August 14, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news

Our live coverage of Russia’s war in Ukraine has moved here.

Russia fired warning shots at a Turkish-owned cargo vessel in the Black Sea as tensions flare over trade routes.

On the front lines, Kyiv is continuing to push back on criticism that its troops are not advancing fast enough, saying that it is focused on destroying Russia’s capabilities and disrupting its logistics.

Here are the top headlines to know:

The White House is optimistic that Congress will pass supplemental aid for Ukraine on a bipartisan basis, even as Republicans in the House have voiced opposition to additional money for Ukraine.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the Biden administration is grateful for the bipartisan support for Ukraine thus far, adding, that the president is “confident that that support is going to continue as we work together to make sure that the Ukrainian people have everything that they need to continue to fight bravely for their freedom.”

In a letter to Congress Thursday, the Biden administration requested more than $24 billion in supplemental funding, including more than $13 billion in security assistance and $7.3 billion for economic and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine.

Jean-Pierre said Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young and members of the president’s legislative affairs team “have had, numerous, numerous conversations, numerous calls with lawmakers on the ground, with both parties to explain exactly the need and the highlight for… and highlight the emergency nature of this request.”

She said the administration will continue to engage with Congress and that they believe “this will continue in a bipartisan way.”

At least two people were wounded as a result of Russian shelling in a village in the northeastern Kharkiv region Monday, according to police. 

A 62-year-old woman and a 14-year-old were injured in the village of Buhaivk and were taken to the hospital, according to police. 

At least six people, including a 6-year-old-boy, have been injured as a result of Ukrainian shelling in Russian-occupied areas of the Donetsk region, the head of the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) Denis Pushilin said Monday. 

Pushilin said the boy was injured in a village in the south of the region, while the rest of the others were injured in eastern parts of the city of Donetsk. 

He also said there was damage to infrastructure. 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a new package of security assistance for Ukraine, including air defense munitions, artillery rounds, anti-armor capabilities, and additional mine-clearing equipment.

The package is worth $200 million, and comes from “previously authorized Presidential Drawdown Authority” — money that remained after the Defense Department’s accounting error.

“Russia started this war and could end it at any time by withdrawing its forces from Ukraine and stopping its brutal attacks. Until it does, the United States and our allies and partners will stand united with Ukraine, for as long as it takes,” Blinken said in a statement Monday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the US and President Joe Biden on Monday for the latest package of security assistance for Ukraine.

“Air defense missiles, artillery ammo, mine clearing systems, and anti-tank weapons will add strength to our Defense Forces. Another step toward our joint victory,” Zelensky tweeted. 

US Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy visited Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich at Lefortovo Prison in Moscow on Monday, the spokesperson for the US Embassy told CNN.

The US State Department officially designated Gershkovich as wrongfully detained by Russia in early April.

“Ambassador Tracy reported that Evan continues to appear in good health and remains strong, despite the circumstances,” spokesperson Jenny Palmer said. 

British Royal Air Force (RAF) Typhoon jets were launched to intercept two Russian long-range maritime patrol bombers as they transited north of Scotland within NATO’s northern air policing area on Monday morning, the UK Ministry of Defense said in a press release. 

A Voyager tanker was also scrambled “and remained airborne for the duration of the mission to offer air-to-air refueling, ensuring the Typhoons could remain in the air for the extended period necessary to complete their mission,” the ministry said. 

“Pilots launched in their Typhoon jets to intercept two Russian long-range bombers this morning, monitoring them as they passed north of the Shetland Islands, ready to counter any potential threat to UK territory,” Minister for the Armed Forces James Heappey said.

The Russian Tu-142 Bear-F and Tu-142 Bear-J maritime patrol aircraft, used for reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare, were monitored by RAF Typhoons in international airspace as they passed north of the UK, according to the ministry. 

The ministry went on to say that Russian military aircraft entering the UK Flight Information Region, the UK’s controlled zone of international airspace, can pose a hazard to other aircraft as these Russian aircraft often do not talk to air traffic control or ‘squawk’ (broadcasting a code ensuring they are visible to other air users and air traffic controllers on the ground).

