Ukraine Latest: Weekly Digest for August 19-25
VIDEO
August 20/: How Sudzha city lives under Ukrainian military control
August 20/ Osadchuk: FSB officers in priests’ robes have lost - Parliament adopts a history-making legislation
August 20/ Filipovych: Spiritual independence of Ukraine: when and how will the law banning the UOC-MP come into effect?
August 20/ Stefanishyna: Ukraine introducing positions of deputy heads for European integration affairs at regional military administrations
August 20/ Naftogaz CEO Chernyshov: Ukrainians will be fully provided with natural gas, at current prices, for the upcoming cold season
August 20/ Synehubov: In Kharkiv Oblast, the adversary is purposefully targeting civilians
August 21/ Interview: Health Minister Lyashko: It’s a critical challenge for us to get Okhmatdyt restored at the earliest time possible
August 21/ Prokudin: Kherson city has been subjected to particularly massive attacks with FPV drones in the past two months
August 22/ Onyshchuk: Six modular boiler houses will provide 100 percent of required heat to households and public facilities in Burshtyn community
August 23/ Pekhno: The train ferry destroyed at Kavkaz port was the last left of the three large ferries that Russia used for shipping fuel and equipment to its military
August 23/Ukrainian battle flags from the front line were hoisted over Ukrinform’s headquarters in Kyiv
August 24/ Independence Day: Opinion poll survey on changes in Ukrainian people’s attitudes to independence after the all-out invasion
PHOTO
August 19/A memorial mural for fallen military medics is being created in Vinnytsia city
August 20/ Families of Azov soldiers in Russian captivity staged a rally outside Verkhovna Rada
August 20/ Russia pounded Malokaterynivka, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, with missiles
August 21/ Ukraine launched a humanitarian mine action project involving female cynologists
August 21/ A flags display was mounted at a museum of local lore in Zaporizhzhia city
August 22/ Installation “The UnCrushed” was unveiled at the "Time Machine" museum in Dnipro city
August 22/Ukrinform displayed Ukrainian flags carrying signatures of soldiers involved in Kursk incursion in windows of its central office in Kyiv
August 22/The seventh edition of the Int’l Veterans’ Forum "Ukraine. Veterans. Unity" took place in Kyiv
August 22/ Vinnytsia hosted the first edition of regional sports games for veterans "Unbreakable Vinnytsia"
August 23/ Farewell and funeral ceremony for three defenders took place in Lviv City
August 23/A motor rally in support for prisoners of war took place in Zaporizhzhia City
August 24/ A memorial ceremony for fallen heroes took place in Dnipro City
August 24/People in Berlin made a camouflage net in a citizens’ action honoring Ukraine’s Independence Day
August 24/ Memorial ceremony for fallen heroes, Field of Mars cemetery, Lviv
August 24/ Oleh Kiper, the head of Odesa Regional Military Administration (OVA), visited the regional mental health hospital No. 2, where Petro Konoplya, a combat medic from the 35th Marine Brigade, went on a hunger strike in protest against poor meals and conditions
August 24/ A display of vehicles and equipment used by the State Service for Emergencies, National Police, and the Armed Forces was mounted on Kyiv’s Sofia Square
FIGHTING
The General Staff has reported 907 force-to-force encounters over the week from August 19 through 25;
The Ukrainian military had 1,260 square kilometers encompassing 93 communities in the Russian region of Kursk under their control as of August 20, according to Oleksandr Syrsky, the Armed Forces Chief Commander;
August 24, Ukraine’s Independence Day, saw the first ever combat deployment of the Ukrainian designed missile-drone named Palyanytsia, introducing a whole new category of weapons;
On Independence Day, a hacker team affiliated with the Main Intelligence Directorate at Ukraine’s Defense Ministry (GUR MoD), assisted by members of the Ukrainian cyber community, launched a massive attack targeting Russian mobile communication and Internet service providers, as well as data banks and cloud storages of several major industries in the Russian Federation.
On August 16, as part of an operation staged by the Defense Intelligence Directorate at the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine (GUR), suicide drones struck the military airbase Savasleyka located in the Nizhny Novgorod region, Russia. Sources in military intelligence report that the attack destroyed one MiG-31K/I aircraft, two Il-76 aircraft, and damaged up to five other aircraft, likely MiG-31K/I.
On August 21, the GUR mounted drone attacks targeting the Astafyevo airport in Moscow and the Millerovo military airbase in the Rostov region, located 30 km from the Ukrainian border, which is home base for Su-30SM and Su-35 fighters. The GUR is investigating the aftermath of the attacks.
On August 22, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), assisted by the Special Operations Forces, attacked the Marinovka airbase with drones, hitting warehouses storing glide bombs and fuel, and causing a heavy detonation and fire. Marinovka is located in southern Russia’s Volgograd region, 185 miles from the border with Ukraine,
On August 22, a GUR-linked hacker team attacked servers of several Russian TV companies, resulting in their TV content temporarily replaced with true information and authentic videos of the war their country is waging in Ukraine
Kursk incursion
August 19
Oleksandr Syrsky, the Armed Forces Chief Commander updated President Volodymyr Zelensky about the progress of the Kursk offensive operation, as well as the situation at the Pokrovsk and Toretsk stretches of the frontline.
The Danish Foreign Minister, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, in a comment on Ukraine’s military incursion into Russia’s Kursk region, said that Ukraine is free to use the weapons provided by his country against targets inside Russia’s sovereign territory.
August 20
The European Commission said in a statement that Ukraine is entitled to defend itself by fighting on the Russian territory, and that the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk is a consequence of Putin's illegal actions.
A Ukrainian fighter jet hit a Russian underground command-and-control point in the Kursk region with an AASM Hammer guided bomb.
British military officials said a Specialized Motor Rifle Regiment of Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) personnel is among the non-infantry units currently being thrown into fighting on the front line in Kursk. The VKS troops currently battling Ukrainian forces in Kursk include those previously trained as early warning radar operators and members of long-range bomber units, U.K. military intelligence officials posted Wednesday on X.
August 22
Syrsky reported to Zelensky that Ukrainian forces had won control of another one neighborhood in the Kursk region;
Ukraine's Air Force hit a platoon base in Russia's Kursk region with U.S.-made high-precision GBU-39 bombs;
Ukrainian soldiers who control the Russian town of Sudzha, the Kursk region, received a shipment of aid from volunteers, comprising attack drones, medical stretchers and medicines among other supplies.
August 23
Ukraine can use U.S.-supplied weapons to hit Russian forces firing on Ukrainian troops in the border region, including Kursk Oblast.
August 24
The Chief Commander of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, Oleksandr Syrsky awarded Ukrainian soldiers who distinguished themselves in the Kursk operation.
August 25
Ukrainian forces advanced deeper into the Kursk region, won control of two more communities and captured a new group of Russian soldiers.
The battlefield situation by the days of the week and sectors of the front line
August 19
Kharkiv Sector: the adversary was struggling to advance deeper into the Kharkiv region; force-to-force encounters occurred in the localities of Vovchansk and Lyptsi.
Kupyansk Sector: Eight encounters were fought in there. The invading forces were able to advance closer towards the neighborhoods of Torske, Hlushkivka, Makiivka, Stelmakhivka, and Kruhlyakivka.
Lyman Sector: Russian troops stormed Ukraine’s defending positions nine times, acting most aggressively in Ploshchanka village.
Toretsk Sector: the invading forces escalated the number of attacks to nine per that day, assaulting towards the neighborhoods of New York, Toretsk, Zalizne, and Nelypivka.
Pokrovsk Sector: the Russians were assaulting towards the localities of Vozdvyzhenka, Novohrodivka, Zelene Pole, Kalynove, Mykolaivka, Ptyche, Mykhailivka, Kamyshivka, and Myrolyubivka. Ukrainian soldiers were able to keep their defenses and repel the attackers.
August 20
Kharkiv Sector: the invaders continued with their assaults on Ukrainian defending positions, were preparing for a new assault on Vovchansk.
Lyman Sector: the adversary, using air fire support, was assaulting towards the surroundings of Makiivka, Novosadove, Hrekivka, and Dibrova.
Siversk Sector: fighting continued in there, with the adversary attacking the surroundings of Verkhnyokamyanske, Vyimka, and Pereizne neighborhoods. The invaders launched four assaults targeting Ukrainian defensive lines, dropped seven glide bombs on Serebryanka and Verkhnyokamyanske communities.
