Ukraine Daily

Tuesday, August 23

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Russia’s war against Ukraine

People stand beside flowers ahead of Ukraine Day of the National Flag on August 22, 2022 in Lviv, Ukraine. August 24 marks six months since Russia launched its large-scale invasion of Ukraine. Lviv has been spared the brunt of that attack, which has focused on central and eastern parts of Ukraine, but has been targeted periodically by missile strikes. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

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Intelligence warns Ukrainians about potential Russian attacks on Independence Day. Andriy Yusov, representative of Defense Ministry’s Intelligence Directorate, said that there is a threat of an increased number of Russian missile attacks on Ukraine’s Independence Day, celebrated on Aug. 24. “The fact that Russia still has a large number of missiles – albeit not high-precision ones – is true,” said Yusov.

General Staff: Russia adds to military presence on Ukraine’s northern borders. According to the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, Russia continues to maintain substantial forces in Russia’s border regions of Bryansk and Kursk. They report that the Kremlin is bolstering its numbers near Ukraine’s northern region in an effort to force Kyiv to keep a portion of its military force committed far from the country’s east and south, where the battle for territorial control remains intense.

Ukraine asks UN, Red Cross to act against sham trials in Mariupol. Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets appealed to both organizations and Russia’s ombudsman to prevent “yet another violation of the Geneva Convention.”

Russian propaganda accuses Azov of killing daughter of Russian ultra-nationalist, Ukraine denies involvement. Daria Dugina, the daughter of Russian imperialist Alexander Dugin, was killed after the car she was driving near Moscow exploded on Aug. 20. In an unprecedently swift statement, Russian authorities said they solved the case within 48 hours. Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted the FSB, writing that a woman they call “Natalia Vovk” is behind the attack. According to the FSB, the woman is a Ukrainian citizen, who came to Russia with her underaged daughter and left the country after the alleged assassination. After the FSB published its statement, Russian propaganda began linking “Natalia Vovk” to Natalia Shaban, who they allege is linked to Ukraine’s Azov Regiment.

Zelensky: Rail link connecting Ukraine to Moldova now operational. Ukraine has restored a rail link to neighboring Moldova after nearly 25-year hiatus and the connection could carry 10 million tonnes of freight a year, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s video address on Aug. 22.

Vereshchuk: 825 people evacuated from Kharkiv Oblast on Aug. 22. Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk reported that 238 of the evacuees from the occupied parts of Kharkiv Oblast were children. The evacuation was organized by Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov, together with volunteer organizations.

ISW: Russian proxies in Zaporizhzhia Oblast designate incoming Ukrainian citizens as ‘asylum seekers,’ obliquely declaring region’s independence. The U.S. think tank said in its latest report that Russian-installed proxy in Zaporizhzhia Oblast signed an order that designates all Ukrainian citizens entering its occupied zones as “asylum seekers,” which does not correctly apply to people entering the occupied region. Russian occupation authorities are thus falsely classifying all Ukrainians entering occupied territories as refugees escaping persecution in Ukraine. The order also de facto attempts to identify Ukraine as a separate country from the Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the experts of the Institute for the Study of War note.

The human cost of Russia’s war

Zaluzhnyi: ‘Nearly 9,000 heroes killed by Russia’s war.’ Valery Zaluzhnyi, commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, said on Aug. 22 that those sent to the front lines of Russia’s war against Ukraine “may be among the 9,000 heroes who have died.” Despite Zaluzhnyi’s statement, the Ukrainian government has not disclosed the official number of Ukrainian losses since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb. 24.

General Staff: Russia has lost 45,400 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24. Ukraine’s General Staff reported on Aug. 22 that Russia had also lost 1,919 tanks, 4,230 armored fighting vehicles, 1,032 artillery systems, 266 multiple launch rocket systems, 145 air defense systems, 198 helicopters, 234 airplanes, 815 drones, and 15 boats.

International response

Netherlands to provide Ukraine with at least 65 million euros for reconstruction. Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Liesje Schreinemacher and Minister of Defence Kajsa Ollongren announced on Aug. 22 that the Netherlands will deliver 65 million euros ($64.64 million) to Ukraine for aid and investment. The aid package includes cofinancing by Dutch companies to rebuild Ukrainian infrastructure destroyed by the war. An additional 10 million euros ($9.94 million) will be set aside for demining and 1 million euros ($995,000) will be allocated to support initial design plans for rebuilding three cities: Kherson, Odesa and Mykolaiv.

Estonia pushes full embargo on Russian energy in new EU sanctions package. “We must seriously raise the price of the war for the aggressor before winter. The seven previous packages proved insufficient to push Putin to end the war,” Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said.

WSJ: US to strengthen sanctions against Russia. According to the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. is preparing to strengthen sanctions to narrow Russia’s ability to bypass existing restrictions. Among the possible measures, the Wall Street Journal lists the imposition of sanctions on foreign banks and cryptocurrency trading platforms through which Russia gets access to international currencies, confiscation of bank accounts and corporate assets belonging to blacklisted oligarchs, as well as punishment of foreign companies that continue to export prohibited goods to Russia.

Defense News: Contract expected for delayed drones from US. A contract for the research and development of 10 long range Switchblade 600 drones is expected in the following 30 days, Pentagon spokeswoman Jessica Maxwell told Defense News media outlet. Defense News reports that the U.S. said it would award a contract for the “kamikaze” drones over five months ago. These drones can offer Ukraine a significant advantage in finding and striking key Russian positions.

Borell: EU to discuss launching major training operation for Ukrainian forces. The European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the proposal will be discussed at a two-day meeting of EU defense ministers next week. “It seems reasonable that a war that is lasting and looks set to last requires an effort not only in terms of supplies of material,” he said.

CNN: UN announces fact finding team for Olenivka. According to CNN, the fact finding team is assembled, but “it’s going nowhere” because the UN does not consider the situation around Olenivka to be safe and it is waiting for “proper assurances.” On Aug. 22, the UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric announced more members to the UN panel that would establish facts on the Olenivka prison attack and report back to the UN secretary general.

Bulgaria says negotiations to resume Russian gas supplies ’inevitable.’ Rossen Hristov, Bulgaria’s interim energy minister, did not specify when negotiations with Russia’s Gazprom would begin but said they are needed to secure cheaper gas for Bulgaria.

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