Russia has used drones to attack targets near Kyiv. Putin promoted “bloodhound” Kadyrov after his nuclear strike call and another mass grave was discovered in Lyman. what happened today
A hotline set up by Ukraine for Russian troops to seek advice on surrendering has apparently been inundated with calls, the Kyiv Post reports. Both soldiers of the Russian army and their relatives who want their sons and husbands to stay alive call there, the report said.
Russian soldiers who contact the hotline are informed of the basic surrender procedure and are assured that they will be treated according to the guidelines of the Geneva Convention.
“We have already received more than 2,000 applications,” said Vitaliy Matviyenko, spokesman for the “I want to Live” hotline of the British newspaper “Daily Express”.
Andriy Yusov, a spokesman for Ukraine’s Defense Ministry, said the hotline has become so popular that even Russian citizens who have not yet been drafted asked for help. So they call and ask, ‘What should I do if I get drafted? What do I have to do, how do I surrender properly?’.”
Two days before his 70th birthday, Vladimir Putin called and promoted Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. His “bloodhound” is now Colonel General. In view of the past statements by the loyal Putin companion, this is a striking point in time.
Kadyrov recently hit the headlines for publicly calling for a nuclear strike and harshly criticizing other leaders and generals in the Russian military. After the defeat in Lyman, he attacked the Russian commander Alexander Lapin in a telegram message and verbally lashed out. He blamed him for the failures around Lyman.
He received a lot of encouragement from hardliner circles for his statements. Among other things, from the financier of the Wagner troupe Yevgeny Prigozhin and now obviously also from Putin himself.
Graves of more than 50 civilians have been found in the city of Lyman, recently liberated by Ukrainian troops, according to Ukrainian media. “The Russians dug trenches and forced people they suspected of collaborating with the Ukrainian military to collect the bodies of the dead for reburial,” Ukrainian internet television station Hromadske said on Wednesday. He also presented photos of the tomb.
According to the medium, some victims died as a result of the shelling of the city. Lyman was captured in May by troops loyal to Moscow after intense fighting and was recaptured by the Ukrainians in early October after heavy fighting. While some of the dead have their names on them, other graves only have numbers on them.
By signing the corresponding decrees, Vladimir Putin completed the illegal annexation of the occupied parts of the Ukrainian regions of Cherson, Zaporizhia, Luhansk and Donetsk. He signed and implemented the laws on the integration of regions into Russian territory passed by the State Duma and the Federation Council. These regions are thus officially under the protection of the nuclear power. However, Moscow only controls parts of these areas in southern and eastern Ukraine. The Ukraine has recently reported land gains there again and again. Initially, the regions will be headed by officials appointed by Moscow, because the regional parliaments are not to be elected until September next year.
Moscow does not want to give up the areas lost again in the recent Ukrainian counter-offensive. The goal is to get them back under control as quickly as possible. “They will always belong to Russia,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the TASS agency. However, the attacks by Ukraine are causing problems for Russia in supplying its units, British secret services have reported.
According to Ukrainian sources, the Russians attacked targets near Kyiv with kamikaze drones for the first time. The governor of the Kyiv region spoke of six impacts and explosions. Infrastructure was hit, one person was injured. During the night there had been air alerts in the capital and the surrounding area for more than three hours. According to the air force, a total of 12 Iranian drones have flown towards targets from the south. Iran had officially denied a delivery.
NATO is increasingly concerned about Russian attacks with Iranian kamikaze drones. One observes with concern how successfully Russia uses them, reports the “Business Insider”. “The drones are causing problems for Ukraine,” a senior NATO official told the newspaper.
Putin instructed his government by decree to nationalize Ukraine’s Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. The nuclear power plant is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe and has been occupied by Russian troops since early March. It has come under fire several times during heavy fighting in recent months and has even had to be shut down.
In view of Ukraine’s successes on the battlefield, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned against Russia’s use of nuclear weapons. The war has entered a new phase in which a nuclear power is going backwards and there are threats that nuclear weapons will also be used, said the EU chief diplomat. You shouldn’t close your eyes to that. “This is certainly a worrying scenario in which we have to show that our support for Ukraine does not waver,” the Spaniard underlined.
Czech President Milos Zeman also warned of the “serious risk” of a nuclear conflict. In his view, the West should warn the Kremlin that in such a case it should not only expect a diplomatic reaction, but also a “decisive military response”: “With all the consequences that may have.”