Toretsk Sector: the enemy was assaulting towards the neighborhoods of New York, Nelypivka, Toretsk, and Zalizne.
Pokrovsk Sector: the enemy mounted 34 assaults over the day, struggling to take over Ukrainian entrenchments defending the approaches to Vozdvyzhenka, Mykhailivka, Kalynivka, Novohrodivka, Hrodivka, Mykolaivka, Ptyche, and Skuchne villages, was assaulting towards Zelene Pole village.
August 21
Kharkiv Sector: The adversary intensified air reconnaissance over Vovchansk in preparation for a new offensive.
Pokrovsk Sector: The situation remains dire. Ukrainian soldiers fended off 11 attacks in the localities of Panteleymonivka, Vozdvyzhenka, Zelene Pole, Myrolyubivka, Hrodivka, Mykolaivka, Novohrodivka, Mykhailivka, and Ptyche villages.
Lyman Sector: the Russians attacked nine times towards Torske, Novoserhiivka, Makiivka, Hrekivka, and Serhiivka neighborhoods.
Kupyansk Sector: the invading forces mounted nine attacks on Ukrainian defending positions in the surroundings of Petropavlivka, Synkivka, Berestove, and Andriivka villages. The situation remains dire in the locality of Stelmakhivka community.
Toretsk Sector: the occupiers, supported by attack and bomber aircraft, staged five assaultive attacks on Ukrainian defenses, dropped 11 glide bombs on Toretsk town.
August 22
Pokrovsk Sector: the adversary mounted 33 attacks since the start of the day, targeting Ukrainian entrenchments defending the approaches to Vozdvyzhenka, Zelene Pole, Mykhailivka, Kalynove, Novohrodivka, Hrodivka, Mykolaivka, Ptyche, Kamyshivka, Myrolyubivka, and Novotroitske neighborhoods.
Toretsk Sector: the enemy launched two unguided ground-attack rockets on Druzhba community, dropped two glide bombs on the neighborhood of Plishchiivka.
Lyman Sector: the invaders attacked seven times towards Novosadove, Hrekivka, Terny, Nevske, Torske, and Dibrova villages.
Kramatorsk Sector: Russian troops mounted six assaults targeting the surroundings of Ivanivske, Klishchiivka, Hryhorivka, and Chasiv Yar neighborhoods, fired 22 unguided rockets towards Chasiv Yar.
Kupyansk Sector: the adversary staged seven assaultive attacks targeting Ukrainian defense lines in the localities of Synkivka, Hlushkivka, Stelmakhivka, and Lozova neighborhoods.
August 23
Pokrovsk Sector: the adversary mounted 20 attacks targeting Ukrainian entrenchments in the surroundings of Vozdvyzhenka, Kalynove, Novohrodivka, Hrodivka, Ptyche, and Zelene Pole communities. Ukrainian defenders were able to repel 11 attacks.
Kharkiv Sector: the situation remained challenging as the adversary assaulted 15 times, struggling to advance closer towards Kostyantynivka, Heorhiivka, Krasnohorivka, and Karlivka neighborhoods.
Kupyansk Sector: the invading forces mounted nine attacks, of which four had been fended off, particularly in the localities of Petropavlivka, Kurylivka, Synkivka, and Stelmakhivka villages.
Lyman Sector: the adversary continued with assaultive attacks targeting the neighborhoods of Druzhelyubivka, Novosadove, Nevske, Torske, and Terny, with eight attacks repelled by Ukrainian defenders.
Siversk Sector: the Russians launched seven assaults aimed to take over Ukrainian entrenchments in the surroundings of Verkhnyokamyanske, Vyimka, Bilohorivka, and Spirne neighborhoods.
August 24
Pokrovsk Sector: the Russians carried out 39 assaultive attacks targeting the villages of Vozdvyzhenka, Zelene Pole, Myrolyubivka, Hrodivka, Kalynove, Novohrodivka, and Ptyche. Ukrainian troops were able to withstand enemy onslaught.
Kramatorsk Sector: the invading forces were advancing towards Stupochky, Chasiv Yar, and Kalynivka neighborhoods; with twelve force-to-force encounters reported to have occurred over that day.
