Kyiv steps up attacks on Putin’s forces in Crimea by destroying air – live

Russia‘s foreign ministry on Thursday declared two US diplomats “persona non grata” and ordered them to leave the country within seven days as they were allegedly involved in “illegal activity.”

The ministry charged in a statement that the first secretary at the US Embassy in Russia, Jeffrey Sillin, and the second secretary, David Bernstein, “kept in touch” with a former employee of the U.S. Consulate in Vladivostok who was arrested earlier this year.

The ex-employee was accused of collecting information for U.S. diplomats about Russia’s military action in Ukraine and related issues.

Ukrainian troops are continuing to fight to recapture the eastern Ukrainian village of Andriivka, deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said on Thursday.

“The situation is very difficult and changing,” Maliar said in a post on the Telegram messaging app.

She said earlier that Ukrainian troops had recaptured the village from Russian forces, but then edited her statement in what she later described as a communication breakdown.

Ukraine said on Thursday that any move by eastern European states to extend restrictions on Ukrainian food exports that are due to expire on 15 September would be illegal and harm common economic interests.

Restrictions imposed by the European Union in May allowed Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia to ban domestic sales of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower seeds, while permitting transit of such cargoes for export elsewhere.

Farmers in these eastern European countries have complained of a cereal glut sending domestic prices crashing and blamed it on cheap Ukrainian imports.

“We’re convinced that any decision … that will further restrict Ukrainian agricultural exports will not only be unjustified and unlawful,” foreign ministry spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko wrote on Facebook, but also harm “the common economic interests” of Ukraine, EU Member States and the European Union as a whole.

Four F-35 fighter jets landed Thursday at an airbase in Denmark in the first installment of the US-made planes ordered by the NATO member to replace its aging fleet of F-16s, some of which have been promised to Ukraine.

Dignitaries and officers clapped as the planes, in Danish Air Force colors, did several flyovers before landing at the Skyrdstrup Air Base.

Ukraine has been asking for Western fighter jets to help it resist the Russian invasion that began in February 2022. The United States recently gave its approval for Denmark and the Netherlands to provide Ukraine with the American-made jets.

Last month, the two countries said they would donate F-16 aircraft to Ukraine, with Denmark pledging 19 and the Netherlands an unspecified number. Denmark said it would need to receive new F-35s first, and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in August that she hoped the first six F-16s could be handed over to Ukraine around New Year.

NATO member Norway also has indicated its intention to donate F-16s to Ukraine.

The United States on Thursday is sanctioning more than 150 businesses and people from Russia to Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Georgia to try to crack down on evasion and deny the Kremlin access to technology, money and financial channels that fuel President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.

The sanctions package is one of the biggest by the State and Treasury departments and is the latest to target people and companies in countries, notably NATO member Turkey, that sell Western technology to Russia that could be used to bolster its war effort.

Ukraine has recaptured the eastern village of Andriivka near the Russian-occupied city of Bakhmut, deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said on Thursday.

“Andriivka is ours. We are securing our positions”, she wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

The prime minister has hit back at a suggestion from Boris Johnson that Britain needs to speed up and increase its support for Ukraine, Archie Mitchell reports.

A spokesman for Rishi Sunak said: “Under this prime minister, the UK was the first to send main battle tanks and long range missiles like Storm Shadow to Ukraine.

“We hosted the international conference that raised $60bn for Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction.

“On a weekly basis, there is equipment and support going across the border from the UK and into Ukraine – so they can carry out brave attempts to thwart Vladimir Putin’s illegal war.”

The PM’s spokesman said Mr Sunak has “been speaking to president Zelensky on a regular basis” and pointed to “the thanks president Zelensky has had for the prime minister and the people of the UK for the continuation of our support”.

Former prime minister Mr Johnson had earlier asked why Britain is “always so slow”, calling for more backing for the country.

The Russian president and North Korea’s leader met for talks at a space base in Russia’s far east.

Western officials believe that Mr Putin is seeking weapons from North Korea to rebuild stockpiles run down by the lengthy war in Ukraine.

British Storm Shadow cruise missiles were likely used in the largest Ukrainian attack on the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea fleet since the start of Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion.

Military sources said Wednesday’s early morning attack on the main Crimean naval base at Sevastopol used Storm Shadow missiles, delivered to Kyiv by the UK earlier this year.

But what is a Storm Shadow cruise missile? Arpan Rai and Cameron Henderson explain:

A Russian pilot fired two missiles towards an RAF surveillance plane after mistakenly believing he had permission to fire.

Following the incident last September, Russia claimed it had been caused by a “technical malfunction” with the UK’s Ministry of Defence publicly accepting their explanation.

However, intercepted communications reveal that one of the Russian pilots believed he had been given permission to target the aircraft following an ambiguous command from a Russian ground station.