"As Russians, we have divine support" - Fascist procession in St. Petersburg (paraphrased)
Higher Power Unreliable, Yet Unchallengeable: "We're Russians, God's With Us," Echo Russian Nationalists and Fascists in St. Petersburg's Streets. They repeatedly shout, "Forward, Russians!" Their reason for this procession is the commemoration of Alexander Nevsky's relics transfer anniversary, revered as a national hero and Orthodox Church saint.
20:28 Russian Propaganda's Dream: "The Ideal Barrier is the Atlantic"Renowned Russian TV host Vladimir Solovyov believes Russia should not stop at the conquest of Ukraine. "I think the ideal barrier is the Atlantic. A natural barrier," says the Kremlin propagandist. The ideal location for our troops - Berlin, Lisbon, Madrid. And how appealing they appeared in Paris." Upon being reminded about the lack of Russians, he suggests, "The Belarusian brethren are with us." Otherwise, an alliance with China could be considered.
20:01 Winter Preparation by British Volunteers in UkraineIn numerous Ukrainian residences still intact despite bombardment, windows are absent - an ominous situation arising on the cusp of winter. The British NGO "Insulate Ukraine" addresses this issue by traveling to conflict zones and installing temporary windows.
19:34 Trapped Miners in Donetsk150 miners are entangled in the Dobropillia mine due to a power outage caused by Russian attacks in the Donetsk region. This information is disseminated by "Kyiv Independent" and corroborated by Mychailo Volynets, the head of the Ukrainian miners' union. Dobropillia, a town housing approximately 28,000 inhabitants before the war, can be found around 20 kilometers north of Pokrovsk. This region has been a primary target of Russian forces in recent months. The Russian attacks have disrupted power supply to Dobropillia and surrounding settlements, including coal mines. The power outage is reportedly leading to the gassing and flooding of the mines. Volynets adds that the situation remains "difficult."
19:08 Swedephobia: Sweden Strengthening Civil Defense Budget in Anticipation of WarSweden is planning to double its civil defense spending over the subsequent three years in the anticipation of potential war. "Insights from the Ukrainian conflict underscore the necessity of ensuring the functionality of society's principal sectors," the Swedish government declared. Civil defense minister Carl-Oskar Bohlin announced that Swedish civil defense funding will be amplified this year by two billion kronor to a total of 8.5 billion kronor, equivalent to 740 million euros. By 2028, an annual budget of 15 billion kronor is projected. "The security situation remains precarious and persists in the foreseeable future," explains Bohlin.
18:39 Putin: "Granting Ukraine Long-range Weapons Approval Against Russia Equals NATO Engaging Russia in War"Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared that Western approval for Ukraine's usage of long-range weapons against Russian targets would designate NATO as "at war with Russia." "This would alter the essence of the conflict," Putin informed a state TV journalist. "It would imply that NATO countries are at war with Russia." Russian representatives have repeatedly issued such alerts in the past, whether it pertains to tanks, fighter jets, or missiles. Since the Russian incursion of Ukraine, there have been countless warnings from Moscow regarding escalations, alterations in war nature, or even nuclear peril. Ukraine has persistently solicited permission from the West to employ Western long-range weapons against Russian territories to prevent attacks from there. Russia has been targeting Ukraine's infrastructure with its military garrisons for months.
18:07 Zelenskyy: Chinese-Brazilian Peace Proposal "Destructive"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has denounced a Chinese-Brazilian peace initiative. "It's destructive, nothing more than a political statement," Zelenskyy commented during an interview with Brazilian media company Metropoles. "How can you propose such an initiative without discussing it with us first?" China and Brazil advocated for an international peace conference in May. "What is this for?" Zelenskyy wondered. Unlike Moscow, Kiev was not consulted beforehand.
17:40 Russian Missile Strikes Civilian Grain Ship in UkraineA Russian missile reportedly hit a civilian vessel transporting grain from Ukraine, according to Ukrainian reports. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the vessel was departing Ukrainian waters in the Black Sea at the time of the strike. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha deemed it a "blatant assault on maritime freedom and worldwide food security." Zelenskyy claimed that the ship was heading to Egypt and no casualties were reported. A spokesperson for the Ukrainian Navy declared that the grain ship was not within Ukraine's grain transit corridor at the time of the incident, but it was in Romania's economic maritime zone. A spokesperson for the Romanian Navy affirmed that the ship was not within Romanian territorial waters.
17:12 Chinese President to Revisit RussiaChinese President Xi Jinping will pay another visit to Russia in October, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi confirmed. Xi will participate in a BRICS summit in Kazan, Wang revealed. Wang is currently engaging in discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg. Both praised the interrelationships between China and Russia. Wang stated that Xi "very much" accepted Putin's invitation to the BRICS summit. Putin announced that they would also discuss aspects of their relationships "developing quite harmoniously" during a bilateral conference.