Toretsk Sector saw nine combat engagements taking place in the surroundings of Dyliivka, Toretsk, Nelypivka, and New York neighborhoods.
Kurakhiv Sector: the invading forces attacked 12 times towards Krasnohorivka, Karlivka, HeorHiivka, and Kostyantynivka villages.
Kupyansk Sector: the adversary staged six offensives targeting the villages of Novoselivka, Stelmakhivka, and Synkivka.
August 25
Hlyboke-Lyptsi Sector: the enemy uses assault groups as "bait" to find out the locations of Ukrainian fires.
Kharkiv Sector: After the beginning of Kursk incursion, the adversary had eased the intensity of its use of tactical aircraft, while intensifying the use of first-person-view (FPV) drones instead.
Pokrovsk Sector: the Russians carried out 17 assaults targeting neighborhoods in seven different locations, including the neighborhoods of Kalynove and Novohrodivka, which saw 11 assaults. The enemy used Ka-52 helicopters for ground attacks, and dropped glide bombs on Oleksandropil and Halytsynivka villages.
Kurakhiv Sector: the invading forces staged 10 assaultive attacks targeting the approaches towards Karlivka, Nevelske, Pershotravneve, Heorhiivka, and Kostyantynivka neighborhoods.
Lyman Sector: the adversary mounted 13 assaults targeting Ukrainian defending positions located in the surroundings of Hrekivka, Druzhelyubivka, Proletarske, Pershotravneve, Novosadve, Torske, and Nevske communities.
WAR: LOSSES AND AFTERMATH
ENEMY LOSSES
Russia’s war toll in personnel and equipment over the week from August 19 through 25, 2024 had totaled:
8,330 troops
39 tanks
141 armored fighting vehicles
340 artillery guns
9 MLRS launchers
13 air defense missile launchers and radars
343 tactical-operational UAVs
13 cruise missiles
483 automobiles and fuel tanks
82 pieces of special-purpose equipment.
A massive fire continues to rage at an oil depot near the town of Proletarsk in Russia’s Rostov Region, more than a week after a Ukrainian drone strike ignited the blaze on August 18. Despite efforts to control the situation, there are no clear indication of when the fire might be extinguished.
The oil depot is a key infrastructure site in the region, housing 74 storage tanks, each with a capacity of 5,000 cubic meters.
Overnight on August 21, Ukraine’s Defense Forces targeted and hit a Russian S-300 SAM system deployed near Novoshakhtynsk, Rostov Region, Russia. The aftermath of the attack is being verified.
British military officials said a Specialized Motor Rifle Regiment of Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) personnel is among the non-infantry units now being thrown into fighting on the front line in Kursk. The VKS troops now battling Ukrainian forces in Kursk include those previously trained as early warning radar operators and members of long-range bomber units.
August 22: Ukraine sank Conro Trader, a Russian railroad ferry loaded with 30 fuel tanks, in an aerial attack on southern Russian port Kavkaz, Krasnodar Krai, near the annexed Crimea peninsula. Ukrainian-made Neptune missiles are believed to be used for the attack. The Ukrainian Navy has confirmed the attack and its aftermath.
Conro Traider ferry destroyed at Kavkaz port was the last of the three large rail ferries left in the Kerch Strait crossing line that Russia used for shipping fuel and equipment for its military in Crimea and southern Ukraine.
August 24: The GUR MoD mounted a successful drone attack on a field ammunition depot located in the surrounding of Ostrogozhsk town, the Voronezh region, Russia.
UKRAINE: WAR LOSSES AND AFTERMATH
Russian drone, missile, and shelling attacks on the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhya, Odesa, Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv left 40 people dead and 84 others injured over the week under review.
Russia has launched approximately 10,000 missiles of various types and dropped more than 33,000 glide bombs on Ukraine over the time since the all-our war broke out in February 2022.
Explosive ordnance and devices planted by Russian troops killed 303 civilians, among them 15 children in Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale war in Ukraine.
Approximately 1,530 children sustained injuries resulting from Russia’s war in Ukraine as of August 23.
Three employees of humanitarian NGOs have died and 16 others sustained injuries in the aftermath of hostilities in Ukraine in 2024 so far.
Russian strikes have destroyed over 500 churches, prayer houses and other religious buildings in Ukraine since the inception of the all-out war in February 2022.
