August 25, 2023 Russia-Ukraine news

Our live coverage for the day has ended. Follow the latest Ukraine news here or read through the updates below.

Russia’s air defenses thwarted a new drone attack near Moscow early Saturday, the country’s defense ministry said in a post on Telegram. 

The drone was destroyed over the Istrinsky district’s territory in the Moscow region around 3 a.m. local time, it said. 

“Preliminarily, there are no casualties or damage. Response teams are working at the scene,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram.

Ukrainian units have “almost reached” the main Russian defensive lines in the key southern region of Zaporizhzhia, but have multiple challenges in making further progress, according to a Ukrainian military officer serving on the front lines.

The officer — who CNN is not identifying, as he is not authorized to speak on the record — said the area between the villages of Robotyne and Verbove “is the hottest right now.”

But Russian troops have pulled up artillery and their aviation is constantly at work “24 hours a day, there are a dozen air raids a day,” he said.

Here are some other headlines you should know:

The United States will help train Ukrainian pilots and engineers on F-16 fighter jets, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday.

The Ukrainian president said he talked to US President Joe Biden on Thursday to discuss plans around the jets,. 

“It was a good conversation,” Zelensky said in his nightly address. “We discussed how to further strengthen freedom. And we have a new important agreement: America will join the training of F-16 pilots and engineers,” he added.

On Thursday night, the White House confirmed that Biden and Zelensky had discussed the commencement of training Ukrainian fighter pilots. That training is expected to start in October, Pentagon Spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said Thursday.

Zelensky has repeatedly called for support in bolstering Ukraine’s air defense system through F-16 jets and training for pilots to operate the aircraft.

In Friday’s address, Zelensky said the next steps for Ukraine are clear. 

“For the international team, it is to maximize the expansion of training missions. For the military, it is to accelerate the preparation of the infrastructure as much as possible, to send pilots and engineers to ensure Ukraine’s full readiness. And all together, it is about bringing closer the moment when F-16s will help us keep Russian terrorists away,” Zelensky said. 

Training with other countries: 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. Last Friday, the US approved the transfer of instructional materials from Denmark to Ukraine — an important step in starting these programs.

Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said last week that Ukrainian pilots have already begun training on F-16 aircraft. Reznikov said the “minimal term” for the training is six months, though it would be up to the instructors to decide how long the course will run. 

Among the mass of red carnations laid outside Wagner’s St. Petersburg headquarters, a photograph of the Russian private military group’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, peers out.

On it, the words “in this hell he was the best” are printed in Russian. His death has still not been officially certified, but everyone is now speaking of him in the past tense.

Across Russia, makeshift memorials for Prigozhin, which sprang up after he was reported killed in a plane crash alongside some top aides Wednesday, have seen a steady stream of Wagner fighters and their supporters come out to pay their respects.  

Under Prigozhin, the Wagner Group reveled in the infamy of its brutal methods worldwide and its battleground victories in the Ukraine war. One mourner, named Arkady, said his presumed death was “a huge setback, not just to the city but for our entire country and its prospects in the war.”

“Aside from being a great patriot he was also a top military commander. We have all witnessed his success in (eastern Ukraine’s) Bakhmut. How the war will continue without him is a big question,” Arkady added.

A man who identified himself only as Dmitry told CNN the Wagner boss gave work to thousands of people in St. Petersburg, which paid well and provided them with a mission in life. That, he said, was now over.

Nestled among the memorial’s flowers was a sledgehammer. It is a potent symbol of the extreme violence the group represented: Last year, the warlord applauded a video in which a former Wagner member, who had deserted, was brutally murdered with a sledgehammer, cementing Wagner’s image as uncompromising and ruthless.

Some in the crowd at the memorial speculated about the reasons behind Prigozhin’s plane crash. One woman blamed it on Ukraine – a claim that has been denied by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Others said that they think Prigozhin might be still alive. Zlata and Vitya, a couple who live in the city, said they think the mercenary leader’s death was orchestrated to allow the Wagner boss to be deployed on other missions for the benefit of Russia.

CNN has reported that while the US intelligence community is still determining what happened, it believes the crash was deliberate and the goal was to kill Prigozhin.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Friday that any assertions that the Russian government was somehow involved in the crash are “an absolute lie.”

A woman who walked by the St. Petersburg memorial told CNN that his death represented “one mafioso” falling “victim to another, bigger mafioso — who’s become … bigger and stronger by swallowing (the) ‘Kremlin’s chef,’” referring to Prigozhin’s nickname.

