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☆ Kyiv rebuffs Putin's claims that gunmen who killed 133 Russian concertgoers had links to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-23 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin linked Moscow concert hall attackers to Ukraine. At least 133 people were killed by gunmen, and 11 have suspects been detained, say Russian sources. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementRussian President Vladimir Putin claimed the gunmen who attacked a Moscow concert hall and killed 133 people had links to Ukraine, an allegation Kyiv completely rejected. Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) had earlier claimed a link between Ukraine and the gunmen in a statement, said Russian news agency TASS.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, —, Putin, STRINGER, Hamid Karzai Organizations: Service, Crocus City, Russia's Federal Security Service, Putin, Main Intelligence, Ministry of Defense, Getty, Russia's, Islamic, Politico Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, Crocus, Krasnogorsk, Russia's, Russian, Kyiv, Islamic State, Kabul

☆ Ukraine said it sank a $65 million warship that Russia planned to use for an antiaircraft missile system
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ukraine said it destroyed another Russian ship in the Black Sea using sea drones. The Sergei Kotov patrol vessel, part of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, cost $65 million, Ukraine said. AdvertisementUkrainian military intelligence said a $65 million Russian warship was the latest to be sunk in the Black Sea. It added that a Ukrainian special unit attacked the Black Sea Fleet vessel in cooperation with Ukraine's navy and the Ministry of Digital Transformation. In December, the UK's defense minister said that "over the past 4 months 20% of Russia's Black Sea Fleet has been destroyed."

Persons: Sergei Kotov, —, Andrii, Russian Sergey Kotov, 3KPMpgxXD8, 4LGiEYQaEY — Anton Gerashchenko Organizations: Service, Directorate of Intelligence, Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Digital, Kyiv, Radio Free, Ukrainian Defense Intelligence, Ukraine, Kyiv Independent Locations: Ukraine, Russia's, Russia, Ukrainian, Kerch, Radio Free Europe, Russian, Sevastopol, Crimea

☆ Russian forces are using Elon Musk's Starlink in occupied areas, Ukraine army intelligence says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Read previewRussia is using Starlink terminals in occupied parts of Ukraine, Ukrainian military intelligence (GUR) has claimed. Ukrainian intelligence confirmed that Russia is using Starlink after intercepting the radio communications of Russia’s 83rd Assault Brigade, which is operating near the towns of Klishchiivka and Andriivka in the Donetsk region. Starlink said in a statement on Thursday that it does not do business with Russia's government or military. A Starlink antenna covered with a camouflage net used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Donetsk region, December 2022. NurPhoto / GettyMusk initially gave his full support to Ukraine when Russia first invaded, with SpaceX sending "thousands" of Starlink terminals to the country, but relations have since cooled.

Persons: —, Andrii, Elon Musk's, Ukraine’s GUR, Starlink, Bryan Clark, NurPhoto, Getty Organizations: Service, 83rd Assault Brigade, Business, Ministry of Defense, Elon, Elon Musk's SpaceX, SpaceX, Hudson Institute, Armed Forces of Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Klishchiivka, Donetsk, Armed Forces of Ukraine

☆ Viktor Sokolov: Ukraine 'clarifying' whether Russian commander was killed in strike, after video purportedly shows him alive
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( Olga Voitovych Clare Sebastian Florence Davey-Attlee Rob Picheta | Olga Voitovych | Clare Sebastian | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Ukraine’s military has said it is “clarifying” information received about the alleged assassination of Russian commander Viktor Sokolov, after Moscow released a video that appears to show him alive and well. Kyiv claimed on Monday it killed Sokolov, the commander of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, in an attack on the fleet’s headquarters in occupied Crimea last Friday. The nametape on his uniform reads Sokolov V. N. and his screen shows the Cyrillic letters “ЧФ,” the abbreviation for the Black Sea Fleet. “Available sources claim that the Black Sea Fleet Commander is among the dead. Russia appointed Sokolov as its new commander for its Crimea-based Black Sea fleet in August 2022, according to reports from state media outlet TASS at the time.