August 20 attack with missiles, drones
Air defense forces shot down one Iskander-K cruise missile, two Kh-59 missiles and 25 out of 26 Shahed-131/136 strike drones Russia launched against Ukraine over that day.
Russian missile attack caused a heavy fire at an industrial facility in Ternopil city. The fire was extinguished. In the aftermath of the attack, the chlorine content in the air exceeded maximum permissible level by 4 to 10 times.
House roofs and vehicles sustained damage from falling debris of a Russian drone downed in Kirovohrad Oblast.
A Russian missile attack on energy facilities in Sumy Oblast left nearly 20,000 consumers without power supply.
Four private properties and an outbuilding in one neighborhood in the Kyiv region sustained damage from falling fragments of downed Russian drones and missiles.
August 21 attack with Shakhed drones
Air defense forces shot down 50 out of 69 UAVs and one ground attack missile Russia launched against Ukraine in the early hours of August 21. The other 16 UAVs were lost in location, presumably defeated by EW countermeasures.
In the Kyiv region, a private property sustained damage, power lines were disrupted, and grass set ablaze.
In Vinnytsia city, falling debris from downed UAVs damaged windows and the roof of an apartment building.
In the Mykolayiv region, energy equipment was damaged in the aftermath of a Russian drone strike on a power substantion.
August 23 attack with Shakhed drone
Overnight on August 23, the Russians attacked Ukraine with two Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles and 16 Shahed UAVs. 14 UAVs had been defeated and downed.
In the night hours, Russian UAVs attacked the Cherkasy region, a fire broke out at a location in the provincial capital, and falling debris damaged commercial properties nearby.
August 25 attack with missiles and Shakhed UAVs
Ukraine’s air defense forces shot down eight out of nine Shakhed suicide drones, and defeated with EW countermeasures most of the missiles Russia launched on Ukraine in an overnight attack.
In a midnight attack, the Russians struck Kramatorsk, targeting a hotel, presumably with an Iskander-M missile. The hotel was hosting journalists from Ukraine, USA and UK at the time of the attack. The attack left six persons injured, one of them seriously, among them four Reuters journalists, and the body of another casualty was recovered from under the rubble in a rescue operation.
The Russians attacked Kharkiv and Chuhuiv with missiles, injuring eight in Kharkiv and five in Chuhuiv, among them two children.
On August 20, the Russians launched a missile targeting a children's cafe in Malokaterynivka, Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The aftermath included two children dead and eight others injured, two of them seriously.
On August 25, Verkhnyosyrovatka community, Sumy Oblast, came under missile attack that left ten people injured, among them three minors.
Wille Mükkiänen, a 26-year-old from the Finnish city of Pühäjärvi, who volunteered to fight for Ukraine, fell in a battle at Luhansk frontline in early August.
WAR: POLITICAL DECISIONS, TECHNOLOGICAL BREAKTHROUGHS, ARMAMENTS, ALLIED AID
Ukrainian home front
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky:
August 19: during a working tour of the Dnipropetrovsk region, talked with local businesses; met with veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian war and saw how support programs for veterans are being implemented in the region. Zelensky also chaired a meeting addressing water supply issues affecting cities and communities;
August 19: delivered a speech at a meeting of heads of foreign diplomatic missions to Ukraine, entitled "Military Diplomacy: Stability, Weapons, Victory";
August 20: While on a visit to Kropyvnytskyi city, visited Elworthy, an agricultural machinery factory; visited soldier patients at a hospital ward and presented them with state awards;
August 21: enacted the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) resolution on "The imposition, lifting and updating of targeted personal economic and other restrictive measures (sanctions)";
August 22: issued an executive order to set up the office of military administration in Velykopysarivka community, Okhtyrka District, Sumy Oblast;
While on a visit to Sumy Oblast, met with the Armed Forces Chief Commander Oleksandr Syrsky and the Chief of the Sumy Regional Military Administration Volodymyr Artyukh to discuss the operational situation in the areas of fighting;
Issued an executive order instructing the Government to endorse the National Strategy for Veterans Policy and the Strategy for Military to Civilian Transition;
August 22: presented awards to 11 persons from in and outside of Ukraine who distinguished themselves in promoting Ukraine and strengthening its defenses;
August 24: endorsed a legislation that bans religious organizations linked to the Russian Federation from working in Ukraine;
Signed into law a bill to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court with amendments;
Promoted the Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky and other high-ranking military officers to the next higher grades;
Promoted the chief of the State Special Transport Service and the second in command of the Foreign Intelligence Service to the next higher ranks;
Promoted Vitaliy Matsak, the chief of the Internal Security Directorate at the State Border Guard Service, to the Generals’ rank;
Endorsed legislations addressing support for the military;
Conferred the title "Hero of Ukraine" to three military service members;
Presented honorary awards "For Courage and Bravery” to several military units and a training center;
Presented state awards to 373 service members of the Armed Forces, State Guard Directorate, State Service for Special Communications and Information Security;
Conferred honorary titles to several military units;
signed into law several bills addressing, among other things, granting Ukrainian citizenship to legionnaires and ensuring full provision, including financial, for the Ukrainian service members involved in operations in Russia.
