Fighting
– Russian drone strikes hit Kharkiv’s Slobidskyi and Osnovyansk districts, damaging an apartment block, injuring residents and starting a fire. Mayor Ihor Terekhov said 22 people were evacuated from part of the damaged building. A separate drone strike near a medical facility injured a doctor and damaged the building and vehicles.
– Kharkiv region governor Oleh Syniehubov said 11 drones were used in the attack and seven people were wounded in total.
– Russian authorities temporarily halted flights at Krasnodar International Airport for safety reasons after the attacks.
– Moscow officials reported that Russian air defences shot down four Ukrainian drones headed for the city; Sheremetyevo and Vnukovo airports briefly suspended operations before reopening.
– Ukrainian drone strikes severely damaged the power grid across Russian-occupied Donetsk, leaving about 65 percent of consumers without electricity, according to Denis Pushilin, head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic. Ukraine’s drone forces commander, Major Robert Brovdi, said units hit the Starobeshivska and Zuivska thermal power plants.
– Kyiv said it used US-supplied ATACMS long-range missiles to strike military targets inside Russia, calling the strikes a significant development and indicating such long-range strikes will continue.
– Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov inspected troops in eastern Ukraine, with state media showing him presenting awards.
Military aid
– The US approved a $105 million arms sale to help maintain Patriot air-defence systems, including upgrades to allow launchers to fire more missiles simultaneously (M901 to M903 upgrades).
– Spain announced a new military aid package for Ukraine worth 615 million euros (about $710 million). Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Spain stands with Ukraine and criticised Vladimir Putin’s ‘neoimperialism.’
Regional security and preparations
– UK MPs warned the country lacks a comprehensive defensive plan for a military attack, while at least 13 sites in the UK were identified for new munitions and explosives factories.
– Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said two Ukrainian nationals who allegedly collaborated with Russia were identified as responsible for an explosion on a Polish rail route to Ukraine; he described the sabotage as intentional and aimed at causing a catastrophe. The Kremlin accused Poland of succumbing to Russophobia after Warsaw blamed Ukrainians allegedly recruited by Russian intelligence.
– NATO forces practised counter-drone tactics in Nowa Dęba, Poland, with troops from the US, UK, Romania and Poland participating. The US-made, AI-powered MEROPS counter-drone system was demonstrated.
– A draft seen by Reuters indicates the European Commission will propose an initiative to speed development and procurement of innovative defence technologies across the bloc.
Ceasefire and diplomacy
– President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine will seek to reactivate diplomatic talks to end the war and planned a trip to Türkiye to pursue negotiations with Russia; there have been no face-to-face talks since meetings in Istanbul in July.
– US special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to join Zelenskyy in Türkiye, a Ukrainian official told AFP.
– Ukraine plans to claim $43 billion in climate-related compensation from Russia to fund a green post-war rebuild, Deputy Minister Pavlo Kartashov said at the UN climate conference in Brazil, warning the war’s climate impacts will extend beyond Ukraine.
Politics and diplomacy
– One of Ukraine’s main opposition parties blocked a parliamentary vote to dismiss two ministers over a corruption probe, demanding the removal of the entire cabinet instead.
– Zelenskyy made a one-day visit to Spain and visited Picasso’s Guernica, the painting that depicts the horrors of war and civilian bombing.
Economy and sanctions
– Rostec, Russia’s state conglomerate, said defence exports have fallen by about half since 2022 as domestic military orders took priority; CEO Sergey Chemezov said production has been redirected mainly to supply Russia’s armed forces.
– Russian lawmakers approved a key second reading of a bill to raise value-added tax from 20 percent to 22 percent as Moscow seeks additional revenue amid nearly four years of conflict.
– US oil major ExxonMobil is reportedly considering options to buy parts of sanctioned Russian oil firm Lukoil’s international assets, joining Chevron in studying potential purchases, including stakes in Kazakhstan’s Karachaganak and Tengiz fields where US and Russian companies are partners.
