Ukraine-Russia war live: Drone attack ‘wipes Russian arms depot off face of the Earth’, says Kyiv

Attack triggered an earthquake-sized blast at a major Russian ammo warehouse

Related: Ukraine’s attack is only way to force Russia to negotiating table, Zelensky aide says

Ukraine’s drone attack succeeded in “wip[ing] off the face of the Earth” a major Russian weapons depot in the Tver region, Ukrainian intelligence sources said.

Sources in Ukraine’s SBU security service told The Kyiv Independent that “an extremely powerful detonation began” at the Russian defence ministry’s warehouse in Toropets following a drone strike.

The depot is believed to have housed Iskander and Tochka-U tactical missile systems, guided aerial bombs and artillery ammunition. The attack “literally wiped off the face of the Earth a large warehouse of the main missile and artillery department of the Russian defence ministry,” the source was quoted as saying.

In Kyiv last night, president Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the outcome of the attack without directly referring to the incident. “A very important result was achieved last night on Russian territory and such actions weaken the enemy,” he said. “I thank everyone involved. Such precision is truly inspiring.”

Meanwhile, Mr Zelensky is expected to meet with US Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris when he visits Washington next week, according to reports. Republican nominee Donald Trump has also said he will “probably” meet the Ukrainian president.

Key Points

• Ukrainian energy systems face a difficult winter, EU says
• Russian anger boils up after ammo depot attack: 'What are you doing????'
• North Korean ammo ‘destroyed’ in Tver arms depot strike
• Zelensky says ‘victory plan’ is ready
• Harris, Trump to meet Zelensky next week

[19 September 2024 10:00 · Alex Croft]

Russia and Pakistan to strengthen economic ties

The two countries hope to boost their bilateral trade, it was announced in a joint press conference in Islamabad.

With Russia facing economic isolation following Western sanctions, trade between Russia and Pakistan hit $1 billion dollars last year.

"Even today, we looked at how to expand our relationship, and overcome this constraint of the banking system, which you know are facing sanctions, which obviously constrains our relationship, the volume of our relationship could have been much bigger," Pakistani Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar.

Moscow will also support Pakistan’s bid to join the BRICS alliance, currently consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates. Pakistan applied in 2023.

[19 September 2024 09:45 · Alex Croft]

Ukraine boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk released after brief detention in Poland

Heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk has been released after being briefly detained at Krakow airport in Poland, Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky said.

“I was disappointed by this attitude towards our citizen and champion,” Mr Zelensky said, following a phone call with Usyk. “Our champion has been released, and he is no longer being detained.”

He posted a photo of Usyk with Ukraine’s Consul General in Krakow after the athlete was released.

It was not immediately clear why the 37-year-old was detained. He is one of Ukraine’s most prominent athletes known abroad, and has organised and participated in different projects aiding his country’s efforts to resist Russia’s invasion.

Alexander Butler reports:

[19 September 2024 09:29 · Alex Croft]

Mapped: Russia launches counterattack in Kursk after sending ‘significant’ forces to the region

Mapped: Russia launches counterattack in Kursk after sending ‘significant’ forces to the region

Russia has brought in “significant” reinforcements to carry out a sweeping counterattack on the western flank of Ukraine’s incursion into the Kursk region, maps and analysis have revealed.

Russia’s initial response appeared muted as Vladimir Putin’s interest remained trained on an offensive towards the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region despite Kyiv’s hopes that their Kursk incursion would force Moscow to relocate troops away from that fight in the east.

But footage last week of a column of Russian tanks, believed to belong to a specialist Russian airborne forces (VDV) unit known to be among some of Moscow’s more elite troops, towards the western flank of Ukraine’s attack has presaged a rapid counteroffensive in that direction.

Vadym Mysnyk, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Operational Command “Siversk”, told Ukrainian TV late last week that Moscow had bolstered its Kursk forces from 11,000 at the time of the Ukrainian incursion to up to 45,000.

Fronteligence Insight, a Ukrainian group that tracks the war and is known to have close ties to the military, added that those forces have been bolstered by numerous anti-aircraft and air defence systems.

While territorial defence units are being used to “contain Ukrainian forces”, the group wrote in an update, more mobile units such as tank battalions and air-assault regiments, supported by motor rifle units, are likely being tasked with “breaking through ad-hoc Ukrainian defences”.

Our foreign affairs reporter Tom Watling has more details:

[19 September 2024 09:10 · Alex Croft]

Nearly 190 clashes in the past day, Ukraine says

Intense battles continued on the eastern Pokrovsk and Kurakhove fronts as Ukraine’s General Staff recorded 187 combat clashes over the past day.

Residential areas in Kharkiv - near the northeastern border - were also struck by Russian guided missiles, Ukrainska Pravda reported.

But Pokrovsk and Kurakove, both towns near the eastern city of Donetsk, faced the brunt of Russian assaults in the past day.

Ukrainian forces repelled 46 assaults towards the various settlements around the town of Pokrovsk, a key strategic city for the movement of Ukrainian supplies.

On the Kurakhove front, around 50 kilometres south of Pokrovsk and 50 kilometres west of Donetsk, 40 attacks were repelled.

