Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 10-23-2024

Ukraine's Ministry of Finance received Hr. 25.8 billion of budget proceeds due to increased demand for all UAH bonds and a larger offering of USD-denominated bills. Bond Market Insight for Oct. 23

Twelve-month military bills received more significant demand than last week with almost the same interest rates in bids, 14.65%, so did not require a cut-off rate increase.

Therefore, the MoF sold the planned UAH5bn of bonds without any changes in interest rates.Interest rates remained unchanged for a 1.5-year military issue, too.

Xi, a key Putin ally, told the summit there must be "no escalation of fighting" in Ukraine.

World leaders called for peace in the Middle East and Ukraine at the BRICS summit in Russia on Wednesday, as President Vladimir Putin told them he welcomed offers to mediate in the Ukraine conflict.

The Russian leader is casting the gathering as a sign that Western attempts to isolate Moscow have failed, but faced direct calls to end the Ukraine conflict from some of his closest and most important partners.

The Ukrainian chapter of the Red Cross said Russia shelled and destroyed one of their field offices in the town of Kurakhove in the Donetsk region. No injuries were reported.

Russia has reportedly shelled and destroyed a Red Cross office in the town of Kurakhove in the Donetsk region on Tuesday.

The Ukrainian chapter of the Red Cross issued a statement on Facebook condemning the attack, adding that “fortunately, none of the staff or volunteers were injured.”

Donald Trump's relationship with Russian organized crime exposed.

The delegation reportedly aimed to seek "ways to stop the aggression and war on Gaza and the region" with Moscow's assistance.

A Hamas delegation led by a top official in the movement arrived in Russia's Moscow on Wednesday for talks on the war in Gaza and efforts to halt it, an official with the group told AFP.

The delegation, led by Hamas official Musa Abu Marzuk, was set to meet with Russian authorities to discuss "ways to stop the aggression and war on Gaza and the region," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Ukraine’s “I Want to Live” surrender hotline has called on North Korean soldiers to surrender, avoid “senseless” death, and receive shelter and care in Ukraine, as many Russian troops have done so.

Ukraine’s “I Want to Live” (Хочу жить) project, a surrender hotline operated by the country’s Defense Intelligence (HUR), has called on North Korean soldiers sent to fight against Ukraine to surrender and avoid participating in combat operations.

“We appeal to the soldiers of the Korean People’s Army who were sent to support the Putin regime. Don’t die senselessly on foreign soil. Do not repeat the fate of hundreds of thousands of Russian soldiers who will never return home. Surrender! Ukraine will provide you with shelter, food, and warmth,” read the project’s appeal on Wednesday.

SBU says it detained two Russian agents in Zaporizhia who planned a terrorist attack in Kyiv using an improvised explosive device. They aimed for maximum civilian casualties.

Two agents preparing a terrorist attack in Kyiv for Russian military intelligence (the GRU) were detained in the Zaporizhia region, Ukraine’s security service (SBU) and the National Police reported.

The agents were tasked with preparing an improvised explosive device and detonating it in a crowded place in the capital, the SBU press service stated Wednesday, Oct. 23.

Its hard to point to a direct link between Ukraine-linked defense spending and a state’s support to a candidate. Maybe Pennsylvania. Wisconsin and Arizona, not so much.

Residents of three of the seven battleground states in the US Presidential race – Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin – will cast ballots in local economies booming from US arms support to Ukraine, and with thousands of jobs potentially on the line depending on the election outcome.

According to US Department of Defense information, in 2023, the Pentagon spent $27.3 billion of taxpayer money purchasing or refurbishing military equipment for Ukraine, in 35 states.

Poland said Poznan’s role as a key transit hub of materiel to Ukraine has made it a target of Russian espionage. Moscow vowed retaliation against Poland’s decision.

Poland closed a Russian consulate in Poznan, a city in the western part of the country, due to alleged sabotage concerns.

“As the minister of foreign affairs, I have information that the Russian Federation is behind sabotage attempts in Poland and allied countries. In connection with this, we withdrew our consent to the functioning of the Russian consulate in Poznan,” Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski told reporters on Tuesday afternoon, as reported by Reuters.

Kyiv Post spoke with Vladyslav Belbas, director of the Ukrainian armored vehicles company, which produces a range of armored combat vehicles for Ukraine’s Defense Forces

The Ukrainian defense industry is at a turning point. On the one hand, it is damaged by enemy air attacks, but on the other, the war has provided a true test for its products - which now have a positive global reputation.

Despite the ongoing hostilities, Ukrainian manufacturers strive to improve their products, making them equal to or in many cases superior to the weapons systems provided by Western partners. They are learning and analyzing the lessons of what is happening on the battlefield.

The US defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, said Tuesday that the US is “seeing evidence” that Pyongyang has deployed troops to Russia, but that their roles and purposes remain unclear.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed on Tuesday that North Korean troops are in Russia before adding that Washington is determining the purpose and potential gains of the deployments.

