Europe

Russia plans full control of Donbas and southern Ukraine: Ifax

A satellite image shows armoured vehicles and trucks at the southern end of a military convoy moving south through the Ukrainian town of Velykyi Burluk

Russia plans to take full control of Donbas and southern Ukraine as part of the second phase of its military operation, the deputy commander of Russia’s central military district said on Friday, the Interfax news agency reported.

The commander, Rustam Minnekayev, was also cited as saying that Russia planned to forge a land corridor between Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula which Russia annexed in 2014, and Donbas in eastern Ukraine.