Ukraine struggle: Kherson counter-offensive, Kharkiv shelled once more, and visa ban proves divisive

1. Ukraine claims to have damaged via Russian defences in Kherson counter-offensive

Ukrainian forces claimed to have ‘damaged via’ Russian defences on Monday amid a brand new counter-offensive within the Kherson area.

The operation, launched yesterday, is geared toward pushing Russian troops again throughout the Dnipro river and retaking the occupied metropolis of Kherson.

Intense battles are presently raging between Ukrainian and Russian forces throughout nearly the entire southern area, in line with the Ukrainian presidency.

“Highly effective explosions” occurred all day Monday and all evening within the Kherson area, and “nearly all” of its territory is within the grip of violent clashes, the presidency mentioned within the morning.

Ukrainian forces broke via Russia’s first line of defence on the outskirts of Kherson, capturing an industrial web site reportedly getting used as a military base, Ukrainian native media reported on Monday.

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2. Extra civilians killed by Russian bombing in Kharkiv

No less than 5 folks have been killed and 7 others injured on Tuesday in Russian bombings targetting the Ukrainian metropolis of Kharkiv. 

The centre of Ukraine’s second largest metropolis was hit within the assault, the mayor and regional governor introduced.

“The Russian occupiers have bombed the central districts of Kharkiv,” mentioned Oleg Synegubov on Telegram, including that there was “harm.”

An preliminary demise toll of 4 useless and 4 wounded was revised this morning as regional authorities known as on residents to take shelter. The mayor of Kharkiv, Igor Terekhov, reported on Telegram that there have been at the least 5 useless and 7 injured within the bombardment.

The second largest metropolis in Ukraine, with practically 1.4 million inhabitants earlier than the struggle, Kharkiv is frequently bombarded by Russian forces, but they haven’t been in a position to seize it from Ukraine. 

Lots of of civilians have been killed within the Kharkiv area for the reason that begin of the struggle, with many fleeing elsewhere in Ukraine or to neighbouring nations.

3. ‘Go house,’ Zelenskyy tells Russian troopers

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged Russian troopers to flee for his or her lives after his forces launched an offensive to retake southern Ukraine, however Moscow mentioned it had repulsed the assault and inflicted heavy losses on Kyiv’s troops.

Ukraine mentioned on Monday its floor forces had gone on the offensive within the south for the primary time after an extended interval of placing Russian provide strains, particularly bridges throughout the strategically-important River Dnipro, and ammunition dumps.

“In the event that they need to survive, it is time for the Russian army to run away. Go house,” Zelenskyy mentioned in a late-night handle.

“Ukraine is taking again its personal (land),” he mentioned, including that he wouldn’t disclose Kyiv’s battle plans.

In response, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov mentioned on Tuesday that Russia was methodically urgent on with its plans in Ukraine, including: “All of our objectives might be reached.”

The brand new Ukrainian offensive comes after a number of weeks of relative stalemate in a struggle that has killed 1000’s, displaced hundreds of thousands, destroyed cities and fuelled a world power and meals disaster amid unprecedented Western financial sanctions on Russia.

Russia captured swathes of southern Ukraine close to the Black Beach within the early weeks of the struggle, together with within the Kherson area, which lies north of the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula.

Ukraine, now armed with subtle Western-supplied weapons, sees retaking the area as essential to stopping Russian makes an attempt to grab extra territory additional to the west that would ultimately lower off its entry to the Black Sea.

4. Russia is having bother with Iranian-made drones, says US administration

Russia has confronted technical issues with Iranian-made drones acquired from Tehran this month to be used in its struggle with Ukraine, in line with Biden administration officers.

The officers, who spoke on the situation of anonymity to the AP to debate the US intelligence evaluation, didn’t element the “quite a few failures”.

They added that the US assessed that the supply of Mohajer-6 and Shahed-series unmanned aerial autos over a number of days this month is probably going a part of a Russian plan to accumulate a whole lot of Iranian UAVs.

AP reported final week that Russia had just lately obtained a whole lot of Iranian drones able to being utilized in its struggle towards Ukraine regardless of US warnings to Tehran to not ship them. 

The Washington Put up first reported that Russia had confronted technical issues with the Iranian drones.

Russian operators proceed to obtain coaching in Iran on how you can use these techniques, which may conduct air-to-surface assaults, digital warfare and concentrating on, on the battlefield in Ukraine, the officers mentioned.

The Biden administration final month launched satellite tv for pc imagery indicating that Russian officers visited Kashan Airfield on 8 June and 5 July to view the Iranian drones. 

On the time, White Home nationwide safety adviser Jake Sullivan asserted that the administration had “data that the Iranian authorities is making ready to supply Russia with a number of hundred UAVs.”

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5. France accuses Russia of utilizing fuel as a ‘weapon of struggle’

Russia is utilizing power provides as a “weapon of struggle”, France mentioned on Tuesday after Russia’s Gazprom lower deliveries to a significant buyer within the nation whereas additionally planning to close its principal fuel pipeline to Germany for 3 days this week.

