Ukraine updates: Putin says 1,000 soldiers sign up each day

Papal envoy Cardinal Matteo Zuppi will be in China from Wednesday to Friday this week as part of a diplomatic effort to achieve peace in Ukraine, the Vatican said.

"The visit represents a further stage in the mission desired by the Pope to support humanitarian initiatives and the search for paths that can lead to a just peace", the Vatican said in a statement.

The cardinal already visited Kyiv and Moscow in June and travelled to Washington the following month as part of his attempts to facilitate a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia.

Italian daily La Repubblica said Zuppi was likely to meet "top institutional leaders" in Beijing, including Chinese Premier Li Qiang.
The Vatican statement did not give details about his agenda.

Denmark will donate a package worth 5.8 billion Danish crowns ($833 million, €777 million) to Ukraine, including tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, tank ammunition and anti-aircraft guns, the ministry of defence said. The full amount is distributed over three rounds — 4.3 billion this year, 1.4 billion in 2024 and 52 million in 2025, the ministry said.

"After more than a year and a half of war, we have almost exhausted our defense stocks. Therefore, we are now looking into more targeted joint procurement and international cooperation, tailored to Ukraine's needs here and now," foreign minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said in a statement.

This is the twelfth and largest donation package Denmark has sent to Ukraine since Russia invaded the country in February 2022, the ministry added.

In August, Denmark began training Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 fighter jets as part of its commitment to donate aircraft to Ukraine.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Berlin would encourage its partners to deliver available air defence systems to Ukraine for this winter, in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper published on Tuesday.

"We need to stretch a winter air defence shield over Ukraine's critical infrastructure," Baerbock said following her visit to Kyiv on Monday, adding that the German government planned to expand its IRIS-T support in the coming months.

Germany so far has supplied two IRIS-T units to Ukraine, where they are mainly used to guard Kyiv against Russian missile attacks.

Earlier in September, Germany has pledged to supply another six IRIS-T units to Kyiv, and expects to take delivery of the first of six systems for its own air force in October 2024.

Ukraine warned it could seek international arbitration over restrictions on its grain exports, after Poland said it would continue to block domestic imports of Ukrainian grain even if Brussels lifts a ban.

Restrictions imposed by the European Union in May allowed Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia to ban domestic sales of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower seeds, while permitting transit of such cargoes for export elsewhere.

The restrictions, designed to ease excess supply, are due to expire on Friday. Poland, which holds a parliamentary election on October 15 and says cheaper Ukrainian grain makes domestic production unprofitable, has said it will not lift its ban even if the EU does not extend the arrangement this week.

"We have no intention of harming Polish farmers. We greatly appreciate the support of the Polish people and Polish families!" Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on social media platform X, previously known as Twitter.

"But in the case of a violation of trade law in the interests of political populism before elections, Ukraine will be forced to turn to WTO (World Trade Organization) arbitration," he added.

The five central European countries want the EU ban extended at least until the end of the year. Poland's government is under pressure from domestic farmers to stand firm as next month's election approaches.

Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki says his government will not lift its embargo on imports of Ukrainian grain on Friday as scheduled because it would hurt Polish farmers.

"Poland will not allow Ukraine grain to flood us," he said on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

"Regardless of the decisions of the clerks in Brussels, we will not open up our borders," Morawiecki said in the midst of intensive campaigning for October 15 parliamentary elections.

Poland, Hungary and Slovakia, in agreement with the European Union, imposed an embargo on Ukrainian farm produce from April until September 15 to prevent a glut in their home markets that would hurt their farmers. Only transit of sealed goods is allowed in an effort to help Ukraine send its produce overseas as Russia blocks its usual export routes.

Morawiecki posted his comments shortly before the Cabinet was to discuss the matter. The European Parliament is also to debate the issue. EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski said Tuesday he is making efforts to have the embargo extended.