“Our analysts… continue to look at this. Now we are seeing evidence that there are North Korean troops that have gone to… Russia,” Austin told journalists in Rome, according to a Washington Post report.

North Korea will send 500 officers, including 3 generals, to support Russia, in exchange for financial aid and nuclear technology, according to Ukraine’s head of military intelligence Kyrylo Budanov.

Russia has reached an agreement with North Korea under which Pyongyang will send its troops, including 500 officers and three generals, to support Russian forces. In return, Russia will provide the DPRK with financial assistance and modern technology to help the country develop its nuclear program and expand its nuclear arsenal, according to an interview with Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR), published in The Economist on Tuesday, Oct. 22.

Budanov stated that in June 2024, when Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un signed a partnership agreement, the parties agreed on a “service-for-service” basis. North Korea would provide its soldiers and missiles, while Russia, in turn, helps North Korea bypass international sanctions and strengthen its nuclear capabilities through technology sharing.

Turkey, a NATO member, has reportedly restricted shipments of components found in Russian weapons to Russia after Washington warned of “consequences.”

Turkey has reportedly restricted shipments of components found in Russian weapons to Russia following US warnings.

The Financial Times (FT), citing “three people with direct knowledge of the matter,” said Turkey has blocked exports of 48 categories of US-originated sensitive components such as microchips to Russia at Washington’s request.

Wages grow slower and labor markets tighten in Russia, while the country’s invasion of Ukraine has also led to signs of trade fragmentation, according to the IMF’s World Economic Outlook.

The International Monetary Fund slashed its economic forecast for Russia’s year on year growth in 2025 from 1.8% to 1.3% of real GDP, according to its October 2024 World Economic Outlook. 

The IMF’s projection for Russian economic growth in 2024 is estimated at 3.6% of real GDP, which is slightly better than the 3.2% growth the IMF forecasted in April. The data for the end of 2023 remained the same at 3.6%. 

South Korean media citing government sources says the DPRK has sent military pilots as well as ground troops to bolster Russia’s war-fighting capability.

South Korea’s TV Chosun news outlet reported  on Monday that Pyongyang had sent Su-25 and MiG-29 fighter pilots to support Russia even before the latest dispatch of ground troops citing a South Korean government source.

The source told the media outlet that North Korean fighter pilots had been training in the Russian Far East as far back as early September. The government official said, “Ahead of North Korea’s first deployment on the 18th [of October], related movements [of pilots] were detected in Vladivostok last month.”

Having already supplied ammunition and missiles, there are reports that North Korea is sending 12,000 soldiers to Russia's Kursk region

Having already supplied ammunition and missiles, there are reports that North Korea is sending 12,000 soldiers to Russia to be deployed in the Kursk region against Ukraine. According to South Korean intelligence, 1,500 troops are already in Russia. Russia and North Korea signed a military mutual assistance pact last June, but the media see the Ukraine war taking on a whole new dimension with the deployment of the North Korean troops.

Time for Washington to take a clear stance

The resulting 'Trinity House Agreement’ is the first agreement of its kind between the two countries and will be formally signed during Pistorius’ visit to London on Wednesday.

German and British defence ministers will sign a long-awaited agreement on closer military cooperation on Wednesday, ahead of a major bilateral treaty in January as part of Britain's rapprochement with the EU.

British Defence Minister John Healey had promised his German counterpart Boris Pistorius that he would sign the cooperation agreement within four months of his Labour Party coming to power. The two ministers reaffirmed this commitment at their first meeting in July.

The Ukrainian president’s statement came amidst widespread concerns about prolonged winter blackouts due to Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia ending attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure could be a major step towards de-escalating the war.

“We saw during the first [peace] summit that there could be a decision on energy security. In other words: We do not attack their energy infrastructure, they don’t attack ours. Could this lead to the end of the war’s hot phase? I think so,” Zelensky told journalists in Kyiv on Monday in reference to Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, as per the Financial Times (FT).

Turkey is the first NATO member in BRICS, a bloc that sees itself as a counterweight to Western powers.

Turkey’s overtures towards BRICS may be a first for a NATO member, but experts say the move is economically driven and aligns with Ankara’s desire for “strategic autonomy.”

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joins the BRICS summit in the Russian city of Kazan Wednesday at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. He will meet with the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa

Kyiv Post Editor-in-Chief Bohdan Nahaylo speaks to TVP World about the upcoming BRICS conference in Russia

Although the South Caucasus nation was officially granted EU candidate status in December, the process was quickly paused after Georgia enacted a contentious “foreign agents” law

Concerns are intensifying that Georgia’s upcoming election could push the country toward authoritarianism, jeopardizing its path to EU membership.

Although the South Caucasus nation was officially granted EU candidate status in December, the process was quickly paused after Georgia enacted a contentious “foreign agents” law that increases government control over NGOs and media outlets.

Latest from the British Defence Intelligence.

