Embassy

Russia has for the First Time admitted losses of personnel on the Moskva, the flagship of its Black Sea Fleet, which sank last week.

The defence ministry said one crew member had died and 27 were missing after the sinking, while The Remaining 396 had been rescued. Previously it had made no mention of casualties.

The Bbc cannot independently verify these figures.

The sinking of the missile cruiser is one of the defining events of The War in Ukraine So Far . Russia says The Ship went down because of a fire on board, but Ukraine says it sank it with missiles.

And now, The Wreckage of The Pride of Russia's fleet has been declared an item of Ukrainian underwater cultural heritage, under the category of rare scientific or technical equipment.

, Ukraine 's Ministry of Defence says The Wreck can be admired " without much diving".

At first glance, life in Russia's capital looks normal, our Russia editor Steve Rosenberg writes.

While there are no exploding shells or foreign forces encircling Moscow, there are noticeable changes, says Rosenberg, who has lived there since the early 1990s.

There is the lack of independent news, iconic buildings displaying the Latin letter Z - the symbol of Russia's military operation, and The Way The War in Ukraine has found its place in Moscow's war museum.

" On The Museum 's website, the spelling of The Word " museum" has been altered to feature The Letter Z," writes our correspondent. " In The Museum shop you can buy Z mugs and badges declaring 'Putin is My PreZident'. "

Across Kyiv region, efforts have begun to clear the countless pieces of unexploded ammunition Left Behind after fierce fighting.

The main hospital there says it is receiving more and more patients who have touched or stepped on mines and shells. This is their story.

Meanwhile, Kyiv has to maintain its vigilance in case Russian forces try to return to the area.

The City 's defence force remains on high alert, dug into trenches, and The Bbc 's Mark Lowen got rare access to the 131st battalion in the forests near the capital.

Today, the separatist region of Transnistria in Moldova came into the picture, with a senior Russian General saying Russia aims to seize southern Ukraine and to open a route to the breakaway state, which borders Ukraine .

Maj Gen Rustam Minnekayev said Moscow would fight to take " full control" over The South in addition to The Eastern Donbas region.

It is unclear if Gen Minnekayev's comments were officially sanctioned. Russian defence officials told The Bbc 's Steve Rosenberg that they were " looking into" The General 's comments, which - if confirmed - offer The First insight into Russia's potential plans in The Coming weeks.

But they were enough to prompt Moldova to summon its Russian ambassador.

A small Russian-speaking breakaway region, Transnistria borders Ukraine from The West . It claimed independence after The Fall of the Soviet Union in a bloody conflict, but is not recognised internationally and officially remains part of Moldova.

A small detachment of around 1,500 Russian troops has been stationed in the region since 1995 as part of a truce agreement.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said intelligence assessments suggest there is a " realistic possibility" The War will continue until The End of next year, and that Russia could be victorious.

He Said Russian President Vladimir Putin has " a huge army" but " he has a very difficult political position because he's made a catastrophic blunder".

" The only option he now has, really, is to continue to try to use his appalling, grinding approach driven by artillery, trying to grind The Ukrainians down, " Mr Johnson said, speaking from Delhi where he has been holding talks with Indian leader Narendra Modi .

Mr Johnson also said The British Embassy in Ukraine 's capital, Kyiv, will reopen next week, and that the UK is looking at sending tanks to support Poland, as it supplies Ukraine with heavy weaponry.

Source of news: bbc.com