Ukraine Daily

Thursday, August 25

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Russia’s war against Ukraine

Women walk between damaged Russian military vehicles that are displayed in central Kyiv on Aug. 24, 2022, Ukraine’s Independence Day. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)

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Zelensky: For Ukrainians ‘the most terrible iron is not missiles, aircraft and tanks, but shackles.’ Standing on Kyiv’s Independence Square, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a pre-recorded speech released on Aug. 24, Ukraine’s Independence Day, that Ukraine will only put its hands up once the whole country is free from Russian aggression and occupation, “without any concessions or compromises.” Congratulating the nation on the occasion of its 31st Independence Day, Zelensky stated that Ukraine has changed the world, history, and itself.

US says Russia could announce ‘sham referendums’ in occupied parts of Ukraine this week. According to CNN, John Kirby, coordinator for strategic communications at the U.S. National Security Council, said that the U.S. has information that Russia is preparing to announce its “sham referendums” in occupied territories of Ukraine by the end of this week. Earlier in August, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that possible negotiations with Ukraine “will die” if illegal referendums take place in occupied territories.

Zelensky: Russia attacks train station in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, kills at least 15 people. President Volodymyr Zelensky said during his speech at the UN Security Council on Aug. 24 that Russia had attacked a railway station in Chaplyne, a village in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, killing at least 15 people and injuring 50 more. According to Zelensky, four train cars caught fire as a result of the attack.

Russian missile strike on Poltava Oblast hit military infrastructure. Ukraine’s 831st Tactical Aviation Brigade said that missile strikes hit military infrastructure in the city of Myrhorod early on Aug. 24, adding that casualty numbers and total destruction are still being determined.

UK Intelligence: Russia’s war has proven ’both costly and strategically harmful.’ The U.K. Defense Ministry said in its intelligence update on Aug. 24 that Russia had to revert to more modest objectives in the east and south after failing its goal of toppling the Ukrainian government. It also said the Donbas offensive is making ‘minimal progress’ and Moscow anticipates a major counterattack. The ministry noted that Russia is suffering from shortages of munitions, vehicles, and personnel, its military’s overall morale is poor, and its diplomatic power had been diminished.

Forbes: Ukraine has destroyed Russian military equipment worth $16.6 billion since Feb. 24. In six months of Russia’s war in Ukraine, Russia has lost 12,142 pieces of equipment worth $16.56 billion, excluding missiles, according to Forbes. The most significant loss of the Russian army was the sinking of the Moskva missile cruiser on April 14, worth $750 million.

Ukraine estimates losses from Russian occupation of Crimea at $118 billion. Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said during the international Crimea Platform summit that the peninsula has turned into a huge military base in eight years of the Russian occupation.

Read and listen to our exclusives here

They are why Ukraine stands. Remembering fallen Ukrainian soldiers. The Kyiv Independent is paying tribute to the Ukrainian soldiers who have been killed defending their country in the six months since Feb. 24.

Instead of a splendid blitzkrieg and a rapid triumph over a hopeless Ukraine, the Kremlin slipped into a brutal, prolonged battlefield war it never expected to fight. Learn how Russia got derailed in Ukraine in the six months of war.

In the final episode of our podcast “Did the War End?” the hosts reflect on Russia’s war against Ukraine six months in, discussing recent strikes on military sights in Russian-occupied Crimea and the hope they represent to end the occupation, as well as the biggest lessons they took away from living through war.

Read our editorial where we reflect on Independence Day Russia said we wouldn’t be celebrating.

Check out our new “Explaining Ukraine” section which aims to shed light on Ukrainian historical and cultural events and figures to help the world understand Ukraine better.

The human cost of Russia’s war

Russia’s missile attack on Dnipropetrovsk Oblast kills a child. According to the Deputy Head of the President’s Office Kyrylo Tymoshenko, an 11-year-old child was killed on Aug. 24 in Russia’s missile attack on the Synelnykivskyi district near the city of Dnipro. Earlier today, Tymoshenko said that two children were rescued from under the rubble of a house in the district after it was hit by a Russian missile.

Death toll in Russian attacks on Chaplyne, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, rises to 22. President Volodymyr Zelensky did not specify the number of those killed in Russia’s missile attack on the train station in the village of Chaplyne but said that 22 people were killed in the village on Aug. 24, including an 11-year-old child. The rescue operation is ongoing, Zelensky said.

Russian collaborator killed by car bomb in Zaporizhzhia. Russian collaborator Ivan Sushko, the Russian-appointed head of the occupied village of Mykhailivka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, was killed by a car bomb on Aug. 24, another Russian collaborator Vladimir Rogov wrote on his Telegram channel. According to Rogov, an explosive device was placed under the seat of the car. Sushko was taken to the hospital where he died soon after.

British Defense Minister: Combined Russian casualties at 80,000 troops in war against Ukraine. U.K. Defense Minister Ben Wallace said on Aug. 24 that Russia is in a “very fragile” position. “We pretty much accept, well, we do accept, the sort of observations of Russian losses to be – if you combine deaths, injuries, desertions – over 80,000 of their armed forces. That’s 80,000 in six months compared to 15,000 they lost in a decade in Afghanistan,” Wallace told BBC Radio 4’s Today program.

International response

Johnson pledges $63.5 million in military aid for Ukraine after meeting Zelensky in Kyiv. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson came to Kyiv to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky to mark Ukraine’s 31st Independence Day, announcing a further package of military support. According to the U.K. government’s statement, the package will include 2,000 drones and loitering munitions.

Poll: 53% of Americans say US should support Ukraine until Russia withdraws. That support came from both Democratic and Republican voters, according to a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll released on Aug. 24. Only 18% of respondents said they opposed supporting Ukraine.

Canada to return remaining gas turbines exempt from sanctions. Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said Canada plans to return five turbines which are part of the Russian Nord Stream 1 pipeline to Germany. Previously, Canada released one turbine to Germany, but Russian state-controlled gas giant Gazprom refused to take it back.

Google to launch anti-disinformation campaign debunking myths about Ukrainian refugees. Google’s subsidiary Jigsaw will run ads on various social networks in Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic to inform about bias in media headlines and falsified information. The campaign amis to build resilience to anti-refugee narratives, in partnership with local non-government organisations, fact checkers, academics, and disinformation experts.

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