• On 7 October 2024, Russian media reported that prosecutors have brought additional charges against former Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov, who was previously charged in April 2024. The first of these cases involves the alleged embezzlement of 200m roubles (~$2m USD] during the procurement of two ships for the Kerch strait ferry line, which have subsequently been damaged during the war. The second is the alleged embezzlement of 3bn roubles (~$200m USD) from Interkommerts bank while facilitating or directing the purchase of foreign currency.
• Charges continue to stack up against former senior Russian defence officials as part of what now seems to be a major crackdown on embezzlement by senior officials below executive or cabinet level.
• Russian media also reports that eight officials holding general officer ranks have been dismissed from agencies including the Investigative Committee, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, and the Federal Penitentiary Service. Independent Russian media speculates that this is due to impending corruption charges. If true, this a potential indicator that corruption crackdowns are spreading from their previous narrow focus on the defence sector.

Incumbent president Maia Sandu, who claims there is evidence that pro-Russian forces bought votes, faces a run-off vote. Europe's press takes a closer look.

The citizens of the Republic of Moldova have voted by a knife-edge majority of 50.4 percent in favour of writing EU accession into the constitution as an irrevocable goal.

The first round of the presidential election, which took place simultaneously, failed to produce a decisive result. Incumbent president Maia Sandu - who claims there is evidence that pro-Russian forces bought votes - faces a run-off vote. Europe's press takes a closer look.

The United States accuses Russia of having injected millions of dollars in an attempt to influence the election results in the former Soviet republic.

The United States expressed concern on Tuesday about Russian interference in Moldova’s presidential runoff election, which promises to be close. 

Looking ahead to the runoff vote on Nov. 3, “the United States remains concerned Russia will again attempt to prevent Moldovans from exercising their sovereign right to choose their own leaders,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement. 

In early March, three Russian soldiers allegedly kidnapped a Ukrainian woman from the village of Yahidne where they severely beat her and then raped, Ukraine's National Police allege.

Ukrainian law enforcement identified and charged three Russian soldiers who, in March 2022, violently attacked and sexually assaulted a woman in the village of Yahidne, in the Chernihiv region, the National Police reported.

The police investigation found that three natives of Russia’s Tuva region – aged 37, 30, and 28 – were part of a contingent of the Russian armed forces in March 2022 who invaded Yahidne.

The festival is a discussion on Russian disinformation campaigns targeting Poles and Ukrainians in an attempt to sow conflict between the two.

The ninth UKRAINA! film festival, focusing on Ukrainian cinematography, is underway in Warsaw, offering some 70 documentaries, feature films and shorts.

Amid the war raging in Poland’s eastern neighbor, the festival is being attended by more than 50 Ukrainian and Polish actors, directors and film producers.

Despite urgent calls to evacuate as Moscow’s army closes in, thousands of people have chosen to stay in Pokrovsk

Russian troops are barely 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the city, but here, the sounds of war are drowned out by the whir of the coffee machine.

“Our defenders need us,” the 35-year-old said, praising the many Ukrainian soldiers stationed in the city.

The IMF’s World Economic Outlook claims the global battle against inflation has largely been won, with US growth on a steady trajectory.

US economic growth remains strong with a disinflationary trend and “diminished” recession risk, according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) Chief Economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas during the World Economic Outlook press briefing on Oct. 22.

In response to a question by Kyiv Post, Gourinchas said: “The news from the US is very good… Strong growth performance has been happening in the context of continued disinflation. There have been some bumps in the road… disinflation may not have been proceeding especially earlier in the year as was projected. But lately it’s been quite substantial,” Gourinchas said.

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from the ISW:

• Moldova's October 20 European Union (EU) referendum passed by an extremely narrow margin in large part due to support from the Moldovan diaspora, and current Moldovan President Maia Sandu will face Alexandr Stoianoglo in a second round of voting on November 3. Several Moldovan and European officials reported potential Russian interference in the election, and the Kremlin and its affiliates in Moldova will likely continue their malign influence efforts in the leadup to the November 3 runoff.
• Kremlin officials and Russian milbloggers claimed that Moldovan authorities falsified the results of the election and referendum and continued to promote long-standing Kremlin narratives targeting Moldova's path towards European integration.
• US Secretary of Defense Llyod Austin travelled to Kyiv on October 21 and announced a new $400 million military aid package for Ukraine.
• Russia appears to be scrambling to reduce tensions with South Korea following credible reports of intensified North Korean cooperation with Russia, including South Korean and Ukrainian intelligence warnings that a contingent of North Korean troops has deployed for training to Russia.
• Russian forces continue to systematically perpetrate war crimes, including the continued executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) and use of chemical weapons.
• Ukrainian forces recently advanced in the western part of the Kursk Oblast salient.
• Russian forces advanced west of Kreminna, southeast of Pokrovsk, and southeast of Kurakhove.
• Russian forces recently conducted several mechanized attacks of various echelons in the Kurakhove direction.
• Russian occupation authorities continue to coerce occupied Ukrainian populations into signing contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD).