Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukrainian forces are retaking territory through a series of offensives , adding Kyiv’s battlefield ⁠position was the strongest it had been ⁠in some ​time. The Ukrainian president, citing ⁠a report by senior commanders, noted for the first time the “Veles” operation using pipelines in Ukraine’s northeast. He also referred to an air assault operation in ⁠eastern Ukraine and the “Vivaldi” operation further to the north, designed to prevent Russian advances in ​key areas.

The leaders of Finland and Norway phoned Russian president Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to urge him to end the war in Ukraine.…