Ukraine war: Kyiv's counter-offensive 'gaining ground', Russian journalists sent pig heads

The Ukrainian counter-offensive against the Russian army is "gradually gaining ground", NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in Kyiv on Thursday, as he denounced Moscow's "imperialist ravings".

"Today your forces are advancing. They are facing fierce fighting, but they are gradually gaining ground little by little," Stoltenberg said.

"Ukrainians are fighting for their families" and "their freedom" and "Moscow is fighting for its imperialist delusions", he added.

The remarks were made during a visit by the Secretary-General, who met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

A report on developments in the war in Ukraine, released by the UK Ministry of Defence on Thursday, said that the Russian Aerospace Forces had lost around 90 fixed-wing aircraft in hostilities since February 2022.

The statement said that all aircraft have a life expectancy in flight hours, and because the country is using them more, it will exhaust the life expectancy of many of its airframes much faster than the Russian Aerospace Forces had planned.

According to the document, defence spending will increase by 68% in 2024 compared to the previous year, reaching 10,800 billion roubles (€106 billion at today's exchange rate).

At least three Russian journalists who have publicly supported Moscow's aggression in Ukraine have received decapitated pig heads. 

State media columnist Timofey Sergeitsev was the latest to receive one, joining military expert Konstantin Sivkov and TASS news agency photojournalist Mikhail Tereshchenko, according to The Moscow Times. 

Sergeitsev, who penned a controversial opinion piece calling for the murder of Ukrainian civilians last year, found the pig's head inside a black bag at his doorstep on Tuesday. 

State-run news agency