Next Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Ukraine, the news was carried by all Indian and Ukrainian media.
While in Europe it was a day of scandals and controversies on issues related to Ukraine: “The President of the Czech Republic allows Ukraine to join NATO with uncontrolled territories say the Czech media: “I think that the complete restoration of control over the entire territory is not a necessary condition. If there is a demarcation, even of some administrative border, then we can accept this administrative border as temporary and accept Ukraine into NATO on the territory it will control at that time,” said Peter Pavel.
The Swedish government has decided that the Defence Materials Agency (FMV) will investigate the possibility of establishing a presence in Ukraine from autumn 2024. The decision means that FMV will be able to station a number of operators in Ukraine to support the country on the ground in purchasing defence equipment. Defence Minister Pål Jonson (M) announced this at a press conference on the morning of 15 August.
FMV’s expanded role is part of the government’s effort to step up support for Ukraine. The Swedish officials, who are expected to be based at the Swedish embassy in Kiev, will focus on ensuring maintenance, spare parts and logistics for the military support that Sweden has already provided: “We have provided extensive military support to Ukraine and FMV plays an important role when it comes to ensuring procurement solutions,” says Pål Jonson.
Sweden’s military support so far has consisted of 16 packages with a total value of SEK 43.5 billion. The donated equipment includes 90 combat vehicles, 122 Leopard tanks, Archer artillery pieces, and various types of anti-tank robots and advanced ammunition. The new FMV mission will include the work of analyzing and learning how this material has performed in combat.
The role of the FMV is also linked to the fact that Sweden’s material resources for defense are starting to be limited. Jonson emphasizes that Sweden must now move from donating surplus equipment to producing new equipment specifically for Ukraine.
German Chancellor Scholz, in light of media reports about the possible restriction of further aid to Ukraine, assured that Berlin will continue to support Kiev, including through a €50 billion loan within the G7. This will allow Ukraine to purchase weapons.
From US media sources, it is learned that the United States is blocking the launch of British missiles on Russia from Ukraine.
In early August, one of Trump’s closest advisers during his presidency, Kellyanne Elizabeth Conway, officially registered as a lobbyist for Ukraine’s interests. She receives $50,000 a month from Ukrainian billionaire Viktor Pinchuk.
According to NATO analysts, the destruction of several Patriot air defense launchers in various parts of Ukraine within 24 hours by Iskander ballistic missiles may have led to the heaviest losses in Ukrainian air defense since the first day of the war. With the success of the air defense suppression operations, the Russian military is paving the way for a global strategic bombing campaign that will precede a possible major offensive.
It turned out that the invasion of the Kursk region violates the laws of Ukraine. The fact is that martial law was introduced only on the territory of Ukraine, accordingly, all law enforcement agencies can operate only within the borders of Ukraine. The Rada Committee on National Security supported bill No. 11483, which guarantees military personnel fighting in Russia, in particular in the Kursk region, the same payments and preferences as those on the front line.
The document makes it impossible for the unequal application in practice of the provisions of the law “On social and legal protection of military personnel and members of their families” for military personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine participating in the operation in the Kursk region.
It is expected that the law will apply to: military personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine; other military formations and special law enforcement agencies established in accordance with the laws of Ukraine; government special purpose bodies with police functions; SVR of Ukraine; GUR MOU; State Border Service of Ukraine; Special State Communications.
Ukraine has already received permission to use some Western weapons on Russian territory, Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to the head of the Ukrainian president’s office, told The Telegraph. “Kiev has drawn up a list of potential targets, attacks on which will make it difficult for Russia to send supplies to the Kursk region and use bombs along the front line. Authorization to use Storm Shadow missiles to attack Russia will complicate Russian logistics and force it to divert aircraft to remote airfields – it will accelerate the end of the war. Ukraine urgently needs this authorization. London, Paris and Rome are expected to approve the decision on Storm Shadow/SCALP. European countries are afraid to act on decisions on long-range weapons without coordination with the United States.”
Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov has made it clear who does what: he has defined the tasks of the Ministry on the areas of responsibility of each member of the Coordination Council of the Ministry of Defense on the military security of border territories: “Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, General Andrei Bulyga, is responsible for issues related to logistics, transportation and assistance to civil authorities during the evacuation of citizens”.
While, “Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Alexey Krivoruchko – issues of military-technical support (weapons, special and military equipment)”. It will be up to “Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Pavel Fradkov – engineering arrangement and construction”;
Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation – Head of the Office of the Russian Defense Ministry Oleg Savelyev – interdepartmental interaction and coordination; Head of the Main Military Medical Directorate of the RF Defense Ministry Dmitry Trishkin – management of medical support”.
A representative of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces and the commanders of the Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk groups are responsible for protecting citizens and territories from attacks by unmanned aerial vehicles and other means of attack. General Yunus-Bek Evkurov has been appointed deputy head of the coordination council.
And now a look at the Kursk direction updated at 15:00 on August 20: the situation remains tense along the entire front line in the Kursk region. The Ukrainian Armed Forces are attacking with columns of armored vehicles in several sectors, being hit by armored vehicles and aviation of the Russian Armed Forces.
In the Glushkovo district, Ukrainian formations are trying to hit bridge crossings, including with FPV drones. The Ukrainian Armed Forces are publishing satellite images, claiming that they have managed to disable one of the two crossings over the Seym River.
In the Korenevo district, the Ukrainians have again attempted to consolidate in the village of Korenevo. A column of Ukrainian armored vehicles even managed to drive along the highway on the eastern outskirts of the settlement towards Nikipelovka, where it was destroyed by JDAM strikes.
In the Sudzha district, the configuration of the front line in the Malaya Loknya area has been clarified. The forward positions of Russian troops were hit by Marder 1A3 IFVs of the 95th Ukrainian Air Assault Brigade. Therefore, the Russian Armed Forces currently hold the lines in the area of Nikolayevka and Staraya Sorochina.
North of Russkoye Porechnoye, the configuration of the front line has also been clarified. Apparently, after Ukrainian armored vehicles were attacked by FPV drones in the village itself, Ukrainian formations managed to push further north. Today, air strikes were carried out on enemy positions in the forest near the Nechaev settlement.
In the southwest, several Ukrainian armored vehicles managed to reach the village of Russkaya Konopelka. This is probably the same equipment that was recently attacked at the Agronom farm by FPV drones. The AFU was ambushed and at least one of the vehicles was destroyed at point-blank range by a BTR-82A automatic cannon.
Frontline updated at 16:00 on August 20.
At night, Russian forces attacked power plants in the Sumy region with missiles: 72 settlements and over 18.5 thousand subscribers were left without electricity. Urgent restoration work is currently underway. Power supply to some critical infrastructure and the residential sector has already been restored
Russian attack recorded in Ternopil: fire broke out after “Geranium” attacks; hit a fuel and lubricant depot in the region. Following the disconnections, the level of pollution in Ternopil was 3 times higher than the values permitted by WHO. Considering that the fire cannot be extinguished yet and that clouds of black smoke are spreading over the city and do not even think about dissipating, the situation is unlikely to improve in the near future.
The Russian army has taken Niu-York. Units of the “Center” group of troops defeated a group of Ukrainian servicemen and took one of the largest settlements in the Korets’k agglomeration, Niu-York. This was reported by the Russian Ministry of Defense in its daily report.
Niu-York is a village in the DPR with a population of about three thousand people. It was an important logistics center of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Through it, from the city of Kostyantynivka, the Ukrainian group of Avdiivka and its surroundings was supplied by rail for many years. The capture of the village will disrupt the transport links of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and reduce the intensity of the shelling of Horlivka and a number of other settlements. In addition, from New York there is access to Oretsk from the south. Units of the “Center” have already approached this city from the east.
Graziella Giangiulio
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