Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 09-30-2024

On Monday, the Russian army said its troops had “liberated” the Ukrainian village of Nelipivka, which had a population of around 1,000 before the conflict began in February 2022.

Russia plans to boost its defense budget by almost 30 percent next year as it diverts resources to its Ukraine offensive, spending more on the military than welfare and education combined, a draft budget showed on Monday.

Moscow had already ramped up military spending to levels not seen since the Soviet Union era, pumping out missiles and drones to fire on Ukraine and paying lucrative salaries to its hundreds of thousands of soldiers fighting on the front lines.

Chuck Pfarrer analyzes the significance of Ukrainian drone strikes that have disrupted Russia’s energy infrastructure, destroyed military assets, and crippled air defenses.

Comfy's CEO attacked smaller technology electronics chains, naming Yabko, Techojizhak and Yabluka, for allegedly supporting the shadow economy by distributing iPhones without paying state taxes.

The CEO of Ukraine’s largest electronics retailer "Comfy," Ihor Khyzhnyak, accused competitor companies Yabko, Techojizhak and Yabluka of selling iPhones in Ukraine before the official release date on his Facebook page. 

Comfy is an electronics chain, while Yabko, Techojizhak, and Yabluka specialize in Apple products.

The Ministry of Justice of Ukraine assures Ukrainians who received Russian passports under duress that they won’t be held accountable.

The Ministry of Justice announced that Ukrainian citizens forced to obtain Russian passports in Russian-occupied territories won’t bear responsibility, the Ministry of Justice press service reported on Monday, Sept. 30.

By threatening to deny essential government services, such as medical care, education, and social services, the Kremlin de facto forces many Ukrainians living in Russian-occupied parts to accept Russian citizenship, the Ministry said.

Zelensky’s trip to the US looked at first as if it would be a disaster. But the Ukrainian president managed to make adjustments in mid-stream and come up with some positive results.

Editor’s note: Dr. Mohammad Zahoor is a former owner of the Kyiv Post (2009 - 2018)

The recent visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the United States for the 79th United Nations General Assembly had all the makings of a diplomatic disaster. The timing was precarious – just weeks before the highly contentious US presidential elections. His agenda seemed ambitious, even risky: meet with President Joe Biden, former President Donald Trump, presidential candidate from the Democratic Party, Kamala Harris, and several members of both the Democratic and Republican parties.

The FPÖ states in their party platform that they only want to provide social benefits to Austrian citizens. They also aim to deny refugees entry into Austria.

With 29% of the votes on Sunday, Sept. 29, the far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), for the first time, came out as the largest party in the lower house, the “Nationalrat.” 

The rise of FPÖ, who are perceived to have risen to power due to their anti-immigration stance, could be bad for Ukraine.

In Budapest, the author finds Orbán's regime unexpectedly shaken.

Back in Budapest for the first time in two years, I find Viktor Orbán’s electoral authoritian regime unexpectedly shaken. Last time, in autumn 2022, my friends were in deepest gloom following the failure of an only superficially united opposition to defeat Orbán in a clearly unfair election. Now it feels different for three reasons: growing discontent in society, nervousness and missteps in the regime, and the fact that the two are being pulled together for the first time by a potentially credible opposition leader called Péter Magyar. Astonishingly, from a standing start earlier this year, his Tisza party – named for the great Hungarian river – won 30% of the vote in June’s European elections, to Fidesz’s 45%. In the latest opinion poll, Tisza is at 39% to Fidesz’s 43%.

Moscow still says Navalny died from natural causes despite documents obtained by The Insider containing information that identifies symptoms associated with poisoning.

Investigators from The Insider gained access to hundreds of official documents relating to the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny while being held in the “Polar Wolf” correctional facility. According to these documents, Russian authorities deliberately avoided mention of symptoms that contradicted their official version. Doctors stated that the real symptoms clearly indicate that Navalny was poisoned.

Among the documents obtained by The Insider were two versions of the decision to refuse to open a criminal case, signed by Major of Justice Alexander Voropaev.

The world in focus, as seen by a Canadian leading global affairs analyst, writer and speaker, in his review of international media.

