Ukraine has admitted to losing an F-16 fighter, likely due to a Ukrainian pilot’s error, which is why the plane crashed on August 26, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Earlier, Ukrainian media reported that the Ukrainian Air Force had lost a fighter pilot who was undergoing F-16 training. According to an obituary, the pilot, Oleksiy Mes, died on August 26. Other media reported that the fighter was lost in combat with Russian drones.
During the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy both thanked the United States and demanded more and more weapons and ammunition, as well as pilots for the new fighters.
Ramping up the pressure this month, he reiterated that Ukraine must fight the war as it sees fit with all the weapons at its disposal and called on the United States to abandon its ban on using American long-range ATACMS missiles to strike deeper into Russia.
The Biden administration has allowed Ukraine to use US-supplied short-range munitions across the border for self-defense, but not ATACMS.
A number of US experts disagree: “This war will end exactly how Western politicians decide it will end,” said Philip Breedlove, a former US general who served as NATO SACEUR from 2013 to 2016. “If we continue to do what we are doing, Ukraine will ultimately lose,” Breedlove said. “Because right now… we are intentionally not giving Ukraine what it needs to win.”
Eliminating such restrictions “would strengthen Ukrainian self-defense, save lives, and reduce destruction in Ukraine,” Josep Borrell wrote on X on Monday after Russia launched more than 200 missiles and drones at Ukraine. The next day, Russia launched another 91.
Indeed, US and EU experts say that more than 200 Russian military targets “are within ATACMS range in what appear to be poorly guarded areas along the 1,000-kilometer-long Russian-Ukrainian border,” said George Barros, an analyst at the Institute for the Study of War. “Selective strikes against some Russian targets would force Putin to shift personnel and resources to protect those targets,” Barros said.
In the meantime, the race to create artillery shells for Kiev has not stopped. In the U.S., the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant makes 155mm howitzer shells that are then shipped to Iowa to be filled with explosives and fuses, with many shipped to Ukraine.
The Scranton plant recently increased production from 24,000 shells per month to 36,000 shells per month, and three new production lines are under development that will allow it to produce even more 155mm ammunition.
Amid diplomatic retaliation, Russia banned more than 2,000 Americans on August 29, according to a new Russian Foreign Ministry list that added 92 more names to the list of Americans barred from entering the country, including some journalists who previously worked in Russia. In a statement, the ministry said the bans were imposed “in response to the Russophobic course pursued by the Biden administration with the stated aim of ‘inflicting a strategic defeat on Moscow’.”
Moscow was shaken on August 29 by the arrest of Pavel Popov, former deputy defense minister until June 2024: he was detained by Russia’s Investigative Committee.
The former deputy defense minister does not admit guilt for fraud and the defense will appeal the arrest. Popov was nevertheless arrested.
Switzerland gives space to NATO. The NATO office in Geneva will open in September and will have only one employee. Swiss authorities have reported that the alliance is opening a representative office to interact with international organizations based in Geneva.
In this context, the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, noted that the opening of the NATO office is evidence of Switzerland’s abandonment of its neutral status.
Donald Trump has repeatedly warned in his election campaign about the danger of heading towards World War III. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov spoke out on this issue, commenting on Trump’s words; he said that Russia is deeply concerned about the US escalation. “Moscow calls on Washington to take a more responsible approach to the situation, which is fraught with unpredictable consequences,” the Russian diplomat stressed.
Russian daily Vedomosti on August 29 reported that the government and the Bank of Russia were preparing a joint plan for further action to combat inflation. The Central Bank of the Russian Federation later denied the existence of such a joint plan, TASS reports.
Still on the topic of economy, the Russian Duma discussed canceling all traffic violations in the Kursk region. The Russian government will allocate 15.5 billion rubles to the Kursk region, most of which will be used to buy housing for people who have lost it and for those who cannot live in their own homes temporarily, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said.
Kiev has threatened not to allow Russian gas to pass through its territory to the EU, expiring the tumors and ire especially of Eastern European countries. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó believes that Kiev threatens the energy security of Hungary and Slovakia due to the blockade of oil supplies from the Russian Lukoil through its territory. And the EU’s energy security is threatened.
As for the course of conscriptions, both Kiev and Moscow are discussing new measures to expand the scope of action.
The Russian State Duma has introduced a bill on the right of those on trial for certain to conclude contracts for military service during mobilization, martial law and wartime. Blood crimes and pedophilia have been excluded.
In Kiev, there is talk of an “economic reserve” from mobilization, where the criterion will be the size of the salary. This initiative may be launched in Ukraine as early as October-November, said Rada deputy Zheleznyak.
The initiative has been discussed in Kiev since last spring. In May, it was reported that those for whom the employer will pay about $500 a month may be exempted from mobilization.
And now a look at the fronts updated at 16:00 on August 29.
Kursk area.
Although the Ukrainian Armed Forces are collapsing in the direction of Pokrovsk and losing ground, they continue their attacks. In the Glushkovsky district, the situation remains unchanged: the Ukrainians continue to strike with artillery, but do not launch an attack in this direction.
In the Korenevsky district, the Ukrainians again tried to break through to the center of the district, but the Russian Armed Forces again repelled the attack. In addition, the Ukrainian Armed Forces again unsuccessfully tried to break through the defense of the Russian army in the area of the settlement of Kremyanoye. Near the village of Komarovka, the Ukrainian Armed Forces also tried to break through, but were blocked.
In Sudzhansky district, Ukrainians attacked the settlements of Borki, Martynovka, Spalnoye and Cherkasskoye Porechnoye.
FPV drones of the Aida group of the Russian special forces Akhmat set up ambushes on the roads of the area.
Regarding the entrance to Kurchatov: residents of the city with local registration will be able to enter freely, others will have to obtain passes.
Over the past 24 hours, attacks were repelled in the direction of the settlements of Korenevo and Cherkasskoye Porechnoye, Borki, Kremyanoye, Spalnoye, Martynovka and Cherkasskaya Konopelka. Ukrainian massings hit in the villages of Apanasovka, Borki, Byakhovo, Vishnevka, Zaoleshinka, Kubatkin, Kolmakov, Krasnooktyabrsky, Lyubimovka, Mikhaylovka, Novaya Sorochina, Obukhovka, Plekhovo, Rubanshchina, Russkoye Porechnoye, Snagost and Cherkasskaya Konopelka, Belopolye, Basovka, Vodo lakes, Glukhov, Iskriskovshchina, Mikhailovskoye, Pervomayskoye, Pustogorod, Sumy, Shalygino and Esman.
According to Russian Defense data, not confirmed by the Ukrainians at the time of writing, in the last 24 hours, the Ukrainian armed forces have lost more than 400 soldiers and 29 armored vehicles.
On other fronts the situation looked like this: during the night, missiles and more than 40 Gerans were used against the Ukrainian rear. Explosions were heard in Kharkiv, Krivoy Rog, Pavlograd, Kropyvnytskyi district of the Kirovograd region, Kremenchug, Boryspil and Obukhov districts of the Kiev region, Kiev, Brovary, Vyshgorod, Cherkassy.
Three Ukrainian UAVs were destroyed at night over the Bryansk region. In Sevastopol, the Russian army repelled an attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the air defense was working: 2 UAVs were shot down over the sea.
In the direction of Pokrovsk, the Russian Armed Forces took the village of Memrik near Selidovo, and are fighting in the Zapadny microdistrict of Mirnograd. Attack aircraft hit most of Grodovka and established control over the Korotchenko landfill.
In the direction of Kherson, Russian UAVs are hitting a several-kilometer-deep area where the Ukrainians are, who are only allowing military personnel in, in civilian vehicles with special passes. Systematic attacks on gas stations and other dual-use infrastructure are reported. Stable control of the Russian armed forces over most of the island area is reported.
In the Belgorod region, the villages of Poroz and Dronovka in the Grayvoronsky district, the village of Stary Khutor and the khutor of Pavlovka in the urban district of Valuysky have been evacuated. The entrance to the village of Vyazovoye in the Krasnoyarsk district is closed. In the 20-kilometer zone in the border municipalities of the region, all schools will work remotely.
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Graziella Giangiulio
