Many important events have taken place in Ukraine and the world over the past week. The situation on the front remains difficult, especially in the Pokrovsk direction, where Russian troops are concentrating their efforts.
During the 2024 Olympic Games, sabotage was recorded. In particular, the attackers attacked communication systems and the railway. France plans to strengthen the protection of the railway network, increase the number of night checks and patrols.
The United States and the European Union are negotiating to prevent a war in the Middle East after the assassination of the leader of the Palestinian group Hamas Ismail Ghaniya in Iran and the attack on one of the Hezbollah commanders Fuad Shukr in Lebanon.
Now watching
A large prisoner exchange took place between Russia and Belarus on one side, and the United States, Germany, Slovenia and Great Britain on the other. Russia handed over 16 political prisoners, and the West, in particular, the killer Vadim Krasikov, who was close to dictator Vladimir Putin.
What events happened this week and how they affect Ukraine — ICTV Facts spoke with the head of the board of the Center for Applied Political Research Penta Vladimir Fesenko and political analyst Oleg Ponomarev.
- Situation on the front
- Sabotage during the 2024 Olympic Games
- The assassination of the Hamas leader and attacks on the Hezbollah commander
- Large-scale exchange between Russia and Western countries
- Strikes on Olenya airfield
Situation on the front
The situation on the front in Ukraine remains very difficult. Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers are holding back the advance of Russian occupiers in various directions, who continue to destroy peaceful cities and villages with airstrikes and artillery.
According to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the number of combat clashes has increased to 72. The hottest part is currently in the Pokrovsk direction.
In particular, fierce battles are taking place in the areas of Kalinovoye, Vozdvizhenka, Novoaleksandrovka, Ivanovka, Zhelannoye, Sergeyevka, Novoselovka Pervaya and Yasnobrodovka. The Russian army has made 25 attempts to storm Ukrainian positions.
According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 127 combat clashes have been recorded along the entire front over the past 24 hours. A third of them are in the Pokrovsk direction.
As the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky noted after hearing the report of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrsky, there are always the toughest battles there, and the Pokrovsk direction requires our most intensified responses to the occupiers.
— Each brigade and unit in the Pokrovsky direction — all the soldiers who remain steadfast there and defend our positions, despite the Russian assaults, in many ways hold the basis of defense in the entire East of Ukraine. At the same time, we do not reduce our attention to all other areas at the front — in the Donetsk region, as well as in the Kharkov region and in the southern regions, — stated Vladimir Zelensky.
Sabotage during the 2024 Olympic Games
In France, after damaging infrastructure on railway lines on the first day of the Olympic Games, unknown individuals disabled the equipment of telecom operators.
The telecommunications provider for the 2024 Olympic Games was not affected by the attack. But it had local consequences for customers using fiber-optic internet, mobile communications, and landline phones.
Photo: Depositphotos
Chairman of the Board of the Center for Applied Political Research Penta Vladimir FesenkoIn a commentary to Fakty, ICTV noted that Russia is currently working against the West in the format of a hybrid war by means of assassinations and sabotage.
— Russia is already at war with the West. What is happening during the Olympic Games, the sabotage that took place in France, — is also the style of a hybrid war. Russian special services are ordering sabotage all over Europe. The West now needs to come to its senses a little and begin active counteraction, — Vladimir Fesenko believes.
Assassination of Hamas leader and attacks on Hezbollah commander
US and EU diplomats are holding urgent discussions to prevent war in the Middle East following the assassination of Palestinian Hamas leader Ismail Ghaniya in Iran and the attack on Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Lebanon.
Political analyst Oleg Ponomartold ICTV Fakty that no one needs a major regional war in this region except Russia. In his opinion, it would be advantageous for Russia to divert US resources from Ukraine, although the United States of America has enough for everyone.
— No matter how Russia teases Hamas, Iran, Hezbollah, the Houthis, a major war is not breaking out and is unlikely to break out. Iran does not need a war, since they have a more moderate president who would like to at least slightly restore relations with the West. The US does not need a war, since they have elections coming up, — believes Oleg Ponomar.
At the same time, he noted that Israel is so strong that it can fight on several fronts, so for it there is no big difference.
Photo: Getty Images
— Of course, Iran will respond to the killing of its leaders and Hamas leaders on its territory. Israel is telling Iran through secret channels — respond to save face, we will shoot down all the missiles anyway. But think carefully before you start a real war. Otherwise, you will regret it, as Hamas did, — the analyst claims.
Oleg Ponomar suggested that if Iran wanted to start a big war, it would have started it, and not demanded a meeting of the League of Muslim States.
A large-scale exchange between Russia and Western countries
A large-scale prisoner exchange between Russia and Western countries took place in early August. During the exchange, more than a dozen prisoners were exchanged by the Kremlin for Russians held in the United States and Europe.