An Israeli air strike hit an apartment building in central Beirut on Monday in the first attack on the Lebanese capital outside the Hezbollah-stronghold southern suburbs since the 2006 war. The strike in Beirut’s Cola district killed three leaders of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), according to the leftist Palestinian militant group, as Israel escalated hostilities against Iran’s allies in the region - France 24

European, Arab and Islamic nations have launched an initiative to strengthen support for a Palestinian state and its institutions, and prepare for a future after the war in Gaza and escalating conflict in Lebanon, Norway’s foreign minister has said. Espen Barth Eide told The Associated Press that “there is a growing consensus in the international community from Western countries, from Arab countries, from the Global South, that we need to establish a Palestinian Authority, a Palestinian government, a Palestinian state — and the Palestinian state has to be recognized.” Eide said many issues need to be addressed, including the security interests of Israel and the Palestinians, recognition and normalization of relations after decades of conflict and the demobilization of Hamas as a military group. “These are pieces of a bigger puzzle,” Norway’s chief diplomat said. “And you can’t just come in there with one of these pieces, because it only works if all the pieces are laid in place.” - AP

Previously, Ukrainian authorities had promised to unveil the “victory plan” after consulting with Western allies.

Ukrainians will soon be introduced to the “victory plan” prepared by President Volodymyr Zelensky, though certain parts of the plan will remain classified, according to Andriy Yermak, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.

“Everything that becomes public is heard not only by our people but also by the enemy. So, naturally, some details of this plan will be kept confidential. What’s important is to see this plan succeed on enemy territory and witness our military’s victories,” Yermak said.

President Biden may have said all the right things to Zelensky when they met on Sept. 26 in the White House, words that must have been nice for the Ukrainian president to hear.

Despite making all the right noises during his recent meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Grandpa Joe Biden had apparently not read my last column in the Kyiv Post.  He therefore missed the chance to provoke, with a single phrase, a major political crisis within the bunkers of the Kremlin.

On Sept. 22 I informed my readers that the Kursk incursion had garnered President Vladimir Putin a new, potentially much more hazardous enemy in the form of his own former base of support - the Z-patriot milblogging community.  This group has not condemned Putin for starting his illicit war but for, in their view, beginning to lose it.  They believe Putin is allowing the West to cross every one of his so-called red lines with impunity. 

Turkey’s 2017 decision to buy air defense missiles from Moscow cost Ankara its place in the F-35 fifth-generation fighter program. How can it now square the circle?

When Turkish President Recep Erdogan brokered a $2.5 billion deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin to buy the S-400 Triumf missile system, one of Moscow’s most advanced air defense weapons, Washington warned it would be a costly mistake – and so it proved.

In July 2019, just days after Turkey received the first of four missile batteries the US removed Ankara, a financial and manufacturing partner, from the F-35 multirole combat aircraft program.

We may be getting used to noisy arguments about mobilization, but the debate surrounding demobilization may soon drown them out.

On Sept. 21, a “bomb” exploded in Ukraine - not a Russian explosive one, but a domestic “information bomb” and the "fallout" is only now beginning to shake the country’s radicalized and war-exhausted population.

The “bomb” was launched by a well-known public activist, blogger, and founder of the literary festival Vydelka Fest, Serhiy Gnezdilov, who stated that after five years of service in the Ukrainian armed forces – including many months on the front line – he was “leaving the location of his military unit without permission and ending his military service”.

Serhii Kolyada on Putin's latest threats with the the same goal.

Putin confirms he's not interested in a peaceful settlement, only in 'victory' entailing grabbing Ukrainian territory.

Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed Monday to achieve all his "goals" in Ukraine and celebrated the second anniversary of annexing four Ukrainian regions, as his army claimed fresh advances in the conflict.

Moscow has captured dozens of Ukrainian towns and villages this year, pressing forward even as Kyiv mounts a cross-border offensive into Russian territory.

In Kyiv, an air raid alarm kicked off around 1 a.m. and lasted more than 5 hours. The Ukrainian Air Force tracked a total of 76 aerial objects.

Early morning on Monday, Sept. 30, Russian forces launched another wave of drone attacks on Ukrainian cities, with the primary target being the capital.

