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Ukraine war: West calls for restrictions on long-range missiles to be lifted

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Ukraine war: West calls for restrictions on long-range missiles to be lifted

Zelensky pays tribute to British ex-soldier killed in attack on journalists’ hotel in Ukraine

The UK, the European Union and Ukraine have ramped up calls for Kyiv to be allowed to strike deeper into mainland Russia, saying that restricting anything short of full capability renders the long-range missiles “useless”.

Speaking in Brussels, the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba urged Kyiv’s allies to “lift restrictions”.

“The weaponry that we are providing to Ukraine has to have full use, and the restrictions have to be lifted in order for the Ukrainians to be able to target the places where Russia is bombing them. Otherwise, the weaponry is useless,” Mr Borrell said.

Mr Kuleba added that Ukraine’s backers, should they refuse to budge on this issue, would only have themselves to blame if Russia goes on to win the war.

Yesterday, it was reported that the UK, which along with the US and France have provided long-range missiles to Ukraine, urged Washington to reconsider its opposition to Kyiv firing deeper into Russia.

Due to the way in which the missiles work, they can only be fired without assistance from US weaponry, meaning the decision to block deeper strikes resides ultimately with Washington.

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Russian military power is a ‘caricatured exaggeration’, says senior Kyiv official

The number of Russian soldiers captured during Ukraine’s cross-border assault into Kursk further shows that its military power is a “caricatured exaggeration”, an advisor to the Ukrainian presidential office has said.

Mykhailo Podolyak wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that the “low morale” of Russian forces was evident in the success of Ukraine’s attack.

He added that Ukraine had captured in less than four weeks around 200 more Russian soldiers than than the Soviet Union lost in a decade of war in Afghanistan.

Mr Podolyak told The Independent earlier this month that the Ukraine attack had exposed the disarray in Russia’s military. 

Tom Watling29 August 2024 14:57

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Russia expands fortifications in Kursk after Ukraine cross-border attack

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Ukraine’s Russia offensive is risky. To get a boost, it wants less US caution on weapons

Tom Watling29 August 2024 14:02

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Kyiv residents sing anthem while sheltering in subway during attack

Kyiv residents sing city’s anthem while sheltering in subway during rocket attack

Kyiv residents were filmed early on Monday 26 August singing the city’s official anthem in a subway station as air raid sirens sounded throughout Ukraine’s capital and other parts of the country. A total of 15 regions were targeted by an overnight Russian aerial barrage, prime minister Denys Shmyhal said. The attack was conducted with drones, cruise missiles and hypersonic air-launched ballistic “Kinzhal” missiles. Ukrainians are instructed to immediately take shelter in underground spaces when air sirens go off. Subway stations, many of which were built in the Soviet era to double as bomb shelters, have become a part of many people’s wartime experience and forums for cultural resistance.

Tom Watling29 August 2024 13:35

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What is Ukraine really up to with its audacious Kursk land grab?

Tom Watling29 August 2024 13:02

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Ukrainian Paralympic athletes prepare for Paris

Former Ukrainian serviceman Yevhenii Korinets and fellow members of the sitting volleyball Paralympic Team practice at a gym in Reshetylivka, Ukraine
Former Ukrainian serviceman Yevhenii Korinets and fellow members of the sitting volleyball Paralympic Team practice at a gym in Reshetylivka, Ukraine (REUTERS)
(REUTERS)

Tom Watling29 August 2024 12:32

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Embarrassed Putin is struggling to stop Ukraine’s incursion in Kursk

Tom Watling29 August 2024 12:00

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Russia launches a heavy missile and drone bombardment of Ukraine for the third time in 4 days

Tom Watling29 August 2024 11:27

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Russia claims to have captured two towns in eastern Ukraine

Russian forces have captured two villages in eastern Ukraine, Russian news agencies have claimed, citing the Kremlin defence ministry.

They cited Stelmakhivka in Luhansk region and Mykolaivka in Donetsk region as having fallen.

The Independent was not able to verify these claims and Moscow has a habit of prematurely reporting the takeover of a Ukrainian town.

Ukraine‘s General Staff in a morning update said that Ukrainian forces were repelling attacks in the area of Stelmakhivka, which sits right on the frontline.

DeepState, a Ukrainian open-source intelligence group that tracks developments on the frontline, and which is known to have close ties to the Ukrainian military, reports that both towns remain under Ukraine’s control.

Tom Watling29 August 2024 10:51

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EU minister arrive in Brussels to discuss Ukraine after snubbing Hungary

European Union ministers have arrived in Brussels for a meeting to discuss support for Ukraine after refusing to hold the event in Hungary despite Budapest holding the bloc’s presidency.

Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, was pictured in Brussels this morning with Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba.

The informal council usually takes place in the country chairing the rotating presidency of the EU. But following tensions between Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban and the EU, the EU’s informal foreign and defense ministerial meetings on 29-30 August, respectively, will take place in Brussels instead of Budapest.

After assuming the presidency on 1 July, Hungarian PM Viktor Orban went on a tour of Kyiv, Moscow, Beijing and later Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, urging Ukraine to the negotiating table.

EU states denounced the trip, saying Orban did not speak on behalf of the bloc, before reaffirming their support for Ukraine.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell (L), and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba speak to the press ahead of an informal meeting of European Foreign Affairs Ministers in Brussels
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell (L), and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba speak to the press ahead of an informal meeting of European Foreign Affairs Ministers in Brussels (EPA)

Tom Watling29 August 2024 10:30

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