The latest on the Russia–Ukraine crisis, April 19. Click here for updates from April 18. Russia Launches Fight for Industrial Heartland, Ukraine Says
After days of regrouping and reinforcing, the Russian military began a new and potentially climactic phase of the war in Ukraine by launching its long-feared, full-scale ground offensive to take control of the country’s industrial heartland, the Donbas, Ukrainian officials said.
The stepped-up assaults began Monday along a broad front of over 300 miles (480 kilometers), Ukrainian officials said.
“The Russian troops have begun the battle for the Donbas,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced in a video address. He said a “significant part of the entire Russian army is now concentrated on this offensive.”
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