Persons: CNN —, Viktor Sokolov, Sokolov, Sergei Shoigu, Rustem Umerov, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, “, ” Umerov, Amanpour, Dmitry Peskov, Crimea –, Andrii Yusov Organizations: CNN, Russian Ministry of Defense, Black, Fleet, Ukraine Special Operations Forces, Ukrainian Special Operations Forces, Ukrainian Defense Intelligence, Naval Academy, Northern Fleet, ЧФ Locations: Moscow, Crimea, Kyiv, Ukraine, Russia, Ukrainian Crimea, ” Ukraine, Russian, Saky, Sevastopol

Commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet Vice-Admiral Viktor Sokolov during a send-off ceremony in Sevastopol, Crimea on September 27, 2022. Ukraine has increasingly been hitting strategic Russian targets in Crimea, the Black Sea region of southern Ukraine that has been occupied by Moscow since 2014. Russian forces employed Iranian-made drones, hypersonic missiles, cruise missiles and a submarine in the assault, Ukraine’s defense forces said. A damaged building is seen following a Russian military attack in Odesa, Ukraine, in this image released on September 25. Over the past day, Russian forces launched 87 attacks on the Kherson region, Prokudin said, hitting residential areas, medical buildings, educational institutions, and critical infrastructure.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, ”, Dmytro Pletenchuk, Pletenchuk, Vladimir Putin “, Pletenchuk’s, Viktor Sokolov, Alexey Pavlishak, Andrii Yusov, Matthew A, Foster, US Army National Guard Abrams, Sergei Lavrov, Zelensky, “, Abrams, Charlie Dietz, Oleh Kiper, Kiper, Dmitry Peskov, Oleksandr Prokudin, Prokudin Organizations: CNN, Abrams, Ukrainian Navy, Russian Navy, Ukrainian Special Operations Forces, Navy, Special Operations Forces, Sea Fleet, Reuters CNN, Ukrainian Defense Intelligence, US Army National Guard, US Abrams, Pentagon, General’s, Reuters, Russian Ministry of Defense Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, Russia, Russian, Sevastopol, Ukrainian, Crimea, Moscow, Ukrainian Crimea, Piskie, Poland, United States, Germany, Odesa, Izmail district, Iranian, Kherson –, Beryslav, Kherson

CNN —Ukraine has claimed it killed the commander of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, in one of Kyiv’s boldest attacks yet on the occupied peninsula of Crimea. The Ukrainian Special Operations Forces said in an update that Friday’s attack killed Viktor Sokolov along with 33 other officers. “After the hit of the headquarters of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, 34 officers were killed, including the commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet,” the Ukrainians said Monday, adding that more than 100 other Russian servicemen were wounded. Moscow has said that one serviceman is missing as a result of Ukraine’s attack on Sevastopol. Ukraine has increasingly been hitting strategic Russian targets in Crimea, the Black Sea region of southern Ukraine that has been occupied by Moscow since 2014.

Persons: Viktor Sokolov, “, Andrii Yusov, ”, Sokolov Organizations: CNN, Ukrainian Special Operations Forces, Fleet, The, 744th Communications Center, Command, Black, Ukrainian Defense Intelligence, Special Operations Forces, Navy, Naval Academy, Northern Fleet, Ukraine’s Security Locations: Ukraine, Crimea, Russian, Moscow, Sevastopol, Verkhniosadove, Russia, Ukrainian Crimea, ”, ” Russia, Saky

☆ Black Sea Fleet: Ukraine has Russian targets in Crimea in its sights. Here's why
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-22 | by ( Tim Lister | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The seizure earlier this month of oil platforms in the Black Sea by Ukrainian commandos has given them another jumping-off point and affected the Russian Black Sea fleet’s freedom of navigation. The Russian Black Sea Fleet has been involved in hundreds of cruise missile attacks against Ukraine and threatens merchant shipping using Ukrainian ports. This image taken from UGC video, uploaded to Telegram with a watermark, shows smoke rising from the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea Fleet. The Black Sea Fleet is still a powerful element of Russia’s offensive capability, but becoming less so by the week. “The Black Sea Fleet is more than its naval assets, and the Ukrainian attacks on the Black Sea Fleet will likely achieve effects beyond the degradation of Russian naval capabilities,” concludes the ISW.