Western nations concern that Moscow is intentionally driving up fuel costs to attempt to weaken their opposition to its invasion of Ukraine, a tactic Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday dubbed “financial terrorism”.

“Very clearly Russia is utilizing fuel as a weapon of struggle and we should put together for the worst case situation of an entire interruption of provides,” France’s Power Transition Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher mentioned.

Nord Stream 1, the principle conduit for Russian fuel into Europe, has change into a flash level within the dispute. Europe faces an extra squeeze on provides this week as Gazprom shuts off the pipeline for upkeep from Wednesday until the early hours of Saturday.

Russia has been pumping fuel through Nord Stream 1 at solely 20% of capability, and there are fears that this week’s outage could possibly be prolonged.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov mentioned on Tuesday that technological issues attributable to Western sanctions on Russia are the one factor standing in the best way of supplying fuel through Nord Stream 1.

European governments are attempting to coordinate a response to hovering power prices for companies and households and to fill storage services forward of peak demand within the winter.

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6. Moscow criticises destruction of Soviet monuments, says Russophobia on the rise

Russia condemned the destruction of Soviet struggle memorials within the three Baltic states and accused them on Tuesday of persecuting their Russian-speaking minorities.

In a forcefully worded assertion, Moscow mentioned Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have been responsible of xenophobia, saying they have been treating their ethnic Russian minorities as “second-class folks”. It mentioned Russian-language media, kindergartens, and colleges have been being shut down.

“What is occurring now within the Baltic states is unacceptable for us and will definitely have an effect on the state of bilateral relations with these nations, that are already in full decline,” the international ministry mentioned.

It complained of “Russophobic approaches” and “an unprecedented, in actual fact near fascist, marketing campaign by the authorities of the Baltic states to barbarically take away, en masse, memorials to the Soviet soldier-liberators”.

International Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova had accused the Baltic states on 12 August of a “neo-Nazi bacchanalia”.

The “neo-Nazi” cost is critical as a result of President Vladimir Putin used the identical accusation to justify his 24 February invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine and the West dismissed that as a false pretext for a struggle of conquest.

The Baltic states have been annexed by the Soviet Union in 1940 after which occupied by Nazi Germany earlier than returning to Moscow’s rule as a part of the Soviet Communist bloc till they regained independence with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

All three are members of the European Union and NATO, and their relations with Moscow have worsened sharply for the reason that begin of the struggle.

On 25 August, Latvian authorities demolished Riga’s 80-metre excessive “Monument to the Liberators of Soviet Latvia and Riga from the German Fascist Invaders”. Latvia’s parliament had authorized the demolition in Could and cited Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a motive.

Estonia introduced on 16 August that it might start eradicating Soviet-era monuments, citing public order issues.

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7. EU divided on visa ban towards Russian residents

Germany and France warned on Tuesday towards a European Union ban on vacationer visas for Russians, saying it might be counter-productive, highlighting divisions throughout the 27-nation bloc as international ministers ready to debate the measure.

Jap and Nordic nations strongly again such a ban, saying journey to the EU is a privilege, not a proper, and that permitting Russians to occasion on European seashores at a time when their nation has invaded Ukraine is unacceptable.

The Kremlin slammed the proposed ban as “irrational,” whereas Paris and Berlin argued that, six months into the struggle, the EU ought to keep away from penalising bizarre Russians who may oppose their authorities’s actions and harbour pro-Western sympathies.

“We warning towards far-reaching restrictions on our visa coverage, as a way to stop feeding the Russian narrative and set off unintended rallying-around the flag results and/or estranging future generations,” France and Germany mentioned in a joint memo.

One EU diplomat mentioned divisions on the problem meant an settlement on the two-day assembly of ministers in Prague was unlikely.

As a brief compromise, ministers may agree in precept on suspending a visa facilitation settlement, which might imply Russians dealing with an extended process and having to pay €80 as an alternative of €35 for his or her EU visa, the diplomat mentioned.

However which will properly not be sufficient for pro-ban nations, particularly these bordering Russia, a few of which have already individually stopped issuing visas.

“I hope that we can agree on a standard European answer that can enable to considerably restrict the circulation of vacationers from Russia to Europe,” Lithuanian International Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis mentioned in a press release.

“If all 27 EU nations fail to achieve an settlement, a regional answer for the nations most affected by the circulation of Russian vacationers could also be sought sooner or later.”

Finland, which has an extended land border with Russia and says it doesn’t need to change into a hub for Russian vacationers getting into the EU, has sharply lower the variety of visas it grants them.

Earlier this month, Estonia closed its border to greater than 50,000 Russians with beforehand issued visas, the primary EU nation to take action.

“It is extremely provocative to me that you simply see Russian males on European seashores in southern Europe and on the similar time Ukrainian males between 18 and 60 years can not even depart their nation however must battle for his or her freedom,” Denmark’s International Minister Jeppe Kofod mentioned final week.

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