Ukraine has captured 100 settlements, almost 600 servicemen in Kursk incursion
Ukraine’s top general Oleksandr Syrskyi said that Ukraine had captured 594 Russian servicemen during its operation in the Kursk region, disclosing that figure for the first time.
Ukraine has also captured 100 settlements during its three-week long incursion, he said. Moscow’s troops were trying to counterattack in the area and encircle Kyiv’s forces, but those attempts were being repelled, he added. The Guardian could not independently verify the figures provided by Syrskyi.
He said that one of the objectives of the Kursk operation was to divert Russian forces from other areas, primarily away from Pokrovsk and Kurakhove. “The Kursk operation diverted a significant number of its forces,” he said, noting that Russian troops had been drawn from Ukraine’s south. “As of now, we can say that around 30,000 servicemen have been sent to the Kursk front and this figure is growing.”
On Pokrovsk, a coal mining city that has strategic military value as a transport hub that Russia has been advancing on recently, Syrskyi said Russia was trying to disrupt Ukraine’s supply lines to the front. “The situation on the Pokrovsk front is fairly difficult ... the enemy is using its advantage in personnel, weapons and military equipment, it is actively using artillery and aviation,” he said.
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, has said after visiting Russia’s Kursk nuclear power plant today that there was a risk of a “nuclear incident,” Reuters reported. Grossi said the situation was serious.
In a press conference today, Volodymyr Zelenskiy revealed that Ukraine had tested its first domestically-produced ballistic missile. He also said that Ukraine had the ability to produce 1.5-2m drones this year, but currently lacks the funding to do so.
Zelenskiy said that his military deployed western-supplied F-16 fighter jets to down Russian drones and missiles fired in recent attacks, AFP reports.
A fifth person has died following Russia’s overnight strikes on Ukraine.
According to the regional head of administration for Zaporizhzhia, Ivan Fedorov, an elderly woman has since died in hospital after suffering “severe burns”.
Fedorov said: “Doctors fought for her life for several hours, but could not save her.”
Along with the three people that died in Zaporizhzhia, another two people were killed after strikes in the central city of Kryvyi Rih, officials said.
Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg will convene a meeting of the Nato-Ukraine Council on Wednesday at Ukraine’s request, a spokesperson said.
“The meeting will be held at ambassadorial level,” said the spokesperson Farah Dakhlallah.
“Ukrainian defence minister Rustem Umerov is expected to brief allies via video-link on the battlefield situation and priority capability needs,” she added.
Ambassadors from NATO’s member countries and Ukrainian officials normally attend meetings of the council.
“Tomorrow’s meeting comes after recent waves of heavy Russian strikes against Ukrainian civilians and infrastructure,” Dakhlallah added.
“NATO allies have delivered substantial support to Ukraine’s air defence and they are committed to further bolstering Ukraine’s defences.”
Ukraine has said it wants the next peace summit aimed at ending the war in Ukraine to be held in a country of the global south, according to AFP.
Leaders and top officials from more than 90 states gathered in Switzerland in June for a first summit organised by Ukraine, held without Russia or China.
“We would like for the second summit to be held in one of the countries of the Global South,” Andriy Yermak, head of the president’s office, said at a forum in Kyiv.
The global south refers to countries and blocs outside Europe and North America, whose foreign policy interests are generally not fully aligned with either Kyiv or Moscow.
Kyiv’s announcement comes a few days after Indian prime minister Narendra Modi visited Kyiv, where he advocated for peace.
Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with Indian prime minister Narendra Modi on 23 August Photograph: Gleb Garanich/Reuters
There has been little in the way of updates on the situation in Belgorod this afternoon, after it was reported earlier today that Ukraine had launched an attack on the Russian border region that sits next to Kursk.
Belgorod governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov said this morning that Ukraine appeared to attempting to break through the border. In a Telegram post about an hour ago he said:
“Shebekino and Novaya Tavolzhanka came under fire from the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Initially, there were no casualties.
“In the city of Shebekino, as a result of shelling, the roof of a private house caught fire – fire crews began extinguishing it. In another 8 private households, windows, facades, outbuildings and roofs were damaged. The power line in one of the houses was cut. 2 cars were also damaged.
