US citizens in Belarus, a staunch ally of Vladimir Putin, have been told to leave the country by its embassy there. Meanwhile, a Russia official has accused Denmark of “escalating” the war after it pledged to send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.
Monday 21 August 2023 22:40, UK
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The Russian Defence Ministry said two Ukrainian drones crashed into waters of the Black Sea on Monday night.
The military said it stopped the drones at around 11.00pm local time (9.00 BST).
It said the drones were located 40km northwest of Crimea.
Ukraine has actively sought F-16 jets to help counter Russian air superiority for months.
And despite giving approval for the Netherlands and Denmark to send the aircraft, the US has said it will not send its own F-16s to Ukraine.
Why is this?
General Philip Breedlove, former supreme allied commander for Europe said he thinks it is because the West has been deterred by Vladimir Putin.
“Mr Putin’s war of intimidation, his war of words in an attempt to deter the West from taking the actions it needs to take, has succeeded wildly,” he told Sky News.
“We have been deterred from getting aircraft to them, we are still deterred from getting ballistic missiles to them.
“We are very slow at getting them things we have already promised them.
“Mr Putin has convinced us that we need to fear him widening the war using nuclear weapons.”
Similar to the US, both the UK and France haven’t ruled out the possibility of sending fighter jets to Ukraine in the future, but certain conversations and conditions would have to be met first.
Ukrainian officials have revealed the cause of an explosion at Kyiv’s State Scientific Research Forensic Center.
The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) said the incident was caused by an explosive object undergoing examination.
Four people were killed in the explosion, which also damaged the facade of the main building, cars and adjacent facilities.
SBI officers are investigating what happened, and have been questioning employees and witnesses.
Criminal proceedings have been launched for violating the rules of handling explosive, flammable and corrosive substances or radioactive materials that caused the death of people.
Analysis by military expert Sean Bell
The Russian Air Force will probably relish the opportunity to send their most modern fighters up against the Ukrainian F-16s, and the Russians will have the benefit of seasoned pilots well acquainted with their jets and combat mission systems – skills that take years to master.
The Ukrainian F-16s will be a prime target for the Russians – so they will have to be used carefully, and only where their advantage can be exploited.
So now that Denmark and Holland have agreed to supply F-16s, will other nations follow suit?
Possibly.
F-16s are complex and expensive assets, and it will be interesting to see how they get employed in the conflict, and whether they prove effective.
However, the West has consistently advised that their primary focus was on helping Ukraine develop their own national combat air capability – ready for post-conflict security.
It was not envisaged that combat air power – in the form of fighter jets – could be provided in the timescale required to change the course of the conflict.
However, only a few months ago the prospects of the West providing fighter jets to Ukraine looked bleak, yet Ukrainian pilots and maintainers are already conducting the requisite training.
What is clear is the West remains committed to supporting Ukraine for the long-term, and fighter jets are the latest – and most complex – demonstration of that commitment.
Ukraine is “very close” to finalising a deal with global independent insurers to cover ships carrying grain from its ports in the Black Sea.
The country’s deputy economic minister, Oleksandr Gryban, said today Ukraine is in talks to come up with an interim insurance deal for ships leaving cities like Odesa.
Ukraine has had to rely on its ports in the Danube river since Russia abandoned its part in the year-old, safe-passage deal.
“If a ship cannot get insurance, it will not sail,” security and defence analyst Professor Michael Clarke says.
He says Ukraine claims it can create a “safe corridor” of around 100 miles from the Ukrainian coast that its air defence system can keep safe.
And if the insurance companies believe this plan, they might “take the risk” and agree to the interim deal.
However, any ship making a trip through the Black Sea will find it is on rather a dangerous journey, Clarke says.
Pope Francis is said to be deeply concerned about the loss of life, particularly of civilians, in Ukraine.
The comments were made during a private audience at the Vatican with General Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff.
As is traditional with private audiences, the Vatican listed the meeting on the Pope’s schedule, but no further details about the discussions were given.
Mr Milley, who is a Catholic, has criticised Moscow for creating a “campaign of terror” against the people of Ukraine, including by targeting civilian infrastructure.
He has championed sending billions of dollars in arms to Kyiv.
Meanwhile, Pope Francis has asked President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to open a dialogue with Russia.
The 86-year-old said last year that it is morally legitimate for nations to supply weapons to Ukraine to help the country defend itself against Russian aggression.
He has also sent his own peace envoy – Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi – to Kyiv, Moscow and Washington, primarily to discuss humanitarian aid and the repatriation of Ukrainian children.
Kyiv estimates nearly 19,500 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea since February 2022, in what it says are illegal deportations.
Agents cooperating with Ukraine’s military intelligence have destroyed or damaged five Russian aircraft over the past two days, according to a media report.
The New Voice of Ukraine cited unnamed sources within Ukraine’s military intelligence, who said strategic bombers were among those targeted.
The Soltsy military airfield in Russia’s Novgorod region was attacked on Saturday, destroying a Tu-22 M3 bomber and damaging two more aircraft, the sources said.
A further attack was launched the next day on the Shaykovka airfield in Russia’s Kaluga region.
Two more Russian bombers were damaged in the assault, the sources said.
“These drone operations are coordinated by the [Intelligence Directorate] and have caused sensitive losses to the enemy in military aviation. And the most important thing is that such planes are no longer produced in the aggressor country,” they told New Voice.
A series of attacks on Russian soil and within occupied territories have been reported in recent months, although Ukraine has rarely claimed responsibility.
Footage has emerged showing the moments before a missile hit the Ukrainian city of Chernihiv.
The attack on Saturday killed a six-year-old girl and six others.
Around 148 people were also left injured as residents made their way to church for a religious holiday.
A short video posted by Volodymyr Zelenskyy after the event showed debris scattered across a square in front of the regional drama theatre, where the roof had been destroyed and parked cars heavily damaged.
Footage purportedly showing Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin in Africa has appeared on a Telegram channel linked to the mercenary group.
The video is being shared by Russian media outlets, and it’s the first time Prigozhin has been seen clearly in footage since the short-lived Wagner rebellion in June.
Previously, we saw a grainy video appearing to show Prigozhin at a Wagner camp in Belarus.
In this latest footage, Prigozhin says his group is “working” and “everything is the way we like it”.
Wagner is “conducting reconnaissance and search operations, making Russia even greater on all continents”, he says.
He adds the plan is to make Africa “even more free” and to bring “justice and happiness for the African peoples”.
Wagner has been accused of a raft of war crimes in Africa.
Human Rights Watch previously said the group had summarily executed and forcibly disappeared several dozen civilians in Mali.
Greece will take part in training the Ukrainian air force to fly F-16 jets donated by Denmark and the Netherlands, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.
The Ukrainian president is in Athens after a visit to Copenhagen earlier today.
“Today, we have the important result for aviation coalition. Greece will participate in training of our pilots for F-16,” he said during a news conference with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
“I am grateful for this proposal.”
Denmark has committed to sending 19 jets, while the Netherlands could send as many as 42, but has not yet announced an exact number.
Details for the training programme have not been released, but it is reported it will take place in Denmark and Romania.
Mr Mitsotakis also said Greece will help reconstruct Ukraine, with a focus on the city of Odesa that has been hit with air strikes.
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