Ukraine’s Danube port of Izmail attacked damaging grain infrastructure; Ukraine claims it shot down 23 drones overnight
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Russia-Ukraine war: Poland to deploy more border troops after Belarus ‘violates airspace’; ‘drone shot down in Crimea’ – as it happened
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Here are some of the latest images that have been released from the site of a Russian strike on Kharkiv.
Reuters has a quick snap that Ukraine’s interior minister has claimed an attempt to cross into the country on its northern border in the Chernihiv region by a Russian saboteur group was foiled.
Continue reading...Drone hits Moscow tower housing ministries for second time, says mayor
Russian defence ministry blames Kyiv for attack as Ukrainian presidential adviser says Kremlin should expect ‘more war’
A high-rise building in Moscow housing Russian government ministries has been hit by a drone for the second time in three days, the city’s mayor has said, as a Ukrainian presidential adviser said the Kremlin should expect more drone attacks and “more war”.
The Russian defence ministry said two drones were destroyed by air defence systems in the Odintsovo and Naro-Fominsk districts near Moscow in a fresh wave of attacks on Tuesday, while it claimed a third was jammed and went “out of control” before it crashed in the Moscow City business district, a cluster of glass skyscrapers that was built to show Russia’s growing integration into world financial markets. The ministry blamed Ukraine for what it called an “attempted terrorist attack”.
Continue reading...Top US adviser to attend Saudi talks in bid to attract support for Ukraine plan
Ukraine and allies seek to draw countries such as Brazil and India off the fence and back Kyiv’s proposals for ‘just and durable peace’
Jake Sullivan, the US national security adviser, is expected to attend a meeting in Saudi Arabia this weekend at which Ukraine and its allies will try to persuade countries from the global south to back Kyiv’s proposals for ending the war.
According to officials involved in planning for the meeting, it is primarily aimed at drawing neutral countries such as Brazil and India off the fence in their approach to the Russian invasion.
Continue reading...Russia-Ukraine war live: civilian deaths reported after strikes in Kryvyi Rih, Kherson and Donetsk
Ukraine defence minister says Moscow has intensified strikes on military infrastructure; Kremlin says Ukraine counteroffensive ‘not working out as planned’
Alexey Kulemzin, the Russian-imposed mayor of the occupied city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, has reported that “facades, balconies, roofing and glazing” have been damaged in Kuibyshevskyi district in the city by overnight shelling.
Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin appears to have said in a voice message published on Monday that his Wagner group was not currently recruiting fighters but was likely to do so in future.
Continue reading...Russia-Ukraine war at a glance: what we know on day 523 of the invasion
At least six people have been killed in Kryvyi Rih, and two people killed in occupied Donetsk, after several strikes across Ukraine
At least six people, including a 10-year-old child, have been killed and more than 50 people injured when Russia struck a high-rise apartment in Kryvyi Rih. Authorities said people were trapped under rubble. Oleksiy Kuleba, the deputy head of Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s office, called for revenge, saying: “Every day, Ukrainian cities are under fire from Russian terrorists. Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Kharkiv. This is only for the last few days.” He said targeting civilians was a sign of “the despair and defeat of the Russian Federation at the front”.
Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska, said “This is how the week begins in a Ukrainian city that just wants a quiet, normal life. Russia wants to take peace and life away”, and offered condolences to the victims and their families. The city is the home town of both Zelenska and her husband.
On Telegram, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said more than 350 people are working on the rescue mission in Kryvyi Rih after what he said were two Russian ballistic missiles hit the city.
Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza on Monday lost an appeal against his 25-year jail sentence, the RIA state news agency reported. Kara-Murza, who holds Russian and British citizenship, was jailed for 25 years in April for treason and spreading “false information” about Russia’s war in Ukraine, Reuters reports. Britain added six new designations to its Russia sanctions list, an update to the government website showed on Monday, targeting judges and officials involved in the trial of Kara-Murza.
According to Reuters, Ukraine and Croatia have agreed on the possibility of using Croatian ports on the Danube and the Adriatic Sea for the export of Ukrainian grain, Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said after talks with his Croatian counterpart on Monday.
Russian airstrikes destroyed an estimated 180,000 metric tonnes of grain crops in the space of nine days this month, the Ukrainian foreign ministry said on Monday, Reuters reports.
Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation, said Russia lost 87 units of equipment last week, including 33 strongholds, 26 armored combat vehicles and 15 tanks. These claims have not been independently verified.
The Kremlin on Monday described a recent drone attack on Moscow as an “act of desperation” by Ukraine after setbacks on the battlefield. AFP reports that Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said it has been “very difficult” for Ukrainian forces on the frontline since it launched its counteroffensive in June. He added: “It is obvious that the counteroffensive is not a success. In an act of desperation, the regime in Kyiv is turning to such terrorist attacks. All possible measures have been taken to defend civil infrastructure [against Ukrainian strikes].”
Ukrainian forces have recaptured nearly 15 sq km (5.8 sq miles) of land from Russian troops in the east and south over the past week during their counteroffensive, a senior defence official said on Monday. Kyiv’s forces have now retaken 204.7 sq km in the south since they launched a major push back against Russian forces early last month, deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said on Telegram.
The Kremlin said on Monday that Ukraine’s counteroffensive is “not working out as planned” and that Nato resources supplied to Kyiv had been “wasted”, during the course of a two month-long operation that has seen limited gains for Ukraine.
Continue reading...Russia-Ukraine war live: ‘War is returning to Russia,’ says Zelenskiy, after drones damage Moscow buildings – as it happened
Night-time drone attack damages two office blocks, as Ukrainian president says ‘this is an inevitable … and absolutely fair process’
President Vladimir Putin said the Russian navy will get 30 new ships this year, Reuters reports.
Putin made the announcement at a ceremony in St Petersburg to mark Russia’s annual Navy Day after reviewing a parade of warships on the Neva river.
Continue reading...Russia-Ukraine war at a glance: what we know on day 522 of the invasion
Putin says Russia ‘building up power’ of its navy; drone attack on Moscow damages two office blocks
President Vladimir Putin praised Russia’s navy in an address at the annual Navy Day parade. He announced 30 new ships this year as he said Russia was “building up the power” of its navy.
Putin has said African and Chinese proposals could serve as a basis for finding peace but added elements were “difficult or impossible” to implement. He was speaking at a press conference after meeting African leaders in St Petersburg.
A night-time drone attack on Moscow damaged two office blocks, the mayor of the Russian capital said early on Sunday, Russia’s state news agency Tass reported. The capital’s Vnukovo airport was temporarily shut. City mayor Sergei Sobyanin posted on Telegram that there were “no victims or injured”. However, Tass reported a security guard had been injured in the attacks.
Ukraine’s ministry of defence has said Saturday’s Russian missile attacks killed one person and 10 were injured in Sumy. In Zaporizhzhia two people died and two were injured.
Moscow said on Sunday its forces had thwarted a Ukrainian attempt to attack Russia-annexed Crimea with 25 drones overnight.
The latest UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) update says satellite imagery captured on 19 July has identified approximately 300 tents and 200 vehicles in Tsel, Belarus, where Wagner troops have likely established a military camp there. The MoD said it was unclear what happened to the heavy equipment Wagner used in Ukraine, suggesting it was possible it was forced to return these to the Russian military.
Pope Francis has called on Russia to revive the Black Sea grain deal, through which Moscow had allowed Ukraine to export grain from its seaports despite the war.
The general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said Russia has lost 245,700 troops in Ukraine since the start of the war. According to the report, as of 9am (EET) on 30 July, Russia has also lost 4,205 tanks, 8,178 armoured fighting vehicles.
Ukrainian soldiers fired UK-donated AS90 self-propelled artillery guns to mark the end of their training in south-west England. British army instructors taught the 72 Ukrainian army personnel how to operate and maintain the guns when in combat, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.
The Associated Press has reported that Saudi Arabia will host a Ukrainian-organised peace summit in early August.
Continue reading...Moscow buildings damaged in overnight drone attacks that Russia blames on Kyiv
Officials say one person is injured in the latest in a series of strikes on the Russian capital that Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for
Three Ukrainian drones were downed over Moscow early on Sunday, Russia’s defence ministry said, in an attack that briefly shut an international airport.
While one of the drones was shot down on the city’s outskirts, two others were “suppressed by electronic warfare” and smashed into an office complex. A security guard was injured, Russia’s state news agency Tass reported, citing emergency officials.