According to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the U.S. is open to altering its military assistance for Ukraine as circumstances demand. Blinken, during a press conference in Warsaw, was questioned if the U.S. had given the go-ahead for Ukraine to assault targets within Russia using Western weapons. Blinken replied, "I can inform you that we will unfailingly carry out what we have been doing: we will adjust, we will modify if necessary, including with regard to the armaments accessible to Ukraine." Blinken revealed that he had engaged in substantial and intricate discussions with his British counterpart David Lammy in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Wednesday. These discussions provided insights into how the Ukrainians perceive the battlefield and their requirements. These insights will be taken into account, and modifications will be made if necessary.
16:35 Role Shift for NATO Chief Stoltenberg
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will assume the position of chairman at the Munich Security Conference in 2025. Stoltenberg will take over this role after the security conference in February 2025, replacing Christoph Heusgen, who has been in the position since 2022 and was a long-time advisor to Chancellor Angela Merkel. Heusgen will relinquish his post, while Wolfgang Ischinger, the long-standing former chairman, will continue serving as the foundation's board of trustees' president. Stoltenberg will relinquish his position as NATO Secretary General in October 2022, which he will be handing over to former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
16:11 Tragedy in Ukraine: Red Cross Employees Killed
Three employees of the Red Cross in Ukraine were killed in a Russian shelling, as reported by Ukrainian sources. This incident took place in a village in the contested region of Donetsk, as announced by the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office on Telegram. Two other employees were injured, with one of them in critical condition. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of committing another war crime on his social media platform, stating, "Today, the aggressor attacked the humanitarian mission of the International Committee of the Red Cross in the Donetsk region."
15:45 Public Excluded from Navalny's Lawyers' Trial
In the trial against three lawyers of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny in the Russian town of Petushki, the judge swiftly excluded the public. The judge justified this decision based on a police warning about alleged provocations by Navalny supporters. The three lawyers are being accused of belonging to an extremist organization - the Anti-Corruption Foundation founded by Navalny.
15:18 Naval Conflict in the Black Sea
Reports suggest that Ukraine and Russia are currently engaged in a naval and aerial conflict in the Black Sea. Ukrainian military intelligence reported that a Russian Su-30 fighter jet was downed using a portable air defense weapon during a special operation at sea at 08:04. Further details about the operation on Tuesday night were not disclosed by Kyiv. Meanwhile, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported that a failed attempt by Ukraine to attack a Russian drilling platform in the Black Sea using fast motorboats resulted in eight of the 14 boats being shot down and sunk, with the remaining boats retreating. There was no mention of the loss of an aircraft in Moscow. However, the military blog Rybar, close to the Russian Ministry of Defense, reported that a Su-30 was shot down while repelling the Ukrainian attack.
14:54 Ukrainian Soldiers: "We've Had Enough of the War"
Ukrainian soldiers must strategically and wisely utilize the few available weapons due to limited ammunition and a scarcity of better, new Western weapons, as observed by ntv reporter Kavita Sharma at the front.
14:23 Zelensky: Russia Commences Counteroffensive in Kursk
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russia has initiated a counteroffensive in Kursk, the Russian border region. This reaction by the Russian army "corresponds to the Ukrainian plan," Zelensky stated at a press conference in Kyiv, without providing further details. The Russian Ministry of Defense reported on Telegram that Russian units had liberated ten settlements in the Kursk region within two days.
13:55 Criticism of Iran-Russia Relations
A prominent Iranian politician expressed unusual criticism of Iran's relations with Russia amid new sanctions and diplomatic tensions. In a post on the X platform, Ali Motahari, the former vice-president of the parliament, referred to the new sanctions imposed by Germany, France, and the UK due to Iran's supply of ballistic missiles to Russia. Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly denied these missile deliveries.
13:38 Water and Gas Shortage in Ukrainian City of Pokrovsk
The Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk is currently facing a shortage of regular drinking water supply and many residents have no gas for cooking and heating, following Russian attacks. A water treatment plant was recently damaged during the fighting, and the city is currently relying on over 300 emergency wells for its drinking water supply. The day prior, the Russians also destroyed a gas distribution center, leaving 18,000 residents in Pokrovsk without gas.
According to a report by independent Russian news portal "Agentstvo", Russia may have fewer warships than officially stated. The report, citing unverified data from "Global Naval Powers Ranking 2024" and "RussiaShips.info", suggests that Russia has around 264 or 299 warships, depending on the source. Approximately 50 ships and submarines from the Black Sea Fleet, which is not participating in the exercise, are also included in the report. Previously, Russia has been accused of overstating the size of its military force.
