Our live coverage of Russia's war in Ukraine has moved here.
August 31, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news
By Chris Lau, Sana Noor Haq, Ed Upright, Leinz Vales, Adrienne Vogt, Elise Hammond, Maureen Chowdhury and Tori B. Powell, CNN
Updated 12:03 a.m. ET, September 1, 2023
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Ukraine appears to make progress along Russia's southern front. Here are other headlines you should know
From CNN staff
Ukrainian forces said they had penetrated the “first line” of Russian strongholds in the Zaporizhzhia region, in a sign that Kyiv is edging closer to Moscow’s sprawling network of fortified trenches along the southern front.
News of the latest progress comes against the backdrop of reports that US and Western allies had noted the slow pace of the counteroffensive. CNN reported earlier this month that the US had been receiving increasingly “sobering updates.”
Here are other headlines you should know:
- On the ground developments: Ukrainian shelling wounded 10 people Thursday in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic of eastern Ukraine, according to a Russia-backed official. Also, a British volunteer has been killed while fighting in eastern Ukraine, according to his family.
- Weapons: As Ukraine accelerates efforts to develop a sophisticated domestic weapons industry, it has welcomed the opening of an office in Kyiv by UK aerospace and weapons giant BAE Systems. Additionally, a Ukrainian-made long-range weapon has successfully hit a target at a distance of 700 km (about 435 miles), Zelensky said Thursday. He didn't provide any images or say what kind of weapon it was.
- Black Sea grain deal updates: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says that Russia is ready to return to the Black Sea Grain Initiative as soon as what Moscow claims to be promises become concrete guarantees. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that any consideration of supporting Russian grain exports in the Black Sea without resuming exports from Ukrainian ports would bolster Moscow's "sense of impunity" and "deal a severe blow to international obligations and international law."
- Wagner latest: Demands by the leadership of Poland and the Baltic states for the withdrawal of Wagner Group mercenaries from Belarus are "unreasonable and stupid," Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said Thursday.
- War tactics: Russian military hackers have targeted Ukrainian soldiers’ mobile devices in a bid to steal sensitive battlefield information that could aid the Kremlin’s war on Ukraine, the US and its allies warned Thursday.
Russian-German national allegedly conspired to smuggle US microelectronics to feed Russian war machine
From CNN's Josh Pennington and Jennifer Hauser
A Russian-German national was arrested and charged with illegally obtaining and exporting large quantities of sensitive US-sourced microelectronics to Russia, according to a news release from the US Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York Thursday.
Arthur Petrov, 33, was arrested in the Republic of Cyprus on Saturday at the request of the United States, the release said. He is a dual Russian-German citizen.
Allegations in a complaint — unsealed in a Manhattan federal court Thursday — said Petrov resided in Russia and Cyprus and worked for a Russian-based supplier of "critical electronics components for the manufacturers supplying weaponry and other equipment to the Russian military," the release said.
Petrov was alleged to have been working with two Russian co-conspirators. He initially acquired the microelectronics and sent them through Cyprus but never told the US distributors their true destination was Russia, according to the complaint.
"Petrov and his co-conspirators knowingly misrepresented their business activities to evade export controls in order to procure and transship components associated with Russian guided missiles, drones, and electronic warfare devices," said James Smith, FBI assistant director in charge.
The destination of the microelectronics was a Russian company that has been supplying the Russian military since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Smith said some types of microelectronics were recovered in Russian military equipment on the battlefield of Ukraine.
Petrov has been charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, violating the Export Control Reform Act, smuggling goods from the US, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering — some on multiple counts — which could carry decades of prison time.
CNN was unable to immediately identify a lawyer for Petrov.
United Nations presents “concrete proposals” to Russia for Black Sea grain deal renewal
From CNN’s Mariya Knight and Richard Roth
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres presented “a set of concrete proposals” in order to renew the Black Sea grain deal in a letter to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
According to Guterres, it is “extremely important to renew” the grain deal.
He said the initiative "has given a very important contribution to make the food markets more adequate to the UN objectives of food security,” such as bringing down prices and creating “conditions for access to the global markets of many countries, namely the developing world.”
However, he said, the UN “took into concern the Russian requests.”
“We have some concrete solutions for the concerns allowing for a more effective access of Russian food and fertilizers to global markets at adequate prices,” he emphasized.
Guterres said he believes the UN “presented a proposal that could be the basis for a renewal, but a renewal that must be stable.”
"We cannot have a Black Sea Initiative that moves from crisis to crisis, from suspension to suspension. We need to have something that works, and that works to the benefit of everybody,” Guterres said.
Some context: Earlier Thursday, Lavrov said Russia is ready to return to the Black Sea Grain Initiative as soon as promises made to Moscow become guarantees.
Russia withdrew from the initiative in July, nearly a year after it was brokered by Turkey and the UN to guarantee the safe passage of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea and help facilitate Russian exports of grain and fertilizer.
Russia has persistently complained that benefits due under the agreement never materialized.
British volunteer killed while fighting in Ukraine, brother says
From CNN's Niamh Kennedy and Sarah Dean
A British volunteer has been killed while fighting in Ukraine, according to his family.
