In a sarcastic post on Twitter, the ministry said on Friday that it had “received thousands of tons of ammunition as a gift” from Russian forces last week. The ministry’s post follows reports of Ukraine’s success in recovering occupied territories in the south and northeast of the country. But the “gift” of seized ammunition will be returned to Russia, the ministry added. “Please note that we do not accept gifts from murderers, torturers, looters or rapists,” the ministry said in its post. “In the next few days we will return everything, down to the last shell.” This photo taken on Sept. 14, 2022, shows abandoned ammunition crates on the outskirts of Izyum in eastern Ukraine’s Kharkiv region. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry taunted Russia in a tweet about abandoned munitions, vowing to use them against the invading country’s military. JUAN BARRETO/Getty Images Ukrainian forces have retaken control of most of northeastern Kharkiv province, including the nearby transport hub of Izyum, and are also advancing around the southern city of Kherson. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a US-based think tank tracking the progress of the counteroffensive, said this week that Ukrainian forces have retaken about 3,475 square miles (almost three times the size of Rhode Island) in the entire country since August 29. Ukrainian forces took control of Kupyansk, a town in Kharkiv province on Friday as they met Russian resistance while pushing east of the Oskil River, ISW said. In the Belgorod administrative region bordering Russia, Ukrainian forces continued shelling, reportedly hitting an electricity substation, ISW said. The UK Ministry of Defense said in its intelligence briefing this week that Russian forces had left behind “high-value equipment” necessary for its “gun-centric style of warfare”. The abandoned equipment included at least one ZOOPARK anti-battery radar and at least one IV14 artillery command and control vehicle, according to the ministry. “Such abandonment highlights the disorganized retreat of some Russian units and possible local breakdowns in command and control,” the British ministry said. Air Force Brigadier General Pat Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, called Ukraine’s territorial gains “significant” Friday during a news conference. “What we appreciate is that the Ukrainians are consolidating their gains after retaking significant territory and that the Russians are trying to shore up their defensive lines after being pushed back,” Ryder said, referring to Ukraine’s gains in the north. In the south of the country, Ukrainian forces are pursuing what Ryder described as a “deliberate, calculated move forward as the Russians continue to try to hold that line.” Ukrainian forces on Friday struck Russia’s command headquarters in Kherson, likely using US-supplied high-mobility artillery missile systems, or “HIMARS,” according to ISW. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday he remains committed to the war effort and is focused on the Kremlin’s main goal of “liberating the entire territory of Donbas” in eastern Ukraine. Newsweek has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment.
