🇧🇩 Monitoring Russian and Ukraine War.

[Saif]

US, UK vow to work for Ukraine’s victory

The US and British top diplomats yesterday vowed to work together for Ukraine’s victory as they discussed further easing rules on firing Western weapons into Russia, whose alleged acquisition of Iranian missiles has raised new fears.

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US, UK vow to work for Ukraine’s victory
Top diplomats of the nations discuss long-range arms supply to Ukraine

The US and British top diplomats yesterday vowed to work together for Ukraine's victory as they discussed further easing rules on firing Western weapons into Russia, whose alleged acquisition of Iranian missiles has raised new fears.

In a rare joint trip, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken took the nine-hour train from Poland to Kyiv alongside Foreign Secretary David Lammy, whose two-month-old Labour government has vowed to keep up Britain's role as a key defender of Ukraine.

At three-way talks with their Ukrainian counterpart, Blinken said the visit sent a "strong message that we are committed to Ukraine's success, committed to Ukraine's victory".

Lammy also promised British support until the war of "Russian imperialism and aggression come to an end" and called attacks that have killed Ukrainians "horrific, barbaric, unbelievable".

"The only person that gains from any sense that we are not together" is Russian President Vladimir Putin, Lammy said.

The trip comes at a fraught time for Ukraine, with Russia advancing on the key logistics hub of Pokrovsk in the eastern Donetsk region and a month after Kyiv launched a shock counter-offensive into Russia's Kursk region.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has ramped up his requests over recent months to the West to provide weapons with more firepower and fewer restrictions.

US President Joe Biden, asked in Washington whether he would let Ukraine use longer-range weapons for strikes on Russian targets, said: "We're working that out right now."

Biden, while strongly supportive of Ukraine, has previously made clear he wants to avoid devolving into direct conflict between the United States and Russia, the world's two leading nuclear powers.

Blinken, speaking Tuesday in London alongside Lammy, said the United States was committed to providing Ukraine with "what they need when they need it to be most effective in dealing with the Russian aggression".

Asked how Moscow would respond to such a development, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday the response "will be appropriate," without providing specific details.

He said the authorisation of Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory would serve as "further proof" of why Moscow launched its offensive, which he said was itself an "answer" to the West's support for Ukraine.​

 

[Saif]

Biden, Starmer meet as Russia warns over long-range missiles for Ukraine

The leaders of Britain and the United States meet on Friday in Washington on whether to let Kyiv fire Western-provided long-range missiles into Russia — an option that has sent...

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Biden, Starmer meet as Russia warns over long-range missiles for Ukraine
Agence France-Presse . Washington 14 September, 2024, 01:04

The leaders of Britain and the United States meet on Friday in Washington on whether to let Kyiv fire Western-provided long-range missiles into Russia — an option that has sent tensions soaring with Moscow.

Prime minister Keir Starmer’s visit to president Joe Biden comes with Kyiv increasingly pushing for permission to use the weapons — and secure Western help shooting down Russian missiles and drones.

But president Vladimir Putin has warned that giving Ukraine the green light to use long-range weapons would mean NATO was ‘at war’ with Moscow.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin’s message was unambiguous: ‘We have no doubt that this statement has reached its recipients.’

British media reported that Biden, who is wary of provoking a nuclear conflict, was ready to let Ukraine deploy British and French missiles using US technology but not US-made missiles themselves.

Responding to Putin’s warning, Starmer told UK media travelling with him that ‘Russia started this conflict. Russia illegally invaded Ukraine. Russia can end this conflict straight away.’

In a sign of increasing tensions, Russia’s FSB security service announced on Friday that the accreditation of six British diplomats had been withdrawn and accused them of spying.

But London dismissed the claims as ‘completely baseless’ and indicated they were a tit-for-tat measure after it slapped new restrictions on Russian diplomats in May.

The talks come with Biden on his way out of office and November’s US election a toss-up between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump.

Trump repeatedly refused to take sides on the war during a debate with Harris on Tuesday, saying only: ‘I want the war to stop.’

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday that he will meet Biden ‘this month’ to present his ‘victory plan’ on how to end two and a half years of war with Russia.

He also said Kyiv’s recent offensive into Russia’s border region of Kursk had ‘slowed’ Moscow’s advance in eastern Ukraine and that there are currently 40,000 Russian troops fighting in the area.

