Live blog: Russia scrambles jets in response to US drones over Crimea

Monday, August 28, 2023

Russia has scrambled two fighter jets to prevent two US drones from violating its border over the Black Sea, the Russian Defence Ministry said.

A ministry statement on Telegram said the drones had been observed near Crimea and heading for the Russian border on an intelligence mission.

"As a result of the actions of anti-aircraft forces on duty the intelligence US drones altered the direction of their flight and left the area where they were conducting air intelligence," the ministry statement said.

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1808 GMT — White House confident Wagner Group boss Prigozhin died in plane crash

The White House has said it was increasingly confident that Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a plane crash in Russia last week.

Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his condolences to Prigozhin's family on Thursday, breaking his silence after the mercenary leader's plane crashed two months after he led a mutiny against Russia's army chiefs.

1359 GMT — Kiev opposes further grain bans by neighbouring countries

Ukraine has strongly opposed the imposition of any restrictions on the import of its grain by neighbouring countries after a European Union ban ends next month, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.

The EU in May allowed Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia to ban domestic sales of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower seeds until September 15, while allowing transit of cargoes for export elsewhere.

The five countries want the ban extended until the end of the year and some have threatened to introduce their own restrictions if Brussels does not act.

Kuleba said Kiev was "adamantly against" any such steps.

1341 GMT — No alternative to Black Sea Grain Initiative: Turkish official

There is no alternative to the Black Sea Grain Initiative, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's chief adviser Akif Cagatay Kilic has said.

Stressing the importance of the revival of the Black Sea grain deal, Kilic said: "That's our priority. Therefore, we are not considering any other alternative or other way at the moment. We doubt that this deal could survive without Russia."

Türkiye continues its efforts to resume the grain corridor again, Kilic told Turkish news channel NTV.

1210 GMT — Second Ukraine port ship safely reaches Istanbul

A second civilian cargo ship to sail from Ukraine since Russia withdrew from a UN-backed Black Sea grain export agreement has safely reached Istanbul, marine traffic monitors said.

The Liberian-flagged bulk carrier Primus hugged the coasts of NATO members Romania and Bulgaria after departing Odessa on Sunday in defiance of a Russian blockade.

Moscow warned that it may considered any ships in the Black Sea as military target and began bombing Ukrainian port infrastructure after withdrawing from the UN and Türkiye-brokered deal last month.

1007 GMT — Kremlin plays down significance of second vessel passing via Ukraine's Black Sea corridor

The passage of a second ship from Ukraine along a temporary Black Sea corridor has nothing to do with the prospects for a new grain deal involving Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Kiev said on Sunday a vessel carrying steel products to Africa had left Ukraine's port of Odessa through a temporary Black Sea corridor, the second ship to do so since Russia withdrew last month from a UN-brokered deal that allowed for grain to be safely exported.

Peskov told a briefing that the prospects of reviving the grain deal would depend on whether the West delivered on promises it gave to Moscow regarding Russia's own grain and fertiliser exports.

0830 GMT — Kiev says liberated Robotyne; 2 dead in Russia strike in Ukraine

Ukraine has said its troops liberated the southeastern settlement of Robotyne and were trying to push further south in their counteroffensive against Russian forces.

Ukrainian forces believe they have broken through the most difficult line of Russian defences in the south and that they will not start advancing more quickly, a commander who led troops into Robotyne told Reuters last week.

The settlement is 10 kilometres south of the frontline town of Orikhiv in the Zaporizhzhia region on an important road towards Tokmak, a Russian-occupied road and rail hub.

0800 GMT — Russia says detained US embassy 'informant' on Ukraine

Moscow has said that it had detained a Russian citizen and former US consulate employee in Vladivostok for allegedly passing information about the Ukraine conflict to American diplomats.

The Federal Security Service (FSB) said in a statement it had "suppressed the illegal activities of Robert Robertovich Shonov", accusing him of being an informant for the US embassy in Moscow.

The announcement is the latest in a series of diplomatic spats building pressure on strained ties between Moscow and Washington, particularly over the conflict in Ukraine.

0500 GMT — Ukraine's Zelenskyy says elections could happen if West helps

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, responding to calls by a US senator this week to announce elections in 2024, has said voting could take place during wartime if partners shared the cost, legislators approved, and everyone got to the polls.

Elections cannot currently be held in Ukraine under martial law, which must be extended every 90 days and is next due to expire on November 15, after the normal date in October for parliamentary polls but before presidential elections which would normally be held in March 2024.

Zelenskyy, in a television interview with Natalia Moseichuk, an anchor for the 1+1 Channel, said he had discussed the issue with US Senator Lindsey Graham.

He said it cost $135 million to hold elections in peacetime. "I don't know how much is needed in wartime," he said. "So I told him that if the US and Europe provide financial support ..."

0209 GMT — Russia 'destroys' drones approaching Moscow, region near Ukraine border

Russian air defences have destroyed a drone approaching Moscow and two in a region bordering Ukraine, authorities said.

Air defences in the Lyubertsy district southeast of the capital "destroyed a drone flying towards Moscow," the city's mayor Sergei Sobyanin wrote on Telegram, without naming an attacker.

"There were no casualties or damage, according to initial reports. Emergency services are on the scene."

Russia's defence ministry also said air defences destroyed a drone over Lyubertsy district around 4:30 am (0130 GMT) and blamed Kiev for the attempted attack.

Two other drones were destroyed by air defences over the Bryansk region bordering Ukraine, Russia's defence ministry said on Telegram.

For our live updates from Sunday (August 27), click here.