A summary of today's developments
A Russian missile strike on Ukraine’s northern city of Chernihiv killed seven people, including a six-year-old child, and left more than 120 injured on Saturday, authorities said. Denise Brown, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, condemned it as a “heinous” attack.
Russia’s defence ministry reported a flurry of Ukrainian drone attacks on Saturday targeting the regions of Moscow, Novgorod to the northwest of the Russian capital, and Belgorod, that borders Ukraine. It said nobody was hurt in the attacks, Reuters reports.
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, visited Sweden on Saturday, his first visit to the country since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. At a joint news conference, Zelenskyy and Swedish prime minister Ulf Kristersson announced that the two countries agreed to strengthen cooperation on production, training and servicing of the Swedish CV-90 infantry fighting vehicles.
Overnight into Saturday, Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 15 out of 17 Russian drones targeting northern, central and western regions.
In Russia, Vladimir Putin visited top military officials in the city of Rostov-on-Don near the Ukrainian border. The Kremlin said the Russian president listened to reports from Valery Gerasimov, the commander in charge of Moscow’s operations in Ukraine, and other top military figures at the headquarters of Russia’s southern military district.
The number of injured has risen to 129 after a Russian missile struck a central square in the historic northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, the interior ministry said on Saturday.
It has been called Russia’s “ghost”, “shadow”, or “dark” fleet. Nearly 500 ships, many of them old tankers with murky ownership and obscure insurers, could be playing an integral role in moving Russian crude to China and other ports in Asia, because of a G7 price cap meant to keep foreign-currency oil revenues out of the Kremlin’s hands.
Often the ships use tactics designed to hide their location or the origin of the crude carried from Russian ports, which may later be refined in India and other countries and even re-exported to the western countries sanctioning the Kremlin.
The clandestine tactics include “AIS gaps”, created by switching off a vessel’s automatic identification system transponder; ship-to-ship transfers in international waters away from scrutiny; “flag hopping”, or altering a ship’s country of registration; and “complex ownership and management structures that change each month,” according to Michelle Wiese Bockmann, a senior analyst at Lloyd’s List Intelligence who has reported extensively on Russia’s dark fleet.
There is an update on the attack that saw seven people including a six-year-old child killed and at least 90 wounded in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv.
Ukrainian media reported that a public event featuring drone manufacturers had been taking place inside the theatre at the time of the attack.
Interior minister Ihor Klymenko confirmed only that an unspecified event had been taking place in the building and that Ukraine’s domestic security service was investigating the matter.
Updated
As the Kremlin took urgent measures to stabilise the plummeting rouble last week, one thing became clear: rampant spending on its war machine and social welfare programmes could not go on for ever. Few observers believe the Russian economy is in danger of imminent collapse. But it has reached a point, they say, where the Kremlin may have to weigh the cost of spending trillions of roubles on its war with Ukraine, and withstanding unprecedented sanctions, while maintaining prewar levels of public spending.
“In the grand scheme of things, as long as Russia continues to spend so madly – both war spending and on expensive imports – the rouble is not going to improve fundamentally,” said Alexey Eremenko, associate director at consultancy Control Risks. “There’s a structural issue underlying it all … A good question is whether we are at the point yet where the Kremlin has to seriously slash war spending or accept serious damage to the public welfare.”
Summary of the day so far...
A Russian missile strike on Ukraine’s northern city of Chernihiv killed seven people, including a six-year-old child, and left more than 100 injured on Saturday, authorities said. Denise Brown, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, condemned it as a “heinous” attack.
Russia’s defence ministry reported a flurry of Ukrainian drone attacks on Saturday targeting the regions of Moscow, Novgorod to the north-west of the Russian capital, and Belgorod, which borders Ukraine. It said nobody was hurt in the attacks, Reuters reports.
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, visited Sweden on Saturday, his first visit to the country since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. At a joint news conference, Zelenskiy and the Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, announced that the two countries agreed to strengthen cooperation on production, training and servicing of the Swedish CV-90 infantry fighting vehicles.
Overnight into Saturday, Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 15 out of 17 Russian drones targeting northern, central and western regions.
In Russia, Vladimir Putin visited top military officials in the city of Rostov-on-Don near the Ukrainian border. The Kremlin said the Russian president listened to reports from Valery Gerasimov, the commander in charge of Moscow’s operations in Ukraine, and other top military figures at the headquarters of Russia’s southern military district.
Updated
After talks with the Swedish prime minister during his visit to Sweden, Volodymyr Zelenskiy tweeted that Ukraine will be ready to open EU accession talks this year, adding that his country has Sweden’s support on its desired path to the bloc.