12:28 Russia ramping up espionage on Bundeswehr
Russian intelligence services have stepped up their spying on German aid to Ukraine and the Bundeswehr, as revealed in the new annual report by the Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD). The report states that Russian services have shifted their focus from strategic military policy and strategy to tactical level, making it crucial for Russia to obtain information about German aid to Ukraine, including transportation routes and tactics of Western weapons systems in Ukraine. The capabilities of the Bundeswehr for territorial and alliance defense have also been brought back into focus by Russian intelligence services.
11:52 Munz: "Threat of atomic weapons on Berlin" not an accident
There's a possibility that Britain and the US could give Ukraine permission to use weapons against Russian territory. So far, the Kremlin has prevented this decision through threats, explains ntv correspondent Rainer Munz. It's therefore not surprising that an atomic weapons specialist is now proposing attacks on Berlin.
11:15 Report: Delay in decision on long-range missiles until mid-September
A decision on the use of Western long-range missiles in Russia by Ukraine may take some time. A decision before the UN General Assembly on September 24, where around 150 heads of state and government will meet, is unlikely, according to the US medium Bloomberg. The report cites British Foreign Secretary Lammy, who said that the UN meeting would be the next opportunity to discuss the use of long-range missiles. Ukrainian President Selenskyj is expected to reaffirm his demand at the meeting. On Wednesday, Lammy and US Secretary of State Blinken visited Kyiv to discuss Selenskyj's plans for attacks on Russian territory. Blinken plans to discuss this with US President Biden on Friday. British Prime Minister Starmer will also meet with Biden on Friday.
10:31 Blinken arrives in Poland on return from Kyiv
US Secretary of State Blinken is stopping in Poland, a strong supporter of Ukraine, on his return from Kyiv. Meetings with Deputy Prime Minister Tusk and President Duda are planned. Blinken is expected to discuss further cooperation with Poland, the main logistical gateway for Western military support to Ukraine. Poland has also significantly increased its military spending since the Russian invasion of Ukraine and has ordered 96 Apache combat helicopters from US defense conglomerate Boeing worth $10 billion.
09:59 Ukrainian military reports 64 Russian drones and 5 missiles overnight
The Ukrainian air force reports that the Russian army attacked Ukraine overnight with 5 missiles and 64 combat drones of Iranian origin. 44 drones were intercepted. The military reports are not fully verified. The air defense was also active several times around Kyiv to shoot down approaching drones.
09:11 Russian expert calls for stronger nuclear threat posture
Russian foreign policy expert Sergei Karaganov believes Russia should make it clear that it is prepared to use nuclear weapons. The main goal of Russia's nuclear doctrine should be to convince all current and future enemies that Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons, Karaganov told the Russian newspaper Kommersant. Moscow could carry out a limited nuclear strike on a NATO country without triggering a full-scale nuclear war. The US would be lying if they claimed to guarantee nuclear protection to their allies. Karaganov has previously called for Russia to consider a nuclear preventive strike to intimidate its enemies. Some Western experts believe Karaganov serves a useful purpose for the Kremlin by expressing views that alarm the West and making Putin appear more restrained in comparison.
08:46 Ukraine hopes for US approval to use Western long-range missiles
There's growing hope in Ukraine that they may soon be allowed to launch attacks deeper into Russian territory using Western weapons. US Secretary of State emphasized during his visit to Kyiv that he wants to ensure "Ukraine has everything it needs". In Britain, signs are already appearing to be positive:
08:04 Ukrainian military intelligence reports shootdown of Russian fighter jet
Following reports from yesterday that a Russian Su-30SM fighter jet had disappeared from radar, the Ukrainian military intelligence now reports that Ukrainian soldiers have shot down such a plane during an operation in the Black Sea. Kyiv Independent reports. The fighter jet, worth 50 million dollars and based on the Crimean peninsula, was reportedly destroyed by a portable air defense system.
07:26 Ukraine reports more than a dozen injured after massive drone attack on Konotop
The number of injured in the massive Russian drone attack overnight on the energy infrastructure of the city of Konotop in the Sumy region has increased to 14. The state-run Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform reports, citing the regional military administration. Among others, a residential building in the city center was reportedly hit.
More on this can be read here.
06:04 Critics Allege Sabotage Against Trump in TV DebateVarious commentators on Russian state TV have alleged sabotage against Donald Trump during his debate against Kamala Harris, as reported by Kyiv Independent. Trump was considered to have been at a disadvantage. The fact-checking of Trump's statements was heavily criticized. In the view of many observers, Trump had lost the debate. The Republican has declared that he would immediately end the Ukraine conflict if he wins the election.