In a phone conversation with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, discussed further funding for defense support for Ukraine and the use of immobilized Russian sovereign assets;
August 25: conferred honorary titles to two military units from the National Guard of Ukraine.
In celebration of Ukraine’s Independence Day, President Zelensky:
addressed the Ukrainian people with a message of greetings;
accompanied by his wife Olena, laid flowers to the Wall of Remembrance on Mykhailivska Square in Kyiv in tribute to the memory of those who died fighting for Ukraine; attended a prayer service for Ukraine held in St. Sophia Cathedral;
as part of Independence Day events, presented awards to Ukrainian military service members, families of fallen Heroes of Ukraine, and to distinguished Ukrainian athletes.
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Visits to Ukraine:
Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, August 23
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed with President Volodymyr Zelensky potential avenues for bilateral cooperation in agriculture, technology, pharmaceuticals and other sectors;
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Volodymyr Zelensky attended a signing ceremony for agreements on bilateral cooperation in health care, agriculture, humanitarian relations, as well as in culture. Modi and Zelensky signed a joint statement on achieving a negotiated end to the war;
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called his first official visit to Ukraine history-making and thanked the Ukrainian people for hospitality.
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Honoring Ukraine’s Independence Day, the President of Poland, Andrzej Duda and the Prime Minister of Lithuania, Ingrid Šimonite visited Kyiv and attended Independence Day festivities on Sofia Square.
President Volodymyr Zelensky met with the President of Poland Andrzej Duda and the Prime Minister of Lithuania Ingrid Šimonite to talk over the situation on Ukrainian battlefields and operations by Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Spoke at a press conference he held jointly with Polish President Andrzej Duda and Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrid Šimonite.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal:
Accompanied by his Lithuanian counterpart Ingrid Šimonite, visited the National Specialized Children’s Hospital Okhmatdyt in Kyiv, part of which was destroyed by an X-101 missile launched by Russia on July 8.
At a meeting with his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda, talked over support for Ukraine on its path to the European Union and NATO membership.
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Piotr Lukasiewicz, a former Polish army officer and diplomat, a security analyst is set to embark on his tenure as Poland’s ambassador to Ukraine on September 1;
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August 21 visit by a bipartisan U.S. House delegation led by Vice Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Republican Rob Wittman and Democrat David Throne
Verkhovna Rada Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk, at a meeting with the U.S. House delegation, discussed a boost in security and defense support for Ukraine;
At a meeting with the U.S. congressmen, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov discussed Ukraine’s defense needs and reiterated the need for the US and Allies to lift restrictions on Ukraine’s use of their supplied weaponry against legitimate targets inside Russia.
The U.S. House delegation, accompanied by Chargé d'Affaires of the US Embassy in Ukraine Robert Needham, visited one of Ukraine’s border guard bases.
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August 20: A EU team arrived in Ukraine on a three-day mission to verify he progress achieved so far in the implementation of the milestones set out in the Ukraine Facility Program.
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August 22: Ukraine’s Defense Minister, Rustem Umerov met in Kyiv with Deputy Chief of Defense Staff for Military Strategy and Operations at the UK Ministry of Defense, Harvey Smith.
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August 23: A US delegation led by Diana Sabatino, the Acting Executive Assistant Commissioner of the Office of Field Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, arrived in Kyiv.
