Ukraine War. Kiev confirms it retains a small part in Bachmut and Biden's statements about Putin and F-16 fighter jets

Ukraine said on Sunday it still held a tiny part of Bachmut, which Russia has claimed full control, while US President Joe Biden made comments about his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and Washington's conditions for granting Kiev F-16 fighter jets.

Russia and Ukraine gave conflicting accounts of the situation in Bakhamout on Sunday, with Kiev saying it still controlled a small part of the besieged eastern city, while Moscow congratulated the Wagner Special Military Group and Russian forces for "liberating" the city.

Russia on Saturday declared full control of the city, putting an end to the longest and bloodiest battle in the 15-month war.

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated his troops and the Wagner Group on the move.

Capturing Pakhmut would mark Moscow's first major victory in the more than 10-month-old struggle to seize the city.

Foothold

But Ukrainian officials denied that account on Sunday, and a senior Ukrainian military commander said his country's forces controlled a "tiny" part of the city of Pakhmut, but a foothold would be enough to enter the devastated city when the situation changes.

In a Telegram post, General Oleksandr Sersky said Ukrainian forces were advancing on the outskirts of Bakhamut and were about to "tactically encircle" the city, which was previously home to some 70,<> people.

Also on Telegram, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hannah Malyar wrote, "Our forces control the city by partially encircling it, which gives us the opportunity to destroy the enemy; so the enemy must defend itself in the part of the city it controls."

Maliar said Ukrainian forces were still defending industrial facilities and infrastructure in Pakhmut, as well as a section of the city, and claimed that her country's forces controlled part of the city's highlands.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the devastation in Pakhmut resembled the U.S. nuclear attack on Japan's Hiroshima in World War II.

"I will say it frankly: the images of destruction in Hiroshima remind me of Bachmut and other similar communities; nothing is left alive, all the buildings have collapsed," he told reporters while attending the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima on Sunday.

Allied resolve

For their part, the Group of Seven leaders have said they will not back down from supporting Ukraine.

Kiev is preparing to launch a counteroffensive, the next major phase in the war 6 months after the Russian offensive was repelled in the winter.

US President Joe Biden stressed that Russia would "not break" the resolve of Ukraine's allies.

Biden said he had assured his Ukrainian counterpart that the support of Washington and other Kiev-backers "will not weaken, Putin will not break our resolve as I think."

U.S. President Joe Biden said Russia had suffered more than 100,16 casualties in Bachmut. The F-<>s would not have helped Ukrainian forces with regard to Bachmut, but they "could make a big difference in terms of the ability to deal with what's coming," he said.

Biden revealed that he had received "unequivocal assurance" from his Ukrainian counterpart that F-16 fighter jets, which the West would provide to Ukraine, would not be used to enter Russian airspace.

But Biden told reporters the F-16s could be used "at any location where Russian forces are inside Ukraine."

New Package

US President Joe Biden announced a new package of military equipment for Ukraine.

Biden pledged the package on Sunday during a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in the Japanese city of Hiroshima.

According to White House data, the value of the aid will be approximately $375 million. Biden said the package would include ammunition, artillery and armored vehicles.

The Pentagon recently estimated the total value of U.S. military support to Kiev since the start of the war at more than $36.9 billion.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said his country would begin training Ukrainian pilots this summer to support Kiev in its war with Russia.

Sunak said – in remarks on the sidelines of the Hiroshima summit and accompanied by the Ukrainian president – that "no one wants peace more than Zelensky, and that the terms of peace should be based on the principles of Ukraine."

For his part, French President Emmanuel Macron said that his country supports Ukraine by all means, but will not enter into conflict, stressing his country's keenness not to escalate.