Clashes broke out on Monday in Russian villages near the Ukrainian border, according to local officials and verified videos, after a group of anti-Kremlin Russian fighters allied with Ukraine appeared to have mounted a rare ground assault inside Russia.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III began shifting his stance on providing Ukrainian fighter pilots with training on F-16 jets last month, after European allies told him that they wanted to go ahead with the training, a U.S. official said.
Scorched buildings, destroyed schools and cratered parks now define the city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine. Drone footage taken by The New York Times captured the devastation.