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August 19, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news
By Hafsa Khalil and Adrienne Vogt, CNN
Updated 12:02 a.m. ET, August 21, 2023
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It's 11 p.m. in Kyiv. Catch up on the latest developments here
Seven people were killed and 129 were wounded by a strike in the middle of the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv on Saturday, in an attack the United Nations called "heinous."
A 6-year-old girl was among those killed in the attack, which hit a theater and university in the city center, Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko said. The Russian missile struck during a major holiday in the Orthodox calendar, the Feast of the Transfiguration. Ukraine will investigate the circumstances surrounding a drone demonstration event that was taking place inside the theater, Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko said.
Here's what else you might've missed:
F-16 training starts: Long-awaited training on F-16 fighter jets has begun, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov told Ukrainian media on Saturday. Ukrainian pilots, engineers and technicians are involved in the training, which will last a minimum of six months. The US has committed to approving the transfer of F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine as soon as training is complete, according to a US official.
Zelensky talks fighter jets in Sweden: Ukraine is discussing "the next steps" to obtain Gripen fighter jets from Sweden, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday at a joint news conference with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson. "You cannot move fast on the ground when (the Russians) control the sky. And we need that," Zelensky said.
Drones in Russia: Russia intercepted a Ukrainian drone attack on the Moscow region, Russia's defense ministry said on Saturday. The ministry also said a Ukrainian drone attack damaged a plane at a military airfield in Russia's northwest Novgorod region.
Here's the latest map of control:
Ukrainian pilots have begun training on F-16 aircraft, Ukraine's defense minister says
From CNN’s Mariya Knight
Ukrainian pilots have begun training on F-16 fighter jets, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said in an on-camera interview with Ukrainian media on Saturday.
“Training (on F-16s) has begun,” Reznikov said, adding that a number of Ukrainian engineers and technicians are also training along with the pilots.
Reznikov said he would not disclose how long training will last, but noted that “a minimal term of training is six months.”
According to Reznikov, the instructors will be the ones to announce the completion of the training, when they see that Ukrainian pilots, engineers and technicians can successfully apply their new skills.
Trainees will also get English-language training in technical terminology, because “the basic level of English language is not enough,” he said.
Meanwhile, the period of training will be used to determine what country will supply Ukraine with the aircraft and in what quantity.
Reznikov said it is also important to determine what kind of weapons the aircraft will be carrying.
“After all, without radars, the plane cannot see, and without machine guns, missiles and shells, it is not a weapon, but only a carrier,” he added.
The F-16 training program is being supported by a coalition of 11 NATO countries and requires official US approval because the jets are American technology.
A drone event was taking place inside the Chernihiv theater hit by a Russian missile, organizer says
From CNN's Maria Kostenko and Sarah Dean
Ukraine will investigate the circumstances surrounding a drone demonstration event that was taking place inside the Chernihiv drama theater struck by a Russian missile Saturday, Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko said in a video posted on Telegram.
A co-organizer of the event, Maria Berlinska, who is a cofounder of the charity Dignitas Fund, posted on Facebook following the attack in the northern Ukrainian city. Berlinska said the event, which had been announced on Facebook on August 12 as a drone "demo day" — with Ukrainian manufacturers, flight school representatives and military personnel who use drones at the front line — was officially approved by local authorities, who provided the venue. The location was only disclosed hours before the event for security reasons.
“All the participants were checked by the police upon the entrance. There were medics present on site,” she added.
Berlinska said it was not a public exhibition but “a closed meeting of engineers, military and volunteers on military tech for the frontline.”
“We are now working with the Security Service of Ukraine providing all needed information for a prompt investigation,” she added.
“As soon (as) the air raid siren went on, the event was stopped and participants were told a number of times they need to go to the shelter. Unfortunately, some people still went outside. Everyone who went to the shelter is safe. Me personally, I entered the shelter a minute before the hit,” she said.
However, Klymenko said, “Everyone who was inside the drama theater went down to the shelter in time. The National Police officers tried to get everyone into the shelter after the air raid was announced.”
Video shared by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and geolocated by CNN shows debris and damaged cars surrounding the Taras Shevchenko Chernihiv Regional Academic Music and Drama Theatre.
Klymenko said police have cordoned off residential areas in the center of Chernihiv and are conducting door-to-door inspections.
“Additional patrols are deployed in the city. The area around the epicenter of the attack is being examined,” he said, adding that "the Security Service of Ukraine is initiating criminal proceedings regarding the event, so I cannot comment on what happened inside.”
Klymenko said the majority of casualties happened outside the building. “The most victims were in their vehicles or crossing the road, as well as returning from three churches,” he continued. Saturday is the Feast of the Transfiguration, a major holiday in the Orthodox calendar.
“There is a large park behind the drama theater, where mothers had been walking with their children since early morning. The central square was completely filled with cars. People began coming into cafes and restaurants,” he said.
Number of injured in Chernihiv strike climbs to 129, according to Ukrainian official
From CNN’s Mariya Knight
The number of those wounded in a Russian missile strike on the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv on Saturday has risen to nearly 130 people, according to Ukraine’s Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko.
“Seven people are dead and 129 injured, among them 15 children and 15 police officers,” Klymenko said, adding that “the search and rescue operation has been completed.”
The attack hit a theater and university in the city center, Klymenko said earlier Saturday, and a 6-year-old girl is among the dead.
He said people were also leaving church during a major holiday in the Orthodox calendar, the Feast of the Transfiguration.