But he accused the West of being too ‘afraid’ to even raise the possibility of shooting down Russian missiles and Iranian drones, even though it was helping Israel to do so.

Starmer is set to meet Biden in the Oval Office at 4:30pm (2030 GMT) but has no scheduled meetings at this stage with Trump or Harris, both of whom will be on the campaign trail on Friday.

Biden said on Tuesday that he was ‘working’ on Ukraine’s demands, while top US and British diplomats Antony Blinken and David Lammy made a rare joint visit to Kyiv on Wednesday.

Blinken promised that Washington would now quickly review Kyiv’s long-standing request and would ‘adjust, we’ll adapt as necessary’ to help Ukraine defend itself.

Washington currently authorizes Ukraine to only hit Russian targets in the occupied parts of Ukraine and some in Russian border regions directly related to Moscow’s combat operations.

But Putin, who has rattled the saber of nuclear conflict since the start of his February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, warned the United States and United Kingdom against such a move.

‘This would in a significant way change the very nature of the conflict. It would mean that NATO countries, the US, European countries, are at war with Russia,’ he said on Thursday.

Biden has strongly supported Ukraine since Russia’s invasion to the tune of billions of dollars in aid as well as political capital at home.

But he has been risk averse about stepping up to new kinds of weaponry deliveries — with Ukraine having to wait until this year to get F-16 jets.

The looming US election means the clock is ticking, with Kyiv in particular eyeing a Trump presidency with trepidation.

Trump has long been lukewarm on supporting Kyiv, and has frequently praised Putin.

In his debate with Harris on Tuesday, he pledged to get an agreement to end the war ‘before I even become president’ — a deal many Ukrainians fear would force them to accept Russia’s territorial gains.

Vice president Harris has in contrast pledged to keep up staunch support for Ukraine if elected.​

 

[Saif]

Russia, Ukraine swap 206 POWs

Russia said Saturday it swapped 103 Ukrainian soldiers held captive for an equal number of Russian POWs in an exchange deal brokered by the United Arab Emirates.

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Russia, Ukraine swap 206 POWs
Agence France-Presse . Moscow 14 September, 2024, 22:09

Moscow and Kyiv swapped 103 prisoners of war each. | AFP photo

Russia said Saturday it swapped 103 Ukrainian soldiers held captive for an equal number of Russian POWs in an exchange deal brokered by the United Arab Emirates.

The Russian troops freed in Saturday’s swap were captured during Ukraine’s incursion into the Kursk region, which began on 6 August, according to the Russian defence ministry.

There was no immediate confirmation from the Ukrainian side.

‘As a result of the negotiation process, 103 Russian servicemen captured in the Kursk region were returned from territory controlled by the Kyiv regime,’ the Russian defence ministry said.

‘In return, 103 Ukrainian army prisoners of war were handed over.’

‘At present, all Russian servicemen are on the territory of the Republic of Belarus, where they are being provided with the necessary psychological and medical assistance, as well as an opportunity to contact their relatives,’ the ministry added.

The announcement comes just three weeks after Russia and Ukraine swapped 115 prisoners of war each in an exchange deal also mediated by the UAE.

Russia said on Saturday it had recaptured another village in eastern Ukraine, where it has made a string of advances.

‘The locality of Zhelannoe Pervoe (Zhelanne Pershe in Ukrainian) was freed thanks to the active and decisive operations of the southern units,’ the defence ministry said.

The village is located in the Pokrovsk district, an important logistical hub for the Ukrainian army.

Russian forces have advanced rapidly in the eastern region of Donetsk in recent weeks, putting pressure on a Ukrainian army that is short of both soldiers and weapons.

The Kremlin regularly claims its army has captured small villages in eastern Ukraine.

In a rarer announcement, it said on Tuesday it had captured a town in the region, called Krasnogorivka.

On August 6, the Ukrainian army launched an incursion into Russia’s border region of Kursk, advancing kilometres into Russian territory and seizing dozens of settlements.

