Our live coverage has ended. Read more about today’s developments in the posts below.
September 5, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news
By Aditi Sangal, Amy Woodyatt, Simone McCarthy, Tara Subramaniam and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN
Updated 2259 GMT (0659 HKT) September 5, 2022
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Warehouse with Russian S-300 missiles destroyed by Ukrainian artillery, Zelensky says
From CNN's Yulia Kesaieva
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed his country’s military has destroyed an important Russian ammunition depot where Moscow kept S-300 missiles it fired on the city of Kharkiv.
“I want to once again thank all our defenders, servicemen and servicewomen, our intelligence, the Security Service of Ukraine, who are doing everything to make it more and more difficult for the occupiers to stay in Ukraine with each day,” Zelensky said in his nightly address on Monday. “And today I especially want to thank the fighters of one of our rocket artillery brigades, who with their accurate fire destroyed the very Russian warehouse, from which the occupiers took the S-300 missiles to bomb Kharkiv with.”
“Good thing MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket Systems). Thank you, our heroes,” he concluded.
The Ukrainian president went on to promise retribution for the Russian shelling of several Ukrainian cities and towns.
Zelensky says he looks forward to working with incoming British Prime Minister Liz Truss
From CNN's Yulia Kesaieva
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy said he looks forward to working with incoming British Prime Minister Liz Truss, while at the same time thanking the UK’s outgoing leader, her predecessor, Boris Johnson, during his nightly address.
“I am no less looking forward to the start of cooperation with the new prime minister of Great Britain, Ms. Liz Truss,” Zelensky said. “We in Ukraine know her well — she has always been on the bright side of European politics.”
“And I believe that together we will be able to do a lot more to protect our nations and to thwart all Russian destructive efforts," he added.
Zelensky’s warm welcome for Truss came after bidding farewell to outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson, with whom he had spoken earlier on Monday.
“It is usually said that there is no friendship in politics, but Boris is the case when you understand each other with half a word, when friendship exists, when it is strong and when it really strengthens both our states,” Zelensky said. “Starting with the first minutes of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine and Europe, Boris has been with us. His first and most important question has always been: "How else can I help?"
“I want to emphasize: even before Feb. 24, we always felt that Britain was together with Ukraine,” he added. “Today I thanked Boris on behalf of all Ukrainians, and I am sure that this is truly a multi-million Ukrainian "thank you"
Zelensky accuses Russia of deteriorating situation at Zaporizhzhia plant
From CNN's Yulia Kesaieva and Vasco Cotovio
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of intentionally deteriorating the situation around Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, amid a visit by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
A spokesperson for the IAEA told CNN earlier on Monday that the transmission line connecting the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to the Ukrainian energy grid had been intentionally disconnected due to a fire.
The spokesperson also said the line had not suffered any damage and would be reconnected as soon as the fire was extinguished. Ukraine blamed Russia for the shelling, which, it said, caused the fire.
“I consider the fact that Russia is doing this right now, right on the eve of the IAEA conclusions, very eloquent,” Zelensky said in his nightly address on Monday. “Shelling the territory of the ZNPP means that the terrorist state does not care what the IAEA says, it does not care what the international community decides.”
“Russia is only interested in keeping the situation at its worst for the longest time,” he added, explaining this was the second time the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant had been disconnected from the Ukrainian grid, bringing it “one step away from a radiation disaster.”
“This can only be amended by enhancing sanctions, only by officially recognizing Russia as a terrorist state — at all levels,” Zelensky concluded. “This requires an international response — starting with the UN to every normal state.”
Russia has yet to achieve any of its strategic objectives in Ukraine's invasion, UK defense secretary says
From CNN's Sharon Braithwaite in London
More than six months into its war in Ukraine, Russia "has yet to achieve any of its strategic objectives" in its invasion, UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said on Monday.
Russia "continues to lose significant equipment and personnel" in the war, he added, saying that the losses will have a lasting impact on Moscow's future combat effectiveness.
"It is estimated to date that over 25,000 Russian soldiers have lost their lives. If you include killed, casualties, captured or the now reported tens of thousands of deserters — over 80,000 dead or injured and the other categories," Wallace said during a statement to lawmakers in the House of Commons.
The Defense Secretary accused Putin of "weaponizing" energy and urged his fellow Members of Parliament to communicate the state of affairs to their voters.
"It is important, I think, we communicate to our constituents that some of the deeply uncomfortable times are facing us all are driven by effectively a totalitarian and a regime in Russia that is deliberately setting out to harm us and trying to test us about whether we will sacrifice our values for our energy costs," he said,
Wallace also urged unity across Europe over the winter.
“If we don’t stand together, we don’t deal with it now, these threats won’t go away on their own," he said. "We shouldn’t forget that this is – sadly – but it is an opportunity to diversify our supply, and it will be better for the long run for everyone as well."
Ukraine claims it struck FSB base in Zaporizhzhia
From CNN’s Vasco Cotovio and Yulia Kesaieva
Ukraine says it has struck a base used by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) in Kamianka-Dniprovska of the Zaporizhzhia region, the Ukraine's Defense Intelligence division said on Monday.
Russian forces were also using one of the buildings to store ballots for an eventual referendum, according to the Defense Intelligence.
“The place where the ballots were stored for the pseudo-referendum was destroyed. The warehouse was blown up by an explosion from inside the premises. All existing printed materials have been destroyed,” the statement read. “The headquarters of the Russian FSB unit, which guarded the ballot warehouse, was destroyed as well.”
“The exact number of killed and wounded is being clarified. Survivors and wounded are urgently evacuated in the direction of occupied Crimea,” the statement also said.
Open-source intelligence suggests an explosion did happen in Kamianka-Dniprovska, but CNN cannot independently verify Ukrainian claims that the site was used as an FSB base or that ballots for a referendum were indeed stored on location.
Russia has not commented on the incident.
Ukraine says it repelled Russian offensives in multiple areas and claims successes near Kramatorsk
From CNN's Yulia Kesaieva
The Ukrainian military says it repelled multiple Russian offensives throughout the day and was able to push Moscow’s armies back near Kramatorsk in eastern Ukraine, its General Staff said in a situational update on Monday evening.
“Our defenders successfully repelled enemy offensive attempts in the areas of the settlements of Bilohorivka, Hryhorivka, Pokrovske, Bakhmutske, Lozove, Spartak, Soledar, Zaitseve and Semihiria,” the General Staff said. “In the Kramatorsk direction, they had tactical success and knocked the enemy out of the positions he had previously occupied.”
“The defense forces of Ukraine continue to conduct a defensive operation, maintain the defined boundaries and prevent the invaders from advancing deep into the territory of Ukraine,” it added.
According to the General Staff, the Russian military carried out 40 attacks using multiple launch rocket systems and 25 airstrikes.
The Ukrainian military went on to claim success in specific strikes using long-range artillery in Kherson and Kharkiv.
“As a result of a successful fire attack in the area of Kupiansk settlement of Kharkiv region, the occupiers lost more than 100 servicemen killed and wounded, two combat vehicles were destroyed,” the military said. “In the city of Kherson, more than 30 servicemen and 3 enemy tanks were hit; and an anti-aircraft missile complex and six enemy trucks were destroyed in the area of the Antonivskyi bridge and crossing.”
“The successful actions of the Defense Forces led to the disabling of crossings in the Kherson area and once again nullified the aggressor's attempts to resume the transfer of troops across the Dnipro River,” the General Staff added.
EU outlines plans for a price cap on Russian gas
From CNN's Gayle Harrington
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, says the European Union is preparing plans for a cap on Russian pipeline gas. In a tweet, she also stated that the EU Commission is preparing proposals to help vulnerable households and businesses to cope with high energy prices.
Energy Ministers from EU countries are holding an emergency meeting in Brussels on Friday, September 9 to discuss a response to the rising gas prices.
Earlier on Monday, Russia blamed the disruption to gas supplies in Europe through Nord Stream 1 on Western sanctions saying they would resume if those sanctions were lifted.
Von der Leyen accused Russian President Putin of "using energy as a weapon by cutting supply and manipulating our energy markets."
Ukrainian nuclear agency: Zaporizhzhia's last operating reactor disconnected from grid after Russian shelling
From CNN's Yulia Kesaieva, Olga Voitovych and Vasco Cotovio
The last operating reactor at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has been disconnected from the Ukrainian grid, the country’s nuclear agency Energoatom said on Monday, saying it was the result of a fire caused by Russian shelling.
“As a result, power unit No. 6 was unloaded and disconnected from the grid, which currently supplies the ZNPP's own needs," the agency said in its statement.
Energoatom is working on restoring the connection, a spokesperson told CNN on Monday.
“There is a chance to restore the power transmission to the Ukrainian grid,” the spokesperson added, saying he could not detail timings as the situation remained tense.
The spokesperson noted that the situation was not considered an emergency.
“The power unit No.6 is still working and cooling all the rest of nuclear reactors. So basically it maintains the power of the plant itself,” the spokesperson explained. “When the generators turn on, usually automatically, this situation would be considered emergency. For now, it is not.”
The Russian controlled military-civilian administration of the city of Enerhodar, where the power plant is located, would not say whether the power plant had been disconnected from the Ukrainian grid, but said the situation at the plant was normal.
The Energoatom spokesperson also said disconnecting the plant from the Ukrainian grid would not make connecting the plant to the Russian grid any easier, due to the damage to transmission lines.
