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Two people have been killed and seven others injured after massive grenade explosions hit the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk. The mayor, Vadim Lyakh, called on residents to evacuate after Russian forces hit a market and a residential area.
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The governor of Donetsk has asked 350,000 civilians to evacuate as Russian troops escalate their offensive in the region.
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Russian-backed separatists have seized two foreign-flagged ships in the Russian-occupied port city of Mariupol and claim they are "state property".
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Ukraine has asked Turkey to investigate three more Russian ships it claims were carrying stolen grain.
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The head of the administration of the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, Yevgeny Balitsky, has said that the region plans to sell Ukrainian wheat to the Middle East. The main countries involved in the agreement were Iraq, Iran and Saudi Arabia. Ukraine has repeatedly accused Russia of stealing grain, a charge Moscow has denied.
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Russia is planning to launch a railway line between Rostov region and Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
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NATO's 30 member states have signed accession protocols for Finland and Sweden, sending the two Nordic countries' membership bids to the allied parliaments for approval. Born's secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg, called on allies to ratify quickly and assured both countries of the alliance's support. Canada became the first country to formally ratify the accession of Finland and Sweden.
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Latvia will restore compulsory military service, its defense minister, Artis Pabriks, announced on Tuesday, following rising tension with neighboring Russia following Moscow's war in Ukraine.
Source: The Guardian
