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Ukraine’s missile crews are valuable targets now. Ukraine’s Neptunes and other long-range cruise missiles pose a growing threat. So Russia is targeting them on the ground.

Ukraine’s railway crisis threatens EU reconstruction investments. Passengers boarding Ukrainian trains this autumn encounter women-only compartments, accessibility-friendly carriages, and railway-branded merch.

Military

Another “Triumf” fails: Ukrainian drone turns Russian air defense radar in occupied Crimea into scrap. The 91N6E radar, part of Russia’s S-400 anti-air missile system, was hit last night in the Russian-occupied peninsula.

Reuters: Ukraine’s drone strikes force Russia’s Ust-Luga oil port to halve operations in September. Pipeline damage limits the terminal to 350,000 barrels per day, according to two Reuters sources.

Intelligence and technology

Denmark to spend about $ 1.6 bn this year on weapons production by Ukrainian defense industry. Danish Defense Minister announced $1.6 bn in Ukrainian weapons contracts, favoring manufacturers who deliver “in months, not years” over European competitors.

New Finnish and Polish “green” strategy could sink Russian tanks before they even cross borders. As Russia builds conventional forces, NATO allies discover their most effective barriers might be wetlands that disappeared decades ago.

International

Russia still demands Ukraine’s total elimination, despite Trump’s deadline for Moscow, which expires in three days. While Trump promoted his ability to quickly negotiate peace, Moscow’s identical capitulation terms suggest Putin views the deadline as irrelevant to his war objectives.

Merz: Ukraine war could last “many months” as Putin blocks two-week summit plan. Vladimir Putin is employing his characteristic delaying tactics to avoid Ukraine peace talks, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said

Merz and Macron call for secondary sanctions against Russia’s supporters. Germany and France announced plans to target companies from third countries that support Russia’s war machine through oil purchases

Trump cuts $ 5 bn foreign aid without Congressional vote, Ukrainian art program included. A $1.5 mn program promoting Ukrainian women’s artwork sits among nearly $5 bn in foreign aid programs that President Trump moved to eliminate.

Zelenskyy details three-pillar security framework as Ukraine pushes West for concrete guarantees. Military support, NATO backing, and sanctions define security requirements; Russia objects.

Yermak meets Trump envoy Witkoff in New York, discusses Ukraine war crimes. Andriy Yermak extended an invitation for Trump’s special representative Steve Witkoff to visit Ukraine following their talks in New York

Humanitarian and social impact

Ukraine convenes emergency meeting of UN Security Council due to deadly Russian attack on Kyiv. Ukraine has convened an emergency UN Security Council meeting for tonight following a Russian attack on Kyiv that killed 23 civilians, including 4 children

Over 10,000 bodies of fallen defenders returned to Ukraine this year. Ukraine’s network of 23 specialized laboratories has begun the complex task of identifying over 10,000 bodies of fallen defenders repatriated in 2025, requiring up to 14 months of forensic work

Kherson’s mayor who survives dog attacks and mock executions, reveals how he stayed loyal to his homeland in Russian captivity. While Russia presented collaboration as survival, Mykolaienko refused to do it, despite enduring torture three times per day.

Kyiv rescue teams free 17 from rubble as Russia launches massive attack, 8 missing. Rescue operations concluded in Kyiv after 30 hours following a Russian missile strike that killed 23 people, including four children

Political and legal developments

For first time, Ukraine legally defines rashism as totalitarian ideology combining Russian communist and Nazi practices. The legislation provides legal tools other democracies could adopt to counter authoritarian influence operations, transforming ideological warfare from propaganda to prosecutable crime.

Russia rejects Western security guarantees for Ukraine as “strategic provocateur” threat. Moscow warns European proposals risk escalating conflict days before Ukraine finalizes comprehensive framework with allies.

Secret document exposes Hungary’s government-level scheme to export Russian aircraft as European. While Orbán publicly frames his positions as peace advocacy, leaked documents reveal systematic coordination with Russia’s military-industrial complex.

Read our earlier daily review here.