Russia's Advance in Kharkiv Halted; G7 to Decide on Using Moscow's Assets

As the Ukrainian army announces the halt of Russian advances in the Kharkiv region, the G7 finance ministers are set to decide on the use of Moscow's frozen assets for the benefit of Kyiv. The Ukrainian army has stated that its forces have prevented Russian advances in the northeastern Kharkiv region and are currently engaged in a 'counter-offensive.' However, the Ukrainian military's statement, released on Friday, June 24, also warned that Moscow intends to intensify its attacks in other parts of the war zone. Since May 10, Ukrainian forces have faced renewed assaults from thousands of Russian soldiers and are battling a new ground attack in the Kharkiv area. In May, Russia made its largest territorial advance in Ukraine in the past 18 months. Alexander Syrsky, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Army, wrote on social media that despite initial successes, 'the enemy is completely bogged down in street battles and has suffered significant losses in its attacking units.' He cautioned, however, that the situation on the eastern front is chaotic, where Russia claims its forces have achieved significant successes in the past two weeks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also visited the Kharkiv region on Friday to discuss the battle for Vuchansk, a city located less than five kilometers from the border, with senior military officials. On Thursday, Russia announced that it had attacked near the city of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine and had begun its assault on northeastern Ukraine to create a 'buffer zone' along the border to prevent future attacks from Kyiv on its territory. As the battle between Russia and Ukraine continues, the seven finance ministers of the world's industrialized nations are expected to agree on a broad plan to use the profits from Russia's frozen assets for the benefit of Ukraine on Saturday, June 24. If this agreement is reached, it will pave the way for a potential agreement among the leaders of this group next month. Although any agreement requires the approval of the G7 leaders, who will meet next month, observers believe that an initial agreement in this regard could be reached on Saturday. Bruno Le Maire, the French finance minister, stated that the ministers' goal is 'essentially to reach a political agreement.' The challenge of finding more financial resources for Ukraine while the country struggles with new Russian territorial advances after more than two years of war looms over the meeting of the finance ministers of the wealthiest democracies in northern Italy. Three American officials also told Reuters on Thursday that the United States is preparing a military aid package worth $275 million for Ukraine. Paolo Gentiloni, the European Union's economic commissioner, expressed cautious optimism, stating that there is 'positive convergence' in the negotiations regarding the use of profits from frozen Russian assets. This year, calls in the West for the establishment of a fund for Ukraine using billions of dollars in bank accounts, investments, and other frozen assets since Russia's invasion of the country in 2022 have increased.