08/26/2023
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 04:05 drone attack: Moscow airports are suspended +++
The three major Moscow airports Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo and Vnukovo are temporarily closed due to a drone attack over Moscow. All flights have been canceled or delayed, reports the TASS news agency. The Russian air defense shot down another drone over Moscow early on Saturday morning. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reports that rescue teams are on site and there are no injuries.
+++ 03:35 allegations of corruption in medical care at the front +++
In Ukraine, corruption in military procurement may endanger the lives of wounded soldiers on the front lines. In an open letter, voluntary and civil society groups complain that military units have been provided with inferior first-aid equipment. A military doctor who works in a hospital close to the front confirms this to the Funke newspapers under the guise of anonymity. In particular, recently delivered medical binding systems – so-called tourniquets – are sometimes of such poor quality that, in the worst case, they are life-threatening for injured soldiers.
+++ 02:10 Kiev: Dozens dead after drone explosions in Crimea +++
According to a report in Ukrajinska Pravda, the SBU secret service and Kiev’s armed forces have used drones to attack military positions on the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which was annexed by Russia. There are dozens of dead and injured, reports the Internet portal, citing informed circles at the SBU secret service. A photo of clouds of smoke was also published. Accordingly, the 126th Brigade of the Russian Black Sea Fleet is said to have been attacked in the village of Perevalnoe not far from the Crimean capital Simferopol. According to the reports, the drones also hit an ammunition depot, bypassing Russian air defense systems. Military technology was also badly damaged, it said. The Russian occupiers were not prepared for the special operation of the secret service SBU and the Ukrainian armed forces.
+++ 01:01 Kiev: Wagner mercenaries no longer play a role +++
Ukrainian Defense Minister Reznikov sees Russian President Putin as politically weakened by the Wagner jet crash. In an interview with “Bild”, “Welt” and “Politico”, Resnikov reminds that there was an agreement between Putin and the Wagner group after the march on Moscow two months ago, which was broken with the death of the mercenary leadership be. The further fate of the Wagner Group no longer played a role in the counter-offensive in the Ukraine. “There is no longer a Wagner group like you could see as a serious force a year ago. It’s broken.”
+++ 00:07 Resnikov: Berlin will soon give us Taurus +++
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov expresses confidence in Germany’s delivery of Taurus cruise missiles. “I’m really optimistic and I see in the future that we will also get Taurus from Germany,” says Resnikov in a joint interview with “Bild”, “Welt” and “Politico”. Resnikov didn’t give a date, but said he didn’t think it would be “a whole year” before the cruise missiles would be available to the Ukrainian army. Germany is a serious partner of Ukraine in this war and has already delivered many state-of-the-art weapon systems such as Leopard battle tanks, the Panzerhaubitze 2000 and Marder and Gepard.
+++ 22:59 video shows the destroyed cemetery of Wagner mercenaries +++
Two days after the entire leadership of the Wagner mercenary group died in a plane crash, there are indications of further attempts to wipe out the troop. A supporter of the Wagner mercenary group, for example, claims that graves of mercenary soldiers were “destroyed” in a cemetery in Russia. A video circulated on Russian Telegram channels shows the man standing in a cemetery and saying: “Everything has been demolished”. The man, wearing a mercenary group T-shirt, adds: “This is blasphemy. People died for Russia and they leveled all their graves.”
+++ 21:52 Selenskyj hopes that the F-16 will soon be deployed +++
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is urging the deployment of F-16 fighter jets against the attackers. “Our goal is to get closer to the moment when the F-16s will help us keep the Russian terrorists away. As soon as possible,” he wrote on the portal formerly known as Twitter. In his video message that evening, he says that after the announced delivery of the fighter jets by the Netherlands and Denmark, the agreements made during his recent visits to the countries will be implemented. Norway had also announced F-16. In total, dozens of planes are involved. The exact delivery time is not clear. On Thursday, Zelenskyy spoke to US President Joe Biden about training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.
+++ 21:33 Ukraine: Russia is preparing a new offensive +++
According to the Ukrainian army, the Russian army is gathering troops for a new offensive. “After a month of fierce fighting and significant losses in the direction of Kupyansk and Lymansk, the enemy is regrouping its forces and assets, while at the same time moving the newly formed brigades and divisions out of the territory of the Russian Federation,” writes the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Land Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi in the Telegram channel of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. “The main objective of these measures is to increase combat potential and resume active offensive operations.” Ukraine must “immediately take all measures to strengthen our defenses on the threatened lines and, if possible, to advance”.
Read more about the events of the previous day here.