Persons: “, Joseph Richter, Andrii Yusov, It’s, it’s, ” Organizations: CNN, Crimea –, Ukraine’s Security, The, 744th Communications Center, Command, Black, Russia’s Ministry of Defense, Ukrainian Defense Intelligence, Ukrainian, Initiative, Ukrainian Neptune, UGC, Fleet, 810th Naval Infantry Brigade, Fleet’s, Army Corps Locations: Ukrainian, Russian, Ukraine, Crimea, Saky, Sevastopol, Verkhniosadove, “, Russia, Ukrainian Crimea, ”, Crimean, Moscow, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Luhansk, –, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Kherson Oblast

☆ Komsomolsk-on-Amur: Kim Jong Un visits fighter jet plant in Russia as Putin accepts invite to North Korea
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Helen Regan Mariya Knight Anna Chernova Akanksha Sharma | Helen Regan | Mariya Knight | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Images showed Kim and his delegation at the Yuri Gagarin Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Plant (KnAAZ), which is named after the famed Russian cosmonaut, and being shown the inside of a fighter jet, according to Russian state media RIA Novosti. At a state banquet with Putin Wednesday, Kim vowed to establish “a new era of 100-year friendship” between the two countries. In return, Putin signaled a willingness to assist North Korea in developing its space and satellite program. Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence said Wednesday that military cooperation between Russia and North Korea was not new. Meanwhile, the national security advisers of the United States, South Korea, and Japan on Thursday jointly issued a warning regarding potential violations of international sanctions by North Korea and Russia.

Persons: Kim Jong Un, Kim’s, Kim Jong Il, Kim, Yuri Gagarin Komsomolsk, Alexander Zhornik, Mikhail Degtyarev, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Sergey Lavrov, Dmitry Peskov, Kim Jong, Peskov, ”, “, AP Kim, ambitiously, ” Kim, Mykhailo Podolyak, Andrii Yusov, ” Yusov, Biden, Wagner Organizations: CNN, North, Ministry of Defense, TASS, Amur Aircraft, Fleet, Russia, Russian, Putin, AP, Ukrainian, Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence, Defense Intelligence, South, United Nations Locations: Russia, Komsomolsk, Russian, Khabarovsk, Vladivostok, East, North Korea, Ukraine, Moscow, Pyongyang, North, Korean, United States, Korea, Ukrainian, South Korea, Japan

CNN —Ukraine has identified the ships hit in its attack against a Russian naval base in occupied Crimea, claiming the vessels are beyond repair. On Wednesday, Andrii Yusov, a representative of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, said the landing ship Minsk and the submarine Rostov-on-Don had been destroyed in the attack. A satellite image shows Sevastopol after a Ukrainian missile attack in Crimea on September 13, 2023. Smoke rises from the shipyard that was hit by a Ukrainian attack in Sevastopol, Crimea, on September 13, 2023. A day after the Sevastopol attack, Ukraine carried out another operation, attacking two ships in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Persons: Andrii, Don, Yusov, Sergei Kotov, ”, Volodymyr Zelensky, Dmytro Kuleba Organizations: CNN, Defense Intelligence, BlackSky, Reuters Kyiv, Ukraine’s General Staff, The Defense Intelligence, The General Staff, Russia’s Defense, “, United Nations, Fleet, European Commission, European Union, Ukrainian, Commission Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Crimea, Sevastopol, Minsk, Rostov, Ukrainian, Russia, Crimean, Turkey, Moscow, Europe, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia

☆ Ukraine reports a surge in Russians offering to defect after a helicopter pilot switched sides and took his chopper with him
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

More Russian soldiers are offering to defect via a surrender hotline, a Ukrainian official said. The rise in calls comes after a Russian helicopter pilot publicly defected to Ukraine last month. The official said the number of Russian appeals to defect jumped by about 70 percent daily. "After the successful operation Synytsia with the Mi-8 and the pilot, the number of Russian army servicemen considering such a scenario has increased," he added. AdvertisementAdvertisementBy March this year, around 10,000 Russian soldiers used the hotline to offer their voluntary surrender, officials said at the time.