Continue reading...Poland raises fears about ‘dangerous’ situation with Wagner troops near border – as it happened
Poland has been concerned about the spillover of war on to its territory ever since Russia invaded Ukraine. This blog is now closed
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has issued a special invitation to a Ukrainian fencer to take part in the Paris Olympics next year, after she was disqualified from a tournament for refusing to shake hands with her defeated Russian opponent.
The IOC president, Thomas Bach, a former Olympic champion fencer himself, wrote in person to Olha Kharlan to make a “unique exception” to Olympic qualifying procedures, in an unusually emotional letter.
Continue reading...Thousands march in Liverpool as city hosts Kyiv Pride
City continues relationship with Ukrainian capital forged when it hosted Eurovision song contest
Thousands took to the streets of Liverpool on Saturday as the city hosted KyivPride on behalf of the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv and an organiser praised the “amazing friendship” between the cities.
The joint march continues a relationship built when Liverpool hosted the Eurovision song contest on behalf of the war-torn country earlier this year.
Continue reading...Russia-Ukraine war at a glance: what we know on day 521 of the invasion
Russian missile strike on Dnipro injures nine and partially destroys apartment block; Moscow says it shot down Ukrainian missiles in southern Russia
Russian missiles hit an apartment block and a nearby building of Ukraine’s security service in the central city of Dnipro on Friday night, injuring at least nine people and causing widespread damage to both buildings. The buildings were largely empty – the residential building because it had just been completed and units were being put up for sale. “A few people were trapped but are now out,” the regional governor, Serhiy Lysak, said.
The Russian defence ministry said it shot down a Ukrainian missile in the southern city of Taganrog, about 40km (24 miles) east of the border with Ukraine, and local officials reported 20 people were injured, identifying the centre as an art museum. The ministry said it downed a second Ukrainian missile near the city of Azov, which like Taganrog is in the Rostov region, and debris fell in an unpopulated location.
Russian air defences downed a Ukrainian military drone before it could attack its targets near Moscow on Friday, the RIA news agency cited Russia’s defence ministry as saying. The ministry said the incident caused no casualties or damage to buildings.
The head of Ukraine’s ground forces has said Russian forces are constantly attacking in the direction of Kupiansk and Lyman in the Donetsk region but that Ukraine’s defence line is holding firm. Oleksandr Syrskyi said the main task for Ukrainian troops at the moment was to knock out enemy artillery where possible, and he claimed small advances in the Bakhmut direction.
Yevgeny Balitsky, the head of the Russian-imposed administration of the occupied Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, described the situation on the frontline there as “tense” and on Friday claimed that Russian forces control the Vremivka direction and that “the enemy suffers significant losses but is trying to hold out in the north-western part of the village of Staromaiorske”.
Poland and Lithuania are considering closing their respective borders with Belarus amid concerns over the presence there of the Wagner mercenary group, a Lithuanian deputy interior minister said on Friday.
The Ukrainian president’s chief of staff said Russia is threatening civilian vessels in the Black Sea and urged the international community to condemn what he said were “the methods of terrorists”.
The Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, urged Russia on Friday to revive the Black Sea grain deal. Sisi told the Russia-Africa summit in St Petersburg that it was “essential to reach agreement” on reviving the deal.
Vladimir Putin told African leaders on Friday that Moscow respected their peace proposal on Ukraine and was carefully studying it. The Russian president also said that Russia was increasing food supplies to Africa, including some free grain shipments, which he announced a day earlier, and was interested in developing military cooperation with the continent.
The International Olympic Committee has issued a special invitation to a Ukrainian fencer Olha Kharlan to take part in the Paris Olympics next year, after she was disqualified from a tournament for refusing to shake hands with her defeated Russian opponent.
Qatar will provide Ukraine with $100m in humanitarian aid to support health, education and demining, the Ukrainian prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, said on Friday after talks with his Qatari counterpart.
Continue reading...Russian forces strike Dnipro as Moscow accuses Ukraine of missile strike
Kremlin says it shot down two missiles in south of the country
Russian forces have struck the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro while Moscow accused Kyiv of firing two missiles at southern Russia.
The Russian defence ministry said it shot down a Ukrainian missile in the city of Taganrog, about 40 km (about 24 miles) east of the border with Ukraine, and local officials reported 20 people were injured, identifying the centre as an art museum.
