Friday, October 4

Russia’s war against Ukraine

The kitchen of a commercial building appears exposed after a wall collapsed due to bombings on October 3, 2024, in Myrnohrad, Ukraine. Russian invading forces, approximately two kilometers from Myrnohrad, are advancing and pushing Ukrainian defenses toward the city. (Pierre Crom/Getty Images)

‘Lives are more important than buildings’ — Zelensky defends Vuhledar withdrawal. President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Oct. 3 that the decision of the Ukrainian military to withdraw from the front-line town of Vuhledar was “absolutely correct” as it helped save the lives of Ukrainian soldiers.

Ukraine denies Russian claims about attempted attack on Kursk nuclear plant. Kursk Oblast Governor Alexei Smirnov claimed that a Ukrainian drone was neutralized by electronic warfare means near Kurchatov. Its fall allegedly caused explosions at an outbuilding not related to the nuclear plant.

Russia attacking Kursk Oblast settlements with no Ukrainian troops present, Kyiv’s military claims. “The local population doesn’t understand why they are being hit (by Russian forces) because the (Ukrainian) military is not even nearby,” Vadym Mysnyk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military’s Operational Tactical Group Siversk, said.

Zelensky calls for jointly intercepting Russian missiles during NATO chief Rutte’s visit to Kyiv. Newly appointed NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte arrived in Kyiv on Oct. 3 for a surprise visit, NATO spokesperson Farah Dakhlallah said.

Part of Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast to lack water supply for ‘indefinite period.’ “Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka, Kostiantynivka, and nearby settlements where roughly 260,000 people live will have problems with water supply due to heavy Russian attacks,” Governor Vadym Filashkin said.

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Ukrainian drones strike Russian airfield in Voronezh Oblast, SBU source says. According to the source, Russian warehouses containing guided aerial bombs, hangars with Su-35 and Su-34 aircraft, and aviation fuel storage facilities were targeted.

Ukrainian Legion launches first volunteer recruitment center in Poland. During the first days of the recruitment center’s opening in Lublin, 138 applications for interviews were received through the website and another 58 through consular offices, according to the Defense Ministry.

Gazprom becomes Russia’s least profitable company in 2023, Forbes reports. In the meantime, Gazprom’s net cash flow from operating activities increased by 5% to $242 billion in 2023.

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Ukraine war latest: Ukraine strikes Russian airfield in Voronezh Oblast, source says

Drones operated by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) attacked the Borisoglebsk military airfield in Russia’s Voronezh Oblast overnight on Oct. 3. The attack was reportedly carried out in cooperation with Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces.

Image: Source

Russian losses in Ukraine mount in September, 2nd-deadliest month since start of full-scale invasion

September was the second-deadliest month for Russian forces fighting in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion. The daily reports from the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces show 38,130 Russian soldiers were reported as casualties last month.

Photo: Pablo Miranzo/Anadolu via Getty Images

We asked experts what the Middle East escalation could mean for Ukraine

Fears of a broader war in the Middle East have been mounting since Iran launched its largest-ever aerial attack against Israel on Oct. 1, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to retaliate while waging a ground incursion into Lebanon.

Photo: Avi Ohayon (GPO) / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images

Human cost of war

Russian attacks against Ukraine kill 2, injure 41 over past day. Russian attacks against Ukraine killed two people and injured 41 others over the past day, regional authorities said on Oct. 3.

Russian attacks on Sumy Oblast injure 8. Russian forces attacked 14 communities in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy Oblast on Oct. 3, injuring eight people throughout the day, the regional administration reported.

Russia strikes Chernihiv Oblast, killing 3, injuring 4, including children. Russian forces attacked the Koriukivka district in Chernihiv Oblast on Oct. 3, hitting a car that was carrying liquefied gas, Governor Viacheslav Chaus said.

Ukrainian Reuters cameraman injured in Kramatorsk attack regains consciousness after coma, begins speaking. Reuters camera operator Ivan Lubysh-Kirdey, who was severely injured during a Russian strike on a hotel in Kramatorsk on Aug. 24, has regained consciousness and started speaking, according to his wife, Mariia Semenchenko.

Opinions and insights

Opinion: Silent victims of sexual violence, Ukraine’s male POWs deserve real support

“Ukrainian men detained by Russian and Russian-affiliated forces, including prisoners of war, regularly report that their captors, including penitentiary staff, engaged in sexual violence,” writes Kseniya Kvitka, assistant researcher at Human Rights Watch.

Photo: Oleksandr Gusev/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images

International response

Ukraine receives Patriot air defense system from Romania. Ukraine received a Patriot air defense system from Bucharest, a Romanian Defense Ministry spokesperson Constantin Spinu confirmed.

Switzerland to pledge $1.7 billion for reconstruction projects in Ukraine. Switzerland is planning to allocate 1.5 billion Swiss francs ($1.7 billion) for reconstruction projects in Ukraine over the next four years, Swiss Ambassador to Ukraine and Moldova Felix Baumann said.

Ukraine receives over one-third of pledged shells from Czech initiative, ambassador says. Ukraine has received more than one-third of the expected 500,000 rounds of 155-mm shells to be delivered under the Czech initiative by the end of the year, Ukraine’s Ambassador to Czechia Vasyl Zvarych said in an interview with CTK news agency published on Oct. 3.

Slovak PM wants to ‘restore relations’ with Russia after war ends. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said he plans to resume “economic and standard relations” with Russia after the end of Moscow’s war against Ukraine, the RTVS broadcaster reported on Oct. 3.

In other news

Moldova uncovers $15 million Russian-backed plot to influence upcoming elections with bribes, disinformation. Moldovan authorities have revealed a scheme led by a pro-Russian oligarch aimed at influencing upcoming elections by paying ordinary citizens to vote against closer ties with the West.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Teah Pelechaty, Kateryna Denisova, Martin Fornusek, Kateryna Hodunova, Olena Goncharova and Sonya Bandouil.

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