It hopes to force Moscow to redeploy troops from Donetsk to Kursk and hamper the Russian advance in Donetsk. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday Kyiv had ‘slowed’ Russia’s progress.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that capturing the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine, the industrial basin comprising Donetsk and Lugansk was his top priority.​

 

[Saif]

Biden, Starmer put off Ukraine long-range missiles decision

Before the meeting officials had said Starmer would press Biden to back his plan to send British Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine to hit deeper inside Russia

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Biden, Starmer put off Ukraine long-range missiles decision
AFP Washington
Published: 14 Sep 2024, 08: 34

US President Joe Biden meets with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House in Washington, US, 13 September 2024. Reuters

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and US President Joe Biden on Friday delayed a decision to let Ukraine fire long-range Western-supplied missiles into Russia, a plan that sparked dire threats from Moscow of a war with NATO.

Starmer told reporters at the White House that he had a "wide-ranging discussion about strategy" with Biden but that it "wasn't a meeting about a particular capability."

Before the meeting officials had said Starmer would press Biden to back his plan to send British Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine to hit deeper inside Russia as allies become increasingly concerned about the battlefield situation.

But the Labour leader indicated that he and Biden would now discuss the plan at the UN General Assembly in New York the week after next "with a wider group of individuals."

As they met with their teams across a long table in the White House, backed by US and British flags, Biden played down a warning by Russian President Vladimir Putin that allowing Ukraine to fire the weapons would mean the West was "at war" with Russia.

"I don't think much about Vladimir Putin," Biden told reporters when asked about the comments.

'Will not prevail'

But while Biden said it was "clear that Putin will not prevail in this war," he is understood to be reluctant to grant Ukraine's insistent demand to be able to use long-range US-made ATACMS missiles against Russian territory.

US officials believe the missiles would make a limited difference to Ukraine's campaign and also want to ensure that Washington's own stocks of the munitions are not depleted.

The two leaders said they also discussed the war in Gaza, with Britain having recently suspended arms deliveries to Israel over concerns that they could be used to violate international humanitarian law.

The US, Israel's main military and diplomatic backer, has held off such a step.

Biden and Starmer agreed on their "ironclad commitment" to Israel -- but stressed the "urgent need" for a ceasefire deal and a "need for Israel to do more to protect civilians" in Gaza, the White House said in a readout.

The White House had earlier played down the chances of a Ukraine decision coming from Friday's visit by Starmer, the Labour leader's second to the White House since he took office in July.

"I wouldn't expect any major announcement in that regard coming out of the discussions, certainly not from our side," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

'Afraid'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky however pushed Kyiv's Western allies to do more.

Speaking in Kyiv, Zelensky accusing the West of being "afraid" to even help Ukraine shoot down incoming missiles as it has done with Israel.

Zelensky added that he will meet Biden "this month" to present his "victory plan" on how to end two and a half years of war with Russia.

Russia has reacted angrily to the prospect of the West supplying long-range weapons to the country it invaded in February 2022.

In another sign of increasing tensions, Russia revoked the credentials of six British diplomats whom it accused of spying in what London termed "baseless" allegations.

Russia's UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia warned separately that letting Ukraine use long-range weapons would plunge NATO into "direct war with... a nuclear power."

Ukraine and the United States's allies are all meanwhile anxiously waiting for the result of a tense US presidential election in November that could upend Washington's Ukraine policy.

Biden is on his way out of office while the election is a toss-up between his Democratic political heir Kamala Harris and Republican former president Donald Trump.

Trump has repeatedly praised Putin, and refused to take sides on the war during a debate with Harris on Tuesday, saying only: "I want the war to stop."

Starmer denied he was worried about a Trump presidency, and said the need to help Ukraine in coming weeks and months was urgent "whatever timetables are going on in other countries."​

 

[Saif]

Shelling in Pokrovsk as Russia inches closer

Russian shelling killed one person in the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk on Sunday, local authorities said, as Moscow’s troops inched closer to the key logistics hub...

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Shelling in Pokrovsk as Russia inches closer
Agence France-Presse . Kyiv, Ukraine 16 September, 2024, 00:00

Russian shelling killed one person in the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk on Sunday, local authorities said, as Moscow’s troops inched closer to the key logistics hub.

More than 20,000 people have fled the city since August, while Russian strikes over the past two weeks have cut off water and electricity to many of its remaining residents.

‘Around 11:00am (0800 GMT), the enemy shelled the western part of the city. Unfortunately, one person died,’ Pokrovsk’s military administration said on Telegram.

