Donetsk oblast was hit hard in the past day, with at least 15 Russian strikes killing seven civilians and injuring three more. The Ukrainian national police said the strikes also destroyed 19 residential buildings and one power line.

A car explosion near the office of Russian propaganda channel ZaTV in Russia-occupied Melitopol injured at least 5 people, including company employees, authorities said.

Russia took its case to the UN security council that Ukraine is preparing to use a “dirty bomb” on its own territory, an assertion dismissed by western and Ukrainian officials as misinformation and a pretext for intensifying the war.

Ukraine’s foreign minister said inspectors from the UN nuclear watchdog would soon inspect two Ukrainian sites at Kyiv’s request, adding that it feared Moscow’s “dirty bomb” allegations were preparation for a “false-flag” operation.

Vladimir Putin said Russia needed to speed up decision-making in the military campaign in Ukraine. Volodymyr Zelensky reiterated a pledge to retake the city of Kherson, which would be a big setback for Putin.

Russia has notified the US of plans to carry out annual exercises of its nuclear forces, the US government said, adding that it lowered the risk of miscalculation at a time of “reckless” Russian nuclear rhetoric.

Britain’s incoming prime minister, Rishi Sunak, promised Zelenskiy that the UK’s support for Ukraine would be steadfast and “as strong as ever” under his premiership”.

The US is considering sending older Hawk air defence equipment from storage to Ukraine, two US officials told Reuters.

Police rescued an eight-year-old boy whose parents were killed in Russian shell strikes in Bakhmut, it was reported. Iuliia Mendel, a former spokesperson for Volodymyr Zelensky, said the boy’s mother was seven months pregnant when she died “in the street” along with his father.

Ukrainian authorities are estimating that Russian forces have lost nearly 68,420 personnel since the start of the invasion.