Ukrainian defense forces have taken special measures to strengthen security and protection on the border with the Republic of Moldova, more specifically alongside the border with the separatist region of Transnistria, the spokesman of the Ukrainian National Border Police announced. The Ukrainian official said the border checkpoints on the Moldovan border, as well as those on the border with Belarus and Russia, remain closed, as per the decision of Kyiv authorities. Meanwhile, fighting continues on the ground, with Russia stepping up its attacks in an attempt to gain full control over the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine, and to create a land corridor linking the two regions to Crimea, the Ukrainian General Staff reports. Moreover, the Russian army continues to block the Ukrainian troops in the port-city of Mariupol, who are trapped in the Azovstal steelworks. Moscow has also increased the number of drones dispatched to the Odessa Oblast in order to carry out air reconnaissance missions. Local officials say the Russians are conducting special psychological warfare operations in the area, trying to spread panic among the civilian population by promoting fake news and disinformation.
