Ukraine-Russia war live: Moscow launches 80 drones amid warnings Putin planning airstrikes on nuclear sites
Kyiv asks UN nuclear watchdog to establish permanent monitoring missions at its nuclear plants
Your support helps us to tell the story
My recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.
Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.
Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyond
Eric Garcia
Washington Bureau Chief
Vladimir Putin’s troops launched 80 attack drones at Ukraine overnight as Kyiv warned Russia was planning airstrikes on the country’s nuclear sites.
Ukraine’s air defence units destroyed 71 of the drones while six of them were scrambled with electronic warfare, Kyiv said.
It comes as Ukraine’s foreign minister Andriy Sybiha warned Moscow was planning strikes on Ukraine’s nuclear facilities before the winter.
“According to Ukrainian intelligence, the Kremlin is preparing strikes on Ukrainian nuclear energy critical objects ahead of winter,” Mr Sybiha wrote on X.
He urged the International Atomic Energy Agency and Ukraine’s allies to establish permanent monitoring missions at the country’s nuclear plants.
“This is preparation for a possible nuclear disaster scenario. Russia is a terrorist,” Andriy Yermak, president Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff wrote on Telegram.
Meanwhile, at least 12 people were injured after Russian forces struck a multistorey apartment building in Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, on Saturday evening, officials said.
On the other side of the border, Russia evacuated over 1,000 people from Krasnodar in the wake of a Ukrainian drone attack on Saturday.
In sharing nuclear secrets with Iran, Putin may have crossed his own ‘red line’
In sharing nuclear secrets with Iran, Putin may have crossed his own ‘red line’
While his predecessors in the Soviet Union worried that sharing their bomb with rogue regimes could set them loose to cause havoc, the Russian president has indicated that he shares no such concerns, writes Mark Almond
Iran withheld launchers for missiles sent to Russia, sources say
Iran did not include mobile launchers with the close-range ballistic missiles that Washington last week accused Tehran of delivering to Russia for use against Ukraine, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter.
The sources - a European diplomat, a European intelligence official and a U.S. official - said it was not clear why Iran did not supply launchers with the Fath-360 missiles, raising questions about when and if the weapons will be operational.
The US official, who like the other sources spoke on condition of anonymity, said Iran had not delivered the launchers at the time of the US announcement about Iran’s delivery of the weapons. The European intelligence official said without elaborating that they did not expect Iran to provide launchers.
I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1 million
I’ve witnessed first-hand the horrific cost of Putin’s war – as casualties hit 1m
As the conflict reaches its grim milestone, The Independent’s frontline reporter Askold Krushelnycky explains why Russian forces are taking the brunt of the damage
He led Ukraine’s drone industry – now he’s fighting to keep Moscow out of world chess
He led Ukraine’s drone industry – now he’s fighting to keep Moscow out of world chess
Oleksandr Kamyshin spent more than a year as minister of strategic industries, overseeing Ukraine’s defence industry. He tells Askold Krushelnycky about his latest challenge
Comment: Is this the next target on Russia’s hitlist?
Is this the next target on Russia’s hitlist?
A year after Armenia was abandoned by the West during the Nagorno-Karabakh crisis, it cannot be left to face a new threat on its own, says David Alton
Kremlin prisoner-swap exclusive: How I survived 11 months in Putin’s gulag
Vladimir Kara-Murza: How I survived 11 months of torture in Putin’s gulag
Vladimir Kara-Murza, one of the faces of Russian opposition to Putin alongside Evan Gershkovich, sits down with The Independent for the first time since being freed in a historic prisoner swap. Tom Watling reports
Ukraine says Russia planning strikes on nuclear facilities
Ukraine’s foreign minister said on Saturday that Russia appeared to be planning strikes on Ukrainian nuclear facilities before the winter, urging the IAEA and Ukraine’s allies to establish permanent monitoring missions at the country’s nuclear plants.
“In particular, it concerns open distribution devices at (nuclear power plants and) transmission substations, critical for the safe operation of nuclear energy,” Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha wrote on X.
Mapped: Ukraine’s incursion into the Russian Kursk region explained
Mapped: Ukraine’s incursion into the Russian Kursk region explained
Ukraine’s attack into Kursk has left Vladimir Putin’s forces scrambling
The downfall of Putin is inevitable, says freed dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza
The fall of Putin is inevitable, says freed dissident Vladimir Kara Murza
Exclusive: Key British-Russian activist tells Tom Watling that even if he and other opposition leaders are killed, others will come in their place to challenge Putin, as he thanked The Independent for reporting his plight
Zelensky hopes to meet Donald Trump next week
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he hoped to meet Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump next week when he travels to the United States to present Ukraine’s “victory plan” in the war against Russia.
“We will most likely have a meeting, I think, on September 26-27,” Zelensky told media late on Friday, without providing further details.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments