Russian sources say Ukraine has hit all three bridges over the Seym River
Ukrainian forces have either destroyed or damaged all three of the bridges over the Seym River in western Russia, according to Russian sources, as Kyiv’s incursion into western Russia entered its third week Tuesday.
Kyiv’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk region is changing the trajectory of the war and boosting morale among Ukraine’s war-weary population, though the ultimate outcome of the incursion — the first attack on Russia since the Second World War — remains impossible to predict.
Even as Ukraine hails its success on Russian territory, the Russian push in eastern Ukraine is poised to claim another key centre: the city of Pokrovsk.
Ukraine’s attacks on the Seym River bridges could potentially trap Russian forces between the river, the Ukrainian advance and the Ukrainian border. Already they appear to be slowing down Russia’s response to the Kursk incursion, which Ukraine launched on Aug. 6.
Over the weekend, Ukraine’s air force commander posted two videos of bridges over the Seym being hit, and satellite photos by Planet Labs PBC analyzed Tuesday by The Associated Press confirmed that a bridge in the town of Glushkovo had been destroyed.
A Russian military investigator confirmed Monday that Ukraine had “totally destroyed” one bridge and damaged two others in the area. The full extent of the damage remained unclear.
“As a result of targeted shelling with the use of rocket and artillery weapons against residential buildings and civilian infrastructure in the Karyzh village … a third bridge over the Seym River was damaged,” the unnamed representative for Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a video published on the Telegram channel of Russian state TV anchor Vladimir Solovyov.
Russian military bloggers Vladimir Romanov and Yuri Podolyaka and several high-profile pro-war Telegram channels in Russia also claimed that the third bridge had been targeted and damaged. Podolyaka’s post was shared by Roman Alekhin, an advisor to Kursk’s acting regional governor.
Since the incursion into the Kursk region began, the Ukrainian army has captured 1,263 square kilometres and 93 settlements, Ukraine’s top military commander said Tuesday — up from 1,000 square kilometres last week. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi made the remarks while meeting with local officials.
Ukraine reaching ‘set goals’: Zelenskyy
Following a meeting with Syrskyi later Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the Ukrainian army was achieving “set goals” in Kursk.
Zelenskyy said in recent days that the operation is aimed at creating a buffer zone that can prevent future attacks on his nation from across the border, and that Ukraine is capturing a large number of Russian prisoners of war that it hopes to exchange for captured Ukrainians.
The Russian state news agency Tass reported that 17 people have died and 140 have been injured in Ukraine’s incursion, citing an unnamed source in the Russian medical service. Of 75 people hospitalized, four are children. Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations said Tuesday afternoon that more than 500 people had left dangerous areas in the Kursk region over the past 24 hours. In total, more than 122,000 people have been resettled since the Ukrainian attack began, it said.
In another example of Ukraine taking the war to Russian soil, a massive fire burned for the third consecutive day after an oil depot was hit by Ukrainian drones.
The fire at the depot in the town of Proletarsk burned across an area of a hectare, according to Russian state news agencies. There were 500 firefighters involved in the operation, and 41 of them already have been hospitalized with injuries, according to Tass, citing local officials.
Ukraine’s Army General Staff claimed responsibility Sunday for attacking the oil depot, which was used to supply the needs of Russia’s army.
Putin accuses Ukraine of ‘trying to destabilize’
Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the Ukrainians of “trying to destabilize our country” and compared them to terrorists. “We will punish the criminals. There can be no doubt about that,” Putin said Tuesday.
Ukraine’s incursion has exposed Russian vulnerabilities according to analysts and Ukrainian officials.
Zelenskyy said Monday that he believes Ukraine’s actions would help to dispel Western fears of offering more robust military aid to Kyiv. Some allies have been handing over weapons slowly and imposing limits on how they can be used, fearing that crossing a Russian “red-line” could lead to escalation — even nuclear escalation.
Much remains unknown about Ukrainian operations in Russia but satellite images provide some clues.
Pontoon bridges — temporary bridges used by militaries when formal bridges are blown out — could be seen in the satellite images provide by Planet Labs PBC in two different positions along the Seym River in recent days. The pontoons likely were built by Russian troops trying to supply forces around the Ukrainian advance.
One pontoon bridge appeared along the serpentine path of the river between Glushkovo and the village of Zvannoye on Saturday, but not in images taken Monday. On Monday, smoke could be seen rising along the banks of the river nearby — typically the sign of a strike.
Meanwhile along the frontline in eastern Ukraine, Russia continued to bear down on the city of Pokrovsk, one of Ukraine’s main defensive strongholds and a key logistics hub in the Donetsk region, forcing Kyiv’s forces to pull back and Ukrainian civilians to flee their homes. Its capture would compromise Ukraine’s defensive abilities and supply routes and would bring Russia closer to its stated aim of capturing the entire Donetsk region.
Russia’s relentless six-month slog across the region following the capture of Avdiivka in February has cost both sides heavily in troops and armour.
Russia wants control of all parts of Donetsk and neighbouring Luhansk, which together make up the Donbas industrial region.
Published at Tue, 20 Aug 2024 21:50:10 +0000
Former U.S. president Barack Obama to address Democratic National Convention tonight
Former U.S. president Barack Obama will address the crowd at the Democratic National Convention tonight, weeks after he allegedly played a pivotal role in President Joe Biden’s exit from the race and endorsed Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee.
He’ll make his case for Harris. But the former president’s speech might also indicate how he views his current position as an elder statesman of the Democratic Party.
Aides say Obama still wields enormous influence over party politics, while maintaining popularity and cultural cachet with voters.
But his record was frequently cited as a mark on Biden during the 2020 presidential election, with candidates criticizing the Obama-Biden administration’s record on trade, immigration and health care during a blistering primary debate.
As he’s set to take the stage Tuesday night in Chicago, Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, are scheduled to hold a rally in Milwaukee, on the same stage where Republican rival Donald Trump accepted his party’s presidential nomination last month.
Harris campaign models Obama formula
The Harris campaign has in some ways sought to model itself after Obama’s formula. U.S. media has compared the fervour and excitement around Harris to the frenzy that propelled Obama to the presidency in 2008 and then to re-election in 2012.
She has recently rounded out her campaign team with several high-profile senior strategists from the Obama era, including his former campaign manager and senior aide David Plouffe, who joined the Harris campaign as a senior adviser on strategy.
She’s also leaned into pop cultural and internet references to reach younger voters — and was illustrated by Shepard Fairey, the artist who designed the iconic “Hope” poster art that became a symbol of Obama’s campaign in 2008.
Obama will be in his political hometown of Chicago to deliver the address. Though they didn’t immediately endorse her, the former president and former first lady Michelle Obama gave Harris their blessing a few days after she announced her run.
“We look forward to watching her unite our party and our country around a vision for a brighter, fairer, more prosperous future,” the statement said, noting that the Obamas have known Harris for over 20 years.
“She was an early supporter of his and he was an early admirer of hers, without question,” David Axelrod, a longtime Obama adviser, told Reuters. “He will not be talking about someone he doesn’t know.”
Published at Tue, 20 Aug 2024 20:50:48 +0000