Ukraine’s operation in Russia’s Kursk region is ongoing, with Russian forces striking their own territory 19 times with 39 guided bombs.

[19 September 2024 08:48 · Alex Croft]

Ukrainian energy systems face a difficult winter, EU says

The European Union believes that Ukraine is expected to face some blackouts after its energy system has been battered by Russian strikes.

But Katarína Mathernová, ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine, does not believe the situation will be catastrophic.

"I would certainly expect that there are going to be some blackouts,” Ms Mathernová told European Pravda.

“But from all the discussions that I’ve been having and the scenarios that we have had, the situation is not going to be catastrophic. It’s going to be difficult, it’s not going to be a pleasant winter."

Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odessa face the most difficult months ahead due to their centralised heating systems.

Ms Mathernová added that the EU will be prepared in case a catastrophic scenario causes many to flee Ukraine - but said she does not expect this to be the case.

[19 September 2024 08:29 · Alex Croft]

Two killed in Russian attacks on Sumy region

Overnight Russian attacks on the Sumy region have left two dead, the area’s military administration said.

Writing on Telegram, it said Russia fired 10 times at border areas with 38 explosions recorded.

Two civilians were killed and two more were wounded, it added according to Ukrainska Pravda.

Russia bombarded around eight settlements in northeastern Ukraine, including Sumy city.

Aerial bombs, mortars and first-person viewed (FPV) drones were used in the strikes.

[19 September 2024 08:11 · Arpan Rai]

Ukraine war and Gaza in focus at Washington meetings next week

More than 130 world leaders will meet at the United Nations next week, faced with wars in the Middle East and Europe threatening to spread, frustration at the slow pace of efforts to end those conflicts, and worsening climate and humanitarian crises.

While the conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Russia’s war in Ukraine are set to dominate the annual high-level UN General Assembly, diplomats and analysts say they don’t expect progress toward peace.

“The wars in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan are going to be the three main crisis-points in focus at the General Assembly. I don’t think we are likely to see breakthroughs on any of them,” said Richard Gowan, UN director at the International Crisis Group.

UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres last week told Reuters that the wars in Gaza and Ukraine were “stuck with no peaceful solutions in sight.”

Volodymyr Zelensky will address the high-level General Assembly gathering for the third time since Russia invaded his country. He is due to address a meeting on Ukraine of the 15-member Security Council on Tuesday and the General Assembly on Wednesday.

My Zelensky has a plan to push Russia to diplomatically end the war that he wants to present to Joe Biden this month. He also wants to share it with both of Biden’s potential successors, Ms Harris and Mr Trump.

[19 September 2024 07:12 · Arpan Rai]

Ukraine downs all 42 Russian drones, missile in overnight attack

The Ukrainian air force said it shot down all 42 drones and one of four missiles used by Russia during an overnight attack.

“The air attack of the enemy was repulsed by aviation, anti-aircraft missile forces, mobile fire groups and units of the Defence Forces of Ukraine. As a result of the anti-aircraft battle, all 42 attack UAVs were shot down!” it said on the Telegram channel.

The threat posed by ballistic weapons was also being countered, the Ukrainian Air Force said, without providing details of any damage caused by the three missiles that were not intercepted.

Russian aerial assets were downed over a host of Ukrainian regions including Dnipropetrovsk, Kyiv, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Cherkasy, Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv and Kherson.

[19 September 2024 06:37 · Arpan Rai]

Russia claims two settlements in Kursk region recaptured

Russia says it has taken back two more villages – Nikolayevo-Darino and Darino – from Ukrainian forces who seized control of part of the western Russian region of Kursk last month.

The claim came in a report by a senior Russian commander, Major General Apti Alaudinov, and there has been no response yet from Ukraine’s General Staff of the Armed Forces, which provides daily updates on frontline developments.

However, Russian advances in Kursk were seen in the past 24 hours, according to a US-based think tank.

“Russian forces recently recaptured territory in the Ukrainian salient in Kursk Oblast amid continued Russian counterattacks in the area on 18 September. Geolocated footage published on 17 and 18 September indicates that Russian forces recently advanced eastward along two forested areas southeast of Korenevo and south of Obukhovka (southeast of Korenevo),” said the Institute for the Study of War.

[19 September 2024 06:12 · Arpan Rai]

Indian ammunition reaches Ukraine despite Moscow’s protests

Artillery shells sold by Indian arms makers have been diverted by European customers to Ukraine and New Delhi has not intervened to stop the trade despite protests from Moscow, officials said.

At least 11 Indian and European government and defence industry officials, as well as a Reuters analysis of commercially available customs data, confirmed the trade of weapons, Reuters reported.

The transfer of munitions to support Ukraine’s defence against Russia has occurred for more than a year, according to the sources and the customs data. Indian arms export regulations limit the use of weaponry to the declared purchaser, who risks future sales being terminated if unauthorised transfers occur.

The Kremlin has raised the issue on at least two occasions, including during a July meeting between Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and his Indian counterpart, three Indian officials said.

The foreign and defence ministries of Russia and India did not respond to questions. In January, Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a news conference that India had not sent or sold artillery shells to Ukraine.