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Morning Headlines
Reuters: Russia launched its fifth missile attack on Kyiv this month, Ukraine's military said on Tuesday, with preliminary data showing air defence systems were again successful in repelling the strikes.
ISW: Chechen Akhmat Spetsnaz Commander Apty Alaudinov aggravated a situation that the Kremlin has historically treated with extreme caution by calling for conscripts to participate in combat operations in Kursk Oblast and dismissing concerns from relatives of conscripts.
Euractive: A European Commission deadline for Hungary to respond to questions about the easing of entry requirements for Russian and Belarusian nationals expired on Monday (19 August).
More News
Reuters: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday his country's assault on Russia's Kursk region showed that Kremlin threats of retaliation were a bluff, and he urged Kyiv's allies to loosen curbs on using foreign-supplied weapons.
The Insider: Florida-based firm owned by Soviet-born émigré helped Russian civil aircraft obtain sanctioned spare parts. Miami Technics shipped $400,000 worth of parts to Russia since the start of 2024 — including ≈$300k of equipment under U.S. export controls.
POLITICO: US Sen. Mark Kelly said Monday that Ukraine would get what it needs if Harris is president. He added that the U.S.’s role as a leader in sending military aid to Ukraine, and of being the lead nation in the NATO alliance, wouldn't change.
The Kyiv Independent: Ukrainian forces are in control of 92 settlements and more than 1,250 square kilometers of Kursk Oblast in Russia as the incursion into the region continues, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Aug. 19.
AP News: Belarus has deployed aircraft and air defense troops to its border with Ukraine, a day after Lukashenko announced he would station almost a third of the country’s military along the frontier.
The Moscow Times: Putin on Monday signed a decree allowing foreign citizens and stateless individuals to apply for temporary residency in the country if they share “traditional Russian spiritual and moral values,” even in cases when a person does not speak Russian.
The Kyiv Independent: The Security Service of Ukraine has uncovered a Russian intelligence network that included serving and former law enforcement officers from Ukraine, the agency reported on Aug. 19.
POLITICO: Russia is pretty chill about the mpox threat. Anna Popova, the head of Rospotrebnadzor, the Russian consumer protection watchdog, said there is no risk of mpox spreading in Russia, hinting that's because incidence is higher among gay people.
Ukrinform: The Danish government announced on August 19 that it is ready with a new donation package, worth approximately DKK 783 million ($115 million), to meet Ukraine's military needs in both the short and long term.
The Kyiv Independent: Russian forces attacked Toretsk and Zarichne in Donetsk Oblast on Aug. 19, killing four civilians, the regional prosecutor's office said.
Reuters: Britain's support for Ukraine remains unwavering, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday, in response to comments by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy who said London's support was weakening.
The Kyiv Independent: Germany has supplied a new IRIS-T SLS air defense missile system, 14,000 rounds of 155 mm ammunition, 10 naval drones, and other equipment in its latest military aid delivery to Ukraine, the German government said on Aug. 19.
JPost, Reuters: Russia said on Monday it was banning 32 experts and employees at British think tanks whom it accused of pushing an anti-Russian line in Western policy circles and of publishing disinformation designed to discredit Moscow.
The Moscow Times: Russia’s Defense Ministry on Monday published an interview with a former Massachusetts city councilman who is wanted in the United States on child pornography charges, an apparent confirmation of previous reports that he fled the U.S. and enlisted in the Russian army.
AFP: Chancellor Olaf Scholz insisted Monday that Germany would maintain support for Ukraine's fight against Russia's invasion, despite plans to halve the budget for helping Kyiv in 2025.
AP News: Civilians with small children in their arms and lugging heavy suitcases fled Monday from Ukraine’s eastern city of Pokrovsk, where the Russian army was bearing down fast despite a lightning Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk region.
AFP: More than 40 Russian firefighters have been injured tackling a fire at an oil facility that has raged for two days after it was hit by a Ukrainian drone.
Reuters: A Russian investigator said on Monday that Ukraine had struck and damaged a third bridge over the Seym river in Russia's Kursk region a day earlier, where Moscow's troops have been battling Kyiv's forces for nearly two weeks.
The Kyiv Independent: An explosion at the Sterlitamak Petrochemical Plant in Russia's Bashkortostan Republic on the morning of Aug. 19 injured at least three people, municipal authorities reported.
Yahoo News, AFP: Pro-Kremlin sites masquerading as US "news" outlets have dished out unfounded claims that Democrats plotted to assassinate Donald Trump, a prime example of how phony AI-powered portals are spewing inflammatory falsehoods in a high-stakes election year.
worth mentioning
Lithuania begins construction of base for German troops near Russian border
Kyrgyzstan's major bank suspends transfers via sanctioned Russian banks
Chinese Premier Li Qiang to visit Russia, Belarus on August 20-23
Indian PM Modi to visit Ukraine, Poland this week
Elon Musk denies gifting Chechen warlord a Tesla truck
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