Ukraine updates: IAEA confirms mines near Zaporizhzhia plant
Published July 25, 2023last updated July 25, 2023
What you need to know
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) officials have confirmed that there are mines in close proximity to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, currently under Russian occupation.
The IAEA Director General, Rafael Grossi, said in a statement that the IAEA team had discovered "some mines located in a buffer zone between the site's internal and external perimeter barriers" during an inspection conducted on Sunday, although the inspection team did not come across any devices "within the inner site perimeter."
The mines were found in a restricted area that is inaccessible to plant personnel, he said.
"Our team has raised this specific finding with the plant and they have been told that it is a military decision, and in an area controlled by military," Grossi said.
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has been under Russian control since the beginning of March 2022. Since September, all six of its reactors have been shut down.
The IAEA had still not been given access to the roofs of the reactor buildings and their turbine halls, its latest statement said.
Here are more major developments in Russia's war in Ukraine from Tuesday, July 25:
US announces $400 million in additional military aid to Ukraine
The United States has announced a new $400 million (€362 million) military assistance package for Ukraine.
It includes air defense missiles, armored vehicles, and, for the first time, Hornet surveillance drones.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the assistance is aimed at "strengthening Ukraine's brave forces on the battlefield" and "helping them retake Ukraine's sovereign territory."
The package also includes munitions for Patriot air defense systems and National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASMS), Stinger anti-aircraft systems, more ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), Stryker Armored Personnel Carriers and a variety of other missiles and rockets.
Washington has committed to providing more than $43 billion in military aid to Kyiv since Russia's invasion in 2022.
Ex-marine freed in prisoner swap injured while fighting in Ukraine
A former US Marine who was released by Russia in a prisoner swap last year has been injured while fighting in Ukraine.
Trevor Reed was treated in Kyiv and was evacuated to Germany for medical care.
"Mr. Reed was not engaged in any activities on behalf of the US government," State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said.
He added that Reed was transported with an NGO's help to Germany for medical care.
The US has repeatedly warned Americans not to travel to Ukraine or participate in the fighting.
Reed was injured several weeks ago, according to The Messenger, who was the first to report his injury.
Reed was released from Russian custody last year in exchange for Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko.
He had been held in Russia since 2019 after being convicted of endangering the lives of two police officers while intoxicated. He denied the charges.
Russian lawmakers raise age limit for compulsory military service
The lower house of the Russian parliament has passed a bill that raises the maximum age for mandatory military service from 27 to 30.
Lawmakers however changed their plan to raise the lower age for the draft from 18 to 21.
They accepted the Defense Ministry's suggestion to set the military draft age between 18 to 30 starting next year.
It comes as Moscow seeks to replenish its forces fighting in Ukraine.
The bill still has to be approved by the upper chamber of parliament and signed into law by President Vladimir Putin, steps that are considered a formality.
EU pays €1.5 billion to Ukraine as part of bigger aid packages
Ukraine received €1.5 billion ($1.66 billion) from the European Union "to help keep the state running and repair infrastructure," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter.
EU member states have given Ukraine €76 billion in aid overall, including financial, humanitarian, emergency budget, and military help, since the start of the war.
Additionally, resources have been provided to assist member states in meeting the needs of Ukrainian refugees, the EU said in a statement.
"As Russia continues its ruthless war, we continue to support Ukraine," von der Leyen wrote on Twitter, adding "more will come."
Further payments of €1.5 billion will be made in August and again in September.
EU ministers discuss fallout from halted grain deal
Agricultural ministers from the 27 European Union member states have met to come up with methods for securely exporting grain from Ukraine despite Russia's withdrawal from a deal providing for safe corridors in the Black Sea for vessels carrying the produce.
The suspension of the deal, which also facilitated the movement of Russian food and fertilizer, is seen as a drastic blow to global food security, with Ukraine and Russia among the world's major grain exporters.
Discussions at the meeting will also deal with concerns of Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria that grain imported into those countries under the deal will cause financial damage to their own farmers by pushing down prices. All five nations have placed a ban on such imports.
Proposals to remedy the situation include one from Lithuania's agriculture minister, Kestutis Navickas, to shift export procedures from the Ukraine-Polish border to Lithuanian ports.
Germany's Cem Ozdemir has seemed to back the plan, suggesting transporting grain from Ukraine in sealed containers to ports in the Baltics for further transport to the Global South, where it is vitally needed.
Özdemir criticized the Polish import restrictions, however, saying they were introduced only as an election campaign maneuver ahead of polls in October. The only person pleased about them was Russian President Vladimir Putin, Özdemir said, adding: "We should not do anything that makes Vladimir Putin happy."
Ukrainian Black Sea attack on warship repelled, says Moscow
Moscow's forces have beaten back an attack by unmanned Ukrainian boats on a Russian patrol boat in the Black Sea, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.
Two boats tried to attack the patrol ship Sergei Kotov, which managed to destroy the vessels at a safe distance, the ministry said, adding that there were no injuries.
The alleged attack came amid high tensions in the Black Sea after Russia withdrew from a deal allowing free passage to vessels carrying grain for export from Ukraine.
Following its withdrawal, Moscow said it would view all ships calling at Ukrainian ports as military targets, leading to Kyiv saying it would target all vessels calling at Russian-controlled ports.
Russia says no return to grain deal possible for now
The Kremlin has said that a failure to uphold Russian interests related to the Black Sea grain deal would prevent Moscow returning to the agreement at the present moment.
Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, however, that Russian President Vladimir Putin had made it clear that the deal, brokered by the UN and Turkey last July, could come back into force if those interests were properly recognized within the pact.