She added: “No tears shed here. You reap just what you sow.”

CNN’s Tara John contributed reporting to this post.

Hear why someone left a sledgehammer at a Prigozhin memorial:

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There is a puff of white and then a plane can be seen falling, a trail of smoke or vapor stretching behind it, descending rapidly against a bright blue sky. The person filming the video zooms in as the aircraft spirals downward out of control, revealing that it is missing a wing.

The footage, published by Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti, appears to show the moments before a private plane purportedly carrying mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin crashed in a field northwest of Moscow, while en route to St. Petersburg.

CNN has reviewed flight data and videos, and interviewed aviation and explosive experts, to piece together what happened in the minutes leading up to the crash. The analysis suggests that the private aircraft experienced at least one “catastrophic inflight incident” before it dropped out of the sky. The available video does not show that catastrophic event.

A passenger manifest released by Russia’s civil aviation agency, Rosaviatsia, on Wednesday showed that Prigozhin’s name and that of Wagner’s top commander, Dmitry Utkin, were among the seven passengers and three crew members, all of whom Russia’s emergency services ministry said were killed.

Russian authorities have yet to officially confirm Prigozhin’s death but, acknowledging the crash in public comments on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin referred to him in the past tense.

Rosaviatsia said it had launched an investigation into “the circumstances and causes of the accident.” The Investigative Committee has also launched a criminal probe.

The crash came two months to the day after Prigozhin launched a short-lived mutiny against Russia’s military leadership, posing an unprecedented challenge to Putin’s authority.

The Pentagon said on Thursday that Prigozhin was “likely” killed in the crash. US and Western intelligence officials that CNN has spoken to believe it was deliberate. Officials said that it was too early to determine what brought the plane down, but that one possibility being explored was an on-board explosion.

There’s been plenty of speculation. But no evidence has been presented pointing to the involvement of the Kremlin or Russian security services in the crash.

Experts interviewed by CNN say that available evidence indicates that the crash was unlikely to have been caused by a mechanical failure. The dramatic descent of the plane, the way that it broke apart in the air and the extent of the debris field point to an explosion, they said.

Read more about experts’ analysis of data and video

Russian investigators say they’ve recovered 10 bodies and the flight recorders from a plane crash that is believed to have killed Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin this week. DNA analysis is also being conducted on the victims to confirm their identities.

“The Russian Investigative Committee continues to investigate the criminal case of the aviation accident in Tver Oblast,” the committee said in a statement posted to Telegram Friday.

Flight recorders and other materials are being processed and handed over for forensic examination.

“During the investigation flight recorders have been recovered. A detailed examination of the scene continues. At the moment, items and documentation relevant to establishing all the circumstances of the plane crash are being seized and handed over for forensic examination,” the post continued.

The committee said all possible scenarios for the cause of the incident are being thoroughly reviewed.

A Ukrainian military officer serving on the front lines in the southern Zaporizhzhia region says Ukrainian units have “almost reached” the main Russian defensive lines, but have multiple challenges in making further progress. 

The officer — who CNN is not identifying, as he is not authorized to speak on the record — said the area between the villages of Robotyne and Verbove “is the hottest right now.”

“We have almost reached their main defense lines. We have constant tactical advances, and we are gradually reclaiming our territory,” the officer said.

But Russian troops have pulled up artillery and their aviation is constantly at work “24 hours a day, there are a dozen air raids a day,” he continued.

The officer, who previously fought around Bakhmut, said the Russian aerial power he is seeing now is “a lot” compared to when he was fighting around Bakhmut.

“The same thing with mines. There were no dense minefields in Bakhmut … Now almost everything is mined. It’s stressful, there are a lot of wounded from mines and explosions of equipment,” he said.

The officer said the open terrain is also a challenge. 

“Drones are hanging in the sky around the clock, both ours and theirs. So it is impossible to hide any movement of equipment. Any maneuver immediately becomes known to the enemy, and shelling begins either with artillery or drones,” the officer said.

He said Ukrainian units use steel nets to protect against drone attacks and are working with small assault groups and equipment.

“We used to work at night and at dusk, but the (Russians) have adapted and started waiting for us at night, so now we have to work during the day as well,” the officer said. “It is much more difficult because the enemy immediately sees movement and starts shelling.”

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

Now signs are growing that Ukrainian forces have penetrated Russian defenses along part of the front line in the Zaporizhzhia region and are expanding a wedge toward the strategic town of Tokmak. As the officer outlined, any progress remains hard-earned.

CNN’s Tim Lister, Josh Pennington, Olga Voitovych and Anna Chernova contributed reporting to this post.

The lack of aerial combat power is hurting Ukraine as it continues its counteroffensive to liberate its territories, but the deployment of F-16 fighter jets would “radically” change the situation, a Ukrainian official said Friday.

“There is no parity in the air. And this complicates many of the issues that exist at the front today. As soon as the F-16s appear and are used by our Armed Forces to the fullest extent possible, believe me, the situation will change radically before our eyes,” said Oleksii Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, in an interview with Radio Liberty.

Norway, along with Denmark and the Netherlands, have pledged to provide F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, but they are unlikely to be in service with the Ukrainian Air Force until some time next year, according to US and NATO officials. The US announced Thursday that it will start training Ukrainian pilots on the advanced aircraft in October.

At the moment, however, Ukraine continues its “complex operation” on the ground, maintaining its approach to keep casualties to a minimum, Danilov said.

“If anyone thought that it was a cakewalk and that we could achieve the goals we set for ourselves — the liberation of all our territories — very quickly, keep in mind that the enemy is powerful. The enemy has a certain system of defenses and protective structures that it has been able to build there,” he added.

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Friday that the Ukrainian special services were behind arson attacks on facilities of the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and state-owned Russian Railways.

The FSB’s investigations “indicate the direct involvement of the Ukrainian special services,” the agency said in a statement published on its website.

The Ukrainian special services “rely on young people, the elderly, the marginalized, the mentally ill, who do not realize the severity of their actions,” the agency said, claiming the victims receive fraudulent calls from people claiming to be with security services, employees of the Investigative Committee, the Ministry of Internal Affairs or the FSB.

The callers psychologically manipulate people to transfer their savings to “safe accounts,” and have also persuaded them to carry out arson attacks, according to the FSB’s claims.

The FSB said arsonists have been sentenced to multiple years of imprisonment under the country’s criminal code in a list of a dozen territories across Russia, ranging from Moscow to far-flung regions.

Some background: In late July and throughout August, there were widespread arson attacks on military enlistment offices across Russia.

Ukraine has often refrained from directly commenting on attacks on Russian soil.

A source linked to a Russian partisan group denies Russians are being coerced, telling CNN that the Kremlin wants to hide the growing discontent in society. “If people weren’t angry with the authorities, they wouldn’t do anything,” the source told CNN.

CNN’s Matthew Chance contributed to this report.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said he “can’t imagine” that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is behind the apparent death of Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin. 

“I can’t say who did it,” the longtime Putin ally told journalists, including the state news agency BelTA. “But I know Putin. He is a prudent, very calm and even slow-paced person when making decisions on other less complex issues. Therefore, I cannot imagine that Putin did it, that Putin is to blame. It was too rough, unprofessional work, for that matter.”

Remember: When Prigozhin incited an armed rebellion against the Kremlin in June, Lukashenko said he negotiated a deescalation with the Wagner boss and claimed that he convinced Putin to “destroy” the Wagner group and its chief. The Kremlin has credited Lukashenko with helping during the crisis, although his account of events has not been corroborated by Putin or Prigozhin.

Earlier on Friday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said any assertions about the Russian government’s involvement in the plane crash that presumably killed Prigozhin are an “an absolute lie.”

Speaking to CNN, US officials cautioned that it was too early to draw any conclusions about the cause, but a number of possibilities are being evaluated, including an on-board explosive device causing the crash. At the same time, people familiar with the intelligence do believe that the downing of the plane was deliberate and that the goal was to kill Prigozhin.

Signs are growing that Ukrainian forces have penetrated the first line of Russian defenses along part of the southern front lines in Zaporizhzhia region, and are expanding a wedge in the direction of the strategic town of Tokmak.

“At the cost of colossal losses yesterday the [Ukrainians] were able to reach the first defensive line of engineering barriers, but they move mostly even without artillery support,” Russian appointed governor of occupied areas of Zaporizhzhia, Yevgeniy Balitskiy, said Friday. “As a consequence, [Ukraine’s] assault groups, which yesterday managed to reach the first defensive line, were completely destroyed overnight.”

Other Russian sources have made similar claims about substantial Ukrainian losses inflicted by Russian airpower and artillery.

However, the Ukrainians do appear to have brought in additional elements in an effort to break Russian resistance in this area.