The Typhoons and Voyager have returned to their base, the ministry said, adding that the aircraft has been refueled to remain ready to respond to any future potential threats.

Russia is open to military cooperation with other countries, including taking part in joint military training and exercises, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday.

“We propose to develop cooperation in a variety of areas, including in personnel training, in training foreign military personnel and improving their qualifications, in conducting joint command-staff and other exercises. And we expect that, as before, important agreements and export contracts will be signed on the sidelines of the forum,” Putin said in a video greeting to the participants of the Army-2023 forum near Moscow. 

Russia is “open to deepening” equal technological partnerships and military-technical cooperation with other countries “who defend their national interests, their independent path of development and consider it fundamentally important to build together an equal indivisible security system that would reliably protect each state,” Putin added.

“We are also pleased that more and more foreign defense companies are joining the forum,” Putin said. “Last year, 32 foreign participants exhibited their products here. This year, their number has grown to 82.”

The annual International Military-Technical Forum is a platform where prominent Russian military companies present their products. About 1,500 leading Russian defense enterprises are taking part in this year’s forum exhibition and business programs. They will be discussing projects with the Russian Defense Ministry as well as cooperation with other countries, according to state news agency TASS. 

About 80 foreign companies and organizations from seven countries plan to participate in the forum, which is organized by the Russian Defense Ministry, according to TASS. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu is also attending the forum. 

Russia deployed a MiG-29 jet after it detected a Norweigan air force plane near its air space over the Barents Sea, the defense ministry said Monday.

The plane turned back after the jet approached, the ministry said.

“On August 14, 2023, Russian airspace control detected an air target approaching the state border of the Russian Federation over the waters of the Barents Sea. To identify an air target and prevent violation of the state border of the Russian Federation, a MiG-29 fighter was sent into the air,” the ministry said in a statement.

“As a Russian fighter aircraft approached, the foreign military aircraft made a U-turn from the state border of the Russian Federation. Violation of the state border of the Russian Federation was not allowed,” the statement added. 

The Deputy Defence Minister of Ukraine Hanna Maliar said Monday that Russia is continuing its offensive in the east and intensifying its activity near Kupiansk and Lyman.

“Currently, there is a certain decrease in the number of attacks and ammunition used by the enemy in the east, but this does not mean that the enemy has retreated from its plans,” Maliar said in a Telegram post. The enemy is currently regrouping and trying to restore the lost capabilities. The fighting continues.”

Heavy fighting also continues near Bakhmut, Maliar said, adding that Russian forces are attempting to regain lost ground in the areas west of Klishchiivka, west of Andriivka and Kurdyumivka. Ukraine has managed to liberate three more square kilometers in the Bakhmut area, bringing the total area recaptured to 40 square kilometers, she said. 

In the south, Ukrainian Defense Forces are conducting offensive operations in the areas of Melitopol and Berdiansk, according to Maliar. 

“In the direction of Urozhaine, south and southeast of Staromayorsk in Donetsk region, they [Ukrainian forces] have succeeded and are consolidating the achieved positions,” Maliar added. “In the course of the offensive, the Ukrainian defense forces in the Tavria sector continue to liberate Urozhaine.”

Kyiv has pushed back on criticism that its troops are not advancing fast enough, saying that it is focused on destroying Russia’s capabilities and disrupting its logistics.

“The task of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is not to organize large-scale battles for every settlement on the way to the 1991 borders, but to systematically destroy the capabilities of the enemy army: its logistics, technical potential, officers and personnel. And today, Ukrainian defenders are coping with this task one hundred percent,” said Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to the head of the Ukrainian presidential office.

“Long-range missiles for Ukraine now mean a sharp reduction in Russia’s combat capabilities. This is the active destruction of Russia’s reserves and resources on the far outskirts,” Podolyak said in a Monday post on the social media platform “X.”

“This is the destruction of rear logistics — warehouses, transportation, fuel. It is the acceleration of Ukrainian offensive operations. It is about saving the lives of Ukrainian soldiers, minimizing losses… And most importantly, it is about de-escalation,” he added. 

