Facts about Russia-Ukraine conflict: Ukraine, Poland agree on defense cooperation

BEIJING, June 2 (Xinhua) -- The following are the latest developments in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine:

The governments of Ukraine and Poland on Wednesday signed a string of bilateral documents in the fields of defense, energy and regional development, the Ukrainian government press service reported.

The agreements were inked during the intergovernmental consultations in Kiev in the presence of Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and his Polish counterpart Mateusz Morawiecki.

In particular, the two countries agreed to set up a joint commission that will prepare recommendations on the format of the Ukrainian-Polish joint venture for the manufacture of weapons and military equipment.

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Russian forces took control over the eastern part of Severodonetsk city, the administrative center of the Ukraine-controlled part of the Lugansk region, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Sergey Gaidai, head of the Lugansk regional military administration, said on Facebook that Russia seized some 80 percent of Severodonetsk.

Street fighting in the city continued and Ukrainian forces carried out counterattacks in some parts of Severodonetsk, Gaidai said.

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The United States will send medium-range rocket systems to Ukraine in a new security assistance package, senior administration officials said Tuesday.

A 700-million-U.S.-dollar weapon package will be formally unveiled Wednesday, including High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), which are to enable Ukraine to fire more precisely at targets in its eastern part, the officials said.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Ukrainian officials had offered assurances that the HIMARS would not be used to strike targets inside the Russian territory.

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The United States is "purposefully and diligently adding fuel to the fire" by continuously providing military assistance to Ukraine, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.

"The United States, obviously, really adheres to the policy of fighting Russia to the last Ukrainian," Peskov told a daily briefing, commenting on Washington's plan to supply additional weapons to Kiev.