The Ukrainian General Staff said Friday there had been further success in two areas – towards the village of Novoprokopivka and further east in the direction of another small settlement, Ocheretuvate.

Earlier this week, the Ukrainians said they had secured the village of Robotyne. Fighting continues to the south of that village.

The General Staff said units “are consolidating their positions, inflicting artillery fire on the identified enemy targets, and conducting counter-battery operations.”

Several Russian military bloggers have painted a gloomy picture of the front line situation in parts of the south.

One of the best-known of these, “WarGonzo,” said the Ukrainians had gained a foothold in Robotyne “and are attacking Novoprokopivka, which is under heavy shelling.”

Read more about the offensive:

Ukrainian servicemen fire small multiple launch rocket systems towards Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near a front line in Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine August 19, 2023. REUTERS/Viacheslav Ratynsky

Related article Ukrainian forces appear to widen breach of Russian defenses on southern front lines | CNN

Nearly 48 hours after a private jet presumed to be carrying Russia’s most notorious mercenary on board went down, the Kremlin is rejecting speculation that it was involved in the incident.

The crash on Wednesday is believed to have killed Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Russian private military company Wagner. He and two other key Wagner figures were listed on the plane’s manifest, though their deaths have not been officially confirmed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s critics have speculated whether or not he played a role in the incident, potentially as retaliation for Prigozhin’s short-lived insurrection in June. That was the greatest challenge to Putin’s authority since he was first elected president in 2000, and the longtime Russian leader’s domestic opponents have often end up dying mysteriously.

The Kremlin on Friday responded to those theories for the first time, with spokesman Dmitry Peskov calling them an “absolute lie.”

To date, no evidence has been presented that points to the involvement of the Kremlin or Russian security services in the crash. The cause of the incident remains unknown and Russian authorities have launched a criminal investigation. 

Here’s what else you need to know about the latest developments in Russia and Ukraine:

A Russian military delegation went to the Libyan city of Benghazi this week to meet with the Libyan National Army, which has been supported by Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner Group for several years. 

Earlier this week, video emerged of Progozhin speaking in desert surroundings, and analysts from the open-source group All Eyes on Wagner noted they believed the footage was likely shot in Mali. 

The Russian delegation to Libya was led by Deputy Defense Minister Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, according to Russia’s Ministry of Defense. The group met Khalifa Haftar, the leader of the self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA).

Reuters cited a Libyan official with knowledge of the meeting as saying that Yevkurov told Haftar that Wagner forces in eastern Libya would report to a new commander. CNN could not verify what was discussed in the meeting and has reached out to two LNA spokespeople for confirmation.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement that the two sides discussed “the prospects for cooperation in the field of combating international terrorism, as well as other issues of joint actions.”

Yevkurov held “technical” meetings with the LNA and reviewed the “maintenance” needs of Russian weapons and equipment described by the LNA as “the backbone” of the eastern Libya force, LNA spokesman Ahmed Al Mismari said on Facebook.

Russia has previously denied having an official military presence in Libya. The Wagner mercenary group is reported to be present in the country and supported Haftar’s 2019-2020 military campaign against the Tripoli-based government.

Wagner had frequently flown cargo flights into bases in eastern Libya to resupply its fighters there, the US military said in 2020.

Yekurov’s visit to Benghazi could offer some insight on the future of Wagner in Libya, Mohamed Eljarh, the managing director at Libya Desk Consulting, told CNN.

“Moscow is not going to let go of its presence and foothold in Libya and is willing to cooperate with the LNA’s leadership and eastern-based authority on a more formal level, ”ElJarh said. 
“Another possible scenario is that Wagner is revamped and made into a new security provider under a different name and leadership, with the new PMC securing contracts with Libyan actors to provide a range of services.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin won’t attend the G20 summit later this year in India, the Kremlin said Friday.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin has a busy schedule and is primarily focused on the war in Ukraine. The meeting is set to take place next month in New Delhi. Were Putin to attend in person, he risks being confronted or shunned by other world leaders over the invasion of Ukraine.

When asked if Putin might take part via videoconference, Peskov said: “The format is being discussed.”

Putin did not attend last year’s G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia.

Erdogan visit: Turkish President Recep Tayip Erdogan is expected to visit Moscow and meet with Putin “soon,” Peskov said.

The talks could take place in Russia as early as September, before the G20 summit, according to Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.

“We will inform you shortly. It is being prepared,” Peskov said, without providing any more details.

Erdogan has staked out an important diplomatic role for Turkey since the Kremlin’s invasion. He is one of the few world leaders to speak with both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky since the war began.

Ukrainian drone attacks early Friday against targets in Russian-occupied Crimea appear to have caused some damage, according to both Ukrainian officials and Russian military bloggers.

Ivan Fedorov, the Ukrainian mayor of the Russian-held city of Melitopol, claimed that explosions had occurred at a military base in Perevalne near the Crimean city of Simferopol.

Federov said on the messaging app Telegram that 300 injured Russian troops were sent to a hospital in Simferopol as a result of the attack.

The Russian Defense Ministry said earlier that 42 Ukrainian drones had been destroyed while attempting to attack Crimea.

Boris Rozhin, a Russian military blogger, said most drones had been shot down or immobilized by electronic warfare.

However, he said that nine “managed to fly to the Perevalne training ground, where they were jammed by the electronic warfare. But several of these UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) landed on the site, damaging two KamAZ trucks. There is no data on casualties or damage to infrastructure.”

When asked about the rising number of Ukrainian drone attacks – including those on Crimea – Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that “relevant air defense systems work quite effectively.”

He described the drone attacks as “terrorist activity – because for the most part, it is aimed at residential buildings.”

“Obviously the same terrorist activity is also relevant for Crimea. And all necessary measures are being taken there,” he said.

Kyiv’s Crimea strategy: Kyiv has recently ramped up drone strikes on Crimea in a push to disrupt Russian logistics and resupply efforts, a shift in focus that has been met with skepticism in parts of the West.

Friday marked the third day in a row of Ukrainian assaults on the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in violation of international law in 2014.

The Ukrainians said Wednesday they had destroyed an S-400 missile defense battery in the area. The day after, Kyiv landed troops on the shores of Crimea in what was the Ukrainian military’s most complex and ambitious operations to date against Russian military facilities on the peninsula.

Rozhin said the attack Friday morning was “the most massive drone raid on Crimea in recent months.”

“The choice of targets for the strike is quite understandable: important airfields, air defense position areas, training camps. And the attempted raid on the thermal power plant near Simferopol indicates a desire to inflict damage not only on the Russian army, but also on the civilian population of Crimea,” he said.

Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Directorate, said on Ukrainian television that he hopes the increasing focus on Crimea will remind people that both victory and liberation are “not far off.”

“It will not end there – there will be a ground operation, there will be the return of our territories,” he said.

News of Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin’s presumed death is being celebrated by some in Syria.

Abdullah al-Sayed, a resident of a part of the province of Deir Ezzor held by Kurdish militants, said: “I haven’t been happy like this since the assassination of Qasem Soleimani.”

Soleimani was the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force, an elite unit that handles Iran’s overseas operations. He was killed by a US airstrike ordered by then-President Donald Trump in 2020.

People CNN spoke to assumed that Prigozhin is dead, while some speculated that Russian President Vladimir Putin may have been behind his killing.

No evidence, however, has been presented that points to the involvement of the Kremlin or Russian security services in the crash.

The cause of the crash remains unknown and Russian authorities have launched a criminal investigation. 

Explaining the ire: Syrians like al-Sayed loathe Prigozhin because his private mercenary group was an important player during Russia’s intervention in the Syrian civil war, fighting on behalf of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. While Putin has lauded them as soldiers risking their lives to fight terrorism, Russian forces operating in Syria have been accused of using indiscriminate force in bombing campaigns in rebel-held areas, without regard to civilian casualties.

Wagner’s role in Syria came under scrutiny again two years ago, when private Russian contractors in Syria were accused of the grisly murder of a Syrian construction worker.

“Wagner mercenaries killed many people in Deir Ezzor and they deserve this,” al-Sayed said.

The 27-year-old said Prigozhin was responsible for his own death because he called off his short-lived insurrection against Russia’s defense establishment in June.

“If he kept on marching to Moscow, he wouldn’t be killed like this,” al-Sayed said.

Mohammad Ayid, a journalist displaced from the Syrian city of Palmyra, said he felt justice was being served with Prigozhin’s purported death. Ayid accused Wagner of committing a litany of crimes in his hometown, though CNN is unable to verify them.

“Wagner occupied my city and its oil fields, they killed lots of my people, after their commander is killed now,” Ayid said. “I feel justice started to be served, I hope another plane accident happens to Putin’s plane so justice is fully served”

The Kremlin has for the first time denied any involvement in the plane crash that is believed to have killed Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said any assertions that the Russian government was somehow involved in the crash are “an absolute lie.”

“There is a lot of speculation around this catastrophe and the tragic death of the passengers of the plane, including Yevgeny Prigozhin,” Peskov said.
“Of course, in the West, all these speculations are presented from a certain angle. All this is an absolute lie,” he added.

Prominent critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin, including US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, were quick to blame the Russian leader, whose domestic opponents often end up dying mysteriously.

Some have theorized that Prigozhin was targeted for his insurrection against Russia’s defense establishment in June, the greatest challenge to Putin’s authority since he was first elected president in 2000.

No evidence, however, has been presented that points to the involvement of the Kremlin or Russian security services in the crash.

The cause of the incident remains unknown and Russian authorities have launched a criminal investigation. 

Genetic testing underway: Peskov also said that genetic testing and other necessary examinations are underway to determine whether Prigozhin was in fact killed in Wednesday’s crash.

Prigozhin, the head of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, was reported on the plane’s flight manifest, and thus has been presumed dead. His death has not yet been officially confirmed.

Peskov said that official results will be made available “as soon as they are ready for publication.”

The funeral: Asked about the possibility of Putin attending Prigozhin’s funeral, should it be confirmed, Peskov noted uncertainty about the timeline for required identification procedures and said that the president had a busy work schedule.

Heineken is selling its entire operations in Russia for 1 euro as it completely withdraws from Russia.

The Dutch brewer said in a statement Friday that it had received the requisite approvals for the sale of its Russian operation to the Arnest Group, a Russian manufacturing conglomerate. The 1 euro sale figure is symbolic.

Heineken, like many other global business, announced its intent to withdraw from Russia shortly after the country invaded Ukraine last year. The company expects to incur losses of about 300 million euros ($323 million). 

The Arnest Group, Russia’s largest manufacturer of cosmetics, household goods and metal packaging for the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sector, is set to acquire all of Heineken’s remaining Russian assets including seven breweries, Heineken said.

All 1,800 of Heineken’s employees in Russia have been provided with employment guarantees from the Arnest Group for the next three years as part of the deal.

“While it took much longer than we had hoped, this transaction secures the livelihoods of our employees and allows us to exit the country in a responsible manner,” Heineken CEO Dolf van den Brink said in the statement.

The UK’s Ministry of Defence said Friday that “it is highly likely” that Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is dead following Wednesday’s plane crash.

In its latest intelligence update posted on social media, the ministry said that there is “not yet definitive proof that Prigozhin was onboard and he is known to exercise exceptional security measures. However, it is highly likely that he is indeed dead.”

What happens to Wagner: Prigozhin’s presumed death has led to many questions about the future of the mercenary group he led for years. The British defense ministry assessed that Prigozhin’s purported demise would have a “deeply destabilizing effect,” especially considering that two other prominent Wagner officials are believed to have died in the crash as well.

“His (Prigozhin’s) personal attributes of hyper-activity, exceptional audacity, a drive for results and extreme brutality permeated Wagner and are unlikely to be matched by any successor,” the ministry said.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin whose forces frequently fought alongside Wagner units in Ukraine, praised Yevgeny Prigozhin’s legacy following the plane crash presumed to have killed the Wagner chief.

“We’ve been friends for a long time,” Kadyrov said in a lengthy Telegram post. “We often had to solve the most complicated issues.”

Kadyrov described Prigozhin as “distinguished from others by his responsiveness, unique communication skills and persistence.”

“He was always ready to help and really helped from the bottom of his heart,” he said.

While Kadyrov said Prigozhin was “an important person on the national stage,” he lately “either did not see or did not want to see the full picture of what was happening in the country.”

“I asked him to leave his personal ambitions behind in favor of matters of paramount national importance. Everything else could be dealt with later,” Kadyrov said.
“But that’s just the way he was, Prigozhin, with his iron-clad demeanor and his desire to get what he wanted here and now.”

On the Wagner’s Group’s contribution to Russia’s war in Ukraine, Kadyrov said: “There’s no doubt that he made a great contribution to the [special military operation]. And that credit cannot be taken away from him. His death is a great loss for the entire state.”

Ukrainian air defenses destroyed four Russian missiles over the southern region of Odesa overnight, the Ukrainian Air Force said Friday.

In a Telegram post, the air force said two Kh-59 guided missiles were fired from an Su-34 aircraft from the Black Sea, and two Kalibr cruise missiles were launched from a ship in the Sea of Azov. 