In a highly symbolic move, the EU granted Ukraine formal membership candidate status last year – but the country has to meet certain requirements before being accepted as a member.
Ukraine’s president also said Sweden is prepared to provide advanced water pumping systems “to restore water supply after [the] Russian terror act at the Kakhovka hydroelectric plant”.
Updated
Ukraine has begun discussing with Sweden the possibility of receiving Swedish-made Gripen jets to boost its air defences, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said on Saturday after meeting the Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson.
The talks about obtaining the jets, which he cast as preliminary, follow approval from the US for Denmark and the Netherlands to send F-16 fighters to Ukraine, Reuters reports.
Kristersson condemned the Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Chernihiv earlier today, saying: “It only reinforces the need for us to stand with you in all your struggles.”
Ukraine and Sweden also signed an agreement for Ukraine to begin production of Sweden’s CV90 combat vehicle. Zelenskiy’s visit is his first to Sweden since Russia’s invasion in February 2022.
Updated
Denise Brown, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, has condemned the attack on the Ukrainian city of Chernihiv.
In a statement, she said:
I am extremely disturbed by the news of yet another Russian strike that hit shortly ago the heart of Chernihiv, in northern Ukraine, leaving dozens of civilians killed and injured, including children. It is heinous to attack the main square of a large city, in the morning, while people are out walking, some going to the church to celebrate a religious day for many Ukrainians.
I condemn this repeated pattern of Russian strikes on populated areas of Ukraine, causing deaths, massive destruction and soaring humanitarian needs.
Attacks directed against civilians or civilian objects are strictly prohibited under international humanitarian law. It must stop.
Updated
Seven dead and 117 injured, says Chernihiv mayor
The acting mayor of Chernihiv says the number of people known to have been injured in this morning’s Russian missile strike on the city has increased to 117.
Writing on Telegram, Oleksandr Lomako said the death toll remained at seven people.
Updated
Russia has thwarted a Ukrainian drone attack on the Moscow region, Reuters cited Russia’s defence ministry as saying on Saturday.
The drone was jammed and fell near the settlement of Putilkovo, near the Russian capital, causing no casualties or damage, the ministry said.
These claims could not immediately be independently verified.
Updated
My colleague Dan Sabbagh has more detail on the reports that a Russian missile struck a theatre and a central square in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv.
You can read the full story here:
Russia has destroyed a Ukrainian drone in the Belgorod region, the Interfax news agency cited Russia’s defence ministry as saying on Saturday.
Belgorod, a city and region more than 600km from Moscow, is just over half an hour’s drive from the border with Ukraine, making it a vital stop for Russian supply lines, but also uniquely vulnerable.
Updated
Summary of the day so far...
A six-year-old child was among the seven people who were killed when a Russian missile struck a central square in the historic northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, the interior ministry said on Saturday.
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, visited Sweden on Saturday, his first visit to the country since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. The Swedish government said he will meet officials in Harpsund, about 75 miles west of Stockholm. He will also meet Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia at a palace in the area, AP reports.
Russia launched drone attacks against parts of northern, central and western Ukraine early on Saturday, damaging civilian infrastructure in at least two regions, Ukrainian authorities said. Kyiv’s air force said the military shot down 15 of the 17 Iranian-made Shahed drones that had been launched, Reuters reports.
Ukrainian forces have continued their advance in the south along the course of the Mokri Yaly River, securing the village of Urozhaine in the face of stiff Russian resistance, the UK’s Ministry of Defence said in its latest intelligence report.
In Russia, Vladimir Putin visited top military officials in the city of Rostov-on-Don near the Ukrainian border. The Kremlin said the Russian president listened to reports from Valery Gerasimov, the commander in charge of Moscow’s operations in Ukraine, and other top military figures at the headquarters of Russia’s southern military district.
Updated
A blast has been reported on the premises of an interior ministry site in Kyiv where experts examine explosives, the Kyiv Independent has reported.
Interior minister Ihor Klymenko said on Saturday that an explosion occurred on the premises of the interior ministry’s State Scientific and Research Expert-Criminalistic Centre in the Ukrainian capital.
The cause of the explosion is not thought to be because of a drone or missile strike, he added. His claims could not immediately be independently verified.
Updated
Here are some images of the aftermath of the Russian missile attack reported in Chernihiv earlier (See post at 10.09):
Updated
A Ukrainian drone targeted a military airfield in Russia’s Novgorod region, causing a fire and damaging one warplane, Russia’s defence ministry said on Saturday.
The ministry said nobody had been injured in what it described as “a terrorist attack”, adding that the fire had been quickly extinguished, Reuters reports. The claims could not be immediately independently verified.
