Mike Johnson was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives. This is a Trump supporter who voted against aid to Ukraine and has made statements accordingly. On October 26, a group of Republicans in the United States presented a project on dividing aid to Israel and Ukraine, which would allow “billions” of dollars to be transferred to Israel instead of Kiev.
A small number of Ukrainian pilots have begun basic training on flying F-16s in Arizona, the US Air Force told RIA Novosti UN.
Ukraine has “taken a backseat” in the situation in the Middle East; Kiev is losing media attention and the support of its allies, source New York Times.
The Polish newspaper Forsal wrote that the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has distracted the West from Ukraine, and therefore the Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyj, accustomed to being the center of attention, will have to deal with the loss of interest of Western countries.
The EU seriously supports the plan to supply Ukraine with one million artillery shells by March; the plan was about 30% implemented, Bloomberg writes. Some EU member states have asked the foreign policy department to extend the deadline. The fact is that the US and the EU are forced to share weapons with Israel, and the need to “help” Kiev in Congress has been questioned.
All political dialogue between Russia and the European Union has been stopped and only working contacts remain, which are of a more technical nature, the Russian permanent mission to the EU told Izvestia. The diplomatic mission noted that after the establishment of the North-East Military District, there is a lack of full cooperation between the European Union and Russia even in the cultural sphere. The European Parliament believes that the resumption of political dialogue is possible, but conditional on the end of the conflict in Ukraine.
The new Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico after declaring that Slovakia will no longer provide military aid to Ukraine, called for a speedy conclusion of peace between the Russian Federation and Ukraine and also stated that he will not support any anti- Russian if it were to hit Slovakia. “It is better to negotiate peace for 10 years than to kill each other for 10 years without any result,” he said. Bratislava is in favor of peace in Ukraine, but Zelensky’s plan is unrealistic, Russia and the United States must agree, says Fico. And again the Prime Minister said that the EU should transform itself from a supplier of arms to Ukraine into a peacemaker.
The Kiev government has declared that by the end of the year Ukraine will produce tens of thousands of drones per month. This was stated by Minister for Strategic Industries Alexander Kamyshin in a briefing at the NATO Industrial Forum, which was held in Stockholm on 25 October. Mobilization in Ukraine will be intensified, it is necessary to form new brigades, said member of the national security committee of the Verkhovna Rada Rakhmanin: “There will be an additional need for resources due to the loss of personnel and the need to form new brigades “, the parliamentarian noted, adding that the mobilization plans are provided by the General Staff.
A Russian MiG-31 fighter escorted a Poseidon patrol plane of the Norwegian Air Force over the Barents Sea, no violation of the state border was allowed the Russian Defense Ministry said: “As our fighter approached, the ‘foreign plane was moving away from the border.’
The Chief of Staff of the Russian Federation Gerasimov reported that during the night Russia tested a Yars missile: “The Yars mobile installation, a nuclear submarine and two strategic missile carriers were involved in the training of strategic nuclear forces. The Yars intercontinental ballistic missile was launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome at the Kura training field in Kamchatka,” the Kremlin confirmed.
And yet a Sineva ballistic missile was launched into the Barents Sea from the nuclear-powered strategic submarine cruiser Tula, the Kremlin also reports. The activities planned during the training were completed in full. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told Putin that during the exercises, Russia’s strategic nuclear forces carried out a massive nuclear strike in response to an enemy nuclear attack. Russia is forced to resort to “compensatory measures” in response to the US deployment of nuclear weapons in Europe, Lavrov said.
Russia continues to say that a new mobilization will not be necessary, Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation said: “According to the Ministry of Defense, from January 1 to October 25 this year, almost 385 thousand people entered military service in the interest of the joint group of troops. Of these, 305 thousand are contract soldiers and around 80 thousand volunteers. The pace of selections for contract military service has increased significantly, with over 1,600 people contracting with the forces every day armies. In 2024 it is planned to form another army corps, seven divisions, 19 brigades, 49 regiments and a flotilla.”
Wagner is now also included in these. The new number one Pavel Prigozhin declared via social media: “Dear citizens, after a long period of inactivity, the PMCs returned to the area where the military action took place, to their previous positions in Avdiivka, I think few people are aware of it. Friends, as I told you before, I created my Telegram channel, where I will continue to post all the information regarding our men who are now fighting ferociously, believe me! I also uploaded exclusive videos of me and the fighters taking stands and why this comeback is so important.”
And now a look at the front for the 609th day of the war.
