sovereignty and work for Lebanon’s interests, then stop the aggression.
Sheikh Qassem: The United States, which is meddling in Lebanon, is not trustworthy but rather poses a danger to it.
Sheikh Qassem: The United States is preventing the weapons that protect the homeland.

Zelensky fears second Russian attack in Kharkiv, pleads for 120+ F16s

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: News websites
  • 18 May 2024 16:41
  • 1 Shares
5 Min Read

Zelensky warns that air defenses must multiply to block Russian assault as soldier morale declines.

  • x
  • Zelensky fears second Russian attack in Kharkov
    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during an interview for AFP at the Presidential Office in Kiev on May 17, 2024. (AFP)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that he expects Russia to escalate its attack in the northeast, warning that Kiev only has a fourth of the air defenses required to maintain the front line.

This week, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that the Russian Armed Forces managed to take control of another 4 villages across the Kharkiv region in only 24 hours.

"The units of the Sever Group of Forces advanced deep into the enemy's defensive and liberated the settlements of Gatishche, Krasnoye, Morokhovets and Oleynikovo in the Kharkiv region," the ministry said.

On Friday, Russian air defenses and the Black Sea fleet intercepted a total of 102 Ukrainian drones and destroyed six unnamed surface vehicles (USVs) overnight, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on Friday. 

The Guardian, citing sources familiar with the matter, said that UK intelligence services had provided advance warning to Kiev about a potential Russian advance in the region. However, Ukrainian forces reportedly failed to adequately prepare for the situation.

The lack of readiness on the part of Ukrainian military units stationed in the Kharkiv region has been a cause for concern. A Ukrainian veteran noted that these units were "simply not prepared to fight."

Read more: Ukraine sounds alarm: Full mobilization warning issued to citizens

Zelensky stated that Russian soldiers pushed five to ten kilometers (3-6 miles) along the north-eastern border before being stopped by Ukrainian forces but noted that the fighting in the region might be the "first wave" of a larger operation.

Although he refused to admit the success of Russia, he expressed the battle was "controlled" but not "stabilized", citing the necessity to "be sober and understand that they are going deeper into our territory” during an interview for AFP.

He reiterated his plea for more air defenses to Western allies, divulging Ukraine only had "25% of what we need," adding that 120 to 130 F-16s were needed to be at par with Russian air superiority. 

Zelensky admitted staffing and "morale" concerns among Ukraine's frequently outgunned and outmanned troops, adding that the reserves needed to be staffed as a "large number of brigades were empty."

Zelensky claimed that Ukraine was still committed to the war in the long term, accusing Western supporters of wanting a quick resolution to the war. 

Related News

Xi to host landmark SCO summit with Putin, Modi in attendance

Kiev accused of using Russian woman in suicide bomb plot: FSB

“The West wants the war to end. Period. As soon as possible. And, for them, this is a fair peace,” he explained.

“We are in a nonsense situation," he argued, where the West does not "want Ukraine to lose."

Ukrainian troop casualties reach 3,725 in week-long DPR conflict

On Friday, Russia's Defense Ministry declared a victory for the South Group of Forces, Yug, over Ukrainian troops in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), with Ukraine sustaining an estimated loss of 3,725 soldiers in the region during the previous week.

According to the ministry's statement, Yug forces continued their advance into enemy territory, defeating both manpower and equipment in the DPR and repelling nine counterattacks by Ukrainian troops.

"The units of the Yug Group of Forces continued to advance into the enemy territory during active combat operations, defeated manpower and equipment ... in the Donetsk People's Republic ... repelled nine counterattack [by Ukrainian troops]," the ministry said in a statement, adding that the losses of Ukrainian armed forces "lost up to 3,725 servicepeople over the past week."

Des LRM #Grad du groupement Sud russe ont frappé un point d’appui ukrainien à 12 km de distance

Selon la Défense russe, les lance-roquettes multiples ont aussi visé une concentration d’effectifs ukrainiens avec des projectiles à fragmentation de 122 mm.

📍 Axe de Donetsk pic.twitter.com/mevWvoiAJL

— Sputnik Afrique (@sputnik_afrique) May 17, 2024

In other significant developments, Russia's central forces fortified their position, resulting in Kiev's loss of approximately 2,475 soldiers and four tanks, including Abrams.

The eastern group of forces successfully repelled two counterattacks, leading to Ukraine's loss of around 965 soldiers.

Moreover, in the northern region, Russia thwarted 21 counterattacks in the Kharkiv area, resulting in the loss of up to 1,175 Ukrainian soldiers.

Meanwhile, the Western grouping repelled 37 counterattacks in the Lugansk People's Republic and Kharkiv region, leading to Kiev's loss of up to 960 soldiers.

In a separate statement, the ministry reported that the Russian Armed Forces carried out 28 group strikes using precision-guided weapons and drones during the past week in Ukraine.

These strikes targeted command posts, military airfield infrastructure, air defense facilities, arsenals, and fuel bases of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as well as production workshops and storage sites for unmanned boats and attack drones.

Moreover, the Russian Black Sea fleet destroyed 25 Ukrainian unmanned vessels.

  • Russia
  • Ukraine
  • Volodymyr Zelensky
  • Kharkov
  • Kiev
Russia & NATO

Russia & NATO

As the Draconian Western-led sanctions on Russia exacerbate the economic crisis worldwide, and as Russian troops gain more ground despite the influx of military aid into Ukraine, exposing US direct involvement in bio-labs spread across Eastern Europe and the insurgence of neo-Nazi groups… How will things unfold?

Most Read

Tom Artiom Alexandrovich, executive director of the defense division of the Israeli National Cyber Directorate, undated (Social media)

Israeli-born US prosecutor drops Israeli officer child sex crime

  • Politics
  • 19 Aug 2025
Almost instantly after the Helsinki Accords were signed, organisations sprouted to document purported violations, whose findings were fed to overseas embassies for international amplification. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Zeinab el-Hajj)

How ‘Human Rights’ became a Western weapon

  • Opinion
  • 23 Aug 2025
Israeli soldiers stand on the top of armoured vehicles parked on an area near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025 (AP)

Palestinian fighters target Israeli soldiers, vehicles in Gaza

  • Politics
  • 21 Aug 2025
Launch of a ballistic missile from Yemen toward the occupied Palestinian territories. (YAF military media)

Yemeni Forces announce firing hypersonic missile at Al-Lydd Airport

  • Politics
  • 22 Aug 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference at the Prime minister's office in al-Quds, Occupied Palestine, Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Netanyahu deliberately derailing truce with Gaza occupation: Hamas

Irish President Michael Higgins arrives to deliver his speech during a 42nd World Food Day celebration at FAO headquarters in Rome, on Oct. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Politics

Irish president renews call for UN military intervention in Gaza

US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the US Embassy in Aukar, northern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, July 21, 2025 (AP)
Politics

US envoy, Netanyahu discuss restraining attacks on Lebanon, withdrawal

Smoke billows following Israeli airstrikes in multiple areas in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Ansar Allah vow sustained Gaza support despite Israeli strikes

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS