Russia attacks Ukraine’s Danube port of Izmail
Russia has attacked Ukraine’s grain port of Izmail, an inland port across the Danube River from Romania. Ukraine’s defence ministry said a grain silo was damaged. There were no reports of casualties, Odesa’s region governor, Oleh Kiper, wrote in a post on Telegram.
Kiper posted several photos showing firefighting crews trying to put out a fire in a high-rise building next to a river.
An industrial source also confirmed to Reuters that Izmail was the main target of the attack, describing the level of damage as “serious”.
Ukraine’s prosecutor’s office released pictures showing a war crimes investigator outside a ruined building, and at least two damaged silos with wheat tumbling out.
The port, across the river from Nato-member Romania, has served as the main alternative route out of Ukraine for grain exports since Russia reimposed its de facto blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports in mid-July.
Russia has now relentlessly attacked Ukrainian agricultural and port infrastructure for more than two weeks.
“The enemy … is trying to destroy Ukrainian grain, attacking industrial and port infrastructure. Unfortunately, there are hits, unfortunately the silo was damaged, and fires broke out at the site,” Serhiy Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Ukrainian volunteer army south, part of Ukraine’s armed forces, said in a video statement.
“Russia is trying to cut Ukraine out of the future grain agreement and, most importantly, to strategically displace our country from the global food market,” he said.
Ukraine’s Danube River ports accounted for around a quarter of grain exports before Russia pulled out of the Black Sea deal and have since become main route out.
Key events
The Polish deputy foreign minister, Pawel Jabłoński, has said relations with Ukraine have “not been the best” lately after an official was criticised by Kyiv after suggesting the embattled nation had been ungrateful for the support it had received.
Jabłoński said there are many issues on which Poland and Ukraine “cannot agree”, European Pravda reported, and that “due to the remarks made by some representatives of the Ukrainian authorities recently” relations have not been “the best, no one is hiding this.”
We follow a policy of Polish national interests. We support Ukraine to the extent that it aligns with Polish national interests. This has always been the case and will always be the case.
On Monday, Poland’s head of the international policy bureau, Marcin Przydacz, said Ukraine should “start appreciating the role Poland has played for Ukraine in recent months and years” and advocated for an extension to an EU ban on certain Ukrainian exports to protect Polish farmers.
Oleg Nikolenko, spokesperson for the foreign ministry in Kyiv, said:
During the meeting, it was emphasised that the statements about the alleged ingratitude of the Ukrainians for the assistance of the Republic of Poland do not reflect reality and as such are unacceptable.
Two civilians were wounded in shelling of the city of Kherson overnight, the regional governor, Oleksandr Prokudin, has said.
A summary from Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s office said a doctor was killed and five medical personnel were wounded in an attack on a city hospital in Kherson, but didn’t specify if the attack was today or yesterday, AP reports.
A 91-year-old woman died in an attack on a village in the Kharkiv region, the presidential office said.
In the eastern region of Donetsk, four people were wounded in Russian shelling over the past day, according to governor Pavlo Kyrylenko.
The area around the city of Nikopol, across the river from the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, was shelled three times, governor Serhiy Lysak said.
Confusion over reported agreement for Putin to visit Turkey
After the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, spoke on the phone today, Erdoğan’s office issued a statement which said Putin would at some point visit Turkey, a Nato member.
But not long after, Russian state media agency Tass overwrote its brief news article and said that Putin and Erdoğan had only “agreed to prepare for a possible meeting”, citing the Kremlin.
Putin and Erdoğan agreed to continue contacts at various levels, including in the context of preparations for a possible meeting of the two leaders
The updated Tass story concluded: “Earlier, the office of the Turkish leader reported that Erdoğan and Putin agreed on the visit of the Russian president to Turkey.”
Erdoğan’s office also said his Russian counterpart was told the Turkish ruler would continue to engage in diplomacy to reinstate the Black Sea grain initiative.
President Erdoğan expressed the importance of refraining from steps that could escalate tensions during the Russia-Ukraine war, emphasizing the significance of the Black Sea initiative, which he described as a bridge of peace.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke by phone with President Vladimir Putin of Russia.
During the call, the two leaders agreed on Mr. Putin’s visit to Türkiye.
Extending his thanks to his counterpart for the 2 amphibious firefighting aircraft dispatched by Russia for Türkiye’s…
— Republic of Türkiye Directorate of Communications (@Communications) August 2, 2023
It comes as the Kremlin today restated its position on the Black Sea grain deal, saying it was ready to return to it “immediately” once the part that concerns Russia was implemented. It has claimed Russia faced barriers to the free export of its grain and fertiliser through restrictions on payments and other logistical facets.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said:
Russia – and president Putin has said this 100 times already – is ready to immediately return to the deal itself… just the deal must be implemented in the part that concerns the Russian Federation. So far this has not been done, as you know.
The west imposed sanctions against Russia without taking into account the needs of the world community for food, the UN general secretariat is well aware of this.
Yesterday, the US envoy to the UN said there were “indications” that Russia might be interested in returning to discussions about the deal, which had allowed Ukraine to export grain by sea.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has condemned the Russian attack on the Odesa region.
BBC Russia reports that he has criticised how the Russian military was “again hitting ports, grain, global food security,” and called on the world community to respond.
The world must respond. When civilian ports are targeted, when terrorists deliberately destroy even elevators, this is a threat to everyone on all continents. Russia can and should be stopped.
The Guardian’s world affairs editor Julian Borger has this analysis of the Ukrainian counteroffensive.
The occupying forces held firm and have mostly kept their discipline in the first seven weeks, absorbing one attack after another, often counterattacking to recover lost ground, and mounting offensives of their own in Luhansk and other spots on the frontline where they sensed weakness.
Initial Ukrainian assaults got mired in dense, overlapping minefields. For all the focus on the delivery of Leopards and other western tanks in the run-up to the launch of the offensive on 4 June, Ukrainian armour failed to provide the clenched fist needed to breach the lines.
Tanks, as the military experts had warned, were not a solution on their own. Without air superiority in the skies above and overwhelming artillery support, they were vulnerable to Russian anti-tank missiles fired from the trenches and from gunships able to strike them over the horizon.
Operations have now been suspended at Ukraine’s Izmail port on the Danube after the Russian drone strike, two industry sources have told Reuters.
The port, across the river from Nato-member Romania, has served as the main alternative route out of Ukraine for grain exports since Russia reintroduced its de facto blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports in mid-July.
Summary of the day so far …
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Russia has attacked Ukraine’s grain port of Izmail, an inland port across the Danube River from Romania. Ukraine’s defence ministry said a grain silo was damaged. There were no reports of casualties, Odesa region governor Oleh Kiper wrote in a post on Telegram. Kiper posted several photos showing firefighting crews trying to put out a fire in a high-rise building next to a river. The port, across the river from Nato-member Romania, has served as the main alternative route out of Ukraine for grain exports since Russia reimposed its de facto blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports in mid-July.
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Ukraine claims its air defences forces shot down 23 “Shahed” drones. The majority were destroyed in Kyiv oblast and Odesa oblast. In Kyiv, fragments of a downed drone fell on an administration building in Solomianskyi district. According to the city authority, debris also fell in two other districts, but no one was injured. In the Kyiv region, due to falling debris, a private house caught fire in the Bucha raion. A garage and a car were damaged. In another settlement of the region, the roof of a shop was damaged by debris.
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Andriy Yermak, head of the office of the Ukrainian presidency, has again called for a tightening of sanctions against Russia in order to inhibit weapon production following the overnight strikes. He hailed “heroic work by the air defence tonight,” saying “It is possible to stop this with tougher sanctions, which will constantly increase and affect the military industry of the Russian Federation. Also, everyone can do more if they block the chains through which Russia receives sanctioned components. Every country can do more.”
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Ukrinform reports that five settlements in the Sumy region have been shelled. It cites the local authority stating no civilian casualties or destruction of civilian infrastructure was recorded.
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Kherson was also reportedly under fire. Houses, offices and cars were damaged in the city and two people were injured.
Here is another view of the building in Kyiv damaged overnight when it was hit by a downed drone.
The Russian navy has started scheduled drills in the Baltic Sea involving over 30 ships and boats along with 20 support vessels and 30 aircraft, Russia’s defence ministry said on Wednesday.
Some 6,000 navy personnel are involved in the exercise, Reuters reports it said in a statement.
Interfax in Russia is reporting that police in Moldova have arrested a man who drove a car into the gates of the Russian embassy in Chişinău earlier this morning.
Reuters has a quick snap that the Kremlin has confirmed that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, is having a phone call this morning with his counterpart from Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Daniel Boffey
Daniel Boffey is in Kyiv for the Guardian, and reports on the latest Russian attacks on the country’s grain infrastructure:
Russia failed to hit its targets in Kyiv but successfully struck ports in the Odesa region with suicide drones in the latest night-time strikes to follow the Kremlin decision’s to pull out of a UN-backed deal safeguarding the world’s food supply.
Fires were said to be raging at the sites of key Ukrainian infrastructure at undisclosed locations in the southern region while the country’s defence ministry said a grain silo in Izmail, an inland port across the Danube River from Romania, was badly damaged.
The shooting down of a total of 23 Iranian-Shahed drones on Tuesday night, including ten fired at Ukraine’s capital, highlighted the high value of Ukraine’s air defences, particularly the patriot systems donated by the US, but the gaps elsewhere in the country become clearer every day.