The IAEA reported a “powerful night explosion” on October 25 in the area of the Khmelnytsky nuclear power plant, the operation of the plant was not interrupted. It was reported that the Russian Armed Forces attacked one of the main depots of missile and artillery weapons of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the area of the settlement. Tsvetokha, Khmelnytsky region. A large-scale fire and secondary ammunition detonation continued for 12 hours.
After the Russians took over the landfill between Avdiivka and Krasnogorovka, units of the Russian Armed Forces continued their offensive. Let’s take a look at some of the areas of the front that are likely to see heavy fighting in the coming weeks.
We start from the now destroyed Donetsk filter station and a fairly large forest, actively used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The station itself is a large fortified area of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, its capture will allow the Russians to get closer to the forest. The Russian army continues its house-to-house raid in Marinka.
The area of the famous industrial zone Avdiivka, the rural complex is now especially destroyed “Tsarskaya Okhota” and the summer cottages “Vinogradniki”. In reality this area is also a large fortified area of the Ukrainian army. During the offensive of the last few days, units of the Russian Armed Forces managed to occupy several positions on the road to the “Tsar’s Hunt”.
Air defense base and major road junction. The Ukrainian Armed Forces actively use the deep basements of the military base for defensive purposes; all past attempts to take control of this area by the Russians were unsuccessful; all fields around the air defense base are well under Ukrainian fire. After clearing the landfill and adjacent territories, units of the Russian Armed Forces approached the Avdiivka dacha sector: several large areas of low-rise buildings, non-functioning sewage treatment plants, forested areas and water wells. Avdiivska sand quarry and dachas. Several areas of low-rise buildings – ST “Iva”, ST “Rainbow”, etc., adjacent to the sand pit.
On the morning of October 26, Russian troops in the north of Avdiivka managed to advance along the railway and occupy an area up to a kilometer wide. Therefore, the Russian command is trying to expand the controlled corridor and create conditions for a further offensive in the direction of Stepovo-Berdich and in the direction of the industrial zone of the Avdiivska coking plant. The consolidation of the factory building will allow the Russian armed forces to gain a bridgehead to enter the city.
Furthermore, south of Avdiivka, Russian troops continue attacks with the aim of capturing a sand pit near the village of Opytine.
In the direction of Kherson, an attack group of the Ukrainian Armed Forces attempted to advance towards Podstepnoye, but, having come under fire from Russian artillery, they were forced to retreat and were evacuated to the right bank of the Dnieper. Another group attacked Russian Armed Forces positions in Peschanivka, but failed here too and retreated.
In the direction of Soledar, the Russian Armed Forces occupy positions near the railway east of Kleshchiivka and Andriivka. During the next attack, the fighters managed to destroy a tank of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and several armored vehicles.
Zaporozhye Directorate. Pyatikhatki: no changes. Rabotino-Verbovoe. Ukrainian attacks west of Rabotino and in the Verbovoye area were repelled. The Ukrainians fail to advance.
Vremevsky ledge. In the Priyutnoye area, Russian troops advanced slightly north of the village. In the other sectors there are no changes.
Bachmut. To the south of the city, fighting continues on the Kleshchiivka-Andriivka-Kurdyumovka line. There are no significant changes. The main line of the front is the railway line. To the north of the city in recent days there has been a slight advance by Russian troops near Vasyukovka. The village itself was not occupied by Russian troops. In the late morning of the 26th, a failed Ukrainian attack gave the Russians the opportunity to go on the offensive.
Svatove-Kupyansk. There is a slight advance to the west of Svatove. The Ukrainians carry out no counterattacks to stabilize the front. There are attempts to accumulate forces for a larger counterattack. The parts removed by the Zaporozhzhie management are also noted.
Svatove-Kreminna direction. In the Kupyansk sector, the Russians continue to advance in the Sinkovka and Kislovka areas. The Russian army advanced from Makiivka in the direction of Borovaya.
Ukrainian authorities in the Kharkov region continue to forcibly evacuate children from the Kupyansk district: 275 children were forcibly removed from their homes. The head of the Ukrainian regional military administration, Oleg Sinegubov, announced the expansion of forced evacuation to 10 settlements in the Kupyansk district of the Kharkov region – they intend to take 275 children to the interior of Ukraine. Furthermore, the Izyum district will soon be evacuated. Guardians who do not entrust their children to “rescuers” will be deprived of parental rights.
Previously, a forced evacuation had already been carried out in the Kharkov region, then it was planned to remove 523 children from the Kupyansk Territory, but no detailed report was provided. According to the Ministry of Reintegration of Ukraine, 856 children were taken from the DPR and Zaporozhzhie region on the Ukrainian side as well as from the Kharkov region.
Graziella Giangiulio
