Recent Incidents Involving Russian Aircraft and NATO Response
Lithuania reported that two Russian aircraft, a Sukhoi SU-30 fighter jet and an IL-78 tanker, entered its airspace on Thursday. The planes were flying from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. In response, NATO scrambled two Typhoon Eurofighters from its air patrol mission in the Baltic region. According to the Lithuanian military, the Russian planes entered 700 meters into Lithuanian airspace before leaving after 18 seconds, likely during aerial refueling training. The Lithuanian foreign ministry issued a "strong protest" and summoned the charge d’affaires from the Russian embassy.
Russia’s defense ministry denied the incursion had occurred. This incident follows a similar event in September when three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets lingered in Estonian airspace for 12 minutes, prompting protests at the UN Security Council and a warning from the NATO council.
Tragic Attack on Ukrainian Journalists
Two Ukrainian journalists were killed by a high-powered Russian drone in the eastern city of Kramatorsk on Thursday. Olena Hubanova and Yevhen Karmazin, both working for Ukraine’s state-funded Freedom television channel, were hit by a Lancet drone while in their car at a petrol station, according to Donetsk region governor Vadym Filashkin. The Freedom channel confirmed their deaths. A colleague of the two journalists was also wounded, and the general prosecutor's office has launched a war crime investigation. A photo of a destroyed red car and images of flak jackets marked “press” in the boot were posted online.
Lancet drones are typically used for attacks on tanks and armored vehicles. Last week, a correspondent for Russia’s RIA news agency was killed and another injured in Zaporizhzhia, which RIA attributed to a Ukrainian drone strike.
Foiled Attempt to Connect Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant to Russian Grid
An attempt by Russia to connect the illegally occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to the Russian grid in time for Vladimir Putin’s birthday was reportedly foiled by Ukrainian forces operating behind enemy lines. Ukrainian partisans attacked substations in the occupied Zaporizhzhia region, damaging a new high-voltage connection from the plant to the Russian grid. This forced Russian engineers to restore the original power line from Ukraine to power the cooling systems and prevent a radioactive meltdown.
The cooling systems had been running on last-resort diesel backup generators after Ukraine and independent experts claimed Russia deliberately damaged the Ukrainian line to justify transferring to the Russian grid. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stepped in to insist that external power be restored immediately.
Ukrainian Forces Target Russian Infrastructure
Ukraine’s military reported that its forces struck Russia’s Ryazan oil refinery, causing a fire at the plant, which is critical for Russian military supplies. The general staff also stated that Ukrainian drones hit an ammunition depot in the Belgorod region. These reports could not be independently verified.
UK and EU Discussions on Supporting Ukraine
Keir Starmer will urge European leaders to increase long-range missile supplies to Kyiv at a London summit on Friday. The summit, attended by Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, will focus on the “coalition of the willing.” Starmer plans to announce the acceleration of air defense missile manufacturing, aiming to supply Ukraine with over 5,000 missiles. Approximately 140 “lightweight-multirole missiles” will be delivered to Ukraine this winter.
The UK and France already provide Ukraine with Storm Shadow and Scalp long-range missiles, while Ukraine produces its own Flamingo and Neptune cruise missiles.
Zelenskyy urged EU leaders to agree as soon as possible on a plan to use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine. However, a hoped-for decision was postponed on Thursday, with the language around the proposal being watered down due to opposition from Belgium. Belgium, which hosts most of the Russian central bank funds immobilized in the EU at the Brussels-based institution Euroclear, insisted on guarantees for repayment.
EU leaders agreed at their summit in Brussels on Thursday to ask the European Commission to present “options for financial support” for Ukraine, without directly referencing Russian frozen assets.
Jennifer Rankin reported that Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, emphasized that an agreement on the principle of a reparation loan had been reached. Zelenskyy warned EU leaders that delaying the decision would limit Ukraine’s defense and slow down Europe’s progress, promising that Ukraine would spend significant money buying European weapons.
Finland’s Contribution to Ukraine
Finland will purchase US weapons for Ukraine for €100 million (£86 million), according to the Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat (HS), citing Prime Minister Petteri Orpo.
Exchange of Fallen Soldiers' Bodies
Moscow handed over the bodies of 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers and received 31 bodies of its own fallen soldiers in return, according to authorities on both sides.
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