Persons: Andrii Yusov, Radio Svoboda, Ysuov, Russia Yusov, Maksim Kuzminov, Kuzminov Organizations: Service, Defence Intelligence, Radio, Ukrainian Pravda, Putin, CNN, Russia, Russia's Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Ukrainian, Putin Russian, Russia, Russia's

☆ The Russian pilot who defected to Ukraine with a Mi-8 helicopter is now providing key aviation intelligence to Ukraine, defense agency says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Russian pilot who defected to Ukraine with a helicopter last month is now helping Ukraine fight Russia. Maksym Kuzminov, the helicopter pilot who switched sides in a daring defection, is now providing the Ukrainian military with key Russian aviation intelligence, according to an interview with Kuzminov released by the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine. Kuzminov first reached out to Ukraine's Defense Intelligence at the end of 2022, jumpstarting a plan for him to flee Russia with his helicopter. After Kuzminov landed in the Kharkiv region, the helicopter was eventually moved to safer territory, Ukraine's defense intelligence said. The aircraft will be used to "replenish" Ukraine's military fleet, the defense intelligence said.

Persons: Maksym, Kuzminov, Maksym Kuzminov, Artem Shevchenko, jumpstarting, AMTSh, Radio Svoboda Organizations: Service, Defense Intelligence, Russian Pilots, YouTube, Ukraine's Defense Intelligence, Radio Free Europe, Radio Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Kharkiv, Russia's, Primorsky Region, Ukrainian

☆ The Russian pilot who defected to Ukraine with a Mi-8 helicopter said he flew 32 feet above the ground to avoid being seen and turned off his transponder, per the WSJ
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Sarah Gray | Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russian pilot Maksym Kuzminov defected to Ukraine with a Mi-8 AMTSh helicopter last month. Kuzminov described how he crossed into Ukraine in a video shared by Ukraine's Defense Intelligence. He flew 32 feet above the ground with his transponder off to avoid being spotted, The Wall Street Journal reported. The defection was first made public in late August, but additional details about the Russian pilot who flew a Mi-8 helicopter to Ukraine were released by Ukraine's Defense Intelligence in a video posted on Sunday. Kuzminov communicated with Ukrainian defense officials via the encrypted messaging app Telegram and came up with a plan to fly the stolen Russian helicopter into Ukraine.

Persons: Maksym Kuzminov, Kuzminov, Kyrylo Budanov, Andrii Yusova Organizations: Ukraine's Defense Intelligence, Street Journal, Service, Wall Street, Radio Free Europe, Ukrainian, Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's Military Intelligence, Kyiv Independent Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Russia, Russia's, Ukrainian, Kuzminov, Verkhovna, Kyiv

☆ Russian pilot who defected with stolen fighter jet spare parts gets $500,000 reward from Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Grace Eliza Goodwin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russian pilot who surrendered to Ukraine will receive $500,000 reward from the war-torn country. Ukraine passed a law last year offering up to $1 million to Russian soldiers for stolen equipment. Maksym Kuzminov, a 28-year-old Russian helicopter pilot, surrendered to Ukraine last month, bringing with him an Mi-8 helicopter and stolen fighter jet spare parts. Ukraine's Parliament started the "I want to live" initiative in April 2022 encouraging Russian soldiers to surrender and offering them up to $1 million for stolen equipment, EuroMaidan Press reported. Kuzminov is now encouraging other Russian soldiers to follow his example and abandon Russia's war.

Persons: Maksym, Andrii Yusova, Kuzminov Organizations: Service, Ukraine's Military Intelligence, Kyiv Independent, Ukraine's, EuroMaidan Press, Ukraine's Defense Intelligence, CNN Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Russia

☆ Russia is getting hit at home, and Ukraine's spies say there's only one way to make it stop
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Moscow was hit by another suspected Ukrainian drone attack this week. A man checks the debris next to a damaged office building in the Moscow City following a reported Ukrainian drone attack in Moscow, Russia, August 1, 2023. After a May attack on Moscow, experts speculated that Ukraine aims to give Russia "a taste of its own medicine." Firefighters and a police officer stand next to a damaged building in the "Moscow City" business district after a reported drone attack in Moscow, Russia, early Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. "We have made clear we don't encourage or enable such attacks," a US State Department spokesperson told Insider on Tuesday after the most recent drone attacks.