04:50 Russian Attack on Konotop: Extensive Damage to UtilitiesA Russian attack on the city of Konotop in the Sumy region has left several civilians injured. According to Mayor Artem Semenikhin, the city's water supply was temporarily disrupted. There are also extensive damages to the utility infrastructure, and it is unclear when private households will have power restored. After the attack in the city center, there were several fires, and school and residential buildings were damaged. Two people were hospitalized, one of whom is in critical condition.
03:29 Latvia Sends More Military Aid to UkraineLatvia's Prime Minister Evika Silina has announced a package of military assistance for Ukraine during her visit to Kyiv. It will include armored personnel carriers. This was announced by Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal after the meeting with Silina. According to Shmyhal, both countries are also discussing an expansion of cooperation in the defense industry.
01:32 UK Demands Explanation from Iranian Businessman Over Suspected Rocket Supplies to RussiaAgainst the backdrop of suspected Iranian rocket supplies to Russia, the UK has summoned an Iranian businessman, according to a statement from the Foreign Office in London. "The UK government has made clear that any transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia would be seen as a dangerous escalation and would provoke a clear response," the statement said. On Tuesday, Germany, France, and the UK announced further sanctions against Tehran in response to the suspected rocket supplies, particularly the suspension of bilateral air transport agreements. The European Union had cited "credible information" on Monday about the supply of Iranian rockets to Russia.
00:14 Ukraine: Russia Sending Inexperienced Soldiers to the FrontAccording to reports from the Ukrainian military, Russia is sending soldiers without combat experience to the Kharkiv front. Vitalii Sarantsev, spokesperson for the operational tactical group of the armed forces in Kharkiv, said that the units involved in the attack operations in Vovchansk are poorly trained. It is believed that the newly arrived reinforcements are a mobilization reserve assembled by Russia. It is still unclear whether they are former prisoners or soldiers recruited from other countries, such as Central Asia, Africa, or the Middle East.
22:39 Mayor in Western Ukraine Enlists Russian-Speaking Volunteers for Language MonitoringThe mayor of the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk has announced the recruitment of volunteers to monitor the increasing use of the Russian language. "This is a civic initiative, and anyone can become a language inspector," said Mayor Ruslan Martsinkiv to the NTA TV channel. Many internal refugees from eastern Ukraine have Russian as their native language. Martsinkiv expects at least 100 such language controllers, with around 50 volunteers already registered. He also provided a phone number for citizens to report Russian speakers in public spaces. Due to the war, millions of people, especially from the Russian-speaking regions in the east and south, have fled to the relatively safe Ukrainian-speaking west of Ukraine.
21:42 Erdogan Calls for Return of Crimea from RussiaTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is demanding the return of the Crimea peninsula, annexed by Russia, to Ukraine. "Our support for the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Ukraine is unwavering. The return of Crimea to Ukraine is a demand of international law," says the Turkish leader in a video message on the occasion of the summit of the so-called Crimea Platform. The Crimea Platform, established in 2021, aims to raise international awareness of the situation around the annexed peninsula.
21:05 Kyiv to Present Military Strategy to USUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy considers US support crucial in repelling the Russian invasion. "The plan for victory (...) depends mainly on the support of the United States. And other partners," says Zelenskyy at a press conference in Kyiv. The plan, to be presented in detail ahead of the planned second Ukraine Peace Conference, aims to "seriously strengthen Ukraine" and "force Russia to end the war." According to Bloomberg, the US is demanding a clear strategy from Zelenskyy for strikes against Russia before lifting restrictions on the use of Western weapons. US Secretary of State Blinken and British Foreign Secretary Lammy were reportedly in Kyiv to discuss a long-term plan for the coming year to better understand Ukraine's goals.
20:37 Blinken Confirms Biden's Support for Use of Weapons against RussiaUS Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirms that the US is working to meet Ukraine's military demands, including the use of long-range weapons supplied by the West for attacks on targets in Russia. US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will discuss these demands on Friday, Blinken said at a joint press conference with his British counterpart David Lammy and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrij Sybiga in Kyiv. "We are working urgently to ensure that Ukraine has everything it needs to defend itself effectively," Blinken said, adding, "We want Ukraine to win."
You can read all previous developments here.
The European Union could potentially consider an alliance with China if Russia continues its aggressive actions towards Ukraine.
In the context of strategic discussions about Ukraine's defense, some suggest that granting Ukraine permission to use long-range weapons against Russian targets could be seen as NATO engaging in a war with Russia by Russian officials.
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