Thursday, October 5

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Members of a drone unit of Brigade 28th of Ukrainian Army scout for Russian positions using a modified flying device in the front line nearby Kurdiumivka in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, Oct. 03, 2023. (Photo by Narciso Contreras/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Military intelligence: Special forces land in Crimea in military operation. Ukrainian special forces landed on Russian-occupied Crimea and conducted a combat operation, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) announced via a video published online on Oct. 4.

UN report officially rejects Russian claim that HIMARS caused Olenivka prison explosions. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) categorically dismissed Russia’s claim that the Olenivka prison massacre was caused by a Ukrainian HIMARS rocket, according to a report released on Oct. 4.

Ambassador: Ukraine in dialogue with most US House Speaker candidates. “Many names are already being actively discussed, such as Majority Leader (Steve) Scalise, who is next in the party’s hierarchy after the speaker,” Oksana Markarova wrote on social media.

Ukraine develops ‘invisibility cloak’ to protect soldiers from thermal imagery. Ukrainian developers are looking to bring science fiction to life with an “invisibility cloak,” a lightweight overcoat able to hide soldiers from Russian thermal imagery, Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov announced on Oct. 4.

Police announces discovery of fraud scheme selling non-existent cars for military. Ukraine’s National Police uncovered a criminal fraud network, in which individuals allegedly sold non-existent vehicles, including to soldiers and volunteers who planned to use them on the front, the service reported on Oct. 4.

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Media: SBU drones hit Russian S-400 air defense system near Belgorod. The strike was reportedly carried out at night. In videos on Russian Telegram channels, allegedly taken in Belgorod and published in the early hours of Oct. 4, the sounds of explosions can be heard over the city.

Ombudsman: Russia to open military camp for youth in occupied Crimea. Russia will open a new military-oriented camp for youth in Yevpatoria, occupied Crimea, where young people will be indoctrinated with Russian military ideology, Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on Telegram on Oct. 4.

SBU detains 3 alleged Russian spies operating in Kharkiv, Zhytomyr oblasts. At the instruction of their Russian handlers, the suspects allegedly collected information on Ukraine’s Armed Forces and the consequences of Russian strikes in Kharkiv and Zhytomyr oblasts.

UK intelligence: Russia may use sea mines to attack grain corridor. “Russia almost certainly wants to avoid openly sinking civilian ships, instead falsely laying blame on Ukraine for any attacks against civilian vessels in the Black Sea,” the report said.

ISW: Russia transfers Black Sea Fleet vessels to avoid Ukrainian fire. According to sattelite images from Oct. 1 and Oct. 3, the Russian military has moved at least 10 vessels, including the frigates Admiral Makarov and Admiral Essen, from Sevastopol to Novorossiysk.

Read our exclusives

Ukraine war latest: Kyiv says special forces conduct operation in occupied Crimea

The operation involved a battle with Russian forces, who suffered significant losses, and Ukrainian forces have already returned from the operation.

Photo:  Ignacio Marin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Two sisters capture the beauty of Ukraine’s villages before it’s gone

Svitlana Oslavska and Anna Ilchenko embarked on a mission in 2020 to document Ukraine’s villages before they were lost to time and war.

Photo: Courtesy, Old Khata project

Does Ukraine need NATO or does NATO need Ukraine?

Human cost of war

Russian attack on Nikopol injures 1. Nikopol was targeted by Russian artillery and an attack drone during the day, injuring one civilian, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Governor Serhii Lysak reported on Oct. 4.

Russian ammunition detonates in Kherson field, man seriously injured. A man has been seriously injured after he came across ammunition left behind by Russian ammunition, which then exploded, Kherson Oblast Military Administration reported on Oct. 4. The 32-year-old man lost a limb, among other injuries, and was taken to hospital for treatment.

International response

Politico: EU to announce Ukraine membership talks in December. According to Politico, the EU’s executive arm will publish its “progress report” in November and will make it “very hard for member states not to say let’s open negotiations” for Ukraine.

Lithuania opens transit corridor for Ukrainian grain. “Russia destroys food, Lithuania delivers it,” Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis wrote on the social platform X. “A corridor for grain transit to Baltic ports has been accepted and agreed upon, relieving pressure at the Ukrainian border and increasing supply to Africa and beyond.”

Slovakia halts military aid to Ukraine following election. The Slovak Defense Ministry had prepared a new assistance package for Ukraine that President Zuzana Čaputová could have signed while Fico’s predecessor was still in office. However, the president declined, saying the parliamentary elections must be respected.

Czech president: Europe must reduce defense reliance on US. “The dominant role of NATO as a security provider must no longer mean that Europe neglects its defense obligations,” Czech President Petr Pavel said at the College of Europe in Bruges.

US Central Command: Confiscated Iranian munitions sent to Ukraine. Over a million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition confiscated from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was transferred by the U.S. to Ukraine, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) reported on Oct. 4.

Poll: Most Americans favor Ukraine aid, but partisan divide widens. Most Americans continue to support for Ukraine’s military (63%) and continued economic assistance (61%), which is slightly lower than a year ago.

Hungary issues more demands following suspension of OTP Bank from ‘international sponsors of war’ list. Hungary “still needs guarantees,” that the Hungarian OTP bank will not be reinstated to Ukraine’s international sponsors of war list, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Oct. 4.

In other news

Venice bus crash kills 21 people, including at least 4 Ukrainians. A bus crash in Italy on Tuesday killed at least four Ukrainians, local media reported on Oct. 4. In total, 21 people on board were killed, the local authorities said.

Bloomberg: Azerbaijani President cancels plans to attend peace talks with Armenia. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has canceled plans to attend peace talks on Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 4, citing local media.

Ukraine completes investigation into killing of EuroMaidan protesters, indicts Yanukovych for murder. The investigation into the killing of EuroMaidan protesters in Kyiv in February 2014 has been completed and former President Viktor Yanukovych has been formally charged with a range of crimes, including murder, the General Prosecutor’s Office announced on Oct. 4.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Lili Bivings, Martin Fornusek, Elsa Court, Francis Farrell, Nate Ostiller, Olena Goncahrova, Sonya Bandoil, and Abbey Fenbert.

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