Ukraine war briefing: Swedish defence maker Saab signs deal to deliver 16 fighter jets to Kyiv
Defence maker Saab signs contract to deliver 16 Gripen E fighter aircraft to Ukraine in $24.6bn deal. What we know on day 1,589Swedish defence equipment maker Saab has signed a contract to deliver 16 Gripen E fighter aircraft to Ukraine in a deal worth about 24.6bn Swedish crowns ($2.54bn). Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said the agreement reached with Swedish prime minister Ulf Kristersson involved the purchase of the 16 aircraft and included technical support. Saab’s timetable differed from that outlined by Zelenskyy, who said deliveries would begin in 2027, while the Swedish defence equipment maker said deliveries were scheduled for 2029-2030.Ukraine’s top military commander said in an interview broadcast on Tuesday that his forces were preparing for a possible new Russian attack from the north, but any attempt to advance on Kyiv was unlikely. Oleksandr Syrskyi, interviewed on TSN Ukrainian television, also said an attack from neighbouring Belarus was unlikely after weeks of Ukrainian allegations that Moscow was trying to press its ally to play a greater role in the war. “The most likely scenario, and this is confirmed by several data sources, is possible offensive action in the north from the territory of Russia, from the Bryansk region,” Syrskyi said.“This is a realistic option, of course, and we are preparing for it.”Russian glide bombs killed two people and injured at least 15 in the south-eastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia on Tuesday, regional governor Ivan Fedorov said. Fedorov, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said Russian forces had deployed seven bombs over a 90-minute period in the city, a frequent target of Russian attacks.Denmark announced on Tuesday a new military donation package to Ukraine worth about 4.4bn crowns ($671.8m). “Around 1.3 billion crowns is allocated to ‘the Danish model’, which makes it possible to finance the Ukrainian state’s procurement costs through its own defence industry,” the government said in a statement. “In addition, more funds have been allocated for long-range artillery ammunition.” It is Denmark’s 30th military support package to UkrainePolice on Tuesday were searching for the suspect behind a parcel bomb that seriously wounded a sanctioned multimillionaire of Ukrainian origin and two others in Monaco. Officers in Monaco and neighbouring France were hunting for a man in a black fisher’s hat who appeared in surveillance footage after leaving a package in a residential building near the border, authorities said. The device exploded at around 9pm (1900 GMT) on Monday, leaving a man and a woman seriously wounded and a 13-year-old with lighter injuries, according to the Monegasque authorities.Monaco public prosecutor Stephane Thibault said as of Tuesday the man had been stabilised, but the woman’s condition remained “life-threatening”. He said the blast was being investigated as “attempted murder” but was not being considered as a “terrorist” act. He declined to say who was the presumed target of the blast, but several sources have said it was Ukrainian-born businessman Vadym Yermolaiev, who is a permanent resident of Monaco and has acquired Cypriot nationality. Yermolaiev is a sanctioned multimillionaire with a reportedly long list of enemies in his homeland. Kyiv alleges the 58-year-old maintained an alcohol business in Russia-annexed Crimea – paying taxes to Moscow even after it invaded Ukraine in 2022.Kenya’s cabinet on Tuesday approved the country’s accession to two international anti-mercenary treaties, a move aimed at curbing the recruitment of citizens into foreign conflicts and combating human trafficking. Kenya is among several African countries whose citizens have reportedly been forcibly conscripted into the Russian army to fight in Ukraine after being lured with promises of jobs abroad. The foreign affairs ministry officially estimates that 291 Kenyans have been victims of Russia’s “irregular military recruitment”, including 19 dead and 32 missing. Continue reading...
Amid war in Ukraine, the fleeting moments of despair and salvation I witness are what truly tell the story | Charlotte Higgins
There are images that flicker in the mind before sleep: the loss, the resilience and then the strange mundanity of it allWhat was it like? Is the question I am often asked when I return from working in Ukraine, where I have been travelling regularly since 2022. There’s an understanding implicit in the question that the answer will not – not quite – lie in the accumulation of reporting. For good reasons the reporter keeps her eyes steady and focused outward, collecting the essential information, conveying it as clearly and smoothly as possible. The reporter reins in and disciplines her subjectivity, while, ideally, recognising its existence and understanding its contours. The reporter knows that the facts of the matter are the thing.At the same time, feelings and impressions cannot wholly be untangled from the facts. Feelings are inevitable, if you are functioning as a human in any sense at all. They are the tentacles of empathy that reach out in an attempt to understand people and situations. Feelings have an epistemic role – a part to play in acquiring knowledge. Nevertheless, they must be tidied into the background. Respect for your readers and your subjects demands it; the rituals and rules of journalism demand it.Charlotte Higgins is the Guardian’s chief culture writerUkrainian Lessons by Charlotte Higgins (Cape, £22) will be published in August. To support the Guardian, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may applyUkrainian Lessons: Art in a time of war with Charlotte Higgins and guests
On Wednesday 30 September, join Charlotte Higgins and our panel of acclaimed Ukrainian writers to reflect on the profound connections between war, art and life. With Olia Hercules, Sasha Dovzhyk, Olesya Khromeychuk, and Shaun Walker. Book tickets hereDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
