That’s all for our live coverage of the war in Ukraine for now – we’ll be back soon with more updates and analysis.

Before we go, here is a recap of the key moments from today.

• Russia has claimed its forces have made it to the Dnipropetrovsk region;
• Moscow’s offensive continues despite peace talks this week, which made little progress;
• Elsewhere, a planned Russia-Ukraine prisoner swap descended into a blame game and uncertainty;
• Russia moved lorries carrying dead Ukrainians to a so-called exchange area, while Kyiv warned Moscow was trying to upset the terms previously agreed during talks in Istanbul;
• Kharkiv was left picking up the pieces after Russian attacks on Saturday killed at least four;
• Meanwhile, Western officials believe the retaliation for Ukraine’s daring drone raid deep inside Russia is still to come;
• And Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeated his readiness for a ceasefire.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has told ABC News he is ready for a ceasefire.

The Kyiv leader has consistently repeated this message to allies and the US, stressing that he is prepared for a halt in the fighting and saying that Moscow is the obstacle to ending the war.

However, he warned the US outlet that only “hard pressure” led by Washington would get Vladimir Putin to the table to discuss a ceasefire.

“I am convinced that the president of the United States has all the powers and enough leverage to step up,” Zelenskyy said.

Slovakia has vowed to block any EU sanctions on Russia that hit its national interests.

Prime Minister Robert Fico made the comments on Sunday after his country’s parliament approved a resolution calling on the government not to back any new measures.

“If there is a sanction that would harm us, I will never vote for it,” Fico told a news conference.

Slovakia, while a NATO and EU member, has diverged from its Western allies in its position on Ukraine under Fico.

It has stopped official state military aid to Kyiv.

But the country has not blocked any previous EU sanctions, including the 17th package targeting Moscow’s shadow fleet – which was adopted in May.

Yesterday, the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv suffered a number of attacks, killing at least four people and injuring more than 20.

Today, residents were forced to pick up the pieces and repair the damage inflicted by the attack.

Oleg Synegubov, head of the state administration, said dozens of volunteers had gathered after the strikes.

“Closing broken windows, cleaning the area, distributing hot lunches and coffee, providing support – the teams work clearly and harmoniously every time.” He said.

While much of the reporting and attention is often focused on the attacks conducted during this war, it’s worth keeping in mind that after each one, ordinary citizens have to pick up the pieces of their lives.

Ukraine has warned that Russia is not abandoning its intentions to break into the Dnipropetrovsk region.

We reported earlier today, see our 10.17 post, on Russian claims its troops had reached the area, located on the western border of the Donetsk region and northern border of the Zaporizhzhia region.

We’re able to bring you more news on the ongoing offensive now, as it seems that fighting has reached the border of the region.

“The enemy does not abandon its intentions to enter the Dnipropetrovsk region,” Ukraine’s Southern Defence Forces said.

“Our soldiers are courageously and professionally holding their section of the front, disrupting the occupier’s plans. This work does not stop for a minute.”

Offensive comes as peace talks flounder

The attack comes as peace talks continued to make little progress this past week.

The Russian defence ministry claimed units of the 90th Tank Division of the Central Grouping of Russian forces were attacking an area adjacent to the Dnipropetrovsk region.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, warned that if Ukraine did not bow to Russian demands, the Dnipropetrovsk offensive showed Moscow’s attacks would only continue.

This once again raises questions of Russia’s commitment to any lasting peace.

The pro-Ukrainian Deep State map showed Russian forces very close to the Dnipropetrovsk region.

A spokesperson for the Ukrainian military, Dmytro Zaporozhets, said Russian forces were trying to “build a bridgehead for an attack” on Kostyantynivka, an important logistical hub for the Ukrainian army.

Kostyantynivka is located north of the city of Donetsk, in the Donetsk region.

The Russian defence ministry has released images of what it says are lorries carrying the refrigerated bodies of Ukrainian soldiers. They have been transported to a so-called exchange area near Novaya Guta, Belarus, which borders Ukraine, but Kyiv said yesterday Russia was acting unilaterally. No date had been agreed to swap the bodies of deceased soldiers, Ukrainian officials had said.

New footage shows the journey of a Ukrainian drone smuggled into Russia to attack a Russian airbase on 1 June. The drone takes off across fields before showing burning planes littering the tarmac.  It was part of Ukraine’s audacious Operation Spider’s Web, which you can read more about in our post at 8.06am.

Sanctions on Russia are insufficient to force Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table – only US military aid can do so, according to a leading think thank.

Putin believes he can make creeping advances on the battlefield longer than Ukraine can defend it and than the West is willing to lend its support, the Institute for the Study of War said.

Higher, unsustainable Russian casualty rates would “risk Putin’s efforts to balance ‘butter and guns’ and maintain domestic support”, said the ISW.

“The United States must continue equipping Ukrainian soldiers as Russia’s battlefield losses remain the key driver of Russia’s current materiel, manpower, and economic problems.

“Western aid, particularly of weapons systems that only the United States can provide at scale and quickly, would allow Ukrainian forces to better defend their positions, slow Russian advances, and inflict even more serious losses on the Russian military.”

Putin’s strategy of incremental gains will “very likely” continue to guide his refusal to engage in peace negotiations, the ISW said.