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Russia and Ukraine offer competing claims on the state of fighting on the southern front
From Olga Voitovych, Svitlana Vlasova and Tim Lister
Russian and Ukrainian officials report heavy fighting in a small area of the southern front, with no clear sign as to which side may have the upper hand.
The Russian Defense Ministry claims that its units along the southern front lines have repelled attacks by Ukraine near the village of Robotyne, which has been the focus of fighting for several weeks.
Ukrainian officials paint a different picture. Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said there was progress in the area south of Robotyne and west of Verbove. Nearly five square kilometers of territory had been won in the previous week, for a total gain of 256 square kilometers (more than 98 square miles) since the counteroffensive began, she said.
CNN is unable to verify most of the claims made by either side, but Ukrainian units are in control of Robotyne, according to geolocated video, and attacking nearby Verbove.
Meanwhile in the east on the Bakhmut front, both sides have said that the village of Andriivka south of the city is the most intense part of the battle. The Ukrainian blogger Bakhmut Demon said that it was too early to celebrate victory there. Russia “artillery is still working, we have pushed the bastards back significantly, but they are not giving up yet,” the blogger said.
Much further east, and close to the Russian-held capital of Donetsk region, Russian blogger Neofitsyalnyi Bezsonov denied claims that Ukrainian units have a foothold in the heavily contested village of Optyne. “The enemy managed to enter the outskirts of the settlement, after which it was immediately knocked out of there. Optyne is fully under our control.”
Another well-known Russian blogger, Voenkor Kotenok, said Russia's problems in this area remain the same as they were six months ago — shortage of personnel, the lack of competent commanders and assaults.
Ukrainians tell CNN they're prepared for the long haul as the war continues
From Svitlana Vlasova in Kyiv
Residents of Kyiv have been reacting to the warning from President Volodymyr Zelensky that the war against Russia may go on for some time yet.
“I have to be ready, my team has to be ready for the long war, and emotionally I am ready,” Zelensky told the Economist in an interview published Sunday.
Iryna Shpundra, a mother on maternity leave from Kyiv said she and her child had spent a year and a half abroad, but insisted that “Ukrainians are strong in spirit and ready for a long war, because we simply cannot stop it somehow and forget our guys who died or those who are now fighting for us.”
“If we leave things as they are now, we will just give our enemy time to prepare and invade again, but with even greater brutality," Shpundra said. "As a mother of a small child, of course, I would want it to be over as soon as possible and not have our best people die, but the reality is different.”
Yuriy Teplenko, a pensioner and former university lecturer, told CNN: “The war will not end tomorrow, that's for sure. I think it won't even be over next year. And this is very bad, but on the other hand, the ceasefire is even worse.”
Referring to Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Teplenko said: “We need to crush this bastard, otherwise we simply won't have any life. There is no other option here. Objectively speaking, I want to believe that the war will end in victory for Ukraine, but anything can happen.”
A soldier with the call sign Red said he agreed with the president. “The offensive is going on, but at a slow pace, gradually our land is being liberated every day. There can be no such thing as an offensive along the entire front line at the same time, because this will lead to even greater losses.”
Red said he thought the “military are taking everything in stride, because we have no other choice. We cannot surrender and lose, because no one will agree to that. Personally, I am ready to fight until the very end, until they kill me or until we drive them off our land completely.”
Kyiv resident, Kateryna Polishchuk, said she understood ”that we should not expect any immediate success in this war. This war has not been going on for 8 or 10 years, it is a struggle that has been going on for 300 years.”
“I have stayed in Kyiv since the first day of the full-scale invasion, I was born here and have lived here all my life, I love my city and although it was scary, I stayed here," she added.
“I never expected this war to end so quickly, at least given the size of the population of Russia and Ukraine. But in our hearts, of course, we expect victory and ask God for it," Polishchuk said.