In Kyiv, an air raid alarm kicked off around 1 a.m. and lasted more than five hours. The local officials, including the head of Kyiv’s military administration, Serhiy Popko, urged citizens to seek shelter.

Take a step towards better mobility with the new brand Ayvens

ALD Automotive today introduces Ayvens in Ukraine, a new global mobility brand that unites the two companies, ALD Automotive and LeasePlan, under a single common identity. This new brand represents another milestone strategic development of the company following the launch of its 3-year strategic development plan in September 2023. The main shareholder of the company is the French financial services, Société Générale.

By bringing together complementary skills and expertise, the group saw the opportunity to improve the future mobility. This new brand pursues this goal by defining the company's unique positioning in the market, highlighting what makes it different and the value it brings to different customers. The promise of this new brand is to "make life flow better" by ensuring simpler, smarter and more sustainable mobility.

The announcement came as Russia has condemned Israel's "political murder" of Iran-backed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut.

Russia announced Sunday that Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin will meet Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran on Monday.

The announcement came as Russia has condemned Israel's "political murder" of Iran-backed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut.Mishustin will hold talks with Pezeshkian and First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref, the government statement said.

The weapons and equipment will be produced in Ukraine but financed by Denmark and frozen Russian assets, the Danish defence ministry said in a statement.

Denmark on Sunday said it was unlocking 1.3 billion kroner ($194 million) to help Ukraine bolster its under-pressure arsenal against Russia's invasion.

The weapons and equipment will be produced in Ukraine but financed by Denmark and frozen Russian assets, the Danish defence ministry said in a statement.

The ruling Georgian Dream party’s campaign ahead of Georgia’s parliamentary elections in October has been marred by fear-mongering and echoes of Russian-style propaganda on the war in Ukraine.

The ruling Georgian Dream party’s campaign ahead of Georgia’s parliamentary elections in October has been marred by fear-mongering and echoes of Russian-style propaganda on the war in Ukraine.

A month before the polls open, Georgia’s pro-Russian oligarch and honorary chairman of Georgian Dream, Bidzina Ivanishvili, pledged to apologise to South Ossetians for the actions of the former ruling party during the August 2008 war.

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from ISW:

• Western countries continue to invest in the growth of Ukraine's defense industrial base (DIB).
• Ukrainian forces reportedly struck a Russian ammunition depot and missile storage facility near Kotluban, Volgograd Oblast on September 29.
• The Russian government is reportedly planning to further increase defense spending in 2025, although Kremlin officials appear to be highlighting planned social spending while avoiding discussions of increased defense spending.
• Ukrainian forces recently advanced in Glushkovsky Raion, west of the Ukrainian salient in Kursk Oblast.
• Russian forces recently advanced in the Toretsk and Pokrovsk directions. 

Despite the EU’s expansion fatigue, it is imperative that the West welcome North Macedonia into its fold, as the region is strategic and the forces pulling it in the opposite direction are perilous.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine and the debate over the Western response has prompted me, along with many others, to take a closer interest in the wider politics of the region. In that context, I wrote recently about Georgia and relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Another pressing issue is the need for NATO and European integration in the Western Balkans. North Macedonia, with its unique challenges and recent political shifts, offers valuable insights into the complexities faced by many nations in this region.

Having rebuffed a Russian assault on its positions on Saturday, Ukraine’s 33rd Separate Mechanized Brigade posted footage showing how seven Russian fighters were fired on by their own artillery.

On Saturday, Sept. 28, Russian forces launched a major assault using tanks and armored vehicles against Ukraine’s 33rd Separate Mechanized Brigade near the village of Kostiantynivka in the Donetsk region. The attack was halted after the lead elements of the column struck a minefield and were then hit by follow-up strikes by the Brigade’s first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones, according to statements by Kyiv’s Military Center on Sunday.

Although the main assault was stopped in its tracks it seems that a number of Russian infantry disembarked and took cover in a tree line close to the 33rd’s position, apparently preparing to continue the assault on foot. However, having suffered significant losses and faced with the likelihood of suffering further casualties, seven Russian soldiers decided to surrender.