Sam Newey, 22, was “killed in action” on Wednesday in eastern Ukraine, his brother Dan Newey said in a Facebook tribute Thursday.
“I cannot put into words how broken I feel. I also cannot emphasise how proud I am of my little brother. He'd just turned 21 when he decided to answer the call and travel to Ukraine to push back against Russian Imperialism,” Dan wrote.
“Sam you gave your life for people you never knew and acted with courage, morality and honour. Not only are you my little brother, but you're an exceptional man, a good soldier and one of the bravest people I ever had the privilege of knowing. Thank you so much for being part of my life for these 22 years. I love you always brother," the post added.
When asked about Sam Newey’s death, the United Kingdom's foreign office spokesperson told CNN they are "providing support to the family of a British man following his death in Ukraine.”
CNN has contacted the International Legion in Ukraine for comment.
Zelensky touts new Ukrainian-made long-range weapon
From CNN's Mariya Knight
A Ukrainian-made long-range weapon has successfully hit a target at a distance of 700 km (about 435 miles), President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday.
He didn't provide any images or say what kind of weapon it was.
Zelensky discussed the launch with top military and government officials and wrote about it on Telegram.
Zelensky didn't say where or when the weapon was used and CNN is not able to independently verify this claim.
Shelling wounds 10 people in occupied eastern Ukraine, Russia-backed leader says
From CNN's Josh Pennington
Ukrainian shelling wounded 10 people Thursday in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic of eastern Ukraine, according to a Russia-backed official.
The attacks targeted Donetsk city and the nearby cities of Horlivka and Volnovakha, said Denis Pushilin, the region's separatist leader. Pushilin said on Telegram that six people were hurt in Donetsk's Kirovskyi district, and the other four casualties came in Volnovakha.
The shelling also damaged six houses, he added.
Ukraine has not commented.
Some context: The Donetsk People's Republic, or DPR, is one of two self-declared republics in eastern Ukraine dating back to 2014, when Russia-backed separatists seized territory and fought with Ukrainian forces.
Russia and its allies Syria and North Korea are the only countries that consider the DPR independent. The international community does not recognize the region and its institutions, and considers the territory to be part of Ukraine.
CNN's Rob Picheta contributed to this post.
Russian military hackers target Ukrainian soldiers’ mobile devices to steal battle plans, US and allies say
From CNN's Sean Lyngaas
Russian military hackers have targeted Ukrainian soldiers’ mobile devices in a bid to steal sensitive battlefield information that could aid the Kremlin’s war on Ukraine, the US and its allies warned Thursday.
The new advisory from the US and its “Five Eyes” allies — Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom — corroborates a report from Ukraine’s SBU security service that found the Russian hackers sought to infiltrate the Android tablets that the Ukrainian military used for “planning and performing combat missions.”
The Russian hackers’ malicious code was designed to steal data sent from soldiers’ mobile devices to the Starlink satellite system made by billionaire Elon Musk’s company, according to the SBU. Starlink satellites have been crucial to Ukraine’s battlefield communications, CNN previously reported.
The news shows how the struggle to control sensitive military data in cyberspace has been a key front in Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine.
It’s unclear just how successful the hacking effort was. Ukraine’s SBU security service claimed to have “blocked” some of the hacking attempts but also conceded that the Russians had “captured” the tablets on the battlefield and planted malicious software on them.
“Mobile malware is particularly insidious because it can give intelligence services the physical locations of targets,” said John Hultquist, chief analyst at security firm Mandiant, which is owned by Google. That capability, Hultquist told CNN, can be “extremely effective on the battlefield.”
The hacking campaign comes amid a Ukrainian counteroffensive that has been a slow, grinding fight to push Russian forces back. US officials have expressed private concerns that Ukraine has been unable to make any substantial breakthroughs in months of fighting.
The hacking campaign “illustrates how Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine continues to play out in cyberspace,” Paul Chichester, director of operations at the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre, said in a statement.
Click here for more details on the hacking
CNN’s Katie Bo Lillis contributed to this report.
Ukraine calls on Turkey to thwart Russia's attempts to establish alternative grain routes
From CNN's Yulia Kesaieva and Radina Gigova
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that any consideration of supporting Russian grain exports in the Black Sea without resuming exports from Ukrainian ports would bolster Moscow's "sense of impunity" and "deal a severe blow to international obligations and international law."
"In this context, we expect that Turkey, which has repeatedly affirmed its inviolable position regarding the preservation and strict observance of international law, along with other involved parties, will use their authority to thwart Russia's attempts to violate international obligations and blackmail the world with new food crises," the ministry said in a statement.
The statement comes as Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan are holding talks in Moscow about grain shipments.
On Thursday, Lavrov said the two had discussed Moscow's initiative to organize deliveries of Russian grain to Turkey at a reduced price to be processed at Turkish facilities, and then shipped to the "most needy countries in the world."
"After withdrawing from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the Russian Federation commenced systematic missile attacks against the infrastructure of Ukrainian ports and grain storage facilities," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said, accusing Russia of purposefully trying to reduce the availability of Ukrainian grain on global markets and increase food prices "for their own benefit."
Ukraine remains interested in reviving the Black Sea Grain Initiative that Russia pulled out and is also "actively pursuing the launch of alternate routes," it said.
