Six months after the start of the conflict, kyiv assured that nearly 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers had died on the front. For its part, the Kremlin has accused Ukraine of having killed Daria Douguine, daughter of the Russian ultra-nationalist Alexandre Douguine, dead in the explosion of his father’s car on Saturday near Moscow. Franceinfo looks back on the highlights of Monday August 22 on the front of the war in Ukraine.
Nearly 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed according to kyiv
Ukraine acknowledged on Monday that nearly 9,000 of its soldiers had been killed since the start of the Russian invasion six months ago. Speaking before a forum in kyiv, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian army, General Valery Zaloujny gave an assessment of the losses, an extremely rare occurrence since the start of the conflict. The previous estimate dates from mid-April, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned the figure of 3,000 Ukrainian soldiers killed and around 10,000 wounded since the start of the Russian offensive.
Russia accuses Ukraine of killing the daughter of a reputed ideologue close to the Kremlin
The Russian security services (FSB) accused the “special services” Ukrainians of having killed the daughter of a reputed ideologist close to the Kremlin, who died in the explosion of his car near Moscow, reported the Russian press agencies. According to the same source, the person who trapped Daria Douguina’s car then fled to Estonia.
The organization even published the photo of a Ukrainian national: Natalia Vovk, born in 1979. According to certain Russian media which publish a copy of her military papers, Natalia Vovk would have served in the Azov regiment. Daria Dugin, daughter of Russian ultra-nationalist Alexander Dougin, is dead in the explosion of his father’s car on Saturday near Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday denounced a “despicable crime”.
kyiv fears a new Russian attack
For several weeks, the Kremlin “seeks to convince Ukraine to enter into negotiations” for “freeze the conflict while preserving the status quo in the occupied Ukrainian territories”asserts Mikhailo Podoliak, adviser to the Ukrainian presidency. Ukraine believes that, in fact, Moscow “do not want a dialogue” of serious peace, but seeks to obtain “an operational break for his army” before throwing “a new offensive”according to the adviser. kyiv is particularly concerned about Russian bombardments in the coming days as Ukraine celebrates Independence Day.
A “training and assistance” mission to the Ukrainian army?
The European Union plans to organize a mission “training and assistance” to the Ukrainian army which would take place in neighboring countries, said Monday the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell. The proposal will be discussed next week in Prague at the Council of Defense Ministers of EU member countries.
“A war that lasts and looks like it will last requires an effort not only in terms of supplying equipment, but also training and helping to organize the army”he said at a press conference in Spain.