08/02/2023
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 07:18 Kiev: Russia attacked the capital with more than ten Shahed drones +++
More than 10 Russian drones were shot down in an overnight attack on Kiev, Ukrainian officials said early this morning. “Groups of drones entered Kiev simultaneously from several directions. However, all air targets – more than ten unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) – were detected and destroyed in time by air defense forces and means,” said Serhiy Popko, head of the military administration of the city of Kiev . He said Russia deployed a barrage of Iranian-made Shahed drones, with debris hitting several areas.
A downed drone explodes in the skies of Kiev.
(Photo: REUTERS)
+++ 06:45 Russian media: attempted attack on conscription office in St. Petersburg +++
An unknown woman is said to have tried to set fire to the military recruiting office in St. Petersburg the night before. That reported state-controlled Russian media. Accordingly, it was observed how the woman threw a bottle with a flammable mixture towards the entrance and fled the place. The employees extinguished the fire immediately. The police are investigating. Another pro-Kremlin news outlet released a video, according to the Kyiv Independent, showing a person approaching the building’s entrance, dropping a package near the door and setting it on fire. A few days ago, a similar situation happened in St. Petersburg when a man drove his truck into the gates of the yard of the military recruiting office and tried to set fire to the building. He claimed that the Russian FSB prompted him to do so.
+++ 06:17 USA are said to be missing important documents from Europe for F-16 training +++
In mid-July, the first Ukrainian pilots went abroad for training on the F16 fighter jets. But for the training of US airmen, which Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy said is due to start this month, the US is yet to have a final training plan from European officials, according to people familiar with the matter told CNN. The program can only start if the US has approved this plan, it said. As CNN further reports, there is still a lot to be clarified before the start. The United States would still have to approve the transfer of F-16-specific equipment and materials, such as flight simulators and training manuals. However, the anonymous sources told CNN that without a final European training plan, the US would not have to sign anything either.
+++ 04:49 Ukraine reports shelling in the Odessa region +++
According to Ukrainian sources, the southern region of Odessa on the Black Sea was shelled with drones. According to the Kyiv Independent, no casualties or damage to civilian infrastructure were reported.
Update: According to Ukrainian information, port facilities and grain stores were attacked. Some facilities caught fire, writes the governor of the region, Oleh Kiper, on Telegram. Russia has recently intensified its attacks on Ukrainian agricultural and port infrastructure after withdrawing from the grain agreement and attacking the Crimean Bridge.
+++ 02:31 Klitschko: Explosions in Kiev +++
According to Ukrainian sources, Kiev is shaken by explosions. The air defense units are deployed against a drone attack, Mayor Vitali Klitschko and the Ukrainian military said. According to initial information, debris from a drone had fallen in the central Solomjanskyj district, the rescue workers were on site, Klitschko writes on Telegram.
+++ 00:28 Interfax: Russia is considering tariffs on fertilizer exports +++
According to an agency report, Russia is considering introducing tariffs on fertilizer exports. Eight percent could be levied on all types of fertilizer for a year and a half, reports the Interfax news agency, citing insiders.
+++ 23:10 USA carefully observe Wagner mercenaries on Poland’s border +++
According to the United States, the Wagner mercenaries do not pose any particular threat to Poland or other NATO allies. The US is closely monitoring the situation on the Poland-Belarus border, says National Security Officer John Kirby. Wagner Group mercenaries are currently in Belarus, training Belarusian special forces. NATO member Poland has therefore strengthened its army on the border.
+++ 22:08 grain agreement: USA see signs of willingness to negotiate +++
The United States has reason for hope after Russia canceled the deal allowing Ukrainian grain to be exported across the Black Sea. “We have seen signs that they might be interested in returning to the discussions,” said US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield in New York. So far, however, Moscow has not seen any concrete steps in this direction, says Thomas-Greenfield, who chairs the UN Security Council in August. Russia, which has been waging a war of aggression against its neighbor since February 2022, allowed the international grain agreement to expire in July despite many international appeals. The United Nations has repeatedly campaigned for the agreement to be reinstated.
+++ 21:42 Poland increases troops on the border with Belarus because of helicopters +++
Poland announces an increase in its troops on the border with Belarus. The Ministry of Defense in Warsaw refers to two Belarusian helicopters that violated Polish airspace. The Ministry of Defense in Minsk, on the other hand, explains on Telegram that the allegations are “far-fetched”. Poland used them as a pretext for troop reinforcements.
+++ 21:17 Transparency International: “Suspicious” companies receive orders to rebuild Irpin +++
Funding for Irpin’s reconstruction is “opaque,” he said Dozorro project team by Transparency International Ukraine. As of April 2022, the total cost of rebuilding was estimated at $1 billion. The report notes that out of 547 contracts awarded by the Irpin Municipality, the Regional Technical Department and the Kyiv Region Reconstruction Service, only 28 were made through ProZorro. ProZorro is the Ukrainian electronic system for public procurement, which aims to ensure more transparency and competition in the tendering process. The system, introduced in 2016, aims to simplify companies’ participation in tenders and electronically map the entire procurement process in order to reduce corruption and increase efficiency. So far, the researchers conclude that the total value of the contracts for the reconstruction of the city is 933 million hryvnia (23 million euros). However, six companies with “suspicious backgrounds” have secured orders worth HK$434 million (EUR 11.7 million), almost half of the total. These companies range from ties to pro-Russian parties to the fact that they have “been caught by law enforcement more than once.”
+++ 20:47 Warsaw and Kiev mutually convene ambassadors +++
During the course of the day, Ukraine and Poland summoned the ambassadors of the other countries. The trigger was a remark by the Polish presidential adviser Marcin Przydacz that the Kiev government should show more appreciation for Poland’s support. A spokesman for Ukraine’s foreign ministry says the Polish ambassador has been told the allegations are “untrue and unacceptable”. For its part, the Polish Foreign Ministry wrote on X – the former Twitter – that the Ukrainian ambassador had been summoned in response to “comments from representatives of the Ukrainian authorities”. Details have not been mentioned so far. A Polish ban on imports of Ukrainian agricultural products, for example, is controversial between the two countries.
+++ 20:17 Ukraine expects economic growth of almost three percent this year +++
Ukraine is counting on an economic upswing in 2024. This should enable investments in the reconstruction of the country attacked by Russia and increasing consumer spending by citizens. The Economics Ministry in Kiev is forecasting an increase in gross domestic product (GDP) of around five percent for next year: “The driver will be investment dynamics,” says Natalia Horschkowa, head of the department for strategic planning and macroeconomic forecasts at the ministry. Your house is also expecting GDP growth for this year – of around 2.8 percent. The outgoing President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Werner Hoyer, recently called for more funds for the ongoing reconstruction of Ukraine during the war.
You can read more about the events of the previous day here.