Moscow said it had foiled an attempt by Ukrainian intelligence to sabotage two Russian nuclear plants and announced the signing of an agreement with Belarus to deploy tactical nuclear missiles, while the United States hoped to start training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets within weeks.
The Russian State Security Service announced the foiling of what it called an attempt by Ukrainian foreign intelligence to commit sabotage at two nuclear power plants before the ninth of May.
He said what he described as groups of Ukrainian saboteurs blew up an electric power pole and booby-trapped 4 at the Leningrad nuclear power plant, located on the Gulf of Finland (western Russia).
The agency added that another group planted explosive devices under power lines at the Kalinin station, in the Tver district (northwest of Moscow); it also announced the arrest of 3 Ukrainians and two Russians, and accused Ukrainian intelligence of being behind the plot.
The anti-Moscow group, which calls itself the Russian Volunteer Corps, released a video it said was of its members after they arrived at a post office in Russia's Belgorod province. One of the spokesmen in the recording said that the corps was able to re-enter Russian territory with the aim of carrying out combat operations.
In a related context, the governor of the Russian province of Belgorod, Vyacheslav Gladkov, announced the establishment of 7 regional defense units in the province, comprising about 3000,<> personnel.
Gladkov stressed that local authorities are currently studying legal options to arm these units, following the ongoing attacks on cities and villages adjacent to the Ukrainian border in the region.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced last Monday the elimination of more than 70 of what he described as Ukrainian nationalists fanatics, after they infiltrated from Ukraine into the Belgorod province. Shoigu described the incident as a terrorist act directed against the civilian population in the region and accused Ukrainian authorities of being behind the incident.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said operations by Russian anti-Kremlin groups on Russian territory would increase, commenting on photos circulated on Wednesday that showed smoke over the Crimean bridge. Podolyak stressed that his country will do what is necessary to recover its occupied territories.
Counterattack
In Kiev, Podolyak told Al Jazeera that he did not announce the start of the counterattack in his statements to an Italian media outlet, but stressed that the counterattack is a series of operations that are already being carried out, not a single step, including the destruction of rear support sources, reconnaissance operations and other steps.
This comes after the Italian news agency "Rai" attributed to Podolyak statements about his announcement of the start of the Ukrainian army's counter-offensive a few days ago, stressing that heavy fighting is taking place along the border line.
Field developments
On the ground front, the Ukrainian air force said that its defenses last night thwarted a large-scale Russian drone attack targeting different parts of the country; it said that Russian forces launched from the northern and southern directions 36 Iranian-made attack drones, all of which were shot down.
It said the attack targeted critical infrastructure and military installations, and that units of the anti-aircraft missile forces fully repelled the attack.
The Ukrainian military departments in Kiev, Mykolaiv, Odessa and Khmelnytsky have confirmed that these provinces have been attacked with "witness" drones.
In Kherson (south), the provincial mayor said Russian shelling had wounded a number of civilians.
He added that Russian forces have shelled the territory of the province in the past hours more than 80 times, firing 400 artillery shells at residential areas, especially in the Perislav region.
In neighboring Mykolaiv province, the mayor of the province said Ukrainian defenses shot down three attack marches overhead, and that Russian heavy artillery shelling continued along the province's coastal areas.
In Zaporizhia, the Ukrainian military administration said that last night Russian forces fired about 80 artillery shells at 16 regions and towns, along the frontline in the southern province, adding that the shelling led to the destruction of homes and public and private property.
In terms of battles in the east of the country, the Ukrainian General Staff said that Russian forces launched 28 attacks in the directions of Pakhmut, Avdiyevka and Marinka (east of the country), during the past hours.
It said Ukrainian forces had repelled what it called failed offensive operations on the outskirts of Bakhmut, and Russian forces had carried out air strikes on Ukrainian control positions. Ukraine's General Staff confirmed that attacks on Avdiivka and Marinka had been repelled.
Bachmut extradition
In a related context, the founder of the company "Wagner" Yevgeny Prigozhin inspected the start of the withdrawal of his forces from the city of Pakhmut, located in the Donetsk region, towards special camps, and said that Wagner will complete its withdrawal from the city next Thursday and hand over its positions to the Russian army.
The start of Wagner's withdrawal came days after Moscow announced that Russian forces had taken control of Pakhmut following the longest battle since the start of Russia's war on Ukraine in February 2022.
For her part, the Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister said that regular Russian forces have replaced the "Wagner" forces in the city of Bachmut, but the elements of "Wagner" are still inside the city.
Deployment of nuclear missiles
On the other hand, the Russian and Belarusian defense ministers signed an agreement to deploy Russian tactical nuclear missiles in Belarus.
Russia's defence minister said the move was taken amid tensions on his country's western border, accusing the West of waging an undeclared war against Russia and Belarus.
F-16 training
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he hoped Ukrainian pilots would begin training on F-16s in the coming weeks.
He added - in his speech during the opening session of the Defense Contact Group on Ukraine - that the exercises come within the military security assistance that the Biden administration continues to provide to Ukrainians.
Austin reiterated the commitment of Western countries to defend Ukraine and strengthen the air defense systems of Ukrainian forces; he stressed that Russia has failed to achieve air control in Ukraine.
No to Ukraine's delivery of lethal weapons
On the other hand, South Korea on Thursday denied press reports about future deliveries of missiles to Ukraine, stressing that its decision not to deliver lethal weapons to Kiev has not changed.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that hundreds of thousands of South Korean-made artillery shells would be delivered to Ukraine via the United States, under a "secret deal" between Seoul and Washington.
South Korea has long adhered to a policy of not supplying active conflict zones with weapons, a position it has continued to apply in the Ukrainian situation, despite persistent calls by the United States, European countries and Kiev to send weapons.