Oleh Kiper, head of the Odesa region military administration, said Russia once again targeted port facilities.

The first two missiles were fired in the direction of a port around midnight, and the Kalbir missiles were launched “a few hours later” toward the regional center, he added. 

Meanwhile, Ukrainian air defenses also downed a Russian drone over the Dnipro region overnight, according to the air force.

Some context: Russia has repeatedly attacked Odesa’s Black Sea ports and smaller ports on the Danube River since pulling out of a UN-brokered grain deal last month.

Ukrainian officials say Moscow is deliberately targeting port infrastructure in an effort to block grain exports, threatening food security in developing nations that rely on shipments from Ukraine.

Earlier this week, a Russian attack on the Danube port of Izmail destroyed 13,000 tons of grain destined for Egypt and Romania, a Ukrainian minister said.

At least one person has died and three others were injured, including a child, following Russian attacks on Ukraine’s southern Kherson region, a military official said Friday.

“The enemy made 81 attacks over the last day, launching 501 shells from mortars, artillery, tanks, Grad, UAVs and aircraft,” said Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the Kherson region military administration.

Russia fired 16 shells on Kherson city, he added. 

The attacks hit residential areas, an administrative building, a critical infrastructure facility, a medical facility and educational institutions, he said. 

Some context: Kherson, a city of some 300,000 people before Russia’s invasion, was captured by Russian forces in March last year. The frontline city was liberated by Ukrainian forces about eight months later and has since come under repeated attacks.

Six people were injured in the city Wednesday after Russian forces dropped guided bombs on a kindergarten and residential buildings, Ukrainian officials said earlier.

Russia’s defense ministry said early Friday its air defenses had destroyed 42 Ukrainian drones over Crimea, the latest in a string of recent reported attacks by Kyiv’s forces on the peninsula — including on the bridges linking it to mainland Russia.

Moscow’s claim Friday comes after Ukrainian forces carried out what appeared to be one of Kyiv’s most complex and ambitious operations to date against Russian military facilities in Crimea.

The operation involved Ukrainian special forces landing on the western shore of the peninsula to attack Russian units, destroy Kremlin materiel and raise the Ukrainian flag.

The Ukrainian military claims at least 30 Russians were killed in the seaborne raid. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said there were no casualties reported among the Ukrainians.

While there has been no word from Russian-appointed authorities in Crimea on the attack, Russian military bloggers have raised questions about the inability of coastal defenses to detect and repel such operations.

Here’s the latest headlines from Russia’s war in Ukraine:

Russian air defenses destroyed 42 Ukrainian drones over the Crimean Peninsula early Friday, the Russian Ministry of Defense said on Telegram. 

Nine of the drones were shot down and 33 others were jammed by electronic warfare equipment and crashed without reaching their targets, the ministry said.

“Overnight, an attempt by the Kyiv regime to carry out terrorist attacks using unmanned aerial vehicles on Russian Federation territory has been thwarted,” the ministry’s Telegram post read. 

Meanwhile, the defense ministry also claimed Ukraine had launched an upgraded S-200 air defense complex missile that was detected and shot down by Russian forces over the Kaluga region southwest of Moscow. 

Ukraine has not yet commented.

Some context: Ukraine carried out what appears to be one of Kyiv’s most complex and ambitious operations to date against Russian military facilities in Crimea on Thursday, involving Ukrainian special forces landing on the western shore of the peninsula to attack Russian units.

Ukrainian officials have repeatedly vowed to restore Kyiv’s rule in Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014 in violation of international law. In recent weeks, Ukraine has stepped up drone attacks in the area, including the bridges linking the peninsula to mainland Russia.

The US Defense Department believes Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was “likely” killed in Wednesday’s airplane crash in Russia, Pentagon spokesperson Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said Thursday.

Ryder also said the Pentagon “doesn’t have any information to indicate right now” that the plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.

Prigozhin, the head of Russian mercenary group Wagner, was listed as a passenger on the manifest of the private Embraer jet that went down. So too was Dmitriy Utkin, a key Wagner figure, and Valeriy Chekalov, a senior aide to Prigozhin.

Ten people in total were on board the aircraft, all of whom were killed when it went down en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg.

Here’s what else you need to know about the crash:

The US has announced that it will start training Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 jets in October.

“Following English language training for pilots in September, F-16 flying training is expected to begin in October at Morris Air National Guard Base in Tucson, Arizona, facilitated by the Air National Guard’s 162nd Wing,” Pentagon Spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said Thursday at a press briefing.
“Although we do not have specific numbers to share at this time in regards to how many Ukrainians will participate in this training, we do anticipate it will include several pilots and dozens of maintainers.”