Russia has offered free grain to African countries while targeting Ukraine’s capacity to store and export foodstuffs since pulling out a deal brokered by Turkey and the UN to ensure that food and fertiliser from Ukraine, one of the major breadbaskets of the world, could leave its southern ports.
The latest attacks on the ports and industrial infrastructure, seemingly designed to kill off the possibility of any future deal with Kyiv on grain supply, was condemned by the US ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, who said Russia’s leadership had no empathy for those around the world reliant on Ukrainian products.
The outgoing UK ambassador to Ukraine, Melinda Simmons, has visited the Motherland monument in Kyiv, where authorities are currently in the process of replacing the Soviet-era symbol on the shield with the national symbol of Ukraine. Simmons noted on social media that Ukraine’s capital has just experienced its seventh air raid warning in a 24 hour period.
Felt the urge to come and see this after the 7th air raid siren in 24 hours. It’s the closest I could get but still pretty fabulous to see the transformation underway. Maybe she could also be turned 180 degrees to face Kyiv city centre? 😊 pic.twitter.com/BuNbnyYFFO
— Dame Melinda Simmons (@MelSimmonsFCDO) August 2, 2023
The work to replace the symbol began a couple of days ago.
The US ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, has condemned Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine’s port and grain export infrastructure, saying on social media:
Homes. Ports. Grain silos. Historic buildings. Men. Women. Children. Round-the-clock and intensifying Russian strikes on Kryvyi Rih, Kharkiv, Kyiv, Kherson make it clear once again Russia has no desire for peace, no thought for civilian safety, and no regard for people around the world who rely on food from Ukraine.
Turkmenistan Airlines suspends Moscow flights, citing drone attack concerns
Turkmenistan’s flagship airline has suspended flights to Moscow, it said on Wednesday, citing safety concerns after Ukrainian drone attacks on the Russian capital.
“Due to the situation in the Moscow air zone, and based on a risk assessment in order to ensure flight safety, all Turkmenistan Airlines flights on the Ashgabat-Moscow-Ashgabat route will be suspended,” the airline said in a statement.
Reuters reports Turkmenistan Airlines said it would now fly instead to Kazan.
Russia attacks Ukraine’s Danube port of Izmail
Russia has attacked Ukraine’s grain port of Izmail, an inland port across the Danube River from Romania. Ukraine’s defence ministry said a grain silo was damaged. There were no reports of casualties, Odesa’s region governor, Oleh Kiper, wrote in a post on Telegram.
Kiper posted several photos showing firefighting crews trying to put out a fire in a high-rise building next to a river.
An industrial source also confirmed to Reuters that Izmail was the main target of the attack, describing the level of damage as “serious”.
Ukraine’s prosecutor’s office released pictures showing a war crimes investigator outside a ruined building, and at least two damaged silos with wheat tumbling out.
The port, across the river from Nato-member Romania, has served as the main alternative route out of Ukraine for grain exports since Russia reimposed its de facto blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports in mid-July.
Russia has now relentlessly attacked Ukrainian agricultural and port infrastructure for more than two weeks.
“The enemy … is trying to destroy Ukrainian grain, attacking industrial and port infrastructure. Unfortunately, there are hits, unfortunately the silo was damaged, and fires broke out at the site,” Serhiy Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Ukrainian volunteer army south, part of Ukraine’s armed forces, said in a video statement.
“Russia is trying to cut Ukraine out of the future grain agreement and, most importantly, to strategically displace our country from the global food market,” he said.
Ukraine’s Danube River ports accounted for around a quarter of grain exports before Russia pulled out of the Black Sea deal and have since become main route out.
Ukrinform reports that five settlements in the Sumy region have been shelled. It cites the local authority stating no civilian casualties or destruction of civilian infrastructure was recorded.
Ukraine’s defence ministry said on Wednesday a grain silo was damaged in the latest Russian attack on the Ukrainian port of Izmail on the Danube River.
“Another elevator in the port of Izmail, Odesa region, was damaged by Russians. Ukrainian grain has the potential to feed millions of people worldwide,” Reuters reports the ministry wrote on social media.
Suspilne, Ukraine’s state broadcaster, offers this round-up of overnight news to subscribers of its Telegram channel, writing:
Air defence forces shot down 23 “Shahed” drones. The majority were destroyed in Kyiv oblast and Odesa oblast.
As a result of a drone attack in the Odesa region, fires broke out at port and industrial infrastructure facilities, and a grain elevator was damaged.
In Kyiv, fragments of a downed drone fell on the administration building in Solomianskyi district. the facade from the 9th to the 11th floor was damaged. According to the city authority, debris also fell in two other districts, but no one was injured.
In the Kyiv region, due to falling debris, a private house caught fire in the Bucha raion. A garage and a car were damaged. In another settlement of the region, the roof of a shop was damaged by debris.
Kherson also came under artillery fire at night – two people were injured. Houses, offices and cars were damaged in the city.
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