Separately, a Russian air strike sparked a fire at a multi-storey residential building in the northeastern city of Kharkiv on Sunday, officials said.

‘At the moment, there are almost 30 wounded, including children,’

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram.

Russia has been advancing towards Pokrovsk for months, getting to within 10 kilometres of its eastern outskirts, according to the local administration.

The city lies on the intersection of rail and road routes that supply Ukrainian troops and towns across the eastern frontline and has long been a target for Moscow’s army.

Russian strikes damaged two overpasses in the city earlier this week, including one that connected Pokrovsk to the neighbouring town of Myrnograd, local media reported.​

 

[Saif]

Ukrainian drones hit west Russia arms depot

Ukrainian drones struck an arms depot in Russia’s western Tver region early yesterday, sparking a massive blaze that led to the evacuation of nearby residents, a Ukrainian security source said.

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Ukrainian drones hit west Russia arms depot
Massive blaze reported in western Tver region; Russia downs 54 Ukrainian drones launched overnight

Ukrainian drones struck an arms depot in Russia's western Tver region early yesterday, sparking a massive blaze that led to the evacuation of nearby residents, a Ukrainian security source said.

Videos posted on Russian social media showed a fireball erupting into the night sky, while a shockwave spread out below. Another video showed columns of smoke and flames rising over a body of water.

The inferno prompted a "partial evacuation of residents" in the area, while 150 firefighters and rescuers worked to contain the blaze, Tver region governor Igor Rudenya said.

Residents who had evacuated Toropets were later allowed to return, he said in a post several hours later. While some people suffered minor injuries, no-one was killed, he said.

A source in Ukraine's security services claimed responsibility.

Ukrainian drones "wiped out a large warehouse of the main missile and artillery directorate of the Russian Ministry of Defence in the town of Toropets, Tver region," the source told AFP.

"The warehouse contained missiles for Iskander tactical missile systems, Tochka-U tactical missile systems, guided aerial bombs and artillery ammunition. After the hits by Ukrainian drones, an extremely powerful detonation began," it added.

According to the source, the fire spread over an area six kilometres wide (four miles).

Toropets is just under 400 kilometres (250 miles) northwest of Moscow.

In 2018, Russia's then deputy defence minister Dmitry Bulgakov said an armoury for housing missiles and explosives would be built in the town, but it was not immediately clear if this had been hit.

Russia said yesterday it had downed 54 Ukrainian drones launched overnight, half over the Kursk region where Ukraine forces launched a major cross-border offensive in August.

Ukraine does not typically claim direct responsibility for attacks in Russia, but often welcomes them, arguing they are fair retaliation for strikes Moscow has inflicted on its territory since the war began in 2022.

Meanwhile, Russia's counter-offensive to retake territory captured by Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region has been "stopped", a spokesman from Ukraine's military administration set up in the area told AFP yesterday.

Russia earlier this month said it had seized several villages back from Ukraine in the Kursk region, where Kyiv has held on to swathes of land since its surprise incursion in early August.

"They tried to attack from the flanks, but they were stopped there," spokesman Oleksiy Dmytrashkivsky told AFP.

"The situation was stabilised and today everything is under control, they are not successful," he said.

Dmytrashkivsky also said there were "several thousand" Russian civilians in areas occupied by Ukrainian troops.

"In some settlements there are more than 100 people, more than 200, more than 500," he said.

Russia has not said how many of its civilians remain in the Kyiv-controlled areas, saying only that around 130,000 have fled.

The Ukrainian military official admitted "some minor success" by Moscow.​

 

[Saif]

Russian advance in Kursk region ‘stopped’

Russia’s counter-offensive to retake territory captured by Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region has been ‘stopped’, a spokesman from Ukraine’s military administration set up in the area said on Wednesday...

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Russian advance in Kursk region ‘stopped’
Agence France-Presse . Kyiv, Ukraine 19 September, 2024, 00:31

Russia’s counter-offensive to retake territory captured by Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region has been ‘stopped’, a spokesman from Ukraine’s military administration set up in the area said on Wednesday.

Russia earlier this month said it had seized several villages back from Ukraine in the Kursk region, where Kyiv has held on to swathes of land since its surprise incursion in early August.