“In the village of Novaya Tavolzhanka, after a direct shell hit on the territory of a private household, an outbuilding caught fire – the fire was promptly extinguished. Information about the consequences is being clarified. The administration and operational services continue their rounds.”
The post was accompanied with photos purporting to show the damage. The Guardian could not independently verify the claims or the photos.
The UK’s Ministry of Defence has claimed some Russian military units are experiencing water shortages, citing “pro-Russian sources”.
In a video posted to X, the MoD said Russian pilots are restricted to one litre of water a day and said some had been forced to filter drinking water from puddles. The video said shortages were likely caused by Russian attacks on infrastructure, but did not provide any further details about the shortages, or the units impacted.
Russia’s foreign minister has warned the US that the Third World War would not be confined to Europe, Reuters reports.
Sergei Lavrov said that the west was seeking to escalate the Ukraine war and was “asking for trouble” by considering Ukrainian requests to loosen curbs on using foreign-supplied weapons.
Since invading Ukraine in 2022, Vladimir Putin has repeatedly warned of the risk of a much broader war involving the world’s biggest nuclear powers, though he has said Russia does not want a conflict with the US-led NATO alliance.
“We are now confirming once again that playing with fire – and they are like small children playing with matches – is a very dangerous thing for grown-up uncles and aunts who are entrusted with nuclear weapons in one or another western country,” Lavrov told reporters in Moscow.
“Americans unequivocally associate conversations about Third World War as something that, God forbid, if it happens, will affect Europe exclusively,” Lavrov said. Lavrov added that Russia was “clarifying” its nuclear doctrine.
AFP provides further quotes from IAEA chief Rafael Grossi, who earlier visited Russia’s Kursk nuclear plant.
Grossi said his tour enabled him to “look at the most important parts” of the plant, which is less than 30 miles from fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces.
“A nuclear power plant of this type so close to a point of contact or military front is an extremely serious fact,” Grossi said after visiting the plant.
“The fact we have military activity a few kilometres, a few miles away from here, make it an immediate point of attention,” he added.
“At the end of the day, again, this may sound common sense and simple: Don’t attack a nuclear power plant.”
He said he was in “close contact” with Russian authorities and would visit Kyiv next week to talk to Ukrainian resident Volodymyr Zelenskiy, adding it was “important to talk” and “keep dialogue”.
He added the power plant currently was “operating in very close to normal conditions”.
IAEA director general, Rafael Grossi leaves after speaking to members of the media following his visit to the Kursk nuclear power plant. Photograph: Maxim Shemetov/Reuters
Ukraine used western-supplied F-16 jets to repel air attacks – Zelenskiy
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that his military deployed western-supplied F-16 fighter jets to down Russian drones and missiles fired in recent attacks, AFP reports.
Zelenskiy announced earlier this month that Ukraine had received the first batch of the fighter jets promised by western countries, declining to say how many had been delivered.
“We destroyed already some missiles and drones using the F-16,” Zelenskiy said in English at a press conference in Kyiv on Tuesday without elaborating.
He said at the press conference that Ukraine still needed more of the jets. In May, he told the AFP news agency that Kyiv needed at least 120 to achieve “parity” with Russia.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy pictured with a newly delivered F-16 last week. Photograph: Ukraine Presidency/Ukrainian Pre/Planet Pix/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock
Ukraine’s Paralympic fencer, Artem Mankotold AFP that a strong medal haul for his country at the Paris Paralympics would be a boost for disabled veterans back home.
The 25-year-old, who won fencing silver at the last Paralympics, said previous impressive medal hauls have raised respect for disabled people in Ukraine to the highest level it has ever been. Ukraine finished third in the medals table at Rio 2016 and sixth at Tokyo 2020.
“It not only helps boost morale back home, it helps disability in society,” Manko told AFP by phone from his training camp. “After the last Paralympics, Ukraine got so many medals we inspired the nation and I think we are now at the highest level of disability acceptance.
“That is really important right now as there are a lot of injured soldiers without legs, hands and in wheelchairs.
“It is hugely important for them to feel disabled people are accepted in society.”