Ukrainian officials step up the pressure for long-range missiles
From Olga Voitovych in Kyiv
Ukraine lobbying for longer-range missiles "is not just a whim, but a real need," said Andriy Yermak, head of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office. "The effectiveness of the army on the battlefield, as well as the lives of the military and our progress depend on it,” he added.
Ukrainian officials had been working with partners on the issue for a long time, and that Ukraine’s request for ATACMS missile was moving forward, he added.
The ATACMS is a long-range US-guided missile with a range of around 300 kilometers (186 miles). It would extend the range of Ukrainian attacks well beyond the front lines to Russian supply lines and logistics hubs. Acknowledging this missile capability, Yermak said it would "speed up" Ukraine's victory.
Ukraine is also developing its own longer-range missiles.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba emphasized the critical need for further air defense systems to protect Ukrainian ports used to export grain to the world and to prepare against expected Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure and cities as winter approaches.
At a news conference in Kyiv with the visiting German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, he said discussion on the supply of German long-range Taurus cruise missiles has been under discussion in Berlin for weeks, and expressed frustration at the delay in receiving the weapons.
"We could have achieved more and saved more lives of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians if we already had Taurus. And all we are telling the German government we respect your discussions, we respect your procedures, but from everything we know about Taurus there is not a single objective argument against not doing it," he said.
German foreign minister pledges $21 million to Ukraine on a visit to Kyiv
From CNN's Inke Kappeler in Berlin and Olga Voitovych
Germany is pledging an additional 20 million euros (about $21 million) in humanitarian aid for Ukraine to prepare for winter, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said during a surprise visit to Kyiv Monday.
Baerbock’s visited a transformer substation outside Kyiv which has seen several attacks, as it is playing a major part in the region’s electricity supply.
Ukrainian power supplies had been hit with 1,500 missile attacks “alone last year,“ and the country was preparing for next winter by strengthening its power stations, Baerbock said during a joint news conference with her Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba on Monday in Kyiv. Russia was “obviously planning the attacks again specifically for the fall and winter,“ she said.
Ukrainian officials had urged Germany to provide Ukraine with Taurus cruise missiles for the country's self-defense. “We could have achieved more and saved more lives of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians if we already had Taurus,“ said Kuleba, adding that there was not a single argument against the delivery of the Taurus cruise missiles from Germany.
However, Germany is hesitant about delivering long-range cruise missiles as they could be used for attacks on Russian territory.
Kuleba said Ukraine expects German companies to participate in the defense industries forum that will be held in Kyiv soon.
On the issue of sanctions against Russia, Kuleba resisted the idea of diluting them to enable a revival of the Black Sea grain initiative, as has been demanded by Russia.
“I am aware that there are some forces that support Russia's concessions in this demand,” Kuleba said, but reconnecting Russian banks to the international SWIFT payments system would allow senior Russian officials to make tens of millions of dollars.
North Korea's Kim Jong Un will visit Putin in Russia. Here’s what you need to know
From CNN staff
The Kremlin has confirmed what until now had only been speculation: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will visit Russia “in the coming days,” spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Monday. The US government first warned last week that Kim may travel to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin for discussions on a potential deal to supply Moscow with weapons for its war in Ukraine.
While Peskov did not specify when the meeting would take place, multiple South Korean media outlets reported earlier Monday that Kim appeared to be on a train headed to Russia.
Here are the latest developments:
- Kim to visit Russia: Kim “will pay an official visit to Russia in the coming days” at Putin's invitation, the Kremlin said in a statement Monday. The confirmation came days after the US National Security Council claimed that arms negotiations between Russia and North Korea are “actively advancing,” after Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Pyongyang in July in an attempt to convince it to sell artillery ammunition to Moscow.
- Putin in Vladivostok: While the Kremlin did not specify when or where the two leaders would meet, the New York Times reported last week that the then-unconfirmed meeting between Kim and Putin may take place on the campus of a university in Russia's far eastern city of Vladivostok. Putin arrived in Vladivostok on Monday to attend the meeting of the annual Eastern Economic Forum.