An official of the Turkish shipping company that owns the cargo ship Sukru Okan spoke to CNN about the crew’s experience of Russians firing warning shots and boarding the vessel on Sunday, noting that the cargo ship is now in Romanian waters and waiting to move to the Ukrainian port of Izmail. 

Russia said the warship fired warning shots when the captain of the Palau-flagged ship failed to respond to a request to stop for an inspection.

The general dry cargo ship was empty at the time of the incident and was on the way to pick up grain from Danube ports to carry to European and Turkish ports, in what was a “routine” journey, according to the official of the shipping company.

The official said that it is routine for the ship to go to the Romanian port of Sulina first before carrying on to Ukraine’s Izmail port, but also said that at some point overnight, a crew member logged the Sukru Okan’s destination as Izmail. 

The Danube grain corridor is separate from the Black Sea grain corridor that was once protected by the now-defunct UN-brokered grain deal. 

Here’s how it played out, according to the shipping company official: The Sukru Okan’s 12-person Turkish crew was radioed by the Russian warship Sunday as it was en route to Izmail, at which point the vessel tried to turn back to Turkish waters in order to get in touch with the country’s Coast Guard and other officials. 

Shortly after, the Russian warship fired warning shots at the cargo ship and began following it, according to the shipping company official who spoke to CNN on the condition of anonymity. 

A helicopter then took off from the Russian warship and more warning shots were fired. The crew waited, and Russian servicemen boarded the ship. A video captured by the Sukru Okan crew showed several crew members sitting on the ship deck as a Russian helicopter hovered over them. 

Russian soldiers questioned the captain about why he did not stop the vessel, and he told them he was in international waters, adding that “in order to notify officials, we turned our direction.” 

The Russian soldiers then searched the cabins of the ship with the captain for about an hour, and also looked through the documents and passports of all the crew members, according to the official of the shipping company, who was not on board at the time of the incident. 

The company official told CNN he believes the Russians were pleased that everyone on board was Turkish, adding that once the Russians were onboard they didn’t make any threats or take negative actions against the crew. 

The Russian soldiers did make the captain of the Sukru Okan sign a document in Russian, which the shipping company official believes was a statement certifying that there was “no injury or damage” onboard.

“Since there were no negative outcomes, and the ship was not seized, we decided it should continue on its path,” he told CNN. 

The official said the Sukru Okan is now in Romanian waters, waiting for the operators of Ukraine’s Izmail port to allow them to proceed. He described this manner of reaching Izmail as “the normal procedure.” Data from MarineTraffic shows that the Sukru Okan was in waters near Romania’s Sulina Port on Monday afternoon. 

“For the last year, we have been going routine back and forth to those ports,” said the official who noted that the shipping company purchased the vessel in 2021 and registered it under the flag of Palau due to restrictions on Turkish-flagged vessels.  

Regarding Russia’s previous announcement that it would consider ships going to Ukrainian ports as suspicious of carrying ammunition, he told CNN, “I guess we are the first,” adding, “but I foresee these types of things becoming more common.”

Russian air defense systems detected and destroyed multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, over the territory of the Belgorod region, the defense ministry said Monday.

There were no casualties or damage, it added.

“On August 14, at about 12:15 Moscow time and 12:45 Moscow time, attempts by the Kyiv regime to carry out terrorist attacks by aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles against objects on the territory of the Russian Federation were thwarted,” the defense ministry said in a statement. 

Belgorod, a city within the Belgorod region, sits near the Russia-Ukraine border just 80 kilometers from Kharkiv, Ukraine. In recent months, drone attacks or attempted drone attacks on Belgorod have become an almost daily occurrence. 

A deadly Russian missile attack hit Zaporizhzhia on Sunday, while Ukrainian forces thwarted airstrikes in Odesa overnight.

Here are the latest developments:

Russian shelling in the Ukrainian town of Kozacha Lopan in the Kharkiv region on Monday killed a 50-year-old man, according to officials.

Two other men were also injured in the attack, the Kharkiv region military administration said on Telegram.

Further east, a separate Russian attack on the village of Podoly also resulted in two civilian injuries, officials said. 

“In addition, in the morning, a 42-year-old woman was admitted to a hospital in Izium with a mine-blast injury. She was wounded during the shelling around 1 a.m. (6 p.m. ET). The victim’s house was also damaged,” the regional military administration added.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky promised to respond with “completely fair retaliation” amid a spate of Russian strikes on civilian targets.

When Russia invaded Ukraine, the United States and European Union accelerated their pivot towards Serbia. Rather than juggling the contradictory demands of pluralistic and fractious Balkan states, Western capitals focused the bulk of their efforts on a singular target.

Their policies had two aims. First, to bring Serbia into the Western fold, away from Russia. Second, to allow their respective administrations to focus more fully on supporting Ukraine.

Traditionally one of Moscow’s closest allies in Europe, Belgrade has long tried to tread the line between its historical ties to Russia and a potential future of closer European integration. Western diplomats have sought to pull Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic from the orbit of his Russian counterpart, President Vladimir Putin, by pledging a swifter path to EU membership while simultaneously warning of isolation if they break rank.

But, 18 months on, some observers say the current approach has been all carrot and no stick, and as a result is failing to achieve both of its aims.

Serbia has refused to participate in all rounds of EU sanctions against Putin. And Serbia has continued to pursue its own interests in the region with diminishing accountability, stirring conflicts abroad to distract from discontent at home, safe in the knowledge they will not be rebuked in the West.

Read the full story:

Aleksandar Vucic, Serbia's president, in his office in Belgrade, Serbia, January 17, 2023.

Related article The West's 'see no evil' approach to Serbia's Vucic is destabilizing the Balkans | CNN

The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs has placed three Ukrainian generals on its criminal wanted list on charges related to historic attacks in the Donbas region, an eastern Ukrainian flank that has remained the front line of the conflict since 2014.

According to Russian state news agency TASS on Monday, citing the ministry’s database, the three Ukrainian officials on the list are:

The Russian Investigative Committee indicted the three generals in absentia at the end of July, according to TASS.

According to the committee, they commanded Ukrainian Armed Forces units that shelled Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republic settlements in 2016, 2017, and 2019.

Some background: The sprawling Donbas has been devastated by years of fighting between Moscow and Kyiv, after Russian-backed rebels occupied parts of region in 2014.

The Ukrainian government asserts that the two separatist-controlled areas – Luhansk and the Donetsk People’s Republic – are temporarily Russian-occupied. The two territories have not been recognized by any governments, other than Russia and its ally Syria.

Since the Kremlin launched its invasion on Ukraine in February 2022, the fight for control of the Donbas has further intensified.

CNN’s Kostan Nechyporenko and Rob Picheta contributed reporting.

German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said he will collaborate with his counterpart in Kyiv to bolster the Ukrainian economy, as Western allies support efforts to rebuild the country amid the conflict.

Linder arrived in Kyiv by train on Monday for his first trip to Ukraine since the start of the war, according to the German Finance Ministry press office.

He said it was “a special and moving moment” to be back in Kyiv.

“I was last there in early 2020 and got to know a country that had opted for democracy and a market economy,” Linder said, adding that he is “more convinced than ever that Ukraine was attacked by Russia because of this.”

Lindner said he would meet with his Ukrainian counterpart, Serhii Marchenko, to provide “concrete support.” Lindner explained that the German Federal Ministry of Finance wanted to help Ukraine’s finance ministry and make the country more attractive to foreign direct investment.

Germany has already provided around 1.5 billion euros ($1.64 billion) of aid to Ukraine since the war began, Lindner said. In July 2022, Germany and other creditors also announced that they would give Ukraine a reprieve on debt repayments.

The Sukru Okan cargo ship is now nearing the Romanian port of Sulina, a day after a Russian warship fired warning shots and boarded the barge in the latest escalation in the sea’s shipping lanes.