‘They tried to attack from the flanks, but they were stopped there,’ spokesman Oleksiy Dmytrashkivsky said.

‘The situation was stabilised and today everything is under control, they are not successful,’ he said.

Dmytrashkivsky also said there were ‘several thousand’ Russian civilians in areas occupied by Ukrainian troops.

‘In some settlements there are more than 100 people, more than 200, more than 500,’ he said.

Russia has not said how many of its civilians remain in the Kyiv-controlled areas, saying only that around 1,30,000 have fled.

The Ukrainian military official admitted ‘some minor success’ by Moscow.

‘The Russians entered one of the settlements. They started fighting for another settlement, but that was it,’ he said.

AFP was not able to verify these claims.

Dmytrashkivsky also claimed that Russian strikes on the area as it tries to re-seize the land have killed ‘23 civilians’ since the end of August, saying they are ‘dying with the Ukrainian military.’

He said the civilians are ‘not allowed to leave’ because ‘the situation must be controlled’ but are allowed to ‘move around’ the area.

They can ‘visit each other, eat there, unite somewhere, dig potatoes now, work in the garden,’ Dmytrashkivsky said.

The area held by Ukraine has been described as forested and largely rural small settlements.

He said the only way that the civilians could be allowed to leave to Russian-controlled territory would be if Ukraine and Russia ‘agree, through international organisations that deal with these issues, to open a green corridor under the supervision of observers.’

Kyiv this week invited the UN to verify the situation of the area it holds in the Kursk region, infuriating Moscow.

Dmytrashkivsky said food into the area is brought from the neighbouring Ukrainian Sumy region.

‘The Sumy regional administration allocates funds for bread on a weekly basis. The armed forces provide water, the administration gives food packages,’ he said.

‘Nothing works there, no shops, no pharmacy, nothing.’​

 

[Saif]

70,000 Russian soldiers killed in war against Ukraine

The BBC and the independent Russian news site Mediazona said on Friday they had documented the deaths of around 70,000 Russian soldiers since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

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70,000 Russian soldiers killed in war against Ukraine
Agence France-Presse . Warsaw 20 September, 2024, 21:26

Russia is boosting its army size to 1.5 million active service personnel due to `threats' along its borders, including hostility in the West, the Kremlin said on September 17, 2024. | AFP photo

The BBC and the independent Russian news site Mediazona said on Friday they had documented the deaths of around 70,000 Russian soldiers since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The toll comes from publicly available information such as official statements, death notices in the media and announcements on social media, as well as tombstones in Russian cemeteries.

‘We have identified the names of 70,112 Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine but the actual number is believed to be considerably higher,’ the BBC said.

‘Some families do not share details of their relatives’ deaths publicly — and our analysis does not include names we were unable to check, or the deaths of militia in Russian-occupied Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine,’ the British broadcaster added.

The same two organisations had put the toll at 66,000 in mid-August.

Mediazona and another independent Russian news site, Meduza, have also analysed official data from notaries on inheritance cases.

This has led them to estimate that the military death toll could be much higher — at 1,20,000.

The toll is considered secret in Russia. Ukraine also communicates very little about losses for fear of demoralising its citizens after more than two and a half years of Russia’s invasion.

In February, president Volodymyr Zelensky said around 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers had died, although analysts and observers have said they believe the real number to be much higher.

The Wall Street Journal reported this week that the war had killed or injured a total of one million soldiers on both sides.

‘A confidential Ukrainian estimate from earlier this year put the number of dead Ukrainian troops at 80,000 and the wounded at 4,00,000, according to people familiar with the matter.

‘Western intelligence estimates of Russian casualties vary, with some putting the number of dead as high as nearly 2,00,000 and wounded at around 4,00,000,’ it said.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday he hopes US president Joe Biden will support his plan to end the war with Russia, ahead of a trip to Washington.

Zelensky has promised to present his so-called ‘victory plan’ to end the fighting, which has killed thousands, to Biden in the coming days.

‘I really hope that he will support this plan,’ Zelensky said during a press conference with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen in Kyiv.

‘The plan is designed for decisions that will have to happen from October to December. We would like that very much. Then we believe that the plan will work,’ he added.

Zelensky will present the plan to the United States after a summer of intense fighting, with Moscow advancing in eastern Ukraine and Kyiv holding on to parts of Russia’s Kursk region.

