Ukraine-Russia war latest: Putin’s troops advance on Pokrovsk, Kyiv drone ‘starts power plant fire’

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia sees Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Kamala Harris as a more predictable opponent than Republican Donald Trump, but in any case there is no prospect of improving relations between Russia and Washington.

In an interview with Pavel Zarubin, a television journalist with access to the Kremlin, Peskov appeared to shrug off Trump’s boast that he could end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours if American voters put him in the White House.

Before Biden announced his withdrawal from the November election and supported Harris, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow preferred Biden to Trump, calling the former an experienced “old-school” politician.

After Biden lost the election, Zarubin smiled and asked Peskov: “So who is our candidate now?”

Peskov also smiled and replied: “We don’t have a candidate. But the Democrats are certainly more predictable. What Putin said about Biden’s predictability applies to almost all Democrats, including Ms. Harris.”

While both Putin and Peskov said the election was an internal matter for the United States, they expressed varying opinions at different times. In February, for example, Putin praised Biden’s predictability but also touched on the sensitive topic of his fitness for office, with comments that seemed intended to stir up trouble.

In June this year, he said Russia did not care who was the next US president, but the US judicial system was clearly being used in a political fight against Trump.

In an interview published on Sunday, Peskov said that the United States’ actions to “trampling on our country’s interests” have gone beyond acceptable limits. Bilateral relations are at a historic low and there is currently “no prospect” of recovery.

A Kremlin spokesman said there was no “magic wand” that could resolve the Ukraine crisis overnight as Trump promised.

He said it was “just a fantasy” to imagine that the next U.S. president would announce in his inaugural address that Washington would stop military aid to Ukraine and call for peace talks, hoping that this would change the mentality in Kiev.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had used 160 missiles, 780 guided aerial bombs and 400 attack drones against cities and troops across Ukraine in the last week alone, and he again called for permission to use Western-supplied weapons to strike deep into the Russian heartland.

“For the full defense and to secure our cities from aggression, Ukraine needs more support to respond justly,” he said on Telegram.

Zelensky called for “a decision to carry out long-range strikes from Russia on missile launch sites, destroy Russian military logistics, jointly shoot down missiles and drones.”

Business in the allied country is expected to get a boost after the UK-Ukraine Digital Trade Agreement (DTA) comes into effect.

Ukraine is one of the world’s largest exporters of IT services, covering outsourcing, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and other fields (AI) and mobile applications developed rapidly before the war.

The European Union’s top diplomat on Thursday stepped up pressure on Ukraine’s international backers to lift restrictions on arms supplies to the conflict-torn country to allow its armed forces to attack targets inside Ukraine. Russia.

The United States restricts the use of long-range ballistic missiles it provides Ukraine Some EU member states also restrict the use of weapons. Ukraine is eager to attack airports and other military facilities in Russia because they are used to attack Ukrainian armed forces and civilians.

“We need to lift restrictions on the use of weapons against Russian military targets in accordance with international law,” the EU foreign policy chief said. Joseph Borel When EU foreign ministers gathered Brussels Discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Russia will make changes to its nuclear policy in response to Western actions in the conflict in Ukraine, Russian state news agency TASS quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying on Sunday.

Ryabkov did not reveal what impact these changes would have.

Russia’s current nuclear doctrine is stipulated by a decree issued by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2020, which states that Russia can use nuclear weapons if an enemy nuclear or conventional attack threatens the country’s survival.

Russia, which accuses the West of using Ukraine as a proxy for its war against it, has previously said it was considering changing its stance. Ryabkov’s comments were his clearest yet that he would continue to push for those changes.

“The work has now entered an advanced stage and the intention to correct it is clear,” Ryabkov was quoted as saying by TASS.

He said the decision was “related to the escalation process by our Western adversaries in the conflict in Ukraine.”

Kiev is pressuring the United States to allow attacks deep into Russia using weapons provided by the allies.

As its domestic drone industry rapidly develops, Kiev has been stepping up its attacks on Russia, striking energy, military and transportation infrastructure — sectors vital to Moscow’s war effort.

However, Kiev says it needs to be allowed to use more powerful weapons supplied by the West to inflict greater damage inside Russia and weaken Moscow’s ability to continue its attacks on Ukraine, which it invaded in February 2022.

Senior officials of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on the United States in Washington last week to provide what Zelenskiy called a “real, comprehensive” capability to protect the country.

The Ukrainian Air Force said that eight of the 11 drones launched by Russia at night were shot down by Ukraine.

Five people were injured in shelling in the country’s northeastern Kharkiv region, local officials said.

Russia said on Sunday its troops had captured two more settlements in eastern Ukraine, with Kiev’s top commander acknowledging that his forces were under enormous pressure.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces had captured Putyche, about 21 kilometers (13 miles) southeast of Pokrovsk, a key Ukrainian logistical hub, and “continued to push deeper into enemy defenses.” Russia also captured Vimka, another settlement in the Donetsk region, the defense ministry said.

Reuters could not independently confirm the battlefield reports.

Ukraine’s top commander, General Oleksandr Serski, said on Sunday that the situation on Russia’s main offensive front in eastern Ukraine was “difficult” but that all necessary decisions were being taken.

Russia has been waging an offensive in the Donetsk region as it tries to repel a surprise Ukrainian incursion into western Russia that began on August 6.

Ukraine’s top commander, General Oleksandr Serski, said on Sunday that the situation was “difficult” with the main Russian offensive focused on eastern Ukraine, but all necessary decisions were being made.

Serski did not reveal the exact location of Russia’s main offensive operation, but both he and President Volodymyr Zelensky have previously said Russian forces were targeting the strategically important city of Pokrovsk.

“The situation in the enemy’s main offensive direction is difficult. But all necessary decisions are being taken at all levels without delay,” Syrskyi said on the Telegram messaging app.

Thursky said last week he had spent several days on the eastern front near Pokrovsk and described the fighting there as “extremely tough.”

Russia has occupied large swathes of eastern Ukraine since launching a full-scale invasion in February 2022 and continues to advance fiercely there.

Russia’s momentum has continued to grow since Ukraine’s surprise August 6 incursion into Russia’s western Kursk region, a move clearly intended to divert Russian resources and strengthen Kyiv’s position in future negotiations.