The head of the board of the Center for Applied Political Research Penta Vladimir Fesenko told Fakty ICTV that the exchange between Western countries and the Russian Federation is in no way connected with the war against Ukraine.
— They are not connected in any way, except for one aspect — this is Turkey's participation as a mediator in this exchange. Considering that Turkey played the same role in the first major prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia. Now it has a similar role, plus participation in the grain deal.
This increases the possibility that Turkey could become such a mediator in the future in some kind of peace process or negotiations to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. In other respects, this exchange has no impact on any potential negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, he believes.
According to the analyst, these negotiations do not indicate a thaw. He compared the nature of this exchange with a reflection of what happened during the Cold War between the United States and the USSR.
— I will say more: the way it happened, taking into account the negotiations, which, in my opinion, lasted more than a year and a half, although Reuters writes about two years, broke down several times and now have agreed, but each side got what it wanted, — these negotiations are not about a thaw. They are in the style of the Cold War. And the nature of the exchange, who was exchanged for whom, is a reflection of what happened in that Cold War.
And how they met — it was a purely propaganda approach. There is no warming. There is rather a practice that existed during the Cold War. Even the fact that they compared, that this is, I quote: the largest exchange since the Cold War. Right, because the Cold War is back. There were no signs of other negotiations, no signs of warming, — he is convinced.
According to the analyst, one of the reasons why these negotiations took place and were successful is that they were conducted not by politicians, but by the secret services. In the Russian exchange, it was the interests of the secret services that dominated and were decisive. In particular, the interest of dictator Vladimir Putin as the head of these secret services.
— Why did Putin go to these negotiations? Because Putin demanded the main prize from the very beginning: the return of Krasikov. First: why couldn't they agree for so long? Putin demanded Krasikov. Krasikov was in a German prison, and this is already Germany, not the United States.
And the Germans did not agree for a long time. As far as I know, there is now quite a lot of outrage in Germany over the release of a man who was serving a life sentence for contract murder. This was the task of the Russian special services. The fact that Putin met him — this is also significant. This is the style of work of the Russian special services. The West must understand this, — he noted.
Photo: Getty Images
Vladimir Fesenko added that negotiations on a large-scale exchange had been ongoing since 2022 and were very difficult, as they had failed several times, most recently in connection with the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
— The United States wanted to free its citizens and Russian political prisoners. And then, the question of Russian political prisoners arose first because of Navalny, and after his death a guilt complex even arose. Therefore, they began to negotiate the release of Yashin and Kara-Murza. Kara-Murza is now in serious condition. This is already a humanitarian factor, — said the political scientist.
At the same time, the Russians needed to free a professional killer, an employee of the special services, a personal acquaintance of Putin since Leningrad times. They also sought to free a whole group of Russian spies, and those who worked for the Russian intelligence services, the analyst is convinced.
— This is also a sign of the Cold War. This is exactly how exchanges took place during the times when the Soviet Union gave away dissidents and in exchange received its spies or the leader of the Communist Party. This is quite pragmatic, in some ways especially on the part of Russia and partly the West — cynical, because a professional killer was released, — said Vladimir Fesenko.
The political scientist absolutely does not share the opinion that there are some behind-the-scenes agreements, that this is a “warming”. In his opinion, there will be no negotiations or agreements in the coming months until the US presidential elections are over, and even less about peace in Ukraine.
— The first attempts to agree on the format and manner of negotiations to end the war in Ukraine will not be before the end of the year, only after the presidential elections in the United States. And the negotiations themselves, I think, will not begin before next year, — predicted Vladimir Fesenko.
Strikes on Olenya airfield
Two Tu-22M3 strategic bombers were damaged during a drone attack on the Olenya military airfield in Russia's Murmansk region, said Andrei Yusov, a representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry. Their tail numbers — №33 and №31.
According to Ukrainian intelligence, flight №33 received holes in the upper part of the fuselage, and flight №31 has some damage. The Russians may need at least several months to repair these planes.
— Some good people used some good drones, — answered a representative of the GUR when asked how exactly this operation took place.
The strikes on the Russian airfield Olenya, where the bombers were based, were very noticeable for the occupiers. The aircraft were quickly taken away for repairs.
According to Andrey Yusov, these aircraft were used for attacks on Ukraine. The Russians are trying to take additional measures to protect the aircraft at the airfield. In particular, they are using improvised means, such as tires.
— There is information about a request to strengthen the air defense, in particular, we are talking about Pantsir, if we are talking about Olenya. Other means are actively used, rubber devices to protect fighters and strategic aviation. We are talking about tires. And in principle, they are going to increase improvised means, because this is what can be done without modern technology, — summed up the representative of the GUR.
