The conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues to escalate as Putin’s military increases their attack on Avdiivka, while Kyiv retaliates by targeting Crimea.

According to a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military, the frequency of Russian attacks on a town near the eastern front has increased in the wake of the conflict between Hamas and Israel.

Since the middle of October, Russian forces have been advancing towards the devastated town of Avdiivka. This town is recognized for its coking plant and its strategic location as a gateway to the city of Donetsk, which is approximately 20 km (12 miles) east.

According to Oleksandr Borodin, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s third division of assault brigades, Russian troops are initiating large-scale ground attacks while also attempting to preserve their military equipment.

He stated that everything began following the occurrences in Israel. He suggests that they may think it’s an opportune moment to progress, but they haven’t achieved significant victories.

According to Vitaliy Barabash, the leader of Avdiivka’s military administration, Russian soldiers have been continuously bombarding the town. However, due to the wet ground from recent rainfall, their troops have been unable to advance.

Russian president Vladimir Putin visited the southern military district headquarters in Rostov-on-Don as he assessed the state of his country’s forces in Ukraine as the war drags on toward winter.

This was his second time visiting the headquarters publicly within a month.

A video posted by a Russian state news outlet depicted Mr Putin being welcomed on Thursday night by defence minister Sergey Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov, chief of the general staff.

According to the Russian state news agency Tass, Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for Mr. Putin, stated that during his visit to Rostov-on-Don, which is less than 60 miles away from Ukraine’s south-eastern border, Mr. Putin was shown new military equipment and updated on the war’s development.

On his return trip from Kazakhstan, Mr Putin paid a visit in order to strengthen relations with Russia’s former Soviet counterpart and significant economic ally, amidst ongoing tensions with the Western world regarding Ukraine.

The war-hit country is arranging a fourth meeting of national security advisers in late November or early December, said Ihor Zhovka, president Volodymyr Zelensky’s top diplomatic adviser.

He stated that the Global Summit may occur in February of 2024.

He stated that the summit is certain to happen, as it will serve as a symbolic start to putting the Ukraine ‘peace formula’ into action and will also summarize the progress made on this matter so far.

Arpan Rai reports.

On Friday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced that the government will make adjustments to the defense budget to meet the country’s NATO spending goal, even after the 100-billion-euro special defense fund has been depleted.

Scholz stated that sustainable planning and implementation of procurement processes requires the Bundeswehr to have dependable access to adequate funding.

He stated that meeting the 2028 goal of allocating two percent of the budget to NATO defense would be a challenging yet achievable political undertaking, even without assistance from a designated fund.

Scholz stated that it is widely understood that we must increase our spending on defense.

Although the importance of extended defense planning in Europe has been recognized for some time, the inadequate supply levels within the bloc due to two years of aiding Ukraine have worsened the situation. It seems that Mr. Scholz’s statement is an effort to address this issue.

Volodymyr Zelensky announced that over 150 Ukrainian citizens were safely transported out of the Gaza Strip within the past 25 hours, using the southern border crossing with Egypt.

The president of Ukraine released a statement on X stating that the recent round of refugee rescues has increased the total number to over 200.

According to officials in the area, numerous individuals with foreign passports were permitted to depart Gaza via the Egyptian Rafah border crossing this week. However, there have been reports of many others being denied.

Senior military officials reported that Russian forces were unable to make progress against Ukrainian troops as they intensified their assaults on the eastern town of Avdiivka.

Oleksandr Borodin, the press officer for Ukraine’s third separate assault brigade, reported that Russian forces were launching significant infantry attacks in an attempt to preserve their equipment.

“Their actions are currently very concentrated. It is not only infantry advancing, but also simultaneous efforts from artillery, drones, aviation, and air strikes,” stated Mr. Borodin. However, he also noted that Russian forces were unable to quickly restock their supplies due to the strong defensive positions held by Ukraine.

Arpan Rai reports.

The Institute for the Study of War said that Russia will face difficulties in relocating their aggressive troops to counter the ongoing Ukrainian actions in the eastern Kherson region, which is separated by the Dnipro River. This relocation may leave their defenses vulnerable along the previous main axis of their counteroffensive in western Zaporizhzhia.

Bloggers in the Russian military allege that Ukrainian troops have taken control of the southern land corridor near the Dnipro River, specifically in the village of Krynky.

Previously, smaller, more targeted military missions seem to have intensified into a larger assault in that area.

The Russian VDV forces, specially trained for combat, moved from Kherson to Zaporizhzhia in order to defend against the Ukrainian advance on Robotyne during the counterattack.

However, the Russian forces will be required to retreat if the military presence in Kherson is deemed inadequate. This task will be challenging.

The ISW stated that moving significant portions of the 7th VDV Division or other VDV groups to western Zaporizhia Oblast could potentially interrupt Russian defensive efforts in that area.

Below is a list of this morning’s top stories in and around Ukraine.

• On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with his top military leaders at the southern military command headquarters in Rostov-on-Don to discuss the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. During the meeting, Putin was presented with demonstrations of new military equipment. The Rostov headquarters is known for being the site of Yevgeny Prigozhin’s coup in June.

• Early this morning, it was reported that two high-speed Russian landing craft in northwest Crimea were struck by drones operated by Ukraine. A video of one of the explosions was posted on the local Telegram channel Crimean Wind.

• A high-ranking Ukrainian officer stated on Thursday that Russian troops are increasing their efforts to attack the crucial town of Avdiivka in the eastern region. Meanwhile, the country’s general staff reported successfully fending off multiple Russian assaults in different areas of the front. According to Oleksandr Borodin, press officer for Ukraine’s third separate assault brigade, the Russian forces are heavily engaging in infantry attacks while also trying to preserve their equipment.

• According to a statement from the Air Force, Ukrainian military successfully intercepted and destroyed five out of six Shahed “kamikaze” drones and one out of two cruise missiles launched by Russia during the night.

Good morning.

Here are a few recent images from Ukraine.