MOSCOW/WASHINGTON/KYIV - Ukraine has launched a missile attack on an oil depot in Lugansk city of Rovenky, killing three people and injuring eight others, a local official said on Saturday.
"As with the recent attacks on Lugansk, today's strike on Rovenky was presumably carried out with US-made ATACMS missiles equipped with cluster munitions," local leader Leonid Pasechnik wrote on his Telegram channel.
As a result of the strike, the oil depot was engulfed in fire, and houses around it were also damaged.
The death toll has risen to three, with eight more hospitalized, including six with mine-explosive injuries and two with poisoning from combustion products, he said.
Residential homes, agricultural machinery, and civilian vehicles were also damaged.
US weapons aid
The United States has committed more than $51.3 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the beginning of President Joe Biden's administration, including more than $50.6 billion since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on Feb 24, 2022, the Defense Department said in a news release
On Friday, the United States announced an additional package of weapons and equipment for Ukraine worth $400 million.
Capabilities included in the package were additional air munitions for Patriot and National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems; Stinger anti-aircraft missiles; equipment to integrate Western launchers, missiles, and radars with Ukraine's systems; additional High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems and ammunition, according to a statement by the State Department.
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Also to be provided to Ukraine were 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds; TOW and Javelin missiles and AT-4 anti-armor systems; Precision aerial munitions; High-speed Anti-radiation missiles; Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles; M113 Armored Personnel Carriers; Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles; coastal and riverine patrol boats; small arms ammunition and grenades; demolitions munitions; and spare parts, the statement said.
The United States has committed more than $51.3 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the beginning of President Joe Biden's administration, including more than $50.6 billion since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on Feb 24, 2022, the Defense Department said in a news release.
The new assistance from the United States came on the same day northern Ukraine was reportedly attacked by Russia in a new ground operation that began in the dawn.
Targeting the border town of Vovchansk near Ukraine's second largest city of Kharkiv, the attack was the most serious cross-border ground offensive by Russia in nearly two years, according to a CNN report citing a Ukrainian military source.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who thanked the United States for the new package on X, was quoted by CNN as saying the assault was part of "a new wave of counteroffensive actions" by Russia, adding that a "fierce battle" was being fought in the area.
'Critical phase of war'
Separately, Oleksandr Pavliuk, commander of the Ukrainian Ground Forces, said the country will face a "critical phase of war" in the next two months, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported Friday.
Russia will continue to focus on the offensives in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, but also may strike the northeastern districts of Kharkiv and Sumy regions, he suggested.
READ MORE: Kremlin: Aid to Ukraine to make US richer, Ukraine poorer
"Russia knows that if we get enough weapons within a month or two, the situation could turn against them," Pavliuk said.
Ukraine urgently needs to strengthen its air defense, he said, noting that the expected delivery of F-16 fighters by early June will provide a "significant psychological boost" for Ukraine.