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August 23 visit by Latvia’s Defense Minister Andris Spruds
Verkhovna Rada Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk and Latvian Minister of Defense Andris Spruds met in Kyiv to discuss military support for and urgent needs of the Security and Defense Forces of Ukraine, as well as the continuation of Ukrainian military rehabilitation and training programs in Latvia.
Defense Minister Umerov and his Latvian counterpart Spruds explored ways to enhance and improve bilateral partnership and expand the Drone Capability Coalition for Ukraine.
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Speaking to the Congress of local and regional councils held in Kropyvnytsky city, President Zelensky set out short-term tasks to be tackled as priority, with focus on preparations for the upcoming heating season, ensuring offline education at schools and universities where possible, and enhancing cooperation with European partners.
August 22: the 7th edition of the International Veterans’ Forum "Ukraine. Veterans. Unity" took place in Kyiv, with the agenda focused on military-to-civilian transformation. President Zelensky, Prime Minister Shmyhal, and heads of relevant ministries and government agencies attended the forum.
August 24: 115 Ukrainian soldiers were brought back home from Russian captivity. All are draftees, among them those captured in the first months since the start of full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The Ministry for Reintegration of Currently Occupied Territories of Ukraine updated the registry of territories that are (were) areas of fighting or under Russian control.
Single-window service hubs for veterans and their families were launched in Brovary and Boryspil Districts of Kyiv Oblast.
August 22: As part of the project "Distinguished Scouts", the GUR MoD unveiled a documentary dedicated to Valery Chybineev, the fallen Hero of Ukraine.
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Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine
adopted the law on "Protection of the Constitutional Order in the Context of Religious Organizations", which prohibits the religious organizations linked to the Russian Federation from operating on Ukraine’s territory. The Verkhovna Rada Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk endorsed the legislation on August 23;
adopted the law on the ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court with amendments;
endorsed as a whole a bill on “Amendments to the Customs Code of Ukraine regarding the Implementation of Individual Provisions of the Customs Code of the European Union", which effectively finalizes the integration of key provisions of the EU customs legislation (EU acquis) into the legislation of Ukraine;
ratified the Agreement between Ukraine and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland regarding political cooperation, free trade and strategic partnership;
adopted a law on the legal status of foreign and stateless individuals fighting for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and inviolability;
adopted a law that expands the range of those eligible for deferment from conscription during mobilization period;
endorsed bill No. 11083 on “the Regulation of terminology in the implementation of ‘smart networks’" that empowers GTS Operator of Ukraine LLC to introduce a special mode of operation of main gas pipelines.
Cabinet of Ministers:
Earmarked UAH 24 billion for the purchase of drones for the needs of Security and Defense Forces;
Adopted a resolution to earmark around UAH 5 billion worth of additional budgetary subsidies for construction of school shelters in the regions of Chernihiv, Kherson, Kharkiv, Sumy, Odesa, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhzhya, and Dnipropetrovsk;
Endorsed a program to build an integrated water supply system for war-affected territories in nine regions of Ukraine;
Amended procedures for mandatory war conscription of people who care for the sick or disabled;
extended until April 30, 2025 the validity of special commitments regarding natural gas supplies to heat producing entities;
appointed Pavlo Bortnikov as Deputy Minister for Digital Development, Digital Transformations and Digitalization at the Ministry of Veterans’ Affairs;
launched a service that allows service members to see their personal data contained in the Veterans’ Registry;
signed with the Government of the Republic of India a Memorandum of Understanding on Indian humanitarian grant aid for the implementation of high-impact community recovery projects.
NEC Ukrenergo is finalizing first-phase construction of anti-drone protection systems for high-voltage equipment at 41 facilities, with similar protective systems at 22 power substations being dealt with by the Ministry of Reintegration.
JSC Ukrgazvydobuvannya commissioned a new well with a daily output of 107,000 cubic meters of natural gas;
The State Property Fund of Ukraine added approximately UAH 1.5 billion worth of privatization revenues to the national budget over the first seven months of 2024,
More than 18,000 new businesses, most of them limited liability companies, were launched in Ukraine over the first half of 2024.
Ukrainian farmers had harvested 32.02 million tons of cereals and oil crops as of August 23.
