Tuesday, August 6

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera. (Dmytro Kuleba/X)

Russian Su-34 jet destroyed in Ukraine’s strike on Morozovsk airfield, Kyiv says. The Ukrainian military destroyed a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber aircraft and an ammunition depot at the Morozovsk airfield in Russia’s Rostov Oblast on Aug. 3, Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) said on Aug. 5, citing satellite imagery.

UK soldiers warned Russia could be spying on training of Ukrainian troops. According to a British military handbook, Russian intelligence has shown particular interest in Operation Interflex, the U.K.-led program providing training to some 34,000 Ukrainian recruits.

Ukraine, Russia cannot destroy each other’s energy grid completely, Budanov says. Ukraine and Russia will not be able to completely destroy each other’s energy systems, as both have an extensive Soviet energy system, Ukrainian intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov told the TSN news program.

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SBU intercepts large-scale FSB saboteur network across Ukraine. One of those detained is a member of the Dnipro City Council and another is an official in the city council of Yuzhne, a city in Odesa Oblast.

Ukraine wants to create coalition to shoot down Russian missiles, Zelensky says. Warsaw and Bucharest have repeatedly scrambled fighter jets to protect their airspace as Russian forces launched large-scale aerial attacks on Ukraine, but they have never been used to destroy these targets.

New FLiRT Covid-19 strain detected in Ukrainian hospitals. Three cases of the new FliRT subvariants of coronavirus were detected in Ukraine in July, Ukraine’s Health Ministry reported on Aug. 5.

Read our exclusives

Ukraine war latest: Russian Su-34 jet destroyed in Ukraine’s strike on Morozovsk airfield, Kyiv says

The Ukrainian military destroyed a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber aircraft and an ammunition depot at the Morozovsk airfield in Russia’s Rostov Oblast. At least four explosions were heard in Kyiv shortly after the air alert sounded at around 11 p.m. local time on Aug. 5.

Photo: Mikhail Tokmakov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Kyiv developers bulldoze monuments as Russian missiles destroy Ukraine’s cultural heritage

While Russian armed forces target and destroy Ukraine’s cultural heritage with missiles, rockets, and artillery, Kyiv’s developers are bulldozing historic buildings right in the city center.

Photo: Oleksandr Gusev/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images

Investigation: Almost 2 years into first reports of wrongdoing, Ukraine’s International Legion appears immune to change

This is the third part of the Kyiv Independent’s investigation into the International Legion – a military formation created for foreign fighters defending Ukraine.

Illustration by Karolina Gulshani

Human cost of war

Russian attacks against Ukraine kill 1, injure 7 over past day. The Nikopol district in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast came under heavy fire by Russian drones and artillery overnight, Governor Serhii Lysak said. The area of the small mining town of Pokrov suffered the worst damage.

Ukraine’s 2024 mortality rate is 3 times higher than birth rate, data shows. Some 87,655 children were born in the first half of 2024, while 250,972 citizens died of various causes during the same period, data shows. The numbers are likely incomplete because of Russia’s ongoing occupation of Ukrainian territories.

Opinions and insights

Opinion: The path to peace in Europe

“The path to peace is as clear today as it was ten years ago: a firm stance of the collective West backed by decisive actions to disabuse Moscow of its imperial ambitions,” writes Andrew Chakhoyan in this guest op-ed.

Photo: Chris McGrath/Getty Images

International response

EU slaps new sanctions on Belarus over internal repressions. The announcement came a few days ahead of the fourth anniversary of the 2020 Belarusian presidential election when dictator Alexander Lukashenko cemented his hold on power through electoral fraud and mass repressions.

Ukraine receives grant of $3.9 billion from US. This is the first tranche in 2024 under a new financial agreement between Ukraine and the World Bank.

Updated: Japan’s justice minister arrives in Ukraine, signs cooperation memorandum. Japanese Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi arrived in Ukraine on Aug. 5 to discuss cooperation in judicial reform and the fight against corruption.

EU should reconsider Hungary’s Schengen membership over easing visa rules for Russia, MEPs say. “If the Hungarian government refuses to change its policy, the Commission and all EU representatives should question Hungarian presence in the Schengen by introducing new measures to safeguard European citizens, including new controls at Hungarian borders if necessary,” the letter read.

Kuleba arrives in Malawi as his Africa tour begins. Kuleba met with Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera in Lilongwe, thanking the country for its consistent stance on Russian aggression while highlighting Ukraine’s humanitarian assistance.

Mali provided no evidence of Ukraine’s ties to Tuareg rebels, foreign ministry says. Mali’s decision to sever diplomatic relations with Ukraine is “regrettable,” as Mali’s transitional government has not provided evidence that proves Ukraine’s involvement in an alleged incident between Wagner mercenaries and Tuareg rebels, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Aug. 5.

Former Trump administration official Kellyanne Conway registers as lobbyist for Ukrainian oligarch Pinchuk. Kellyanne Conway will be paid $50,000 a month for the duration of her collaboration with the foundation, set to run from July to November, with an option to extend.

IT software for UK nuclear submarine engineers outsourced to Belarus, the Telegraph reports. The news that the development of an IT system used by British nuclear submarine engineers was outsourced to Belarusian developers has led to calls that the U.K. must carry out an urgent review of defense supply chains, the Telegraph reported on Aug. 3.

Labor shortages in Poland increasing as influx of Ukrainians slows, data suggests. Companies in Poland are seeing increasing shortages of workers as the influx of Ukrainians into the country slows, Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita reported on Aug. 5, citing data from Credit Agricole bank.

Hungarian CEO confident in country’s oil supply despite Ukraine’s Lukoil transit block. Hungary will not face oil shortages due to Ukraine’s decision to block Lukoil PJSC’s crude transit, according to Zsolt Hernadi, CEO of Hungarian oil and gas conglomerate MOL Group.

Ukraine at Olympics

Ukrainian shooter Pavlo Korostyliov places 5th in men’s 25 pistol Olympics final. After four rounds, the Ukrainian shooter had 14 points and placed second, but in the fifth round dropped out of the competition.

Ukrainian gymnast Kovtun wins silver in Paris Olympics. The 20-year-old gymnast scored 15,500 points, which is 0.7 points less than earned by the winner of the competition, Zou Jingyuan from China. Japanese athlete Shinnosuke Oka took third place with 15,300 points.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Katya Denisova, Martin Fornusek, Nate Ostiller, Elsa Court, Oleksiy Sorokin, Francis Farrell, Sonya Bandouil, and Rachel Amran.

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