Tuesday, October 3

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Soldiers participate in speleotherapy treatment at a rehabilitation center working with soldiers suffering from injuries and psychological trauma on Oct. 02, 2023 in Kharkiv, Ukraine. Speleotherapy simulates the inside of a cave. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Military intelligence: Oct. 1 strikes against Smolensk plant disrupted missile production. The Oct. 1 drone strikes on Smolensk caused significant damage to the Smolensk Aviation Plant, the press service of the Ukrainian military intelligence said on Oct. 2.

EU foreign ministers convene in Kyiv. “We are convening a historic meeting of EU Foreign Ministers here in Ukraine, candidate country and future member of the EU,” Josep Borrell wrote on the social platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

Minister: Units supported by ‘Army of Drones’ hit record number of Russian artillery over last week. Ukrainian drone units supported by the “Army of Drones” initiative destroyed or damaged 69 towed artillery pieces and 17 self-propelled howitzers from Sept. 25 to Oct. 2, Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov reported.

Zelensky calls for cooperation, new sanctions against Russia at EU foreign ministers meeting. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke about the need for a new round of European Union sanctions against Russia during a historic joint meeting of EU foreign ministers in Kyiv on Oct. 2.

Kuleba: EU reaches consensus on Ukraine’s membership bid. The European Union has reached a consensus regarding Ukraine’s membership in the bloc, which is “only a matter of time,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Oct. 2, as reported by European Pravda.

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DTEK: Russian strikes damage warehouses in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. Russian forces attacked warehouses of Ukraine’s largest private energy company DTEK in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on Oct. 2, causing damage to cables, transformers, and other electrical equipment, the company said on the Telegram messaging app.

Media: Poland claims state defense corporation not invited to forum in Kyiv, Ukraine denies. In contradictory comments on Oct. 2, the Polish Minister of State Assets Jacek Sasin said that the largest Polish state-run defense corporation was not invited to the recent Defense Industry Forum in Kyiv, while Ukrainian Ambassador to Poland, Vasyl Svarych, said that Poland was among the first to receive an invitation.

High Anti-Corruption Court provides first monetary award to whistleblower. Ukraine’s High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) announced on Oct. 2 that it had ruled to pay Hr 13.3 million (about $360,000) to a whistleblower in the case of a $6 million bribe attempted by a former first deputy head of the Kyiv tax service back in 2020.

Ukraine receives first set of refurbished Leopard tanks from Poland. The first package of Leopard 2 tanks has been to Ukraine after being repaired in Poland from battlefield damage, the Polish Armaments Group (PGZ) announced on Twitter on Oct. 2.

SBU: Sumy officials arrested for taking $58,000 bribe. The mayor of Sumy and chief of the city council’s infrastructure department were arrested when receiving the last tranche of a Hr 2.13 million ($58,000) bribe, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) reported on Oct. 2.

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Ukraine war latest: Strikes on Russian plant disrupted missile manufacturing, military intelligence says

The Oct. 1 drone strikes on Russia’s Smolensk significantly damaged the Smolensk Aviation Plant, which produced Kh-59 cruise missiles, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency reported on Oct. 2.

Photo: The official website of the Smolensk Aviation Plant

With winter approaching, is Ukraine’s energy system ready for renewed Russian attacks?

“There is no doubt that Russia will resort to energy terrorism once again,” Antonina Antosha, spokesperson for the country’s largest private energy company DTEK, told the Kyiv Independent.

Photo: Ashley Chan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Our readers’ questions about the war, answered. Vol. 4

We asked members of the Kyiv Independent to share the questions they have about the war. Here’s what they asked, and how we answered.

Photo by Libkos/Getty Images

Opinions and insights

Peter Tkacenko: Slovakia after election – If not friend, certainly not enemy of Ukraine

“Slovakia has offered refuge to nearly 200,000 Ukrainians, is an unflinching supporter of economic sanctions against Russia, and has made substantial military contributions in both practical and symbolic terms. However, the country’s strong pro-Ukrainian stance may soon see its end,” Peter Tkacenko, Slovak political commentator, writes.

Photo: Janos Kummer/Getty Images

Human cost of war

Prosecutor General’s Office: Russian air strike on Kupiansk injures 2. Russian forces used a guided aerial bomb to carry out the attack, according to preliminary data cited by prosecutors. Several residential buildings and civilian cars were damaged, adds the report.

Russian shelling of Kherson kills police officer. A Russian strike against a transport company in Kherson on Oct. 2 killed a police officer and injured another three people, according to Ukrainian authorities.

Russian attacks kill 5, injure 15 over past day. Russian forces targeted Donetsk Oblast over the past day, killing three people and injuring five, the Donetsk Oblast Military Administration said.

Prosecutor General’s Office: 504 Ukrainian children killed during Russia’s full-scale invasion, more than 1,100 injured. The Prosecutor General’s office reported on Oct. 2 that 504 Ukrainian children have been officially documented as killed since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion last year.

General Staff: Russia has lost 279,080 troops in Ukraine. The General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported on Oct. 2 that Russia had lost 279,080 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. This number includes 510 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

International response

AP: Pentagon running out of money for Ukraine. Pentagon Comptroller Michael McCord warned the U.S. Congress that diminishing funds for Ukraine could cause delays in critical weapons and supply shipments, the Associated Press reported on Oct. 2.

Slovakia’s ‘kingmaker’ party politician says Ukraine should give up territory for peace. Ukraine will likely have to give up some of the territory occupied by Russia since 2014 to achieve peace, Denisa Saková, deputy head of Slovak Hlas (Voice) party, told Czech Television on Oct. 1.

German Foreign Minister: EU will soon extend ‘from Lisbon to Luhansk.’ German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock also emphasized the need for Ukraine’s allies to increase the strength of a “winter protection umbrella” in order to alleviate the disruptions associated with the Russian military’s attacks on Ukrainian critical infrastructure.

Denmark backs creation of $21 billion Ukraine military support fund. Josep Borrell, the EU’s top diplomat, suggested in July to create a fund to reimburse member states’ expenses on arms donations to Ukraine. The money is meant to cover both lethal and non-lethal equipment, allowing countries who adhere to the neutrality principle also to contribute.

Germany delivers ammunition, other equipment to Ukraine. Germany has transferred over 32,000 rounds of 40-mm ammunition, dozens of all-terrain and border protection vehicles, and other military equipment to Ukraine as part of its latest aid package, the German government reported on Oct. 2.

Politico: White House more worried about corruption in Ukraine than it publicly admits. U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration prepared a confidential strategy document that sees corruption in Ukraine as the real threat, allegedly warning that Western support may depend on Kyiv’s anti-graft efforts, Politico reported on Oct. 2

Romania vows support for Ukraine’s EU aspirations, grain transit. “Romania and some of the other (EU) members with the longest borders with Ukraine understand well the consequences of the war in Ukraine,” Romania’s top diplomat, Luminita Odobescu, said in Kyiv ahead of the meeting of the EU’s foreign ministers.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Martin Fornusek, Oleksiy Sorokin, Lili Bivings, Nate Ostiller, Francis Farrell, Dinara Khalilova, and Abbey Fenbert.

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