The Ukrainian leader is due to meet Biden and presidential candidate Kamala Harris — while Kyiv also says he plans to meet her Republican election rival Donald Trump.

Zelensky has also said he aims to host another international peace summit outlining his vision to end the war in November, to which Russia will be invited.

Russian president Vladimir Putin has said that Moscow will only enter peace talks if Ukraine surrenders four of its regions.​

 

[Saif]

Kyiv says struck ammo depots in Russia

Ukraine said on Saturday it had successfully struck two Russian weapons depots in the southern Krasnodar and western Tver regions, with Moscow announcing more than 1,000 evacuations...

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Kyiv says struck ammo depots in Russia
Agence France-Presse . Kyiv 22 September, 2024, 00:45

Ukraine said on Saturday it had successfully struck two Russian weapons depots in the southern Krasnodar and western Tver regions, with Moscow announcing more than 1,000 evacuations.

Kyiv regularly hits Russian infrastructure with drones as Moscow’s offensive drags on for more than two and a half years.

The Ukrainian army said it had hit a depot near the city of Tikhoretsk in Krasnodar, calling it one of Moscow’s ‘three largest ammunition storage bases’ important to the Russian army’s logistics for its Ukraine invasion.

It also said it struck an arsenal in Tver region’s Oktyabrsky village, resulting in a ‘fire and detonation’.

The governor of the Krasnodar region, Veniamin Kondratyev, announced the evacuation of 1,200 people after a drone attack had caused a fire that ‘spread to explosive objects’ near Tikhoretsk.

Videos on social media showed a massive explosion in the dark resembling fireworks at first before blowing up loudly, with online reports that an ammunition depot was struck.

Kondratyev called it a ‘terrorist attack by the Kyiv regime’ and said an unnamed village near the fire had been evacuated, with most people staying with relatives but others placed in temporary accommodation in Tikhoretsk.

Videos on social media later showed sirens ringing around the city of some 50,000 people in the daylight, with smoke rising into the air in the distance.

AFP could not immediately verify the authenticity of the images.

Krasnodar is separated from occupied Ukraine by the Azov Sea and had been relatively spared from the type of attacks on Russian border or other southern regions, but has seen increased attacks over the last year.

Authorities in the western Tver region also announced a night-time drone attack near the city of Toropets, which lies in the western part of the region.

Its governor Igor Rudenya said the ‘consequences of falling debris’ from the attack were being ‘cleared’.

He said there was no evacuation in Toropets but announced a temporary closure of the federal M-9 highway, promising it will reopen soon.

The attack also caused some disruption on passenger trains, with railway services saying a train going from Moscow to the western city of Pskov was sent on an alternative route, while another train was delayed.

Russia’s defence ministry earlier said it had downed 101 Ukrainian drones, mostly over the border Bryansk region and 18 over Krasnodar.

Russia has recently announced shooting down Ukrainian drones almost daily.​

 

[Saif]

Russian strike on Kharkiv wounds 21
Agence France-Presse . Kharkiv, Ukraine 22 September, 2024, 22:53

A Russian late-night strike on a residential neighbourhood of the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv wounded 21 people, Kyiv said on Sunday.

The strike hit late on Saturday, hours after Russian attacks killed five people — including two children — in central Ukraine.

Kyiv earlier said it struck two ammunition depots in Russia this weekend, including what it called a key arsenal for Moscow’s invasion.

Kharkiv — which almost fell to Russian forces in 2022 before they were pushed back by the Ukrainian army — has seen relentless attacks this year.

‘Last night, Russia struck Kharkiv again, this time with aerial bombs targeting an ordinary residential building,’ President Volodymyr Zelensky said on social media.

‘As a result, 21 people were injured, including an eight-year-old child and two 17-year-olds,’ he added.

Regional leader Oleg Synegubov said two people were in critical condition. He said dozens of residents were asleep when the building was struck.

AFP saw rescuers scrambling through a heavily damaged building, with burned-out cars in the parking lot outside, using chainsaws to cut through walls to get to distressed residents in the dark.

‘Mama, mama, mama,’ sobbed one woman, who struggled to breathe and was too scared to descend the stairs.

Rescuers helped her down to find her mother, who hugged her tightly as the woman trembled.

