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Ukraine says it has now attacked two bridges over the Seym river in Russia’s Kursk region, after a first was destroyed earlier this week.
Air force commander Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk wrote: “Minus one more bridge! The aviation of the air force continues to deprive the enemy of its logistical capabilities with accurate air strikes, which significantly affects the course of hostilities.”
In retaliation for Ukraine’s shock incursion, Russia launched its third ballistic missile on Kyiv this month, with preliminary data showing that all the air weapons were destroyed on their approach to the city,
Meanwhile, the International Atomic Energy Agency warned of “deteriorating safety” at Europe’s largest nuclear power facility in Ukraine, which was seized by Moscow in the early days of its full-scale invasion.
The warning by IAEA director general Rafael Grossi came after a drone strike hit the road surrounding the plant, landing close to the essential cooling water sprinkler ponds and the only remaining 750 kilovolt power line supplying the plant.
Key Points
- Ukraine destroys second bridge in Kursk
- Kursk invasion intended to create ‘buffer zone’ on Russian soil, Volodymyr Zelensky says
- Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant safety ‘deteriorating’ after drone strike, UN warns
- Zelensky says Ukraine’s forces are ‘strengthening’ their positions in Kursk
- Germany to halt new Ukraine military aid – report
Ukraine reaping ‘huge political gains’ from incursion into Russia, Polish minister says
Ukraine is reaping “huge political gains” from its military offensive into Russia, Poland’s interior minister has said – as he insisted that the incursion was not altering the “anti-escalation approach” of the West
Asked whether Kyiv’s military gains could change its allies’ stance on the use of arms they supply for its war with Russia, Tomasz Siemoniak told Reuters: “This offensive does not change the anti-escalation attitude of the West.”
He added: “I think that for Western countries this is an event in terms of changing the image of Ukraine – Kyiv’s political gains are huge after less than two weeks.”
Andy Gregory19 August 2024 02:40 1724027880Russians had ‘complete intelligence failure’ in Kursk, analyst says
The idea that Ukraine could burst through into Russian territory on the scale it has in Kursk seemed unthinkable to many observers prior to last week, with the shock operation raising questions about the effectiveness of Russia’s surveillance, as well as the calibre of its border fortifications and forces.
“The Russians had a complete intelligence failure here,” Yohann Michel, a research fellow at the Lyon-based Institute of Defence and Strategy Studies, told Reuters.
With Ukraine’s forces retreating in eastern Ukraine, one of the most strategic sectors of the front line, Moscow may well have assumed Kyiv would not make a high-stakes gamble that even now it is far from clear will pay off, Mr Michel said.
“I would understand if it was difficult for the Russians to think something that big could happen,” he said.
Andy Gregory19 August 2024 01:38 1724024640UK should be proud of Ukraine using British weapons to defend itself, says Healey
The UK “should be proud” of British weapons being used by Ukraine, defence secretary John Healey has said, as he praised Volodymr Zelensky’s “bold” incursion into Russian territory.
Writing in the Sunday Express, Mr Healey said: “The bold incursion by Ukrainian troops into Russia in recent days – to defend against further Russian strikes on Ukrainian towns and cities – has exposed vulnerabilities in Russia’s military and put Putin under pressure.
“Let me be very clear: under Article 51 of the UN Charter, Ukraine has a clear right of self-defence against Russia’s illegal attacks. Providing international law is followed, that does not rule out operations inside Russia.”
He added: “We should be proud of Britain’s support for Ukraine’s struggle. We should be proud that British-donated equipment, in the hands of brave Ukrainians on the front line, is helping them to defend their country and push back Putin.”
Andy Gregory19 August 2024 00:44 1724021437Disarray in Putin’s military command exposed by Kursk attack, says top Zelensky aide
Ukraine’s attack on Russian soil has exposed the disarray in Vladimir Putin’s military command, president Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief adviser told The Independent in an exclusive interview earlier this week.
