Ukraine-Russia war live: Zelensky says Putin is ‘afraid’ as Moscow suffers Satan II missile failure
Ukraine ‘closer to peace than we think’, Zelensky tells allies in Washington
Your support helps us to tell the story
My recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.
Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.
Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyond
Eric Garcia
Washington Bureau Chief
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine was “closer to the end of the war” with Russia than many people realise.
He made the comments in an interview in which he also claimed Vladimir Putin was “afraid” of Ukraine’s Kursk operation, that has taken more than 1,000 square km of Russian territory.
Mr Zelensky is currently in Washington DC to attend the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly.
“I think that we are closer to peace than we think,” he told ABC in an interview that is due to be released in full on Tuesday.
Putin has been adamant peace talks will only begin if Kyiv abandons swathes of eastern and southern Ukraine to Russia and drops its NATO membership ambitions.
It comes as Russia appears to have suffered a “catastrophic failure” in a test of its Sarmat (Satan II) missile, a key weapon in the modernisation of its nuclear arsenal.
The Satan II missile is designed to deliver nuclear warheads to strike targets thousands of miles away in the United States or Europe, but its development has been dogged by delays and testing setbacks, according to arms experts.
The 35-metre-long RS-28 Sarmat has a range of 18,000 km (11,000 miles) and a launch weight of over 208 tonnes.
Brazil and China propose plan for Ukraine-Russia talks
Brazil and China have proposed a six-point plan for talks to begin between Russia and Ukraine to end their conflict, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has said.
Lula, who has spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin by telephone about the proposal, did not give any details in a speech at the opening of the United Nations General Assembly.
Ukraine says its soldiers recaptured a Russian stronghold after hand-to-hand fighting
Ukrainian troops engaged in hand-to-hand combat as they drove Russian forces out of a huge processing plant in the town of Vovchansk in Ukraine‘s northeast that had been occupied for four months, officials have said.
The plant, a partly steel structure with some 30 buildings, had been a Russian stronghold in the Kharkiv border region since May when Russia sought to further stretch Ukraine‘s weary forces by launching a fresh push in the area.
Taking back the plant was likely intended to demonstrate that Ukraine is not giving up the fight despite being outmanned and outgunned by the Russian army.
A statement from Ukrainian Military Intelligence said its units recaptured the Vovchansk plant after fierce fighting “in densely built-up conditions.”
Zelensky calls on allies to help Ukraine stop attacks after Russia hits apartment bloc
President Volodymyr Zelensky called on allies to help Ukraine “stop the terror” after Russian troops hit a residential building in Ukraine‘s northeastern city of Kharkiv, killing at least three people.
“There is much discussion now at the UN General Assembly about collective efforts for security and the future. But we just need to stop the terror. To have security. To have a future,” Zelenskiy said on X during his visit to the US.
Pictured: Russian attack on residential building on Kharkiv
Russian strike kills at least three and injures 15 in Ukraine’s Kharkiv, governor says
Russia has hit a high-rise apartment block in Ukraine‘s northeastern city of Kharkiv during an attack with guided bombs, killing at least three people and injuring 15 more, the regional governor said.
Kharkiv’s mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram that Russia attacked at least four districts in the afternoon.
Russian repression worsens, UN expert says, voicing fears for political prisoners
State repression has worsened in Russia since the invasion of Ukraine, a UN expert has said, warning of arbitrary imprisonment and risks for more than 1,000 political prisoners.
“The country is now governed by a State-sponsored system of fear and punishment, including the use of torture, with absolute impunity,” UN Special Rapporteur Mariana Katzarova told the Geneva-based Human Rights Council,
The Bulgarian former Amnesty International investigator said in a report on Russia’s rights record that oppression had intensified since the February 2022 Ukraine war began, with the number of political prisoners up to more than 1,300.
Many were jailed on fabricated charges, she said, noting a priest’s seven-year sentence for a prayer against the war.
“They risk anything from death, like (opposition leader Alexei) Navalny, or really their health being completely taken away from them,” she said on Monday ahead of her speech, noting greater use of torture and solitary confinement.
Pictured: Zelensky meets with world leaders at UN general assembly
Russian forces storming east Ukrainian town of Vuhledar, bloggers and media say
Russian forces have begun storming the eastern Ukrainian town of Vuhledar, a stronghold that has resisted Russian attack since the beginning of the 2022 war, according to Russian war bloggers and state media.
Russian forces in eastern Ukraine advanced at their fastest rate in two years in August, according to multiple open source maps, even though a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk region sought to force Moscow to divert troops.
President Vladimir Putin has said Russia’s primary tactical goal is currently to take the whole of the Donbas region in south-eastern Ukraine. Russia controls just under a fifth of Ukraine, including about 80% of the Donbas.
Russian forces have been pushing westwards at key points along some 150 km (93 miles) of the front in the Donetsk region, with the logistics hub of Pokrovsk a key target. They captured nearby Ukrainsk on 17 September and were now entering the hilltop town of Vuhledar, about 80 km (50 miles) south of Pokrovsk.
Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had defeated Ukrainian units at a series of settlements including Vuhledar, which Russians call Ugledar, and that the Eastern Grouping of Russian forces had improved their tactical positions. It gave no further details on Vuhledar.
Unverified video on Russian state media showed Vuhledar, which had a population of over 14,000 before the war, under heavy artillery and aerial bombardment.
Ukraine accuses Russia of seeking to illegally control strategic sea as arbitration hearings open
Ukraine accuses Russia of seeking to illegally control strategic sea as arbitration hearings open
Ukraine has accused Russia of seeking to illegally seize control of the strategically important Sea of Azov and Kerch Strait
Kremlin says Israeli strikes on Lebanon risk destabilising the Middle East
The Kremlin has warned Israeli strikes on Lebanon had the potential to completely destabilise the Middle East and widen the conflict there.
Israel struck Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and the Iran-backed group attacked military facilities in northern Israel on Tuesday, a day after hundreds were killed in Israeli airstrikes against Hezbollah targets.
Asked about the Israeli strikes, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call: “This is an event that is potentially extremely dangerous when it comes to the expansion of the conflict, to the complete destabilisation of the region. Of course, this is of extreme concern to us.”
In a separate statement, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow condemned what she called “indiscriminate” strikes on Lebanon that target civilians.
“It is urgent to stop the spiral of violence before the situation spirals completely out of control. We call for an immediate cessation of hostilities,” she said.
Russia has deepened ties with Hezbollah patron Iran since the start of its “special military operation” in Ukraine. It has questioned the proportionality of Israel’s bombing of Gaza and the number of civilians killed, straining ties with Israel.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments