Ukraine and Russia: What you need to know right now

* Ukrainian troops in the eastern city of Sievieorodonetsk, adjacent to Lysychansk, can still receive weapons and evacuate their wounded despite damage to supply routes, a senior Ukrainian military official said in an online briefing. * According to Britain's defence ministry, Russian forces have highly likely advanced more than 5 km (3.11 miles) towards the southern approaches of Lysychansk since June 19.

Ukraine is set to be accepted as a candidate to join the European Union on Thursday, a move that boosts the country's morale as Russian assaults wear down the defenders of two cities in the eastern Donbas region. nL4N2YA07Q] FIGHTING

* Ukrainian troops may need to retreat from the eastern frontline city of Lysychansk to avoid encirclement after Russian forces captured two settlements to its south, regional governor Serhiy Gaidai said. * Ukrainian troops in the eastern city of Sievieorodonetsk, adjacent to Lysychansk, can still receive weapons and evacuate their wounded despite damage to supply routes, a senior Ukrainian military official said in an online briefing.

* According to Britain's defence ministry, Russian forces have highly likely advanced more than 5 km (3.11 miles) towards the southern approaches of Lysychansk since June 19. * Three cruise missiles hit Ukraine's southern port city of Mykolaiv, while air defences shot down another two missiles near the southern city of Odesa, the Ukrainian armed forces said. Russia's defence ministry said it had used high-precision weapons to strike Ukrainian army fuel tanks and military equipment near Mykolaiv, Interfax news agency reported.

* Reuters was unable to independently verify the situation on the ground. Two Britons and a Moroccan who were captured while fighting for Ukraine and sentenced to death by a court in the Russian-backed, self-proclaimed breakaway Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) are preparing to appeal, TASS news agency cited one of their lawyers as saying.

MILITARY AID * Ukraine said it had received U.S. supplies of High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), a powerful long-range weapon system that Kyiv hopes can help turn the tide on Russia's invasion.

ECONOMY AND DIPLOMACY * European Union leaders will formally accept Ukraine as a candidate to join the EU on Thursday, a bold geopolitical move triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

* The Group of Seven rich democracies will seek to demonstrate long-term support for Ukraine against Russia's invasion at a summit starting on Sunday, even as the war's growing impact on the world economy tests their resolve. * Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Ankara was investigating claims that Ukrainian grain has been stolen by Russia and shipped to countries including Turkey, though added the inquiries had not found any stolen shipments so far. Russia has previously denied the theft allegations.

* A dozen European Union countries have now been affected by cuts to gas supply from Russia, the EU's climate policy chief said as the bloc faces a deepening energy standoff with Moscow. QUOTE

"Harry Potter is better than Voldemort, and we know who is Voldemort in this war, and who is Harry Potter, so we know how the war will end." -Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, speaking to a student in Canada who compared him to the fictional boy wizard. (Compiled by Mark Heinrich)