Novgorod lies north-west of Moscow.
Updated
Across Ukraine, 44 grain facilities have been affected by Russian missile attacks since Russia launched its invasion last February, according to the UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD).
The MoD said the attacks escalated after Russia left the Black Sea grain initiative, with the country subsequently launching multiple strikes on Odesa and Mykolaiv.
The initiative was negotiated in July 2022 between Turkey, the UN and Russia as a way of ensuring that Ukraine, one of the breadbaskets of the world, could export its grain from its southern ports via the Bosphorus.
You can read more about the deal, and why Russia left it, here:
Updated
Lithuania will begin to receive 300 additional joint light tactical vehicles (JTLVs) from next year, Arvydas Anušauskas, the country’s defence minister, has said.
The country is currently receiving the last of the 200 combat vehicles it bought in 2019.
🇱🇹 is receiving last of the 200 bought JLTV’s in 2019. From next year we will begin to receive 300 additional JLTV’s by the agreement made with the 🇺🇸 in 2022. pic.twitter.com/z8zL1mXMPp
— Arvydas Anušauskas (@a_anusauskas) August 19, 2023
Lithuania and Poland have increased border security since thousands of Wagner fighters arrived in Russia-allied Belarus under a deal that ended their armed rebellion in late June and allowed them and their leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, to avoid criminal charges.
Leaders of the two Nato nations have said they are braced for provocations from Moscow and Minsk in a sensitive area where both countries border Belarus as well as the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
Updated
Six-year-old among seven killed in reported Russian missile strike in Chernihiv
Seven people including a 6-year-old child were killed and 90 injured when a Russian missile struck a central square in the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, the interior ministry said on Saturday.
People had been on their way to church to celebrate a religious holiday when the strike took place, the ministry said, Reuters reports. It was reported that 12 of the injured people were children and 10 were police officers.
These claims could not be immediately independently verified.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ukraine’s president, condemned the attack, urging the world to “stand up to Russian terror” after the reported missile strike turned an “ordinary Saturday” into a day of “pain and loss”.
He wrote on Twitter:
Today, a Russian missile hit the heart of Chernihiv. A square, a university, and a theater. Russia turned an ordinary Saturday into a day of pain and loss. There are casualties. My condolences to everyone who has lost a loved one. All services are working on the site.
Rescuers, police, doctors. I urge the world to stand up to Russian terror. Provide Ukraine with additional tools to safeguard life. For life to win, Russia must lose this war.
Chernihiv, which has been the focus of intense fighting during the war, is situated near the border with Belarus.
Updated
Ivan Nesterov, a well-built fitness trainer, came back to Russia six months after fleeing the mobilisation that propped up Russian forces fighting in Ukraine last year, AFP reports.
He is among the many Russian men who left the country to avoid being sent to the frontlines who have returned, despite the lingering threat of a new draft.
“When I landed back in Moscow, I felt incredibly relieved, no matter what the consequences might be,” the 35-year-old said.
He left a few days after the Kremlin announced a mobilisation in September last year, “feeling a mix of emotions including panic”.
As flights out of Russia quickly sold out, he found a seat on a plane to the Ural mountains before taking a bus to Siberia and driving to Kazakhstan, a former Soviet republic that Russians could enter without a visa.
When Nesterov finally crossed the border into Kazakhstan, he said the very first emotion he felt was freedom, recalling thinking: “I can say openly anything that I think and I will not be imprisoned for it.”
Nesterov, who never dared to join an opposition demonstration or write critical posts on social media, saw his departure as an alternative way to protest.
He decided to come back to Russia at the beginning of April, having fallen into a deep depression, missing his friends and “homeland”.
Updated
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ukraine’s president, visited Sweden on Saturday, saying he was there to meet with Ulf Kristersson, Sweden’s prime minister, the royal family and other officials to thank them for supporting Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion.
He wrote in a Telegram post:
Our primary task is the strengthening of Ukrainian warriors on the ground and in the sky, the development of bilateral cooperation, in particular in the defence industry, Ukraine’s European integration and common security in the Euro-Atlantic space.
Olena and I arrived in Sweden.
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) August 19, 2023
There will be talks with @SwedishPM, the Royal Family, @Andreasostgote and @Sverigesriksdag parties.
Partnership, defense cooperation, EU integration, and common Euro-Atlantic security.@ZelenskaUA and I thank all Swedes who support Ukraine 🇺🇦🇸🇪
Updated
We reported earlier on the 15 Russian drones shot down over Ukraine overnight.
Other drones, however, found their way through.