Continue reading...Lithuania and Poland ‘may close Belarus borders’ due to Wagner fighters
Lithuania says move may be needed as Poland warns mercenaries are in Belarus to bring crisis to neighbours
Poland and Lithuania are considering closing their respective borders with Belarus amid concerns over the presence there of the Wagner mercenary group, a Lithuanian deputy interior minister said on Friday.
“The considerations are real. The possibility of closing the border exists,” Arnoldas Abramavičius told reporters.
Continue reading...Egypt calls on Vladimir Putin to revive Black Sea grain deal
Abdel Fatah al-Sisi tells summit it is ‘essential’ to revive deal, as Kenya calls Moscow’s exit ‘a stab in the back’
Egypt’s leader, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, has urged Vladimir Putin to return to the Black Sea grain deal during a Russia-Africa summit in St Petersburg marked by concerns about the global economic fallout from the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.
In a speech during a plenary session of African delegations attended by the Russian president, al-Sisi said it was “essential to reach agreement” on reviving the deal, which had allowed 33m tons of Ukrainian grain to reach markets, many in developing countries in Africa.
Continue reading...Ukraine moves Christmas date to 25 December in snub to Russia
Ukrainian church has traditionally observed the holiday on 7 January, in line with the Moscow patriarchy
Ukraine has moved its official Christmas holiday to 25 December in a break with the Russian Orthodox church, which celebrates it on 7 January.
The bill signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday highlights the deepening rift between churches in Kyiv and Moscow since Russia’s invasion of its pro-western neighbour.
Continue reading...Russia-Ukraine war: Russian attacks repelled near Kupiansk and Lyman, says Kyiv – as it happened
This live blog is now closed, you can read more of our Ukraine war coverage here
Yevgeny Balitsky, the head of the Russian-imposed administration of the occupied Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, has described the situation on the frontline there as “tense”.
Very little reliable detail is emerging from the active combat zones. Balitsky claims that Russian forces control the Vremivka direction, which is just over the regional border from Zaporizhzhia into Donetsk.
The night was quiet. There was little activity of enemy aircraft. There are not many nights like this. Many Ukrainians had the opportunity to sleep at least. We hope this day will be calm, but according to the general staff there is still a high probability of missile attacks. Therefore, we all need to be vigilant and respond to the messages we receive about air threats every time.
Continue reading...Ukraine calls for disqualified fencer to be reinstated after anti-Russia protest
Olha Kharlan, competing at the world championships in Milan, refused to shake Russian rival’s hand after beating her
Ukraine’s government has called on the International Fencing Federation (FIE) to reverse its decision to disqualify a Ukrainian fencer for refusing to shake hands with her defeated Russian opponent.
The country’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, called for Olha Kharlan to be reinstated in the fencing world championships in Milan, after she was excluded as a result of the aftermath of her victory over Anna Smirnova, a Russian competing as a neutral.
Continue reading...Russia-Ukraine war: Ukrainian forces say they have recaptured frontline village after Putin says attacks have intensified – as it happened
Zelenskiy posts video showing soldiers in village of Staromaiorske; Russian president says attacks have increased primarily on frontline in Zaporizhzhia
Pavlo Kyrylenko, Ukraine’s governor of Donetsk, has given civilian casualtiy figures in the Ukraine-controlled portion of the region. On Telegram he stated that in the last 24 hours one person was killed and nine injured.
The claims have not been independently verified.
The losses from Ukraine’s much vaunted counteroffensive were heavy and early. Pushing into the country’s sprawling southern fields earlier this summer, Kyiv lost almost a fifth of Nato kit provided for the operation, according to Ukrainian and western officials.
Kyiv’s military response across much of the frontline is now becoming clear: to change tactics. The shift in fighting doctrine applied in recent weeks, according to Ukrainian commanders, appears to be achieving some hard-fought but tangible results on the battlefield, at a more tolerable cost.
Continue reading...Putin promises free grain to six African nations after collapse of Black Sea deal
President says Russia will replace blocked Ukrainian exports after it abandoned pact on passage of ships
Vladimir Putin has promised free grain supplies to six African nations as Moscow seeks to capitalise on the collapse of the Black Sea grain deal.
Speaking on the first day of a Russia-Africa summit in St Petersburg, the Russian president claimed his country would be able to replace Ukrainian grain exports blocked by Moscow’s decision to abandon the UN-brokered arrangement which had allowed the export of grain and other products from Ukraine through the Black Sea to markets, many of them in Africa.
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