Photo : RBC-Ukraine
Photo : RBC-Ukraine
By Neha Tresa George
WAR ON THE GROUND
On 08 August, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s President in his evening address said: “Russia brought the war to our land and should feel what it has done.” He appreciated Ukraine’s army performance in being “effective” He reiterated Ukraine’s stance for “just peace” and added: “We want to achieve our goals as soon as possible in peace time.” On the cross-border incursion, German Galushchenko, Ukraine’s Energy Minister assured that Russia’s gas transit station to be still operational in the town of Sudzha where the intense fighting is taking place. Although reports from Russian “military bloggers” claim that Ukraine captured the gas measuring station which is 10 kilometres from the Ukraine border.
08 August, Ukrinform reported that the recent incursion of Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region did not impact the quantitative composition of Russian forces in the Kharkiv oblast. According to Vitaliy Sarantsev, the Kharkiv Operational-Tactical Grouping of Troops spokesperson: "On the Vovchansk axis, Russians have already rotated troops, pulling up a fresh unit from the Luhansk region." He also noted the decrease in the assault efforts in Kharkiv and the surge in artillery strikes. Further, he said that Russia’s goal to capture the Vovchansk had not changed as they continued advancing their control zone onto settlements.
On 08 August, Iryna Vereshchuk, Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine reported on the unavailability of the humanitarian corridor Kolotylivka – Pokrovsk. It was used for civilian evacuation following the Russian strikes near the border areas of the Sumy region. Meanwhile, the Mokrany – Domanove route through the Belarusian-Ukrainian border could be used for evacuation as per his statements.
On 08 August, Dmytro Kuleba, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine held a meeting with Manish Gobin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mauritius. It was the first visit of Ukraine since the diplomatic ties were established in 1992. Kuleba expressed his gratitude to Mauritius for their unwavering support and the accession to the final communique of the Peace Summit in Switzerland. He also called on the country to participate in the second Peace Summit. Gobin assured assistance to involve more African countries in the “Peace Formula.” They also discussed mutual investments and agreements on trade and development. Both the countries signed an agreement on visa-free travel and others on educational cooperation.
THE MOSCOW VIEW
Claims by Russia
On 08 August, RT reported on the statements of Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chair of the Russian Security Council on the Kursk incursion. He said: “From this moment, the special military operation should become openly exterritorial in nature.” He encouraged Russian forces to take over further land in Ukraine. He noted that there should not be restrictions in terms of recognized borders.
On 08 August, the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation released a video depicting the destruction of Ukrainian military equipment that had been used in the Kursk region. According to the ministry, the Russian troops used Lancet loitering munitions to destroy several Ukrainian Kazak armoured personnel carriers and US-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles. They also reported on the strikes carried out against the Ukrainian armour and the air defence systems in the Kursk region.
On 08 August, RT reported on the civilian attacks carried out by the Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region. According to Aleksey Smirnov, the acting governor of Kursk: “The Ukrainian military has been actively trying to impede the evacuation of civilians from the settlements near the border. Kyiv’s units were “firing at civilians and ambulances.” He also reported on the death of medics due to the attacks. The civilians were evacuated with the help of armoured cash-in-transit vehicles donated by banks. There were also reports of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) attack on an ambulance injuring civilians.
THE WEST VIEW
Responses from Europe and the US
On 08 August, Euromaidan Press reported on the statements of Matthew Miller, the US State Department spokesperson over the Kursk incursion. He confirmed that the US was not notified about this operation. He stressed that although the US provides weapons and advice, the decisions on daily strikes came under Ukraine’s mandate. On the US restrictions over weapons usage, he said that the policy remains unchanged as Ukraine was not allowed to strike deeply inside Russian territory. On the same, Josep Borrel, EU foreign policy chief expressing support for Ukraine from the EU said: “…has the right to defend itself…hitting the enemy on his territory.”
On 08 August, Financial Times reported on the large-scale orders received by Rheinmetall, Germany’s largest defence group. Amidst the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, the Düsseldorf-based group on Thursday said sales in the first half of the year increased by a third to EUR 3.8 billion, while operating profit nearly doubled to EUR 404 million. Armin Papperger, the Chief Executive, expects this to rise by EUR 2 billion in the coming years. He being a proponent of military support to Kyiv had also announced the construction of several factories in Ukraine, tank maintenance, munitions and air defence which is condemned by Russia.
References
“Russians increasing grouping in Kharkiv region despite developments in Kursk region - Ukraine military,” Ukrinform, 08 August, 2024
“Civilian evacuation suspended in Sumy region amid massive Russian shelling,” Ukrinform, 08 August 2024
“Dmitry Kuleba and Manish Gobin have agreed to attract investment opportunities to Mauritius to rebuild Ukraine,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, 08 August 2024
“Russia should no longer hold back in Ukraine – Medvedev,” RT, 08 August 2024
“Russian forces destroy Ukrainian armor in Kursk Region – MOD,” RT, 08 August 2024
“Ukrainian forces attack civilians in Kursk Region – governor,” RT, 08 August 2024
“US says Ukraine didn’t notify about alleged Kursk incursion,” Euromaidan, 08 August 2024
“Rheinmetall amasses record orders amid Ukraine and Gaza wars,” Financial Times, 08 August 2024
“Ukraine updates: Russia scrambles against Kursk incursion,” Deutsche Welle, 08 August 2024