- Local election fallout: The European Union condemned the “illegitimate” elections held over the weekend in Russian-annexed parts of Ukraine, and said it will not recognize their results. The elections – dismissed by the international community as a sham – represented another attempt by Moscow to paint a false picture of Russian legitimacy in the parts of Ukraine it has invaded. Putin’s United Russia party unsurprisingly dominated the results, state-run news agency TASS reported Sunday.
- Russian presidential election buildup: “No one will be able to compete” with Putin if he chooses to run for reelection in 2024, Peskov said Monday, because he “enjoys absolute support from the population.” Russia’s next presidential election is due to be held next year, where Putin is expected to secure a fifth term.
- Grain deal hunger: Russia’s withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative is putting “the right to food far out of reach for many people,” the UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said Monday. Turk claimed that global hunger levels have returned to where they were in 2005, with nearly 600 million people projected to be “chronically undernourished” by 2030. He said that Russia’s withdrawal from the grain deal in July – and its subsequent bombardment of Ukraine’s ports – were fueling global food insecurity.
- Ukraine’s eastern advances: Ukrainian officials reported gradual progress in the east of the country – including an unexpected success near the airport of the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk. Ukraine’s deputy defense minister Hanna Maliar said Monday that Ukrainian forces had managed to take part of Opytne village, close to the airport, and had “pushed the enemy out of their strongholds” to the south of Bakhmut. However, unofficial pro-Russian sources disputed some of Ukraine’s claims.
- Russia's G20 success: Russia deemed the G20 Summit in India an "unconditional success," after the meeting's final declaration refrained from explicitly condemning its invasion of Ukraine. The final group statement said "all states must refrain from the threat or use of force to seek territorial acquisition" – but stopped short of singling out Russia.
Battle persists for village near Donetsk airport as Ukraine reports advances in east
From CNN’s Olga Voitovych
Unofficial pro-Russian sources in Donetsk region are contesting Ukrainian claims that they have established a foothold in a village north of the eastern city Donetsk.
Donbas Operatsiya ZOV, an unofficial Telegram channel, said the Ukrainians had taken a quarry near the village and positions north of it.
"They are also trying to get through in small groups. That's all. There are no fights in Opytne."
The channel added: “Is it bad that we screwed up the quarry? Yes, it's not good. The guys from the 1st Sloviansk Brigade are on their way to take it back.”
The comments came after Ukraine’s deputy defense minister Hanna Maliar claimed Monday that Ukrainian units had managed to take part of Optyne village, north of Donetsk airport.
“It is currently unknown what is happening in the village. We have information that there are still civilians there,” a local Ukrainian official, Vitalii Barabash, told Radio Liberty.
Barabash said Ukrainian soldiers had entered the village, but added that “the fighting is still ongoing. The enemy is constantly putting pressure, the enemy is constantly trying to recapture lost ground.”
He said that “at the beginning of the full-scale war, 44 people stayed in Opytne. Now there are 5-6, and we have no contact with them.”
EU "strongly condemns" sham elections held in Russian-annexed parts of Ukraine
From CNN's Sharon Braithwaite in London
The European Union "strongly" condemned the "illegitimate" elections held over the weekend in Russian-annexed parts of Ukraine, adding that it will not recognize their results.
"These illegal so-called 'elections' in Ukraine took place amidst Russia’s forced and illegal granting of passports, including to children, forced transfer and deportation, widespread and systematic violations and abuses of human rights as well as intimidation and increasing repression of Ukrainian citizens by Russia and its illegitimately appointed authorities in the temporary occupied territories of Ukraine," the EU's top diplomat Josep Borrell said Monday in a press release.
Borrell urged Russia to "immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its troops and military equipment from the entire territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders."