Kyiv’s military exploited poorly-defended border positions and later overran two fortified Russian defensive lines, essentially infantry strong points with anti-tank ditches, before pushing around a dozen miles into Kursk, taking towns like Sudzha in the process. Ukraine’s forces say they are still advancing.
Mykhailo Podolyak said that Russia’s military “doesn’t live up to its name” and that poor communication between generals and soldiers on the ground had left weaknesses for Ukraine to attack. He added that the assault showed Russia has “very little control” over its border regions despite the Kremlin’s claims to be a “heavily militarised society”.
“We are destroying the propagandistic view of Russia that it is a heavily militarised society and that it has a strong sense of cohesiveness,” the adviser said. “The reputation of its own armed forces doesn’t live up to its name. The operation in Kursk has very much shown that.”
Our foreign affairs reporter Tom Watling has the full report:
Disarray in Putin’s military command exposed by Ukraine attack, says Zelensky adviser
Exclusive: Mykhailo Podolyak tells The Independent that the cross-border assault into the Kursk region shows that Putin has ‘very little control’ over the border
Andy Gregory18 August 2024 23:50 1724018377‘War has no holidays’: Zelensky repeats plea for West to expedite military aid deliveries
Volodymyr Zelensky has once again urged Kyiv’s allies to speed up the delivery of promised military aid, as he hailed the results of Ukraine’s invasion of Russia’s Kursk region.
“Regarding deliveries from our partners – need acceleration, we ask very much. War has no holidays,” the Ukrainian president said in his nightly video address.
Andy Gregory18 August 2024 22:59 1724015437Kursk incursion ‘still inflicting losses on Russian army and economy’, says Zelensky
Volodymyr Zelensky has hailed Ukraine’s invasion of Kursk as he claimed the incursion was “still inflicting losses on the Russian army and the Russian state, their defence industry and their economy” nearly a fortnight after hundreds of his troops first burst across the Russian border.
In his evening television address, the Ukrainian president thanked the forces involved in the Kursk operation and on the eastern front.
Andy Gregory18 August 2024 22:10 1724012763Zelensky says Ukraine invaded Kursk to create ‘buffer zone’ on Russian soil
President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Ukraine is aiming to create a “buffer zone” on Russian territory with its invasion of Kursk.
Mr Zelensky had prevoiusly suggested that the operation aimed to protect communities in the bordering Sumy region from constant shelling.
But in his nightly address, the Ukrainian president said that “it is now our primary task in defensive operations overall: to destroy as much Russian war potential as possible and conduct maximum counteroffensive actions.
“This includes creating a buffer zone on the aggressor’s territory – our operation in the Kursk region”.
Kent animal sanctuary rescues lion with ‘psychological issues’ from Ukraine
A lion with “psychological issues” is to travel 1,400 miles from Ukraine to an animal sanctuary in the UK as part of a project rescuing the animal from the war-torn country, reports Oliver Browning.
Yuna, an African lioness, suffered “shell shock”, “psychological issues” and lost her sense of co-ordination, according to The Big Cat Sanctuary, a Kent-based charity behind the Big Cats in Crisis campaign raising funds to rescue the lions from Ukraine.
Yuna and African male lion Rori are the first of five lions to be rescued out of Ukraine after debris was blasted close to their enclosure in January as a result of Russia’s invasion of the country.
Russia’s ‘evil cannot be appeased’, warns Ukraine’s first lady
Russia’s “evil cannot be appeased” and a truce would merely mean it will be the children of Ukraine who must resist Moscow, first lady Olena Zelenska has warned.
According to the transcript of an interview with Lord Ashcroft, published by the Ukraine presidential office, Ms Zelenska said: “In many myths around the world, there is a plot about a dragon to whom a girl is regularly sacrificed to appease the monster.
“But the truth is, evil cannot be appeased. The same goes for the aggressor state. If you give the attacker time, they will use it to strengthen themselves, and in 5-8-10 years, it will be our children who have to resist them. Only those who have lost no one can propose such a ‘truce.’”
Andy Gregory18 August 2024 19:58 1724004757Watch: Ukraine strike destroys second Kursk bridge
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