Saturday, November 2

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Paramedics respond to the injured after a Russian attack on a residential area in Kharkiv on Nov. 1, 2024. (George Ivanchenko/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Russia seizes more territory over past week than at any point in 2024, Bloomberg reports. Russia has captured 1,146 square kilometers (442 square miles) in Ukraine since Aug. 6, about a quarter more than in the first seven months of the year, Bloomberg reported.

Ukrainian drone targets oil depot in Stavropol Krai, Russian governor claims. The town of Svetlograd has around 35,000 residents and lies over 600 (372 miles) kilometers southeast of Ukraine’s border in Donetsk Oblast.

Russian drone strikes on Ukraine soared to record monthly levels during October, military says. Russia launched more than 2,000 strike drones against Ukraine during October, the General Staff reported on Nov. 1, breaking the previous record set in September by nearly 700.

Russia not advancing in Chasiv Yar, Toretsk, contact line stabilized, Ukraine says. “At the moment, they do not have an advantage in these towns. The contact line is stabilized,” said Anastasia Bobovnikova, a spokesperson of the Operational Tactical Group Luhansk.

North Korean FM visits Moscow, promises to support Russia until ‘victory’ in Ukraine. “And we also assure that until the day of victory we will firmly stand alongside our Russian comrades,” North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said during talks with her Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov.

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World ‘merely watching’ as North Korea threat grows, Zelensky warns. Zelensky said that if granted permission to use Western long-range weapons on Russian territory, Ukraine could preemptively target “every camp” in Russia where North Korean troops are gathering.

North Korean troops could suffer even greater losses in Ukraine than Russia, Estonian intelligence says. North Korean soldiers are usually trained to fight in mountainous terrain, which means they are not familiar with Ukrainian territory, its climate, and geography, Estonia’s intelligence said.

Russia’s Lavrov reportedly to make first visit to EU country since launch of full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The last time Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited an EU country was in 2021, when he traveled to the OSCE meeting in Stockholm, Sweden.

Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s chief inspector fired. The Main Inspectorate of the Defense Ministry audits the ministry’s activities, including monitoring the quality of military training and staffing, overseeing military aviation safety, and conducting technical investigations, among other functions.

Read our exclusives

Ukraine war latest: US announces new aid package; Ukrainian targets oil depot in Russia’s Stavropol Krai

The aid list includes munitions for NASAMS missile systems, Stinger missiles, ammunition for HIMARS rocket systems, tube-launched, optically tracked, and wire-guided (TOW) missiles, Javelin and AT-4 anti-armor systems, as well as 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition.

Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Election 2024: Ukrainians living in the US weigh in on upcoming Trump vs Harris vote

Democratic candidate Kamala Harris’s campaign promises to continue supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia would seemingly make her the obvious choice for Ukrainians in the U.S. in the 2024 presidential elections, but the diaspora is anything but united in their choice for president.

Photo: Yana Paskova/Getty Images

Human cost of war

Russian missile strike on Kharkiv kills 1, injures 40. Two S-400 missiles hit a police station, killing police officer Andrii Matvienko. Thirty police officers, nine civilians, and one rescuer were injured in the attack, Kharkiv regional police reported.

Russian attacks against Ukraine kill 2, injure 24. Ukrainian forces downed 31 out of 48 Shahed-type drones and other unidentified drones launched by Russia overnight, the Air Force reported. Fourteen more drones were “lost,” and three others flew towards Belarus, it added.

General Staff: Russia has lost 696,410 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. This number includes 1,460 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

Opinions and insights

Opinion: Accessibility in Ukraine remains elusive as Russia’s war reveals systemic failures

“As of June, more than 50,000 Ukrainians have lost one or more limbs in Russia’s war against Ukraine, and more than 3 million people live with a disability. In theory, Ukraine has a framework to protect people with disabilities and ensure their inclusion in society. In practice, outdated infrastructure and social attitudes still uphold significant barriers three years into the full-scale invasion,” documentary translator Maria Kuchapska writes.

Photo: Matthew Hatcher / Getty Images

Opinion: Pennsylvania’s Ukrainian community could swing the state in the upcoming election

“Unlike Donald Trump, Kamala Harris recognizes that America and other democracies worldwide have a moral and geopolitical interest in preserving the safety of the Ukrainian people, not just ensuring their survival but enabling them to thrive. I urge my fellow Pennsylvanians and Ukrainian Americans to elect her president,” writes Gary Wasserson, board member of Ukrainian Children, a nonprofit that supports Ukrainian families in need.

Photo: Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images

International response

US announces new military aid package worth $425 million. The recent military assistance is provided under the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA) which pulls weapons from U.S. stocks.

Europe, Azerbaijan not close to deal on gas route via Ukraine, Slovakia’s SPP says. “We regularly discuss the topic with our partners, but the information about the upcoming conclusion of a gas supply contract with the participation of SPP is not true,” Slovakian state-run gas importer SPP said.

Poland starts fortifying border with Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave as part of ‘East Shield’ initiative. The “East Shield” program aims to fortify Poland’s borders with Belarus, and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.

Poland’s Sikorski hits back at Zelensky’s MiG-29 fighter jets criticism. “We’re trying to help, but we’re also a front-line country. Russia also threatens us, and not everything is possible,” Poland’s Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said.

Trump says those who describe him as a ‘friend of Russia’ are ‘sick.’

Trump has repeatedly backed and praised Putin and rarely criticized him. He described Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as “genius” and “savvy” in 2022.

Lavrov criticizes Turkey for supplying military equipment to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said this “cannot but cause surprise,” given the Turkish leadership’s statements about its readiness to mediate between Ukraine and Russia.

These Ukrainian women down Russian drones

In other news

Ukraine launches 5G pilot project. “This is one of the key steps towards the full launch of 5G in Ukraine, which we plan to complete by 2030,” Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said on Nov. 1.

Russian butter prices soar, rise in supermarket dairy thefts reported. Two men were recently arrested in Moscow after allegedly trying to steal 25 packets of butter.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Kateryna Denisova, Oleg Sukhov, Kateryna Hodunova, Chris York, Liliane Bivings, Abbey Fenbert, and Olena Goncharova.

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