UK says Russia committed to compelling Ukraine to abandon its Euro-Atlantic orientation

(Reuters) – Russia is committed to compelling Ukraine to abandon its Euro-Atlantic orientation and asserting its own regional dominance, even as Moscow’s operational focus has shifted to the east of its neighbouring country, British military intelligence said on Sunday.

Russian forces were continuing to redeploy combat and support equipment from Belarus towards eastern Ukraine, including to locations close to Kharkiv and Severodonetsk, the UK Ministry of Defence tweeted in a regular bulletin.

Russian artillery continues to strike Ukrainian positions throughout the east of the country where Russia plans to renew its offensive activity, the bulletin added.

Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

(Reporting by Anirudh Saligrama in Bengaluru; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)