Russia seizes two more settlements in Donetsk region, Ukraine reports holding positions

Russia claimed on Sunday that its forces had taken control of Petrivka and Illinka settlements in Donetsk region, while Ukraine reported on the same day that its troops had continued to hold their positions and disrupt the Russian army's operational plans.

The Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday that its forces had repelled multiple attacks by the Ukrainian side in the directions of Kharkiv, Avdiivka, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson and had also launched many offensives over the past day.

Russian air defense systems had shot down 55 drones of the Ukrainian army, the ministry said.

Meanwhile, General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Sunday reported 111 frontline battles, saying that its troops had held their ground and disrupted the enemy's action plans.

In the direction of Pokrovsk, the Russian side had launched 22 attacks, and fighting was still going on in some areas. In the direction of Kurakhove, the Ukrainian army had successfully beat back 33 attacks by the Russian troops, the Ukrainian side said.

Also on Sunday local time, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that the United States is not considering returning to Ukraine the nuclear weapons it gave up after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The United States is supplying Ukraine with a variety of conventional equipment, but not nuclear weapons, Sullivan added.

Some U.S and European officials had suggested that the United States could return nuclear weapons to Ukraine that were taken from it after the fall of the Soviet Union, according to an article published by the New York Times earlier.

In response, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said on Tuesday that according to the updated Basic Principles of State Policy of the Russian Federation on Nuclear Deterrence, the transfer of nuclear weapons to Ukraine can be tantamount to an attack on Russia.

Russia seizes two more settlements in Donetsk region, Ukraine reports holding positions

The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) on Plastic Pollution concluded on Sunday in Busan, South Korea, failing to reach an agreement on a draft treaty to curb plastic pollution.

The week-long INC session in Busan is the final meeting under the initial mandate, bringing together over 1,400 representatives from 178 UN member states and 2,300 participants from intergovernmental organizations, UN agencies, NGOs, and media outlets. Despite extensive discussions, the participating parties failed to reach a consensus on the treaty, and negotiations will continue.

The major challenges to finalizing the treaty include balancing global ambition and feasibility, and addressing the varied reality and capability of developing countries, noted Chinese representatives.

"China places high importance on plastic pollution management, and was among the first countries to implement policies to control unnecessary single-use plastics usage. During the negotiation, China played a constructive role based on our own experiences while accommodating diverse concerns of all parties, and tried to provide solutions to subjects with divergence. But we should also notice that the issue of plastic pollution is complicated, involving all aspects of life and production. We need to comprehensively consider all sections of plastic production, usage, recycling, and management, as well as the influence on upstream and downstream industries and people's daily lives," said Zhou Guomei, Director General of the Department of International Cooperation under the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

UN plastic pollution summit fails to reach agreement