Ukraine Daily

Saturday, August 6

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Russia’s war against Ukraine

A military operator launches a FlyEye WB Electronics SA, a Polish reconnaissance drone, as a part of the program ‘The Army of Drones’ from a ground control center during test flights in Kyiv Oblast on Aug. 2, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)

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Head of Amnesty International Ukraine resigns. Oksana Pokalchuk resigned after Amnesty International published a report on Aug. 4 accusing Ukraine’s military of endangering civilians, saying there was no proper reaction from the organization’s leadership to the Ukrainian office’s opposition to the report. “Even yesterday I had the naive hope that I could fix everything,” said Pokalchuk. “Today I realized that this will not happen.”

Russia shells area near Europe’s largest nuclear power plant for the second time in one day. Ukraine’s state-run nuclear power operator Energoatom reported that this time the Russian military hit “directly on the site” of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant near one of the reactors. There is a high risk of fire, as well as hydrogen and radioactive leakage, according to the operator. On Aug. 5, the plant shut down one of the three operating power units as Russia continues to “terrorize and endanger the entire civilized world,” the statement reads.

First cargo ship heads to Ukraine since Feb. 24. According to the Turkish Defense Ministry, Barbados-flagged cargo ship Fulmar S is heading to Chornomorsk where it will be loaded with grain. The cargo ship was inspected by the Joint Coordination Centre (JCC), established under the Black Sea Grain Initiative in Istanbul on 27 July 2022. It comprises senior representatives from Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, and the UN.

Russian shelling of Mykolaiv injures 22 people, including 14-year-old boy. According to the Mykolaiv authorities, Russia shelled Balabanivka and Korabelnyi neighborhoods of Mykolaiv from the direction of occupied Kherson earlier on Aug. 5.

The Economist: Russia’s war in Ukraine ‘has taken $1 trillion off this year’s forecast for global GDP.’ According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) global economic forecast published on Feb. 15, the world’s GDP was expected to increase by 3.9% in 2022, “after a stellar 2021.” However, the EIU, which expects the war in Ukraine to “continue until at least the end of the year,” has revised its global growth estimates down by 1.1 percentage points, to 2.8% year-on-year, which means that Russia’s war in Ukraine “has taken $1 trillion off this year’s forecast for global GDP.”

Minister: First three ships leave Chornomorsk Port. Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Aug. 5 that three bulk carriers, Navi Star, Rojen, and Polarnet, with 57,000 tons of corn, are heading to Turkey, U.K., and Ireland. The export of Ukrainian agricultural products was resumed after Ukraine and Russia signed an UN-backed deal to partially lift the Russian blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports.

Zelensky emphasizes importance of increasing grain export to global market. In a video address, President Volodymyr Zelensky explained that “the more our grain will be on the global market, the smaller will be the harvest of political chaos in countries, primarily in Africa and Asia, but not only there.” Zelensky said that Ukraine expects its grain and oilseeds harvest of more than 65 million tonnes. “Therefore, if the partners do their part of the obligations under the Grain Initiative, the security part, and do not allow new Russian provocations in relation to our exports, then the food crisis, which has been so threatening to the world, can be overcome,” he said.

Governor: Russian militants forcibly conscript teachers in Luhansk Oblast. According to Governor Serhiy Haidai, the Russian proxies are calling teachers in from the summer break to issue them forced draft notices. The governor said that in Bryanka, Russian-controlled militants forcibly drafted around 300 men straight from the streets, bus stops, and public transport. “The same situation is in Kadiivka,” Haidai said.

UK Intelligence: Russian forces have likely undermined security, safety of Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. The U.K. Defense Ministry said on Aug. 5 that Russia’s intentions regarding the Zaporizhzhia plant remain unclear. The ministry noted that Russian troops used artillery based near the plant to target Ukrainian-controlled territory. Russian forces also use the nuclear power plant to reduce the risk of their equipment and personnel being attacked by Ukraine, the ministry said.

Read our exclusives here

The following 90 days in Russian captivity would become nothing but unimaginable horror for the 16-year-old Vladyslav Buryak. Locked in a tiny dilapidated prison cell in Vasylivka’s pre-trial detention center, the boy heard the harrowing screams of Ukrainian prisoners of war being tortured by Russian soldiers. Read our story here.

The human cost of Russia’s war

Death toll in Russian missile attack on Vinnytsia grows to 28. According to Tetiana Bondarenko, deputy director of the Vinnytsia Oblast Health Department, a medic died from sustained injuries in a hospital after the missile hit the clinic where he was working. Three children are among the dead. Around 180 people were injured after a Russian missile strike hit downtown Vinnytsia on July 14.

Prosecutor General’s Office: Russia’s war killed 359 children, injured over 700 since Feb. 24. According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, the numbers are expected to be higher since they do not include casualties in the Russian-occupied territories and near the front line. The largest number of child casualties was recorded in Donetsk Oblast, where 371 children were either killed or injured.

General Staff: Russia has lost 41,650 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24. According to Ukraine’s General Staff, Russia also lost 1,792 tanks, 4,032 armored fighting vehicles, 2,964 vehicles and fuel tanks, 950 artillery systems, 260 multiple launch rocket systems, 123 anti-aircraft systems, 191 helicopters, 223 airplanes, 742 drones, and 15 boats.

International response

Reuters: US preparing new $1 billion military package for Ukraine. Reuters reported, citing three unnamed officials familiar with the matter, that the package, the largest so far, is expected to be announced on Aug. 8 and will include munitions for HIMARS multiple rocket launchers, NASAMS surface-to-air missile system ammunition, and 50 tracked armored personnel carriers. The new package will add to the $8.8 billion in military support the U.S. has already provided to Ukraine since Feb. 24.

Denmark to provide Ukraine with 35 excavators to restore infrastructure. Denmark has offered to provide Ukraine with 35 heavy machinery vehicles through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism to restore critical infrastructure destroyed by the war. The European Commission said that the first vehicles have already arrived through Poland’s EU hub.

Turkey agrees to partially pay for Russian gas supplies in rubles. Russian state-controlled media TASS reported that on Aug. 5, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed gas deliveries with Putin during his visit to a Russian Black Sea resort in Sochi. “The Presidents agreed during talks that we will start partial gas deliveries and payment in rubles,” said Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak. Russia supplies around 26 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Turkey annually.

Ukraine, Italy sign 200-million-euro loan for teachers’ salaries. The Ministry of Finance reported that the 15-year loan will go toward the state budget to cover the salaries of school teachers and will have a zero interest rate for the first seven and a half years.

Poland provided over 60,000 Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s war with temporary protection statuses in June. According to the data published by the European Commission, Poland tops the list of EU countries giving temporary protection status to Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s war in June. Poland is followed by Romania (10,360), Ireland (6,985), and Bulgaria (6,920).

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Olga Rudenko, Daria Shulzhenko, Alexander Khrebet, Natalia Datskevych, Oleksiy Sorokin, Lili Bivings, Teah Pelechaty, and Anastasiya Gordiychuk.

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