Poland has been supporting neighboring Ukraine with military and humanitarian assistance as it fights Russia's invasion, but following farmer protests, Warsaw has been adamant in banning imports of Ukrainian agriculture products.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is dampening expectations of a swift and peaceful resolution to Russia's war in Ukraine.

However, it has now been possible to bring important states to the table and work together to advance the principles for a peaceful solution, Scholz said.

He was speaking at the International Meeting for Peace of the Catholic Community of Sant'Egidio in Berlin.

"That takes effort and time. Time that we don't actually have because Russia continues to bomb, torture and kill in Ukraine," he said, adding that working for peace requires patience.

Scholz once again defended German arms deliveries to Ukraine. "We will continue to support Ukraine in its right to self-defense for as long as necessary," he stressed. "I think this is not only necessary politically and strategically, but also necessary in terms of peace ethics."

The chancellor warned against "sham solutions" that were peaceful in name only. "Peace without freedom is called oppression, and peace without justice is called diktat," he said.

The German government therefore fully supports Ukraine's demands for a just peace that respects the principles of the United Nations Charter and the principles of territorial integrity and independence, Scholz said: "The law must overcome violence and not the other way around."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has vetoed a parliamentary bill that sought to retain closed asset declarations for officials.

Parliament voted last week to restore a declaration rule that was suspended after Russia's 2022 invasion as a security precaution, but — in an important loophole — to keep the disclosures closed to the public for another year.

"The reason (for the veto) is clear: declarations must be fully revealed. Right now. Not in a year. The register must be opened right now," Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app. "This key amendment must be made before the law can be passed again. Swiftly." 

A public petition asking Zelenskyy to veto the amended measure had rapidly gained tens of thousands of signatures, far above the required 25,000 needed for presidential consideration.

Anti-graft campaigners and opposition lawmakers among others believe the bill in its current form defeats the primary purpose of the measure to hold officials accountable.

The International Monetary Fund had singled out the return of mandatory asset declarations as one of several benchmarks for paying out part of a $15.6 billion (€14.6 billion) IMF assistance package.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that 1,000 to 1,500 Russians were signing voluntary contracts to join the military every day.

Putin was responding to a question about whether Russia needed to introduce a new compulsory mobilization drive to boost its military effort in Ukraine, something the Kremlin has repeatedly said is not necessary.

"We had a partial mobilisation... We called up 300,000 people. Now, in the last six-seven months, 270,000 people have voluntarily signed contracts to serve in the Russian army," Putin said at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok. 

"Moreover, the process continues, with 1,000-1,500 people coming every day to sign contracts," he added. 

Earlier this month, former President Dmitry Medvedev said 280,000 people had signed up since the start of the year.

The figures could not be independently verified.

Russia has readjusted its air defense around Moscow to protect against Ukrainian drone attacks, the UK Ministry of Defence said in its daily intelligence update.

"Since early September 2023, Russian SA-22 air defense systems around the capital have been pictured positioned on elevated towers and ramps," the update said. The aim is to provide better defense against drone attacks that "the city now experiences most days."

Since the December 2022 attacks on the Russian Engels and Ryazan air bases, Russia had also installed the Pantsir anti-aircraft system on the roofs of public buildings in Moscow, the UK ministry said.

This is intended to enable the detection of so-called kamikaze drones. But, the update added, it was probably also a high-profile measure to reassure the public and demonstrate that the authorities have the threat under control.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Russia on Tuesday, South Korea's military and Russian state media said, where he is expected to hold a highly anticipated meeting with President Vladimir Putin.

"The Ministry of National Defense believes that North Korea's Kim Jong Un entered Russia early this morning using a private train," Seoul said.

The meeting would be Kim's first foreign trip since the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the hermit state to tighten its border restrictions even further.

Analysts, as well as US officials, believe the meeting could be a chance for Putin to request artillery shells and antitank missiles from North Korea to be used against Ukraine.

In return, Kim is reportedly seeking advanced technology for satellites and nuclear-powered submarines, as well as food aid for his impoverished nation.

dh/nm (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)