"Sham" elections: Russia staged regional and local elections from September 8-10 in southern and eastern parts of Ukraine it has illegally annexed.
The elections represented another attempt by Moscow to enforce a narrative of Russian legitimacy in the parts of Ukraine it holds — areas of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Luhansk regions — even as Kyiv's counteroffensive makes some progress towards liberating towns in the south.
The international community broadly dismissed the elections as a sham.
A resident of the southern city of Melitopol told CNN "the election results are already well known" — before the vote had even been held.
Russian aggression in Ukraine "synonymous with torture,” says UN official
From CNN's Tim Lister
Russia’s armed aggression “is becoming synonymous with torture and other inhuman cruelty,” according to the United Nations official responsible for investigating torture.
“The volume of credible allegations of torture and other inhumane acts that are being perpetrated against civilians and prisoners of war by Russian authorities appears to be unabating,” UN Special Rapporteur Alice Jill Edwards said Sunday at the end of her visit to Kyiv.
“These grievous acts appear neither random nor incidental, but rather orchestrated as part of a state policy to intimidate, instil fear, punish, or extract information and confessions,” Edwards said.
Edwards said she had gathered “harrowing testimonies involving electric charges being applied to ears and genitals, beatings of all kinds, mock executions at gunpoint, simulated drowning, being required to hold stress positions, threats of rape or death, and various ceremonies of ridicule and humiliation.”
“Returned Ukrainian civilians and soldiers recounted being crowded in basem*nts and cells, in congested conditions, and being poorly fed. Several lost dangerous levels of weight.”
Edwards also visited places in Ukraine where Russian prisoners of war are held.
“I found that sincere efforts have been made by the Ukrainian authorities to treat Russian prisoners of war respectfully. The barrack-style facilities I visited were hygienic and orderly. Prisoners were being well fed," she said.
Growing evidence: Edwards' comments came days after Ukraine's Prosecutor General Andrii Kostin claimed that roughly 90% of Ukrainian prisoners of war had been subjected to torture, rape and other forms of cruel treatment.
Ukraine found "evidence of these horrors in all the liberated territories," Kostin said, during a meeting with Edwards last week.
According to Ukrainian government figures, over 103,000 war crimes proceedings have been registered so far.
“The work that the Ukrainian authorities are undertaking to document war crimes is all the more impressive given that it is being carried out ‘in real time.’ That early action is virtually unprecedented anywhere in the world,” Edwards said at the conclusion of her visit to Ukraine.
However, Edwards warned that there are major obstacles to bringing the alleged perpetrators to justice. The inaccessibility of presently-occupied areas, the loss of crucial evidence due to deterioration and lapse of time between the crime and liberation when investigations can begin, and adapting the criminal justice system to be able to process and prosecute international atrocity crimes, will all pose challenges to Ukrainian prosecutors.
"No one will be able to compete" with Putin if he runs for president in 2024, says Kremlin spokesperson
From CNN’s Anna Chernova and Stephanie Halasz
“No one will be able to compete” with Russian President Vladimir Putin if he decides to run for reelection in 2024, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Monday.
Peskov, quoted by the state-run media Russia-24, claimed Putin “enjoys absolute support from the population.”
"The president has not yet announced that he will nominate his candidacy. But if we assume that the president does, then it is obvious that in our country at the current stage no one can really compete with the President,” Peskov was quoted as saying.
Preparations for the presidential elections have not yet begun in the Kremlin, Peskov said.
Russia’s next presidential election is due to be held in March 2024, with a possible second round theoretically being held in April.
In 2020, Russian lawmakers voted in favor of a last-ditch proposal to reset the clock on Putin’s presidential term count in an updated version of the constitution, in effect allowing Putin to remain as president until 2036.
Peskov's comments about the next presidential election come the day after elections were held in several annexed regions of Ukraine. These elections — expected to deliver victories for Putin's United Russia party candidates, many of whom ran unopposed — were widely dismissed as a sham by the international community.