Earlier on Thursday, two US officials told CNN an announcement of the training program was coming. The officials said the pilots still need to go through English language training before they can begin learning to operate the fourth-generation American jets. The language classes will also take place in the US, at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas.

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Norway will be donating F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, the country’s prime minister announced on Thursday.

“We are planning to donate Norwegian F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, and will provide further details about the donation, numbers and time frame for delivery in due course,” Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said.

Norway is the third country in Europe, along with Denmark and the Netherlands, to pledge to provide Ukraine with the fighter jets. Norway announced its plans to support the training of Ukrainian personnel on F-16 fighter jets in May.

Norway also announced Thursday that it will be donating anti-aircraft missiles and de-mining sets to Ukraine, as well as 1.5 billion NOK ($140.5 million) to secure gas and electricity supply in the country. 

This brings the total value of Norway’s support over five years to 75 billion NOK (more than $7 billion), a statement on Norway’s government website said.

Ukrainian forces have carried out their most complex and ambitious operations to date against Russian military facilities in the occupied region of Crimea, officials in Kyiv have said.

Special forces landed on the western shore of Crimea, near the settlements of Olenivka and Mayak, in a joint operation with the country’s Navy, according to Ukrainian Defense Intelligence.

“While performing the task, Ukrainian defenders clashed with the occupier’s units. As a result, the enemy suffered losses among its personnel and destroyed enemy equipment,” the intelligence agency said.

While they were there, the Ukrainian unit also raised the national flag, it added.

Russian-appointed authorities in Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula which has been illegally occupied by Moscow’s forces since 2014, have not responded to the claims.

The operation would constitute one of the most daring moves by Kyiv since launching its cagey counter-offensive against Russian troops, which has so far made only limited progress.

Kyiv has recently ramped up drone strikes on Crimea in a push to disrupt Russian logistics and resupply efforts, a shift in focus that has been met with skepticism in parts of the West.

The area contains extensive air defenses and missile sites, including advanced systems. The Ukrainians said Wednesday they had destroyed an S-400 missile defense battery in the area.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin made his first public comments Thursday on the plane crash believed to have killed Yevgeny Prigozhin, saying the Wagner leader was “talented” but made “serious mistakes in life.”

The crash Wednesday took place northwest of Moscow and killed all on board, said Russia’s aviation agency, including Prigozhin, chief of the mercenary group that gained prominence for its brutal methods worldwide and its battleground victories in the Ukraine war. Authorities are still identifying the bodies.

“First of all, I want to express my sincere condolences to the families of all the victims, this is always a tragedy,” said Putin.
“Indeed, if they were there, it seems … preliminary information suggests that Wagner Group employees were also on board,” Putin said during a meeting with the head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) Denis Pushilin in the Kremlin. 

Speaking about Prigozhin in the past tense, Putin said he’d known the Wagner chief “for a very long time,” and that he was “a talented man, a talented businessman.”

The crash of Prigozhin’s plane happened two months after Prigozhin and Wagner staged their insurrection, the biggest challenge to Putin’s authority during his long rule.

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The US believes Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin was “likely” killed in a plane crash outside Moscow on Wednesday, Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said Thursday.

Ryder also said the Pentagon “doesn’t have any information to indicate right now” that the plane Prigozhin was on was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.

Earlier Thursday, four US officials told CNN there was no indication the plane was downed by a missile.

The US intelligence community is still in the early stages of assessing the cause of the crash. Officials cautioned that it’s too early to draw any conclusions, but a number of possibilities are being evaluated, including an on-board explosion causing the crash.

Another source familiar with the Western intelligence echoed the US officials, saying there was no indication a missile was launched.

Officials said the US had not seen any information to indicate that the Embraer Legacy 600 aircraft was struck by either a surface-to-air missile, which would be launched from a Russian aerial defense system, or an air-to-air missile from a Russian fighter jet.

People familiar with the intelligence do believe the downing of the plane was deliberate and the goal was to kill Prigozhin. How soon Russian President Vladimir Putin might try to kill the Wagner chief was hotly debated in the days and weeks following the June 24 rebellion, more a question of when than if.

“I don’t know for a fact what happened but I’m not surprised,” President Joe Biden told reporters on Wednesday. “Not much that happens in Russia that Putin is not behind.”

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