President Zelensky visits soldiers at the front

Overview: Zelensky visits front and Lavrov’s trip to Serbia stopped

These are the main developments from Sunday evening and the night from Sunday to Monday.

• The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited two places near the front in eastern Ukraine on Sunday. It concerns the towns of Lysychansk in the Luhansk region and Soledar in Donetsk, he said in his daily video message. He also spoke to Ukrainian soldiers in the Zaporizhzhya region. “I’m proud of everyone I’ve met,” Zelensky said in the video. “I pledged my support to everyone I shook hands with.” It is only the second time since the start of the war that he has made visits outside the capital Kiev.
• Keeping Serbia’s Neighbors their airspace closed in front of Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, reports Reuters news agency. Lavrov wanted to visit Serbia this week, but that has not happened because Montenegro, North Macedonia and Bulgaria are thwarting that. Serbia is one of the few European countries that still maintain ties with Russia.
• Ukraine failed to qualify for the World Cup football later this year in Qatar. In the final of the play-offs in Cardiff, Wales was too strong 1-0. Six of the eleven Ukrainian basic players play for clubs from their own country. Many of them had barely played in recent months because of the war.