Latest in Ukraine: Battles Inflicting High Casualties on Both Sides

• The British defense ministry said Sunday in its daily intelligence report about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that both sides are experiencing “high casualties” in the south, “with Russian losses likely the highest since the peak of the battle for Bakhmut in March.”
• Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Saturday there seems to be “no chance” of extending the United Nations-brokered Black Sea Grain Initiative that allows Ukraine to export grain safely through Russian-controlled waters.
• The European Union is stepping up efforts to deliver arms and ammunition to Ukraine EU industry chief Thierry Breton said Sunday in an interview with French daily Le Parisien. “We are preparing for the war to last several more months, or even longer,” he said.

Russia and Ukraine are reporting heavy fighting and high numbers of military casualties, according to reports from British intelligence Sunday.

Ukrainian fighters are trying to repel Russian forces from occupied areas British officials said Sunday. Russian attrition is probably at its highest levels since the peak of the battle for Bakhmut in March, U.K. military officials said in their regular assessment.

According to British intelligence, the fiercest battles are centered on the southeastern Zaporizhzhia province, around Bakhmut and farther west in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk province. According to the update, Ukraine had “made small advances,” but Russian forces were conducting “relatively effective defensive operations” in Ukraine’s south.