Sunday, September 1

Russia’s war against Ukraine

(FROM L) Silver medallist Ukraine’s swimmer Andrii Trusov, Gold medallist Argentine’s swimmer Inaki Basiloff and Bronze medallist Ukraine’s swimmer Yevhenii Bohodaiko celebrate on the podium during the medal ceremony for the Men’s 200m Individual Medley - SM7 gold Final at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games on Aug. 31, 2024. (Julien De Rosa / AFP via Getty Images)

Russia claims 158 drones downed in mass attack targeting refinery, power plants in Moscow, other regions. Drones reportedly targeted several Russian regions overnight on Sept. 1, including Moscow, Tver, Voronezh, Tula, Bryansk, Belgorod, Lipetsk, and Kursk, according to local officials.

Zelensky urges West to let Ukraine hit Russia with long-range weapons. “I appeal to the U.S., the U.K., France and Germany. We need the ability to genuinely and fully defend Ukraine and Ukrainians. We require both: permissions for long-range capabilities and your long-range shells and missiles,” Zelensky said in his evening address.

Ukraine presents US with list of targets in Russia it wants to hit with ATACMS missiles. “We have explained what kind of capabilities we need to protect the citizens against the Russian terror that Russians are causing us, so I hope we were heard,” Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said.

Russian forces ‘wiping out’ Kursk Oblast’s Sudzha with bombs, Ukrainian general says. “They (Russian forces) are destroying their own people. Despite the fact that Sudzha is in the rear, the Russians are wiping it off the face of the earth,” Ukraine’s Ground Forces commander Oleksandr Pavliuk said.

Firing of Air Force Commander Oleshchuk not connected to deadly F-16 crash, Umerov says. “I would probably say this is a rotation,” said Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. “This is two separate issues…at this stage, I would not connect them.”

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Societal discontent rises in Russia after Ukraine’s Kursk incursion, ISW says. According to polls cited by the ISW, “outrage or dissatisfaction” with Russian authorities has risen from 18% of respondents on July 12, to 28% on Aug. 25, the highest levels seen since the hugely unpopular mobilization in November of 2022.

Ukraine’s Kursk incursion ‘demonstrates that Russia is at the limit of its capabilities,’ says former US NATO ambassador. “(Russia) can’t attack Ukraine and defend Russia at the same time, it has had to make a choice,” said Kurt Volker, former U.S. ambassador to NATO.

Ukraine Compact is ‘bit of window dressing,’ says former Dutch defense minister. While the Ukraine Compact is a useful overarching framework, many countries had already signed bilateral security agreements, said former Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren.

Ukrainian delegation meets with national security advisors of UK, US, Germany, France in Washington. “Our coordination and joint efforts are particularly important. We have already come a long way together and achieved a lot. But now is a special moment when we need to maximize our efforts to help Ukraine prevail. It is important to use this moment correctly,” said Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak.

Ukraine to receive $800 million from US for its energy sector. Ukraine is set to receive $800 million from the U.S. to help stabilize its severely damaged energy infrastructure, Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine’s First Deputy Prime Minister, announced during her visit to Washington on Aug. 31.

Read our exclusives

Lithuanian FM: West ‘chose to be caught off guard’ by Russia’s invasion

Sharing Ukraine’s history of subjugation by Russia and sandwiched between the heavily armed exclave of Kaliningrad and Moscow’s ally Belarus, Lithuanian leaders understand that freedom and sovereignty can be lost.

Photo: Ray Baseley for the Kyiv Independent

Why Russian milbloggers and propagandists are freaking out about Telegram’s CEO arrest

The arrest of Telegram CEO and co-founder Pavel Durov has sent ripples of panic and concern through Russia, from online military commentators all the way up to the halls of the Kremlin itself.

Photo: Nadine Rupp/Getty Images

Human cost of war

Several injured in Russia’s attack on Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk oblasts. At least six people were injured, including a pregnant woman, overnight on Sept. 1 in Russia’s attack on Kharkiv Oblast, regional governor Oleh Suniehubov reported.

Russian attack on Chasiv Yar kills 5. Russian shelling struck a home and a high-rise building. Five men, aged 24-38, were killed as a result of the attack, said Donetsk Oblast Governor Vadym Filashkin.

Russia’s attack on Sumy Oblast leaves 1 killed, 4 injured. At least one person was killed and four people were wounded in a Russian attack on the Sumy district community on Aug. 31, the Sumy Oblast Military Administration reported.

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International response

Restrictions on long-range strikes inside Russia reveal West’s unclear goals, ex-US commander says. “This terrible policy which actually protects Russian airfields better than it protects Ukrainian civilians is a manifestation of the fact that we don’t have a clearly defined objective,” retired U.S. Lieutenant General Ben Hodges said.

Netherlands to send 28 amphibious armored vehicles to Ukraine. “Ukraine desperately needs our help in its fight against the Russian aggressor. Our support for Ukraine continues to keep Russia at bay,” Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans said.

White House rejects plan to send F-16 maintenance personnel to Ukraine, WSJ reports. Though the move has not been ruled out in the future, the Biden administration is hoping European countries will take partial or even full responsibility for maintaining Ukraine’s recently-delivered F-16s.

In other news

Ukrainian athletes win 11 medals on day 3 of Paralympics. On the third day of the 2024 Paralympic Games, Ukrainian athletes secured 11 medals, including a historic bronze in table tennis. The team currently has a total of 19 medals.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Francis Farrell, Chris York, Toma Istomina, Nate Ostiller, Oleg Sukhov, Kateryna Denisova, Brad LaFoy, and Olena Goncharova.

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