‘She is scared,’ her mother, Oleksandra Ivanivna, told AFP. ‘It’s not the first time.’

Kharkiv — which was home to 1.4 million residents before Russia’s invasion — has been bombed heavily this year.

‘We were asleep. It (the building) was just blown up... the place is a wreck,’ Ivanivna said.

The city’s mayor Igor Terekhov said at the site: ‘As you can see, there are no military here.’

‘Every day and every night Kharkiv suffers the hits,’ he added.

AFP saw an elderly man with his head bandaged being brought to an ambulance, as well as a man whose face was covered in blood, holding a small terrier dog.

Zelensky said the attack showed why his forces needed to use weapons supplied by Western allies to strike deeper into Russian territory, which so far they have refused to authorise.

He is due in the United States in the coming days, in a last-ditch effort to convince the West to let Kyiv use delivered long-range weapons to hit Russian targets.

‘We need to strengthen our capabilities to better protect lives and ensure safety. Ukraine needs full long-range capabilities,’ he said.

‘We are working to convince our partners of this. We will continue these discussions next week.’

In Washington, he is due to hold talks with Joe Biden, as well as both US presidential hopefuls Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.​

 

[Saif]

Ukraine to spend 60pc of 2025 budget on defence

Kyiv will spend more than 60 per cent of its entire state budget on defence and security next year, according to a draft plan, as Russia’s invasion grinds on...

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Ukraine to spend 60pc of 2025 budget on defence
Agence France-Presse . Kyiv, Ukraine 24 September, 2024, 23:50

Kyiv will spend more than 60 per cent of its entire state budget on defence and security next year, according to a draft plan, as Russia’s invasion grinds on.

Moscow’s war has battered the Ukrainian economy over the last two and a half years, causing tens of billions of dollars in destruction, punching a huge hole in state finances and forcing Kyiv to rely on Western support to keep itself afloat.

In a draft plan presented by the finance ministry, Ukraine said it will spend 2.22 trillion hryvnia ($54 billion) on ‘national security and defence’ in 2025.

That represents around 26 per cent of Ukraine’s GDP and 61 per cent of the government’s overall outlays, planned at 3.64 trillion hryvnia.

‘I can confidently say that based on the budget plan for 2025, Ukraine’s defence will be ensured,’ Ukraine’s finance minister Sergiy Marchenko told reporters Tuesday.

By comparison, Russia plans to spend 10.8 trillion rubles ($115 billion) on defence this year, or about 30 per cent of its budget.

In Ukraine, around 740 billion hryvnia would go on weapons production and procurement, with almost 1.2 trillion on soldiers’ salaries.

Marchenko warned Ukraine faces ‘rather slow economic growth due to the impact of attacks on energy infrastructure,’ predicting GDP would expand by 2.7 per cent next year.

Kyiv last week upped its planned defence spending for 2024 by almost one-third amid mounting war costs.

The 2025 defence budget is set to be just two per cent higher than the revised 2024 figure.

Ukraine said it will need $38.4 billion in financial support from its Western backers and international financial organisations, slightly down on this year’s requirements.

The war-torn country has received $98 billion in international financial aid since Russia invaded in February 2022 — on top of tens of billions in military and humanitarian aid.

‘This is perhaps the most important area — to ensure rhythmic and full funding from our partners,’ Marchenko said.

Meanwhile, Russian strikes killed three people and wounded at least 24 in the northeast Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Tuesday afternoon, president Volodymyr Zelensky said.

The northeastern city lies around 30 kilometres from the Russian border and has been pounded by Russian aerial attacks throughout the two-and-a-half-year war.

‘The targets of the Russian bombs were an apartment building, a bakery, a stadium. In other words, the everyday life of ordinary people,’ Zelensky said in a post on social media.

He posted a picture showing the facade of a nine-storey apartment block partially ripped off, the windows blown out and debris strewn across the street.

A search and rescue operation was underway, he added.

‘So far, we know of 3 killed and 24 injured,’ he said.

Zelensky, who is in the United States this week for the latest round of international diplomacy on the war, called for the United Nations General Assembly to discuss Russia’s attacks on his country.

‘We just need to stop the terror. To have security. To have a future. We need Russia to end this criminal and unprovoked aggression that violates all global rules,’ he said.​