The Russian defense ministry claimed over the weekend that the ship was headed to the Ukrainian port of Izmail in the Black Sea.

Moscow has said it stopped the Turkish-owned, Palau-flagged dry cargo ship on Sunday to ensure it was not carrying “prohibited goods” to Ukraine. 

On Monday, data from public ship traffic website MarineTraffic showed the vessel’s new location near Sulina as of 12:25 p.m. (5:25 a.m. ET).

The Romanian port is a city at the mouth of the Danube River. The Ukrainian port of Izmail is located nearby, along the Danube. 

In new video of the incident obtained by CNN on Monday, a helicopter can be seen approaching the vessel that Russia said contained servicemen, who then boarded the ship. The video, which was provided by the ship’s owner, also showed the crew sat on deck as an hour-long inspection was conducted before the barge was able to continue on its way.

How we got here: Russia pulled out of a UN and Turkish-brokered deal in July that allowed Kyiv to move its grain via the Black Sea. At the time, it warned that any ships headed to Ukraine would be treated as potentially carrying weapons. Ukraine made a similar threat to ships traveling to Russian ports.

Poland’s military is making final preparations for the country’s Army Day on Tuesday, held this year against the backdrop of tensions on the border with Kremlin ally Belarus.

The event — held annually on August 15 — commemorates the anniversary of the 1920 victory over Soviet Russia at the Battle of Warsaw, locally known as the “Miracle on the Vistula.”

Video shared by the Polish army on Sunday showed dozens of tanks and military vehicles taking part in a nighttime rehearsal in Warsaw.

Diplomatic ties between Poland, a NATO member country, and key Kremlin ally Belarus have ruptured in recent weeks amid increased military activity along the border.

Earlier this year, troops from the Russian military group Wagner were stationed in Belarus after a failed mutiny against Moscow. Their increased presence in the region prompted Warsaw to deploy more troops at the border.

What’s happening? Tuesday’s parade will start at 2 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) along Wisłostrada — a highway that runs past the Vistula River in the capital, according to the Polish Ministry of Defense’s website.

The ministry added that it will present “200 units of Polish and foreign military equipment and 92 aircraft accompanied by 2,000 soldiers.”

The parade will include foreign equipment, including US-made M1A1 Abrams tanks, South Korean K2 tanks and K9 self-propelled howitzers, HIMARS rocket launchers, Krab self-propelled howitzers, as well as Patriot air defense systems, part of the Polish “WISŁA” system, according to the ministry’s website.

The equipment of Polish production will include, among others: new Borsuk infantry fighting vehicles, Rosomak armored personnel carriers, and Rak self-propelled mortars, as well as Baobab-K mine-laying vehicles and Żmija light reconnaissance vehicles, the ministry added.

The military said it would also host nearly 70 “military picnics” from Saturday to Tuesday throughout Poland. At the picnics, people are able to talk to crews and have “the opportunity to learn about the construction of combat vehicles,” or try “the military pea soup with bread” while watching military films.

Russia is equipping its new Yasen-class nuclear submarines with hypersonic Zircon missiles, according to Alexey Rakhmanov, the head of Russia’s largest shipbuilder. 

“Work in this direction is already underway,” Rakhmanov told the RIA Novosti state news agency in an interview published on Monday.

Zircon hypersonic missiles are long-range weapons that travel more than five times the speed of sound and are harder to detect and intercept.

“The armament of serial frigates with this system will be carried out in accordance with the plan of the Russian Ministry of Defense during their construction and operation,” Rakhmanov added.

The Yasen-M multi-purpose nuclear submarines, also known as Project 885M, are a modernized version of Project 885. The Russian Navy now has one Project 885 and two 885M submarines, according to RIA Novosti.

Warsaw has detained two Russians accused of spying and spreading propaganda for the private military group Wagner.

“The Internal Security Agency, working with the Police, has identified and detained two Russians who distributed Wagner Group propaganda materials in Krakow and Warsaw,” Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kamiński said on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Monday.

“Both were read their charges, which include espionage, and were taken into custody,” he added.

Some background: Wagner led a failed mutiny against Moscow earlier this year, in a stunning attempted takeover that revealed deep fissures between senior officials in Russia.

Thousands of Wagner troops were later moved to Belarus, ramping up tensions between neighboring Poland and the Kremlin ally amid increased military activity at the border.

Two elderly civilians were killed Sunday in a Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region, according to a local official.

In a Telegram post Yurii Malashko, head of the Zaporizhzhia regional military administration, said a 77-year-old man and a 70-year-old woman died in the attack on the village of Stepne.

A 64-year-old woman was also injured in the attack, he added. 

Meanwhile, in nearby Kherson, several civilians were injured in Russian shelling early Monday, according to the head of the region’s military administration.

The report comes a day after Russian shelling killed at least seven people, including a newborn baby, in the southern city.

Russian “resistance”: Ukraine’s highly-anticipated counteroffensive has been underway for weeks with fighting focused along the eastern and southern fronts. Kyiv launched the campaign in the hope of recapturing territory seized by Russia. But so far, any gains have been small and painfully fought for.

On Monday, Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar noted that Kyiv’s forces are “facing very serious enemy resistance” in the south. 

“If we add up the shellings in the south and in the east over the past week, it will be about 10,000 attacks. And this is continuous artillery and mortar fire from the enemy,” Maliar said. “Our Armed Forces face very serious obstacles on their way. Indeed, the offensive itself is extremely difficult.”

The ruble hit a 17-month low against the dollar Monday, highlighting the growing squeeze on Russia’s economy from Western sanctions and a slump in export revenues.

The Russian currency has lost nearly 40% of its value this year, weakening past 100 rubles to the dollar, as Moscow’s war in Ukraine takes a heavy toll.

The fall in the ruble’s value is one of several negative indicators for the Russian economy, even as President Vladimir Putin insists that Western sanctions are having a limited effect.

Read more here.

Ukraine’s foreign ministry on Monday said it “strongly condemns the provocative actions” of Russia, a day after a Russian vessel fired warning shots and boarded a cargo vessel in the Black Sea.

“The Russian Navy grossly violated the UN Charter, the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, and other norms of international law,” the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “These actions exemplified Russia’s deliberate policy of endangering the freedom of navigation and safety of commercial shipping in the Black Sea.”

Moscow has said it stopped the Turkish-owned, Palau-flagged dry cargo ship called the Sukru Okan to ensure it was not carrying “prohibited goods” to Ukraine.

In the weeks since Moscow pulled out of a deal that allowed for the safe passage of Ukrainian grain exports in the Black Sea, both Russia and Ukraine have launched attacks on shipping and port targets.

Russia’s defense ministry has warned that ships sailing to Ukraine’s Black Sea ports will be viewed as military targets, while Ukraine has said any attacks of Russian targets on the sea will be justified because they occur in Kyiv’s territorial waters.

Earlier, an adviser to Ukraine’s president called Russia’s boarding of the cargo vessel on Sunday “a deliberate attack” and “an act of piracy.”

China’s Defense Minister Li Shangfu will visit Russia and Belarus from Monday until Saturday, according to the Chinese Ministry of Defense.

Li will attend the Moscow Conference on International Security, where he will deliver a speech and meet with leaders of the defense departments of Russia and other countries, ministry spokesperson Wu Qian said Monday.

During his visit to Belarus, Li will meet with the country’s leaders and heads of the Belarusian army, Wu added.

Li last visited Russia in April, when he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Some context: Despite attempting to present itself as neutral peace broker in the Ukraine conflict, China has bolstered its economic, diplomatic, and security ties with Russia during its invasion, which Beijing has never condemned.

Li, a general and veteran of China’s military modernization drive, was sanctioned by the United States in 2018 over transactions with Russia’s state-controlled arms exporter Rosoboronexport, when he lead the Chinese military’s Equipment Development Department.

Three supermarket workers were injured after Ukrainian air defenses thwarted a barrage of Russian airstrikes on Odesa overnight, Ukraine’s air defense forces said in a Telegram post Monday.

