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Ukraine loses its outpost of Wuhledar in the east
According to unofficial reports, Ukraine has lost an outpost on its eastern front that it had defended for more than two years: the mining town of Wuhledar. After several months of attacks, Russian troops moved into the heavily destroyed city in the Donetsk region, which had almost 15,000 inhabitants before the war. Russian military blogs published photos of Russian flags on several buildings. Ukrainian military observers also marked Wuhledar as Russian-controlled on their maps.
The loss of the city has not yet been confirmed by official Ukrainian officials. President Volodymyr Zelensky dedicated his evening video address to Ukrainian cooperation with foreign defense companies. A defense industry forum is currently taking place in Kiev for the second time with representatives from more than 30 countries and almost 300 Ukrainian and foreign companies.
On Defender of the Fatherland Day on Tuesday, Ukraine, which has been at war with Russia, commemorated its fallen soldiers with a nationwide minute of silence. Wednesday night began again with air alerts for several areas in the north and center of the country. The Ukrainian Air Force detected numerous Russian combat drones in the air. Wednesday marks the 951st day since the full-scale Russian invasion began.
Losing battle for Wuhledar
Russian troops have been advancing in eastern Ukraine for months. The situation has worsened since the Ukrainian advance into the Russian border region of Kursk in August and the relocation of several brigades from eastern Ukraine to the new operational area. Since then, several small towns have been conquered by Russian troops.
In the case of Wuhledar, the Russian army had been trying in vain to take the city for a long time, but suffered heavy losses several times. Finally, the Russian troops managed to bypass and almost encircle the city, which had been converted into a fortress, to the east and west. There were no reports of an orderly withdrawal of the last Ukrainian defenders. Russian military bloggers assumed that there were still a few scattered Ukrainian soldiers in the city.
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The development could only be read indirectly from the situation reports of the Ukrainian General Staff. He mentioned fighting around Wuhledar on Tuesday morning, but no more in the reports for the afternoon and evening. The Russian attacks were concentrated on the nearest village of Bohojawlenka, it was said.
Ukrainian defense industry is expanding rapidly
According to Zelenskiy, not only state military aid from other countries is necessary to arm the Ukrainian army. “It is absolutely crucial for Ukraine that not only partner countries, but also defense companies from around the world are increasingly interested in cooperating with us and our defense industry,” he said.
There are investments from outside in the Ukrainian defense industry as well as foreign companies that produce in Ukraine. “Ukraine is already producing things we didn’t have before, like the 155 caliber and our long-range drones, our naval drones.” In addition to other arms companies, Rheinmetall from Germany and the German-French KNDS are active in Ukraine.
Ukraine will have manufactured 1.5 million drones by the end of the year, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said at a government meeting. The country’s arms production has tripled compared to 2023. At the arms forum, Zelensky said his country produced 25 times more ammunition in the first half of this year than in 2022. Ukraine also successfully tested its own ballistic missile.
Kyiv suspects war crimes
Based on a video, the Ukrainian justice system suspects the murder of 16 Ukrainian prisoners of war by the Russian army. The Prosecutor General’s Office in Kyiv spoke of an alleged war crime. She said a video appeared on Telegram channels on Tuesday. It was allegedly taken at the front near the embattled city of Pokrovsk. You can see Ukrainian soldiers coming out of a forest, lining up and then being shot. If the case proves true, according to Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin, it would be the worst case of killing Ukrainian prisoners of war at the front.
Russia arrests alleged internet conspirators
The Russian domestic secret service FSB says it has arrested 39 people, including several minors, in a coordinated operation. It was said that these were participants in “destructive internet communities” who were supposed to have committed acts of violence in Russia on behalf of Ukraine. More than 250 more people are being investigated. The suspects are said to have communicated with their Ukrainian command officers via Messenger Discord.
Russian authorities have been warning about the alleged recruitment for months, and the media has reported on individual cases. After the start of the war of aggression against Ukraine ordered by Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, Moscow has once again intensified the persecution of war opponents and dissidents in its own country. (DPA
