Ukraine-Russia war – live: Putin’s troops redeployed to Bakhmut as Kyiv makes ‘tactical gains’

Russia has “high likely” redeployed troops to the key battle town of Bakhmut after Ukraine forces made tactical gains there, Britain’s Ministry of Defence has said. It comes amid doubts about the commitment of fighters in Bakhmut belonging to the Russian mercenary group Wagner, whose leader has become increasingly critical of the Kremlin. Elsewhere, Volodymyr Zelensky is en route to Japan for the Hiroshima G7 summit aboard a French government plane as he marks his first high-level visit to Asia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. It is not immediately clear when the Ukrainian war-time president will arrive in Hiroshima but he is expected to arrive today, according to a statement by the Japanese government. His visit comes after a massive boost for Ukraine’s ammunition plan against the Russian invasion as US President Joe Biden told G7 leaders that Washington supports joint allied training programs for Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, in a significant endorsement as Kyiv seeks to boost its air power against Russia. Read More Ukraine repels Russian forces in Bakhmut after overnight strikes on Kyiv Pentagon accounting error could give Ukraine extra $3bn in US weapons Russia extends detention of US consular worker by 3 months