All eight Kalibr sea-launched missiles and 15 drones launched by Russian forces were repelled, the statement said.

“As a result of the missiles fired by the enemy into the center of Odesa, a dormitory of one of the educational institutions and a supermarket were damaged by debris,” it said.

Firefighters were working to extinguish blazes at two buildings, it added. 

Russian strikes last week damaged a critical port facility and key industrial infrastructure in the southern city, which has been relentlessly targeted by Moscow’s forces throughout the war.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to respond with “completely fair retaliation” after Russian shelling killed at least seven people, including a newborn baby, in the southern Kherson region Sunday.

“Everywhere our warriors retaliate against the occupiers’ terror. There is not a single day when Russian evil does not get our completely fair retaliation,” Zelensky said in his daily address.

His remarks come as Moscow’s defense ministry and several Russian regional officials reported Ukrainian shelling and drone attacks on Russian territory.

Here are the latest headlines:

At least three people were injured after Russian missiles struck the southern port city of Odesa overnight, a local official said early Monday.

In a Telegram post, Oleh Kiper, head of the Odesa regional military administration, said the attack was ongoing and residents should remain in their shelters.

Missile debris had caused multiple fires to break out in the city, he added.

Odesa has seen relentless waves of Russian attacks over the past 17 months. At least 25 architectural monuments, including a historic Orthodox cathedral, were destroyed in the region in an intense wave of attacks by Russia near the end of July. Russian strikes last week damaged a critical port facility and key industrial infrastructure in the city.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to respond with “completely fair retaliation” after Russian shelling killed at least seven people, including a newborn baby, in the southern Kherson region Sunday.

At least five others were injured in Kherson, which reported at least 17 shelling attacks, Zelensky said.

Zelensky’s remarks follow a spate of Ukrainian attacks reported by Russian authorities.

Russia’s defense ministry reported another drone attack Sunday on its western Belgorod region, as well as shelling on the northern Kursk region, both of which border Ukraine.

On Saturday, photos and videos circulating on social media showed white smoke billowing from the Kerch bridge connecting Crimea to Russia after two missiles were shot down by Russian air defenses forces.

“Every occupier destroyed, every piece of Russian equipment burned, fire instead of their headquarters and warehouses, the very eloquent smoke on Kerch bridge and more — all this proves that we will not leave any of Russia’s crimes unanswered,” Zelensky said Sunday.   

Ukraine called Russia’s boarding of a cargo vessel in the Black Sea on Sunday “a deliberate attack” and “an act of piracy,” marking the latest flare-up over the sea’s shipping lanes since a key grain deal collapsed last month. 

Moscow has said it stopped the vessel, a Palau-flagged dry cargo ship called the Sukru Okan, to ensure it was not carrying “prohibited goods” to Ukraine.

Ukraine called for the international community to recognize Russia’s actions as a crime.

“Today’s deliberate attack and forced inspection by Russia of Sukru Okan international civilian bulk carrier, which was en route to the Ukrainian port of Izmail, is a clear violation of international law of the sea, an act of piracy and a crime against civilian vessels of a third country in the waters of other states,” Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky, said in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Podolyak called on all those involved in the incident to be identified and for the international community to recognize the “fact of the crime.”

“Ukraine will draw all the necessary conclusions and choose the best possible response,” he said.

Some context: In the weeks since Moscow pulled out of a deal that allowed for the safe passage of Ukrainian grain exports in the Black Sea, both Russia and Ukraine have launched attacks on shipping and port targets.

Earlier this month, Ukrainian sea drones attacked a major naval base in Russia. Hours later, Kyiv followed up with a strike on one of Russia’s biggest oil tankers.

For its part, Moscow has pummeled key port infrastructure with strikes in southern Ukraine, further limiting its ability to make exports.

Russia’s defense ministry has warned that ships sailing to Ukraine’s Black Sea ports will be viewed as military targets, while Ukraine has said any attacks of Russian targets on the sea will be justified because they occur in Kyiv’s territorial waters.