Reuters reports that the deputy governor of the western Khmelnytskyi region said two people were wounded and dozens of buildings damaged.
Officials in the central Zhytomyr region were still assessing the damage there after Russian forces targeted an unspecified infrastructure facility, the governor, Vitaliy Bunechko, reported.
There were no other immediate reports of casualties or damage.
Russia has consistently attacked Ukrainian settlements far from the battlefield with drones and missiles since it launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Updated
Every week, we wrap up the must-reads from our coverage of the war in Ukraine, from news and features to analysis, visual guides and opinion.
You can read some of those pieces – including the Ukrainian men trying to avoid conscription – here:
Here are some of the latest images coming out of Ukraine:
The number of battlefield casualties in Ukraine is approaching nearly 500,000 Russian and Ukrainian soldiers, US officials have told the New York Times, marking a significant rise in the death toll this year after intense fighting in the east of the country.
Russia’s military casualties are approaching 300,000, the officials claimed, with as many as 120,000 killed in action. Ukraine was said to have close to 70,000 killed and 100,000-120,000 wounded.
Fierce fighting near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine have led to significant casualties on both sides, more than doubling the number of dead since November.
For more on this story:
Russian women say they are living in as fear convicted murderers who were freed to fight in Ukraine return from the war.
Vera Pekhteleva was murdered by her ex-boyfriend Vladislav Kanyus in 2020, who was sentenced to 17 years in prison. Nine months later, Pekhteleva’s mother received two photographs from an anonymous account on WhatsApp. They showed a man in military fatigues and were accompanied by a message: “Kanyus is free, and fighting in Ukraine.”
Kanyus, it seemed, was one of tens of thousands of Russian prisoners freed early to fight in Ukraine. The vast majority ended up fighting for Wagner group, the private army run by Yevgeny Prigozhin.
As part of the deal, convicts were told that if they fought for six months and survived, they would be allowed to go back to normal life without serving the rest of their sentences.
For more on this story:
Ukraine says air force shot down 15 Russian drones
Kyiv’s air force says it shot down 15 Russian drones during an overnight attack, AFP reports.
Ukraine says 17 Iranian-made Shahed drones were used in the aerial assault, but did not specify what happened to the other two.
Russian forces “attacked from the north with ‘Shahed-136/131’ attack UAVs. A total of 17 attack drones were launched from the Kursk region”, the Ukrainian force said on Telegram.
It added that air defences were activated in “northern and central, as well as in the western regions”.
Fifteen enemy drones were destroyed by the forces and means of the air force in cooperation with the air defence systems of other components of the Defence Forces of Ukraine.
Both sides in the conflict have recently reported regular drone incursions by air and sea, as Ukraine enacts a counteroffensive aimed at reclaiming Russian-held territory.
Updated
Both sides face major challenge in bid to make gains, says UK
Ukrainian forces have continued their advance in the south along the course of the Mokri Yaly river, securing the village of Urozhaine in the face of stiff Russian resistance, according to the UK Ministry of Defence’s latest intelligence report.
However, the MoD added, both sides are struggling to make significant gains in the face of strong, established defensive positions.
In the north, Russian forces have continued probing attacks in the Kupiansk area but achieved no significant advances.
Across the front, both sides confront a similar challenge: attempting to defeat well-entrenched forces while having limited uncommitted forces to open new assaults.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine – 19 August 2023
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) August 19, 2023
Find out more about Defence Intelligence's use of language: https://t.co/KsbkrK28Zz
🇺🇦 #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/CFgwXmAF5c
Updated
Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov says Moscow’s possession of nuclear weapons protects the country from external security threats, while reminding the west of the risks of a nuclear conflict, Reuters reports.
In an interview for state-owned magazine The International Affairs, Lavrov said:
The possession of nuclear arms is today the only possible response to some of significant external threats to security of our country.
Lavrov warned the US and Nato allies risk ending up in “a situation of direct armed confrontation of nuclear powers”.
We believe such a development should be prevented. That’s why we have to remind about the existence of high military and political risks and send sobering signals to our opponents.
US president Joe Biden has called a threat of Russia using tactical nuclear weapons “real”, while Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said this week that the military alliance has not detected any changes to Russia’s nuclear forces.
Ukraine’s air force says Russia launched 17 drones overnight attempting to strike Ukraine’s northern, central and western regions, Reuters reports.
The air force said 15 of the Iranian-made Shahed drones were shot down. It was unclear what happened to the two drones that were not downed.
The reports could not be independently verified and it was not immediately known what objects and areas Russia targeted in its strikes.
More details to come.