The Council for the Restoration of the National Specialized Children's Hospital Okhmatdyt elected Inna Ivanenko, the executive director at Ukrainian Patients charity foundation, to be its chairperson.
The Ternopil Oblast Economic Court returned the Holy Spirit Monastery of the Holy Dormition Pochaiv Lavra to state property.
Anti-Corruption Bureaus’ investigators, acting under the procedural guidance of the Prosecutor General's Office, completed the investigation into the case of businessman Ihor Kolomoiskyi and a former director at a Kyiv city branch of a major bank, on charges of theft of over UAH 5.36 billion and laundering nearly UAH 4.1 billion worth of illicit revenues;
Since the start of the full-scale war, the State Bureau of Investigations has opened 408 criminal proceedings on charges of abuse of office by employees at territorial recruitment and social support centers during war conscription campaign.
ALLIES AND PARTNERS
The United States and Ukraine are discussing long-term objectives of Ukraine’s offensive into Russia’s Kursk Oblast;
The next meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (Ramstein Group) has been scheduled to take place on September 6;
The US has announced a new package of sanctions that affect approximately four hundred entities linked to Russia's fuel/energy and metallurgical sectors, the financial sector and the supply of dual-use products;
Ukraine and Ireland have finalized negotiation process regarding the conclusion of a bilateral agreement on implementation of the G7 Joint Declaration;
The Czech Republic has received a new source from which to fund for the purchase of much-needed large-caliber ammunition for Ukraine, which is the windfall proceeds from the Russian central bank assets kept immobilized in the European Union member countries;
Germany handed over a new military aid package to Ukraine, comprised of air defense capabilities, UAVs, and auxiliary vehicles;
On August 19, the Danish government announced a new aid package worth 783 million Danish kroners (115 million US dollars) for Ukraine;
Canada earmarks USD 5.7 million in funding for humanitarian programs targeting Ukrainian children;
On August 20, the European Commission re-introduced export quotas on Ukrainian honey, citing as the ground the exhaustion of the duty-free quota;
Azerbaijan has officially applied for membership in the Russia-led BRICS bloc;
The UN Refugee Agency Ukraine is providing USD 30 million in support for frontline communities.
The Dutch Defense Minister, Ruben Breckelmans, announced that the Netherlands is buying 51 mobile radars for Ukraine, which are set for delivery by year’s end.
The Czech initiative Dárek pro Putina ("A gift for Putin") purchased and sent 100 drones to Ukraine.
Ukraine and Norway have extended the validity of the bilateral Agreement on the Liberalization of Freight Transportation until July 1, 2025.
Latvia has purchased 1,400 drones comprising its largest ever drone aid package for Ukraine, which are to be delivered to Ukraine soon.
The US has announced a new military aid package for Ukraine worth USD 125 million.
Canada is providing over USD 7 million in funding for reintegration programs targeting abducted Ukrainian children returning back home.
PUBLICATIONS AND INTERVIEWS
August 19/ How Sudzha lives under Ukrainian military control
August 19/ The last fall of the Prague Spring: a chronicle of occupation and resistance.
August 19/ Zaporizhzhia Front. Why it is critical to keep Mala Tokmachka under Ukrainian control, and how Orihiv looks like
August 19/ Hit the target and survive
August 20/ The ban of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine: UOC MP worshipers have nothing to worry about
August 20/ Lyman community: Life on the line of fire
August 21/ Leaving your homeland is the worst thing that can happen" - 88-year-old Lemko
August 21/ The theme of the "Battle of Kursk" is swept under the carpet by Russian propaganda
August 22/ The adversary like that deserves nothing else but to be shot down" - a sniper defending the sky over Zaporizhzhia
August 22/ Russian propaganda sharing fakes about Ukrainian soldiers purportedly looting in Kursk
August 23/ Napoleon, Hitler and the Ardennes: Russian propaganda manipulates history to defame Ukraine’s military operation in Kursk Oblast
August 24/ "War squeezes the circle of ‘own’ people. The real ‘owns’ remain" – army officer Vladyslav Tovtin
August 24/ Russian offensive into Pokrovsk, Toretsk: what the adversary has planned and what threats it poses.
Compiled by Zhanna Teleganova, Kyiv