Russia’s defense ministry reported another drone attack Sunday on its western Belgorod region, as well as shelling on the northern Kursk region, both of which border Ukraine.

The latest drone attack occurred around 10 p.m. local time (3 p.m. ET), when a Ukrainian craft tried to strike a target on Russian soil but was “foiled,” Moscow said.

The defense ministry said the drone “was detected and destroyed by Russian air defense means over the territory of Belgorod region,” adding there were no casualties or damage following the attack.   

This comes after local officials reported three other drones being intercepted over the same region earlier in the day. 

Shelling on Russian territory: Separately, Russia says shells fired by Ukraine hit a residential building in the village of Volfino in the northern Kursk region, wounding three people, according to Roman Starovoyt, the regional governor.

“10 incoming strikes were recorded,” Starovoyt said. “Unfortunately, three civilians suffered shrapnel wounds of moderate severity, they are taken to the central district hospital.”

The Russian village of Volfino is located just across the border from Ukraine’s Sumy region, which is subjected to regular Russian attacks.

Reported shelling and drone attacks by Ukrainian forces have occurred with increasing frequency in recent months. Kyiv rarely claims such attacks directly, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said the war is “gradually returning” to Russian soil.

A Russian warship fired warning shots and boarded a cargo ship it claims was headed to Ukraine in the Black Sea on Sunday, according to Russia’s Defense Ministry.

Russia pulled out of a UN and Turkish-brokered deal in July that allowed Ukraine to move its grain via the Black Sea and warned that any ships headed to Ukraine would be treated as potentially carrying weapons. Ukraine made a similar threat to ships traveling to Russian ports.

Russia said the warship fired warning shots when the captain of the Palau-flagged dry cargo ship failed to respond to a request to stop for an inspection.

The ministry claimed the ship — named Sukru Okan — was headed to the Ukrainian port of Izmail. Marine traffic websites currently shows the cargo vessel’s destination as the Romanian port of Sulina which is close to Izmail. Kyiv did not immediately comment on whether or not the ship was headed to a Ukrainian port.

“In order to inspect the bulk cargo ship, a Ka-29 helicopter with a group of Russian servicemen was hoisted from the patrol ship Vasily Bykov,” the ministry said. “Following radio conversations, the ship stopped its course and the boarding team landed on the bulk cargo ship,” the statement said.

This week Ukraine announced that it would open up a temporary humanitarian corridor for ships to sail to and from its ports and has opened up registration for merchant vessels to use the sea route.

Both Russia and Ukraine are major grain producers and their deal — a rare point of agreement in the middle of a war — did much to stabilize prices.

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Ukraine has claimed “partial success” at a village along the southern front, as Kyiv’s counteroffensive continues to struggle to make significant progress.

Elsewhere, Russia is attacking near Kupiansk in the northeastern Kharkiv region that borders Russia, an area that has seen significant shelling and the first major Ukrainian evacuation in months.

Ukraine’s effort to push down to the Sea of Azov continues, with fierce fighting along the frontlines.

The area is a major target for Ukraine as pushing deep into the territory would mean breaking Russia’s land-bridge between annexed Crimea and eastern Donetsk.

Ukraine claimed “partial success” near the village of Robotyne in the Zaporizhzhia region, the General Staff of the Armed Forces said. On Friday, social media video and images showed Ukrainian troops had entered the village.

The Institute for the Study of War [ISW] said even marginal gains by Ukraine in this area are significant.

“The Ukrainian forces’ ability to advance to the outskirts of Robotyne — which Russian forces have dedicated significant effort, time, and resources to defend — remains significant even if Ukrainian gains are limited at this time,” the ISW said.

Meanwhile, Russians made “unsuccessful attempts” to regain lost ground near the village of Urozhaine in the eastern Donetsk region, the General Staff said. On Thursday, Ukraine claimed “partial success” in gaining positions in the area.

Also in Eastern Ukraine, Russian forces are trying to “escalate and take over the initiative” on an effort to “pull” Ukrainian troops from other areas of the front lines, according to a regional military official.

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