Late on Friday, Russian rockets struck the central city of Dnipro, killing three people and wounding 15, regional governor Valentin Reznichenko said. Missiles hit an industrial plant and a road next to it, he told Telegram. Reuters reported footage on social media showing thick black smoke billowing from buildings and burning cars. Eight people were killed and 13 wounded in a series of bombings at 10 locations in the eastern Donetsk region, Governor Pavlo Kirilenko said in a televised interview. On Thursday, Kalibr cruise missiles fired from a Russian submarine in the Black Sea hit an office building in Vinnytsia, southwest of Kiev, in an attack that Ukraine said killed at least 23 people. Flowers and toys were laid near the site of Russian missile strikes in Vinnytsia, Ukraine, in which three children were among at least 23 people killed. Photo: Ed Ram/Zuma Press Wire Service/REX/Shutterstock Important events: Show only key events Please enable JavaScript to use this feature The White House says Russian officials have visited an airfield in central Iran at least twice in recent weeks to view attack-capable drones it wants to acquire for use in the ongoing war in Ukraine. Joe Biden’s administration released the information as the president was set to meet Saturday with leaders of six Gulf Arab states, as well as Egypt, Jordan and Iraq for a summit on regional missile and defense capabilities. Biden is expected to deliver a “major statement” outlining his vision for the Middle East at the end of a four-day trip aimed at “clearly articulating” his vision and strategy for America’s engagement in the Middle East and fostering a unified new regional axis largely driven by shared concerns about Iran. The US believes Iran displayed the drones for Russian officials at Kashan Airport on June 8 and July 15, according to the White House. The administration also released satellite images of the Shahed-191 and Shahed-129 drones also in flight at the airport, while a Russian delegation transport plane was on the ground, the Associated Press reports. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in a statement that the administration has “information that the Iranian government is preparing to provide Russia with several hundred UAVs.” He added: We assess that an official Russian delegation recently received a showcase of Iranian attack-capable UAVs. We are publishing these images taken in June showing Iranian UAVs seen by the Russian government delegation that day. This suggests continued Russian interest in acquiring Iranian attack-capable UAVs. Sullivan said U.S. officials believe the June visit “was the first time a Russian delegation visited this airport for such a showcase.” On Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdolakhian, in a telephone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba, rejected reports of Iranian drone exports to Russia, calling them “baseless.” “This kind of claims, along with Biden’s visit to occupied Palestine or Israel, is in the direction of political intentions and goals,” Amiravdolakhian said, according to Iran’s foreign ministry website. “We are opposed to any move that could lead to the continuation and intensification of conflicts.” The G20 on Saturday will discuss post-pandemic financial stability, crypto-assets and climate-related financial risks, among other topics, but sources said the two-day meeting in Bali is likely to end without an official announcement as its war Russia in Ukraine continues to divide the group. Indonesia urged G20 economic leaders to remain focused on their goals of global economic recovery. Senior Western officials, including US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, on Friday condemned the war and blamed Russian officials for the massive economic fallout caused by the war, Reuters reports. Ukraine’s Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko, who spoke at the meeting, called for “stronger targeted sanctions” against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. Western countries have imposed severe sanctions on Russia and accused it of war crimes in Ukraine, which Moscow has denied. Other G20 nations, including China, India and South Africa, were more muted in their response. “We are at a dead end in the global economy with the G20 paralyzed by Putin’s war and the G7 unable to lead on global public goods,” said Kevin Gallagher, head of the Center for Global Development Policy at Boston University. Indonesia’s Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati hoped delegates at this week’s meeting could jointly address rising commodity prices, a worsening food security crisis and the negative impact on the ability of low-income countries to repay debt. debt. A Russian raid hit the northeastern Ukrainian city of Chuhuiv in the Kharkiv region overnight, killing three people, including a 70-year-old woman, and injuring three others, the regional governor said. The strike destroyed a residential block, a school and a shop, and rescuers were wading through the rubble, governor Oleh Synehubov said on Telegram. Russia denies targeting civilians, Reuters reports. Jedidiah Otte Moldova received about 600 million euros in pledges at a donors’ conference on Friday, an official said, to help the small country overcome rising inflation and the impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine. More than 500,000 refugees have taken refuge in Moldova, which borders Ukraine, since the Russian invasion on February 24. The Associated Press reports that the situation has put a huge strain on resources in Europe’s poorest country, which is trying to forge closer ties with the West. Moldova is also completely dependent on Russian gas supplies, with prices quadrupling in the past year, and is now grappling with skyrocketing inflation. The Moldova Support Platform sponsors meeting was held on Friday in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, and was co-chaired by the Romanian Foreign Minister, Bogdan Aurescu, his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, and the French Development Minister, Chrysoula Zacharopoulou. The event was also attended by representatives of the Group of Seven and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Baerbock wrote online after the event: We may not have the power to stop the war in Ukraine today or tomorrow because of Russian brutality. But we have the means to help a democratic country prevent it from being crushed by the effects of this war. I’m Jedidajah Otte and I’m taking over now for the next few hours.
Russia is stockpiling weapons at European nuclear plant – Ukrainian official
Russia is using Europe’s largest nuclear plant as a base to store weapons including “missile systems” and bomb nearby areas in Ukraine, an official at Kiev’s nuclear agency said, as almost the entire country was put on airstrike alert. AFP reports that the president of Ukraine’s Energoatom nuclear agency said on Friday that the situation at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant was “extremely tense”, with up to 500 Russian soldiers controlling the plant. “The occupiers are bringing their machinery there, including missile systems, from which they are already shelling the other side of the Dnipro River and the territory of Nikopolis,” Pedro Cotin said in a televised interview, referring to the city across the water. The plant in southwestern Ukraine has been under Russian control since the first weeks of Moscow’s invasion, although it is still operated by Ukrainian personnel. The most recent attack in the Dnipro region left three dead and 15 wounded, regional governor Valentin Reznichenko said on Telegram. The threat of airstrikes in most of Ukraine was also voiced after raids were reported in areas far from the front lines, with President Volodymyr Zelensky saying the Russian aim was to “inflict maximum damage on Ukrainian cities”. Russian forces walk through the gates of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Energodar, Ukraine, in May. Photo: AP Russia and Ukraine described progress toward an agreement to lift a blockade limiting Ukrainian grain exports. Turkey, a mediator, said a deal could be signed next week. Asked if that timetable was realistic, a senior Ukrainian official who asked not to be named told Reuters: “We really hope so. We hurry as fast as we can.” The Russian Defense Ministry said a deal was close, but Moscow’s negotiator warned that a deal on grain would not lead to a resumption of peace talks. A deal would likely include ship inspections to ensure Ukraine was not carrying weapons and guarantees from Western countries that Russia’s food exports are exempt from sanctions. Moscow welcomed a written clarification from Washington on Thursday that banks, insurers and shippers would not be targeted by sanctions for facilitating shipments of Russian grain and fertilizer.
Air raid sirens in Kyiv as Russia steps up long-range attacks
Air raid sirens sounded across Kyiv on Saturday as Russia stepped up long-range bombing of Ukrainian cities that has killed at least 34 people and wounded dozens over the past three days. Late on Friday, Russian rockets struck the central city of Dnipro, killing three people and wounding 15, regional governor Valentin Reznichenko said. Missiles hit an industrial plant and a road next to it, he told Telegram. Reuters reported footage on social media showing thick black smoke billowing from buildings and burning cars. Eight people were killed and 13 wounded in a series of bombings at 10 locations in the eastern Donetsk region, Governor Pavlo Kirilenko said in a televised interview. On Thursday, Kalibr…
