Tuesday, October 31

Russia’s war against Ukraine

A resident of Avdiivka shows the conditions of the basement she’s been living in for almost two years on Oct. 30, 2023. According to the national police, approximately 1,400 people are still in the embattled the city. The fighting has escalated in recent days following Russia’s major offensive earlier this month. (Vlada Liberova / Libkos via Getty Images)

Prosecutor’s Office: Russian forces murder 9 family members in occupied Volnovakha. Russian forces in occupied Volnovakha, Donetsk Oblast, entered a home and murdered nine civilians, including three women and two children, aged five and nine, the Donetsk Oblast Prosecutor’s office alleged on Oct. 30.

Ukraine confirms strike on Russian air defense facility in occupied Crimea. Ukrainian forces struck a strategic air defense facility on the western coast of Russian-occupied Crimea overnight on Oct. 30, the Ukrainian military’s Center for Strategic Communications reported.

Shoigu claims West seeks to expand Russia-Ukraine war to Asia-Pacific region. Speaking at the Xiangshan defense forum in Beijing, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu claimed that NATO countries are increasing their military presence in the Asia-Pacific region under the cover of an “ostentatious desire for dialogue.”

General Staff: Ukraine repels Russian counterattacks against Robotyne, Andriivka. Russian troops made unsuccessful attempts to regain lost positions near Robotyne in Zaporizhzhia Oblast and Donetsk Oblast’s Andriivka, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported on Oct. 30. Ukraine liberated Robotyne in August and Andriivka in September.

Zelensky hosts bipartisan US congressional delegation. President Volodymyr Zelensky met with a bipartisan group of U.S. congressmen in Kyiv on Oct. 30, the President’s Office reported.“

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Russian strikes on Kherson Oblast cause blackouts in Beryslav, 3 other settlements. Russian strikes on Kherson Oblast caused power outages in the town of Beryslav and the villages of Novoberyslav, Tomaryne, and Shliakhove, Volodymyr Litvinov, head of the Beryslav district military administration, said on Oct. 30.

Digital Transformation Ministry prepares ‘smart mobilization’ for recruiting military specialists. The Digital Transformation Ministry is working on the so-called “smart mobilization” project aimed at recruiting military specialists on a voluntary basis, the ministry’s head, Mykhailo Fedorov, said in an interview with RBC Ukraine on Oct. 30.

Russia detains man in Crimea for allegedly passing secrets to Ukraine. Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) detained who it claimed is a “Russian citizen” in Crimea’s Sevastopol for allegedly passing sensitive information to the Ukrainian military, the FSB’s press service said on Oct. 30.

Expert: Russia sent over 8,300 Ukrainian children to ‘re-education camps’ in 2023. These facilities, posing as “rehabilitation institutions,” are part of Moscow’s strategy to eradicate the Ukrainian identity and turn Ukrainian children against their own homeland, human rights expert Kateryna Rashevska said at a round table discussion hosted by Ukrinform.

US: Major Russian cyberattack compromised 632,000 Pentagon, DOJ email addresses. The report issued by the Office of Personnel Management says hackers used flaws in the file-transfer system MOVEit to gain access to wide-ranging sensitive information.

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Ukraine war latest: Russia claims downing missiles over occupied Crimea, Ukraine reports hits

Ukrainian forces struck a strategic air defense facility on the western coast of Russian-occupied Crimea overnight on Oct. 30, the Ukrainian military’s Center for Strategic Communications reported.

Photo: AFP/Getty Images

Clooney Foundation for Justice brings alleged Russian crimes to German prosecutors

The cases rely on absolute universal jurisdiction in Germany, which allows the country to open investigations for international crimes committed outside its borders.

Photo:  Clooney Foundation for Justice

Opinions and insights

Russia’s move to de-ratify the nuclear test ban treaty signals Putin’s aggravation with the war

“This represents another step in the Kremlin’s effort to try to punish the United States and the West for their support of Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022,” former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Steven Pifer writes.

Photo: Kremlin Press Office/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images

Human cost of war

Death toll of Russian attack on Nova Poshta depot rises to 7. A 25-year-old man injured in Russia’s Oct. 21 missile strike on Nova Poshta postal depot in Kharkiv Oblast died in hospital on Oct. 30, the regional governor reported.

4 injured in Russian attack on Odesa ship repair facility. As of 12 p.m. local time, four people are confirmed to have been injured in Russia’s morning missile strike on the Odesa district, the regional prosecutor’s office reported on Oct. 30.

Authorities: Russian attacks on Kherson Oblast injure at least 13. Russian strikes against the city of Kherson and five other Kherson Oblast settlements wounded at least 13 civilians on Oct. 30, oblast authorities reported.

General Staff: Russia has lost 299,940 troops in Ukraine since Feb 24, 2022. Ukraine’s General Staff reported on Oct. 30 that Russia had also lost 5,190 tanks, 9,775 armored fighting vehicles, 9,555 vehicles and fuel tanks, 7,202 artillery systems, 834 multiple launch rocket systems, 559 air defense systems, 321 airplanes, 324 helicopters, 5,419 drones, and 20 boats.

This Week in Ukraine Ep. 31 – Why murderers of EuroMaidan protestors still enjoy impunity

International response

Politico: McConnell lobbies in support of Ukraine aid amid Republican Party rift. Mitch McConnell, the U.S. Republican Party’s Senate Majority Leader, is going “all out” in support of Kyiv despite the opposition by House Speaker Mike Johnson and other Ukraine-skeptic members of the party, Politico reported on Oct. 30.

Slovak PM Fico gives conditions for approval of Ukraine aid. Slovakia’s newly appointed Prime Minister Robert Fico set conditions on which he would approve of future aid to Ukraine, Fico wrote on Oct. 27.

Rutte: Pledged F-16s to arrive in Romania for pilot training in 2 weeks. The F-16 fighter jets that the Netherlands pledged to Ukraine will be delivered to Romania in two weeks for Ukrainian pilots to train on, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Oct. 30.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Martin Fornusek, Toma Istomina, Lili Bivings, Dinara Khalilova, Nate Ostiller, Li Luo, and Abbey Fenbert.

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