Updated
Putin meets with military commanders in Rostov-on-Don
Russian president Vladimir Putin has visited the commander of Russia’s operation in Ukraine and other top military officials in the city of Rostov-on-Don, Reuters reports.
The Kremlin said Putin listened to reports from Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the general staff of the army in charge of Moscow’s operations in Ukraine, and other top military commanders and officers.
Vladimir Putin held a meeting at the headquarters of the special military operation group in Rostov-on-Don.
The statement did not include any additional details of the meeting and it was not clear when it took place.
Videos published by the RIA state news agency showed Gerasimov greeting Putin in what appeared to be night-time and leading him into a building after a brief handshake.
The meeting comes after Ukraine claimed counteroffensive gains on the south-eastern front, saying it liberated the small village of Urozhaine in the Donetsk region.
Opening summary
Welcome back to our continuing coverage of the war in Ukraine, I’m Yang Tian bringing you the latest news.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has met high-ranking military commanders at the headquarters of its Ukraine operation in the city of Rostov-on-Don, state media RIA news agency said.
Overnight, Russia’s defence ministry said its air force shot down a Ukraine-launched missile over the Crimean peninsula. There were no casualties or damages reported.
More details to come, in other recent developments:
Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov says Moscow’s possession of nuclear weapons protects the country from external security threats, while reminding the west of the risks of a nuclear conflict. “The possession of nuclear arms is today the only possible response to some of significant external threats to security of our country,” Lavrov said in an interview for state-owned magazine The International Affairs. Lavrov warned the US and Nato allies risk ending up in “a situation of direct armed confrontation of nuclear powers”. “We believe such a development should be prevented. That’s why we have to remind about the existence of high military and political risks and send sobering signals to our opponents,” Lavrov said.
The number of battlefield casualties in Ukraine is approaching nearly 500,000 Russian and Ukrainian soldiers, US officials have told the New York Times, marking a significant rise in the death toll this year after intense fighting in the east of the country. Russia’s military casualties are approaching 300,000, the officials claimed, with as many as 120,000 killed in action. Ukraine was said to have close to 70,000 killed and 100,000-120,000 wounded. Fierce fighting near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine have led to significant casualties on both sides, more than doubling the number of dead since November.
Ukrainian forces could fail to retake the Russian-occupied strategic south-eastern city of Melitopol during their counteroffensive, a US official said. Melitopol has been under Russian control since March 2022 and has roads and railways used by its troops to transport supplies to areas they occupy. The US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, was citing an intelligence report, but the prediction is largely in line with Washington’s view that Ukraine’s counteroffensive is progressing slower than expected. The official added that despite the report and limited progress towards Melitopol, the US believed it was still possible to change the gloomy outlook.
One person was killed and two injured as a result of Russian shelling of a village near the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, according to the prosecutor general’s office said. Some private houses were damaged in the attack, but no further details were provided. In a separate case, four people were injured after Russia shelled a residential area of the city of Chasiv Yar, located in the Donetsk region close to Bakhmut.
Russia is continuing its crackdown against critics at home and abroad, with authorities shut down prominent rights group the Sakharov Centre, saying it had illegally hosted conferences and exhibitions. Critics say the group is the latest target of the Kremlin’s battle against liberal-leaning organisations that challenge the state. Separately, a Russian court has placed the co-chair of independent election monitoring group Golos in pre-trial detention until at least 17 October. The ruling comes as Russia gears up for regional elections next month. Moscow also announced sanctions against international criminal court prosecutor Karim Khan, who in March issued a warrant against Putin accusing him of having “illegally deported” thousands of Ukrainian children to Russia.
Kyiv has welcomed a US decision to let Denmark and the Netherlands hand F-16 fighter jets over to Ukraine once its pilots are trained to use them. A US official confirmed Denmark and the Netherlands had been given “formal assurances” for the jet transfer. Training by an 11-nation coalition is to begin this month, and officials hope pilots will be ready by early 2024. Ukrainian defence minister Oleksii Reznikov hailed “great news from our friends in the United States”.
Russian forces have destroyed Ukrainian drones targeting Moscow and its Black Sea fleet. Russia’s defence ministry said its air force had downed a Ukrainian drone over the capital early Friday morning. Footage showed damage to an expo centre on the Krasnopresnenskaya embankment of the Moskva River, 100 metres from Moscow city.
Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal hailed “important and constructive” talks on grain exports with his Romanian counterpart Marcel Ciolacu during a visit to Bucharest. Ciolacu said Romania wanted to double the amount of Ukrainian grain transiting his country to 4m tonnes. The talks came a day after the first civilian cargo ship sailed through the Black Sea from Ukraine to Istanbul in defiance of a Russian blockade.