Moscow has long complained about the deal, saying that exports of its own agricultural products were still being blocked in many areas as a consequence of Western sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Among other things, it says there are still restrictions on Russian fertilizer companies and on access of Russian vessels to foreign ports.
The deal, which Moscow withdrew from on July 17, aimed to help prevent a global food crisis by facilitating the safe export of grain blocked by the conflict in Ukraine.
Both Russia and Ukraine are among the world's leading exporters of grain.
Russian missile strikes based on 'poor intelligence,' says UK
UK intelligence said Tuesday that since Russia pulled out of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, it has attempted to strike targets in Odesa "because it believes Ukraine is storing military assets in these areas."
However, Russian military strikes on Ukraine since the start of the war have been characterized by "poor intelligence and a dysfunctional targeting process," the British Ministry of Defense said in its latest daily intelligence assessment.
The assessment added that when the grain deal was in force, Russia "generally refrained" from striking civil infrastructure in the southern ports, but since pulling out Moscow "likely feels less politically constrained" on ordering airstrikes.
Since last week, the Russian military has continually targeted Odesa, striking grain export infrastructure, but also hitting homes, businesses and cultural sites.
Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant reactor shutdown mode changed
The operators of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant on Tuesday switched the shutdown mode of two reactors, the Moscow-installed administration of the plant said.
This nuclear facility, situated on the front-line of the ongoing conflict, is currently under Russian control.
The management of the Zaporizhzhia plant transferred power unit No. 5 to "cold shutdown," while power unit No. 4 was transferred to the "hot shutdown" state, the administration said.
"The other units remain in cold shutdown," the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement.
The IAEA has stated that one of the plant's six reactors must be kept in a hot shutdown mode to ensure nuclear safety, including the proper processing of liquid radioactive waste stored in tanks.
While the IAEA has been actively working on establishing a safety mechanism to prevent any potential accidents, both Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of shelling in the vicinity of the power station.
Currently, none of the six reactors at the plant are producing electricity. Moscow has asserted that the plant will eventually be connected to Russia's power grid, which is contested by Kyiv.
German MEPs urge EU support for Russian draft dodgers
Members of the European Parliament from various German political parties have urged the EU leadership to take stronger actions in support of Russians seeking refuge from war conscription.
In a joint letter addressed to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Council President Charles Michel, and foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, the parliamentarians from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), Left Party and Greens asserted that it is the responsibility of the EU and its member states to protect Russian conscientious objectors and offer them asylum.
The MEPs have called for consultations on the common visa policy to be conducted, with the aim of adjusting guidelines and asylum procedures accordingly.
Among the signatories are German MEPs Udo Bullmann, Dietmar Köster, and Matthias Ecke from the SPD, Cornelia Ernst from the Left Party, and Hannah Neumann and Erik Marquardt from the Greens.
According to data from Germany's Interior Ministry, as of the end of April this year, 2,485 male Russian citizens between the ages of 18 and 45 had applied for asylum in Germany. Out of these applications, 814 have been processed, with 55 applicants being granted asylum and 88 being refused.
The remaining 671 cases underwent "formal settlement of the procedure," either through "decisions in the framework of the Dublin Regulation" or the "withdrawal of the asylum application."
The Dublin Regulation determines which European state is responsible for processing an asylum application, typically the country where the asylum seeker first entered the European Union.
Zelenskyy calls for end to EU restrictions on Ukrainian grain imports
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said it would be "unacceptable" for the European Union to further extend restrictions on Ukrainian grain imports.
The EU had previously imposed restrictions on imports containing wheat, maize, rapeseed, and sunflower seeds from Ukraine in five central and eastern European countries — Bulgaria, Poland, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia.
The EU called these "temporary preventive measures" to address "logistical bottlenecks."
Zelenskyy has called for the restrictions to end as planned on September 15, expressing strong opposition to any extension of the limitations.
In a video address on Monday night, President Zelenskyy emphasized that any extension of the restrictions would not align with European values and principles.
On Monday, Ukraine announced its intention to boost grain and oilseed exports by an additional 1 million tons per month. This comes despite Russia's allowing a previous agreement that established a secure passage for ships transporting these products across the Black Sea to expire.
Russia launches air attack on Kyiv, Danube ports
Russia carried out an air attack on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, in the early hours of Tuesday, according to military leadership in Kyiv.
Russia used Iranian-made Shahed drones in the attack, although based on preliminary information, all the drones were downed by Ukraine's air defense systems, the head of the administration, Serhiy Popko, said.
There were no reports of casualties or serious damage, he added.
The attack comes a day after Russia warned of "tough retaliatory measures" after a drone attack on Moscow.
Meanwhile, Ukraine accused Russia of a cluster bomb attack in the town of Kostiantynivka, located in the eastern region of Donetsk.
The attack on Monday evening killed a child and injured seven others, including four children, the local administration said.
In addition to these attacks, Ukrainian air defenses successfully repelled several drones that targeted the Black Sea area.
However, there were reports of hits on Danube ports, Natalya Humenyuk, a military spokeswoman for the Army's Southern Command, said.
Ukraine's Danube ports, specifically Reni and Izmail, situated near the Romanian border, bore the brunt of the Russian attack.
As per the Ukrainian media, Igor Plehov, the mayor of Reni, said three grain silos had been destroyed.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba accused Russia of "food terrorism" and called for a united global response to the Russian attacks.
The situation has worsened since Moscow allowed the grain agreement to expire, leading to repeated attacks on the Odesa region by Russian forces.
ss/kb (dpa, Reuters, AFP)