Persons: Mykhailo Podolyak, Vladimir Putin, Russia —, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, it's Organizations: Moscow, Service, Russia, REUTERS, Presidential, Twitter, Firefighters, Ukraine, New York Times, US State Department Locations: Wall, Silicon, Ukraine, Moscow, Ukrainian, Russia, Evgenia, Kyiv, Russia's

The Kerch Strait Bridge that links the Crimean Peninsula to mainland Russia, in March. Russian officials blamed Ukraine for the attack on the Kerch Strait Bridge. Ukrainian officials offered no comment on the incident. Video and photographs verified by The Times showed damage to both sides of the road bridge, with the most significant being along a span of the bridge heading into Russia. The attack came as Ukrainian forces were engaged in an ambitious and grinding counteroffensive aimed at driving Russian forces from southern Ukraine.

Persons: Yusov, ”, Vladimir Rogov, Vladimir Konstantinov, Sergei Aksyonov, —, Vyacheslav Gladkov, Aksyonov, Mazaeva, Ivan Nechepurenko Organizations: The Times, Ministry, Transport, Russian Federation, Ukrainian, Crimean Locations: Kerch, Crimean, Russia, Ukraine, Russian, Moscow, Crimea, Sevastopol, Belgorod

☆ Why the Crimean Bridge is so important to Vladimir Putin
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Lauren Kent | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Also known as the Kerch Bridge, it holds personal value for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Here’s what you need to know:Why is the bridge so important to Russia? The Kerch Bridge is strategically important because it links Russia’s Krasnodar region with Crimea, which was illegally annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014. Rail traffic across the Crimea bridge is continuing to operate on Monday, albeit with delays, according to video on social media, a Russian official and Russian state media. A widely circulating video, which appears to have been captured this morning from a train passing on the parallel rail bridge, shows significant damage to one of the bridge’s road spans.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Staff, ” Vladimir Konstantinov, Boris Rozhin, “, ” Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Marat Khusnullin, Ukraine Andrii Yusov, ”, ” Yusov Organizations: CNN, CNN Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukrainian military’s, State Council of, Novosti, TASS, Russian, Ukraine’s Security, Defense Intelligence Locations: Russia, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Moscow, Kerch, Crimea, Russian, Kyiv, Krasnodar, Europe, Kherson, Republic of Crimea

Belgorod Mayor Valentin Demidov wrote on his Telegram channel that several apartment buildings were damaged in the blast. Russian state media boasted about the country’s Su-34 warplanes last December, when it said a “new batch of … frontline bombers” had been delivered to Russian forces to use against Ukraine. Russia state media did not say what kind of munition fell on Belgorod late Thursday. The Belgorod region has been the scene of several explosions and bombings since Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February 2022. Local media reported two drones dropped small bombs at the local thermal power plants, citing an anonymous source.

Russia’s domestic intelligence service said Wednesday it arrested eight people in connection with a blast that damaged a key bridge to the annexed Crimean Peninsula, blaming Ukraine for an incident that dealt a high-profile blow to President Vladimir Putin. In a press release Wednesday, the FSB said Ukraine’s military intelligence and its chief, Kyrylo Budanov, were behind the attack. The explosive was detonated as it was being carried in a truck toward Crimea on Saturday, the FSB said. A press officer for Ukraine's military intelligence service, Andrii Yusov, declined to comment, telling NBC News: "We are not commenting on the statements made by terrorists." Putin swiftly labeled the bridge blast “terrorism” and boasted that the deadly aerial barrage his military unleashed on Ukrainian cities earlier this week was an act of revenge.

☆ Russians are calling up the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense asking how to surrender, Ukraine says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A hotline set up to allow Russian soldiers to surrender is already getting calls, Ukraine claims. Andrii Yusov, spokesperson for the department, said during a televised briefing on Monday that there had been a strong response to the "I Want to Live" hotline, according to Ukrainian newspaper Ukrainska Pravda. The hotline was announced by Ukraine's Ministry of Defense on September 19, two days before Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the mobilization of reservists to the battlefield. Putin had earlier promised that he would not take this step, which brings the reality of the war to Russians accustomed to civilian life. The hotline echoes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's assurances that surrendered soldiers will be treated according to international humanitarian law.

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