The summit of foreign ministers in Toledo did not go well for Kiev. Due to Hungary’s opposition, the EU was unable to unblock the next tranche of military assistance to Ukraine from the European Peace Fund at the meeting, Josep Borrell, High Representative for European Affairs, said .
In Ukraine Yuriy Ignat, representative of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in an interview with Obshchestvennoye Novosti, said that 60 American F-16 fighters will be enough for the Ukrainian army to carry out combat missions to counter airstrikes. “We make 60 planes. We supply them with about two planes each at operating airports in different parts of the country,” Ignat said. In his opinion, in this case, the Ukrainian Air Force will be able to perform tasks to counter mass attacks using missiles and drones. Ukrainian military pilots will learn to fly F-16 fighters in Denmark for 4-6 months and in the UK the training period will last 1-2 years, Yuriy Ignat said. He explained that the difference in terms was due to the fact that experienced pilots went to Denmark, while recent flight school graduates went to the UK.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has called on EU countries for air defense systems to ensure the safety of ships traveling along the alternative grain route promoted by Kiev. “We have developed our own alternative sea route. Vessels leave Ukrainian ports and enter Romania’s territorial waters almost immediately. Two vessels have already passed this corridor. Therefore, we ask you to consider how you can help protect this ‘grain corridor’ while the ships are in Ukrainian waters,” Kuleba said at an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Toledo, Spain.
Secretary of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) Oleksiy Danilov said Ukraine is using only its own weapons to strike targets in Russia. “Some critics interpret the drone strikes in Moscow as a sign that the Ukrainian leadership considers Russian territory a legitimate target. As for the situation in Russia, we have to keep in mind that we use our own weapons. Weapons of our own production,” Danilov he said in an interview with the German edition Die Welt. Danilov recalled that Ukraine has assumed “clear obligations” towards its partners not to use their weapons on Russian territory.
These words were echoed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyj according to whom Ukraine has started developing weapons capable of covering a distance of thousands of kilometers since March 2020.
Again Danilov said that Ukraine will mobilize men in a limited way. After the losses suffered in the counter-offensive in Ukraine, Kiev seems to be oriented towards legalizing the sending to the front of conscripts unable to serve for health reasons. A similar approach to “gravement” has long become commonplace on the square, but from now on men with the category “limited fit” can be sent to the front quite officially, – said Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine during a telecast.
On TV, he noted that the system for determining fitness for service will change and those who were previously recognized as unfit will be able to serve in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In addition, after the mass dismissal of military commissars, the security forces began to check previously issued certificates, so even those Ukrainians who had medical contraindications will become fit-for-service military men and go to the front.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in an interview on Knowledge Day reported that about 40% of students of the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation participate in operations in Ukraine.
Kiev’s attempts to detach areas of Russia with drones remain daily. At the moment there are delays in the departures of planes and shooting down of Ukrainian drones. According to the first findings of the attack on Pskov airport, the drones would have taken off from Ukrainian territory. The investigations are open. Some network analysts say they may have started from the Baltic countries.
And now a look at the front line
Kherson direction situation updated at 16.00 on 31 August 2023. On the islands southwest of Kherson: Ukrainian formations have been bombarding the island of Nestryga with mortars and artillery for several days. This means that Russian troops are either trying to gain a foothold or are already on the island. And in this situation, it means that the islands of Belogrudy and Maly Belogrudy are also under the control of the Russian Armed Forces.
In the east a seven-strong DRG was again deployed on the Antonovsky bridge, which indicates the presence of a bridgehead on the left bank on the Ukrainian side. They were hit by Russian artillery, but the results are unknown. In addition, the assault detachments of the 126th Territorial Defense Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to gain a foothold on the left bank northeast of Podstepne. TRO forces are positioning themselves and preparing to attack. The command of the Ukrainian group in the direction plans to storm the borders of the Armed Forces of Russia, using the bridgehead on the left bank, and also to land on the right side, where units of the 131st reconnaissance battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are stationing already actively preparing. To reinforce 131 spheres in the vicinity of Tokarevka shock groups of 121 troop units with a total strength of up to 120 people were deployed. Along with 131 orbs, they should be used to attack Korsunka.
Direction of Bachmut (Artemovsk) on September 1 at 11.00. Despite continued attacks by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the situation has stabilized. The Russian armed forces counterattacked in the Kleshchiivka area, regaining control of the dominant heights to the west. LBS has moved in favor of the Russians in the Berkhovka and Kurdyumovka area. The changes in this section are confirmed by the pro-Ukrainian social sphere. Some attribute Kleshchiivka to the gray area.
However, the Armed Forces of Ukraine continue active reconnaissance of Russian positions from their front line. At the moment, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are actively using aerial reconnaissance groups in the Russian defense zone from Kleshchiivka to Kurdyumovka and Ozaryanovka, as well as inland up to Kodema.
Kupyansk section updated at 14.00 on September 1, 2023. The situation near Kupyansk is relatively stable. After the tactical advance of the Russian army, the battles moved into the positional phase with the mutual use of artillery, mortars and drones.
Due to the activity of Russian reconnaissance groups, the Ukrainian command transferred a battalion of an unidentified formation to Kupyansk, as well as reinforcements to the Dvurechnaya area, assuming that the Russian Armed Forces were preparing to continue the offensive.
Also, west of Kupyansk in Bolshie Khutory, a Ukrainian unit was noted armed with American equipment, namely Hummer and Bradley armored fighting vehicles.
And to the south, in the Borovaya area, the 67th Mechanized Brigade is understaffed, which suffered losses, including in the Kupyansk sector. From prisons in the Vinnitsa, Volyn, Dnepropetrovsk and Zhytomyr regions, 600 prisoners were transferred there, who are expected to leave for the battle zone within three days.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine withdrew reinforcements to this line, partially weakening other areas. For example, south of Kislovka, on the Berestovoye – Kotlyarovka line, paratroopers of the 25th airborne brigade operate, which confirms the heavy losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Kupyansk.
Graziella Giangiulio