Ukraine’s Artem Manko, right, competes during the men’s sabre individual category A gold medal wheelchair fencing bout at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games Photograph: Philip Fong/AFP/Getty Images
Library books are piled in the street, waiting to be removed in a truck. Two men across the road take down a supermarket sign. The modern grocery store shut a couple of weeks ago. Half a mile away an evacuation train waits to depart. People crowd on to the platform and outside the station, preparing to flee.
Pokrovsk, a mining city in eastern Ukraine, is packing up fast. The Russians are 7 miles (11km) away, already close enough for the city to be struck, after a remorseless advance that has taken the invaders close to a place that had been considered safe. Fearing the worst, Ukrainian officials have given people two weeks to leave.
Read the Guardian’s report from Pokrovsk, where residents are bundling their lives into bags and fleeing as Russia advances and Ukrainian officials gave people in the city two weeks to leave:
The White House has condemned a Russian missile attack that injured Reuters journalists and killed a safety adviser for the news agency.
“Over the weekend, Russia attacked a hotel in Ukraine in a missile strike, injuring multiple journalists and killing one. We condemn this attack in the strongest of terms and extend our deepest condolences to Reuters on the loss of one of their own,” White House National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett wrote.
Over the weekend, Russia attacked a hotel in Ukraine in a missile strike, injuring multiple journalists and killing one. We condemn this attack in the strongest of terms and extend our deepest condolences to @Reuters on the loss of one of their own. https://t.co/TmUB8Z92iI
General Oleksandr Syrskyi, the head of the Ukrainian armed forces, said today that Ukraine’s troops control nearly 1,300 square kilometres of Russia’s Kursk region, the Associated Press reported.
“The enemy drags troops from other directions, in such way weakening them; They attempt to create a ring of defense around our offensive group of troops and plan counter-offensive actions,” Syrskyi said, speaking of the situation in the Kursk region.
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, has said after visiting Russia’s Kursk nuclear power plant today that there was a risk of a “nuclear incident,” Reuters reported.
Grossi said the situation was serious.
Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi (C) arrives to visit a school in of the town of Kurchatov on August 27, 2024. Photograph: Tatyana Makeyeva/AFP/Getty Images
Ukraine tests first domestically-produced ballistic missile
In a press conference today, Volodymyr Zelenskiy revealed that Ukraine had tested its first domestically-produced ballistic missile.
He also said that Ukraine had the ability to produce 1.5-2m drones this year, but currently lacks the funding to do so.
In further comments, reported by Reuters, he said that the war with Russia would eventually end through dialogue, but that Kyiv had to be in a powerful position at a summit that it hopes to convene this year to advance its vision of peace.
The number of people killed by Russia’s overnight air attack on Ukraine is now five, according to Reuters.
Two people were killed when a hotel was “wiped out” by a missile in the central city of Kryvyi Rih, regional officials said. Three died in drone attacks on the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia.
Separately, a child was killed in a drone attack on the Russian-controlled Ukrainian city of Polohy, which is also in the Zaporizhzhia region. The Russian official said the child was killed and four family members were injured on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Reuters could not independently verify the report and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine plans to present a plan on how to end the war with Russia to the Democratic and Republican US presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, Reuters reports.
Apart from the incursion into Russia’s Kursk region, the plan, the Ukrainian leader told a news conference in Kyiv today, included more steps on the diplomatic and economic fronts. He would also present the plan to US president Joe Biden, he said.
Air raid sirens heard near nuclear plant in Russia's Kursk region
A witness has reported hearing air raid sirens near the nuclear power plant in Kurchatov a Russian town in Kursk, Reuters reports.
Air raid sirens went off briefly on Tuesday afternoon, indicating a missile threat, a Reuters reporter said.
UN nuclear agency chief Rafael Grossi is currently on an inspection tour of the plant
Last week, the International Atomic Energy Agency said Russia reported drone fragments located roughly 100 metres from the plant’s spent fuel nuclear storage facility as Ukraine continues its offensive into Russian territory.
The Kursk nuclear power plant seen from the town of Kurchatov in the Kursk Region. Photograph: Maxim Shemetov/Reuters