Former Russian TV editor Marina Ovsyannikova, known for her criticism of Russia’s war against Ukraine, says she has escaped from house arrest. The 44-year-old wrote this in the Telegram news service. According to earlier information, the house arrest had been scheduled until next Sunday. Ovsyannikova is on a wanted list. The detention is part of a criminal case in which she is charged with spreading alleged misinformation about the Russian armed forces.
The Ukrainian army continues to make important advances in the Kherson, Kharkiv and Luhansk regions. On Tuesday they managed to recapture important towns on the east bank of the Inhulets River. The Russian forces had to retreat towards the city of Cherson. The Ukrainians were also able to advance further south on the Dnipro River.
According to experts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the Ukrainian military also cut off the Russians from important supply lines. The Russian attempt to bring more ammunition, new recruits and defense equipment to the front has been paralyzed, they say.
According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, dozens of towns have been liberated from Russian occupation in recent days as the Ukrainian army advanced. There is good news, said Zelenskyj in a video message distributed in Kyiv on Tuesday evening. “The Ukrainian army is advancing fairly quickly and powerfully in the current defense operation in the south of our country.” Villages in the Kherson, Kharkiv, Luhansk and Donetsk regions have been brought back under Ukrainian control.
In particular, in the Cherson region in the south, localities were liberated. The Ukrainian armed forces spoke of a total of eight settlements in the evening. “Our soldiers don’t stop. And it’s only a matter of time before we expel the invaders from our country,” said Zelenskyy.
After the illegal annexation of several areas by Russia, Ukraine has repeatedly reported successes in its counter-offensive. The advance of the troops causes problems for the Russian units on several front sections. Russia recently withdrew troops to prevent encirclement.
According to Ukrainian sources, the Russian army fired on the Kyiv region with so-called kamikaze drones made in Iran. Governor Oleksiy Kuleba said Wednesday morning that Russian units had targeted the town of Bila Tserkva. The city is about 80 kilometers south of the capital Kyiv. infrastructure had been destroyed. In addition, one person was injured.
The General Assembly of the United Nations is scheduled to hold an emergency session next Monday to deal with the illegal annexation of parts of eastern Ukraine by Russia. This emerges from a letter from the largest UN body to the 193 member states on Tuesday. According to diplomats, during the consultations starting this Monday at 9 p.m. German time, there will also be a vote on a resolution condemning Moscow’s actions.
On Friday, Russia vetoed a similar draft resolution in the UN Security Council – the most powerful body with 15 members. China, India, Brazil and Gabon abstained. When the UN General Assembly votes, a large majority is expected for the conviction.
In its fight against the Russian invaders, Ukraine relies on Western weapons. The US government announced additional deliveries worth US$625 million (€625 million). The package includes other Himars multiple rocket launchers, ammunition and armored vehicles, the White House announced on Tuesday.
In a phone call with Zelenskyy, US President Joe Biden stressed that the US would never recognize the illegal annexation of parts of eastern Ukraine by Russia. Biden stressed the US government’s willingness to impose “heavy costs” on any country that supports the annexation. He promised to help Ukraine defend itself for as long as needed. Selenskyj thanked Biden and the USA in his video.
According to US information, the arms package for Ukraine is Pentagon stocks. This brings US military support to Ukraine to a total equivalent of $17.5 billion since the beginning of Biden’s tenure. Most of the aid has been granted since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression. Just last week, the US government promised an arms package worth $1.1 billion.
Chronically clammy even before the war, Ukraine urgently needs financial aid from the West. In Kyiv, meanwhile, the head of the central bank, Kyrylo Shevchenko, surprisingly handed in his resignation. He stated “health reasons”. According to media reports, the conflict between the finance ministry and the central bank had recently intensified. Shevchenko had spoken out in favor of cuts because of the chronic budget deficit.
Because of the risk of hyperinflation, further financing should no longer be provided by the printing press. In the current draft budget for 2023, a good half of the budget has to be covered by loans, some of which are taken out abroad.
Ukrainian troops continue their offensive in the east and south of the country to liberate towns from the Russian occupation. At the same time, Kremlin chief Putin should complete the annexation of the occupied parts of the Cherson, Zaporizhia, Luhansk and Donetsk regions. He still has to sign the laws on integration in the regions into Russian territory passed by the State Duma and the Federation Council. According to the Kremlin, they are then officially under the protection of the nuclear power.
Also read: The Ukraine update on October 4 – Russia has significant problems on several fronts
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