Ukraine discussing Gripen fighter aircraft delivery with Sweden, Zelensky says
From CNN's Maria Kostenko and Benjamin Brown
Ukraine is discussing "the next steps" to obtain Gripen fighter jets from Sweden, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday.
Speaking at a joint news conference with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Harpsund, about 90 kilometers (56 miles) west of Stockholm, Zelensky said that test flights with Ukrainian pilots had already begun.
"Today we discussed Gripen aircraft, the pride of Sweden. I am confident that Gripen aircraft can make our freedom much more secure," Zelensky said.
The president said Ukraine has "excellent pilots" but "no advantage in the sky" and lacks modern aircraft.
"Over the next few weeks, there will be appropriate actions that I believe will open up the possibility of getting such aircraft in the future," he added. Zelensky said that he would have further meetings with "several countries" and was confident Ukraine would obtain modern aircraft.
"You cannot move fast on the ground when (the Russians) control the sky. And we need that," he said.
Kristersson also announced that Sweden and Ukraine had signed a statement of intent to cooperate in the production, training and servicing of the Swedish armored Combat Vehicle 90. Combat vehicles were part of a new military support package for Ukraine, announced by Sweden's defense ministry on Tuesday.
F-16 fighter jets: The leaders' remarks come as a US official told CNN that Washington has committed to approving the transfer of F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine as soon as training is complete.
On Friday, the US approved the transfer of F-16 instructional materials from Denmark to Ukraine, according to a US official and an official in President Joe Biden's administration. Also on Friday, Denmark said Ukrainian pilots would begin training on the jets later this month, part of a coalition of 11 countries that will be involved in the training program.
Ukraine has long been pleading for the fighter jets to counter Russian air superiority, but it is unlikely to receive them until next year.
UN condemns "heinous" attack on the center of Chernihiv
From CNN’s Sarah Dean in London
The United Nations' humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, Denise Brown, condemned a Russian missile strike on the center of the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv.
It is “heinous to attack the main square of a large city,” Brown said in a statement.
The attack left several dead – including a 6-year-old girl – and at least 90 people injured.
“I am extremely disturbed by the news of yet another Russian strike that hit shortly ago the heart of Chernihiv, in northern Ukraine, leaving dozens of civilians killed and injured, including children,” Brown said.
“It is heinous to attack the main square of a large city, in the morning, while people are out walking, some going to the church to celebrate a religious day for many Ukrainians,” she added. Saturday marks a major holiday in the Orthodox calendar, the Feast of the Transfiguration.
“I condemn this repeated pattern of Russian strikes on populated areas of Ukraine, causing deaths, massive destruction and soaring humanitarian needs," she continued.
“Attacks directed against civilians or civilian objects are strictly prohibited under international humanitarian law. It must stop.”
Russia shoots down Ukrainian drone near Moscow, according to defense ministry
From CNN's Uliana Pavlova
Russia intercepted a Ukrainian drone attack on the Moscow region, Russia's defense ministry said on Saturday.
“This afternoon, an attempt by the Kyiv regime to carry out a terrorist attack by an aircraft-type UAV on objects in Moscow and the Moscow region was thwarted,” according to a defense ministry statement.
“The drone was jammed and fell near the settlement of Putilkovo, which is near the Russian capital, causing no casualties or damage,” the ministry said.
In recent months, drone attacks on the Russian capital and other regions have increased. On Friday, Russia temporarily shuttered all four major Moscow airports following an alleged drone strike on the capital city, its civil aviation authority said.
It's mid-afternoon in Kyiv. Here's what you need to know
A Russian missile strike has hit a theater and the city center of Chernihiv in northern Ukraine. At least seven people have been reported dead, including a 6-year-old girl, and 90 wounded, according to the country's minister of internal affairs.
The attack came on a major holiday in the Orthodox calendar, the Feast of the Transfiguration, with a lot of people out on the streets. More news is expected to follow.
Here's what else you need to know:
- More Russian attacks: In Kherson, a woman was killed by shelling Saturday morning, according to the regional prosecutor's office. And overnight, two women were wounded by a Russian air raid on Khmelnytskyi that damaged more than 30 houses, the deputy head of the region's military administration said.
- Ukraine strikes back: A Ukrainian drone attack has damaged a plane at a Russian military airfield in the country's northwest Novgorod region, according to Russia's defense ministry. No one was hurt or killed, officials said. Also on Saturday, Ukraine’s Air Force claimed it had destroyed 15 of Russia's Iranian-made Shahed drones, and carried out “more than 10 group attacks on enemy targets, areas of concentration of personnel, weapons and military equipment.”
- Leaders on the move: While Russian President Vladimir Putin visits generals overseeing the offensive in Ukraine, including Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov in Rostov-on-Don, Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky is in Sweden, where he will meet with the Swedish monarchs, the prime minister and other officials, according to his Telegram account.
- Russia issues sanctions: Moscow has barred 54 more British citizens from entering the country, according to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The government accused the individuals and entities of involvement in "propaganda support of the activities of the (Ukrainian) Zelensky regime." The sanctions list includes several government ministers, as well as journalists and a British prosecutor.
- F-16 approval: Ukrainian pilots will begin training on F-16 fighter jets in Denmark later in August, the Danish defense ministry said Friday. The US has approved transferring instructional materials on the jets to Ukraine — a critical step to begin the training, a Biden administration official said. The US has already committed to approving the transfer of F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine as soon as training is complete, according to a US official.
