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As tensions betwixt Russia and Europe continue to grow, Moscow has tried to contiguous its crushed warfare successful Ukraine arsenic unstoppable.
The Kremlin claimed past week to beryllium successful power of two-thirds of the buildings successful Kupiansk, a metropolis successful Ukraine’s bluish Kharkiv region.
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“Russian troops person blocked a ample radical of the force from the bluish and occidental sides, taking it successful a half-ring,” said the Ministry of Defence successful Moscow.
Russia has been trying to seizure Kupiansk for astir of this year, believing it volition unlock a bluish gateway for its forces to descend to the eastbound portion of Donetsk, whose implicit seizure Moscow has prioritised.
“Taking power implicit Kupiansk volition let the Russian troops to beforehand towards the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration,” said the Defence Ministry, referring to Ukraine’s best-fortified towns successful Donetsk.
People locomotion adjacent to a damaged gathering and vehicles successful a residential neighbourhood deed during a Russian drone and rocket onslaught connected the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, September 28, 2025 [Anatolii Stepanov/Reuters]Russian officials person been saying they are connected the cusp of seizing Kupiansk since March. Ukrainian subject perceiver Konstantyn Mashovets estimated Russia needed different 1 to 2 much divisions to bash so.
On September 25, Russia’s Defence Ministry besides claimed to person seized 4,714 quadrate kilometres (1,820 quadrate miles) of Ukrainian territory this year. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a Washington-based deliberation tank, independently assessed the existent fig to beryllium person to 3,434sq km (1,325sq miles).
Russia “continues to artificially inflate its claims of beforehand successful Ukraine to enactment the Kremlin’s mendacious communicative that a Russian triumph successful Ukraine is inevitable”, said the ISW.
Moscow’s forces, betwixt September 25 and 29, claimed to person captured Kalinovskoye and Stepovoye successful Dnipropetrovsk, and Derilovo, Mayskoye, Sandrigolovo and Kirovsk successful Donetsk.
Trump’s pivot to Ukraine
On the diplomatic front, United States President Donald Trump’s remarks successful New York were seen arsenic a reversal of argumentation to which helium has held accelerated during the archetypal 8 months of office.
During his archetypal code to European allies connected February 12, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told them that “returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective”.
Later that month, Trump gave Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a bruising reception astatine the White House. Trump has besides blamed Russia’s warfare connected Ukraine.
But connected the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) connected September 22, helium praised Ukraine’s stout defence arsenic “pretty amazing”.
He aboriginal suggested Ukraine could win a subject victory.
“With time, patience, and the fiscal enactment of Europe and, successful particular, NATO, the archetypal Borders from wherever this War started, is precise overmuch an option,” Trump said connected his Truth Social platform.
As precocious arsenic August 15, erstwhile helium met with President Vladimir Putin successful Alaska, Trump appeared to gamble connected his idiosyncratic diplomacy with the Russian person to extremity the war.
Trump’s evident alteration of bosom came arsenic Ukraine struck Russian refineries, causing substance shortages – a weakness successful Russia’s system to which Trump alluded.
On September 24, Ukrainian drones struck the Salavat refinery and petrochemical analyzable successful the Bashkortostan region, 1,200km (745 miles) southeast of Moscow, for the 2nd clip successful little than a week. The drones reportedly deed a distillation portion that accounts for 60 percent of the plant’s 10-million-tonne yearly processing capacity.
Two days later, they struck the Afipsky refinery successful the Russian borderline portion of Krasnodar Krai. Russia said falling debris from a drone had started a occurrence that was enactment out, without specifying the harm done.
On Monday, Ukraine deed the Tuapse lipid offloading terminal connected the Black Sea with aboveground drones, causing respective explosions and a monolithic fire.
On October 1, Ukraine struck 1 of Russia’s largest refineries astatine Yaroslavl, 250km (155 miles) northeast of Moscow.
Sergei Aksyonov, the politician of Russian-occupied Crimea, confirmed past week that Russians were seeing substance shortages.
In his Truth Social post, Trump had written, “It’s astir intolerable for them to get Gasoline”.
A weapons ‘mega-deal’
Trump whitethorn besides person been swayed by a weapons deal, reported to beryllium worthy $90bn – different reversal of an archetypal argumentation to chopped the travel of US weapons to Kyiv’s forces.
Zelenskyy says helium is moving towards a “mega-deal” that involves “an statement connected modern drones for the United States”.
Zelenskyy archetypal publically raised the thought of buying weapons the US utilized to springiness it connected April 9, aft it became wide that the Trump medication was not consenting to proceed supporting Ukraine’s warfare effort arsenic the Biden medication had done. He past reportedly communicated Kyiv’s readiness to walk $30-$50bn for Patriots.
But the latest Ukrainian connection besides involves purchasing US Tomahawk missiles, with a 1,600km (995-mile) range, reported Axios.
Trump’s peculiar Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, suggested connected Sunday to Fox News that Trump was leaning towards providing them, aft the Wall Street Journal reported Trump was besides considering lifting restrictions connected long-range strikes wrong Russia.
“Use the quality to deed deep. There are nary specified things arsenic sanctuaries,” helium told Fox News.
Ukraine’s longest-range limb is presently the Flamingo cruise missile, with conscionable implicit 1,000km (620-mile) range, but it has not yet entered progressive work astatine scale.
Russia reacted angrily to the reports.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia would beryllium analysing whether US targeting assistance was involved. Andrei Kartapolov, caput of the Russian parliament’s defence committee, said Russia would personally people US officials who helped Ukraine successful specified a mission.
In 1 cardinal respect, Trump’s stance towards Ukraine has not changed: He will not contribute financially to Ukraine’s defence, forcing Europe to ft the bill, and seeks to extract $500bn of uncommon metals from Ukraine arsenic compensation for subject assistance nether his predecessor.
Europe ‘no longer astatine peace’ with Russia
On Friday, NATO bid said 2 Hungarian Gripen fighters took disconnected from their basal successful Lithuania’s Siaulai to intercept a Su-30, Su-35 and MiG-31 “flying adjacent to Latvian airspace”.
On Saturday, Denmark said drones had been spotted implicit respective subject facilities, including the Skrydstrup airbase and an service basal successful Holstebro. On the aforesaid day, Lithuania reported that drones disrupted postulation implicit the Vilnius airport, and Finland said it spotted drones implicit Valajaskoski powerfulness plant.
These were the latest suspected Russian incursions of NATO airspace since September 10, erstwhile 2 twelve Russian drones had to beryllium changeable down successful Polish airspace.
Estonia said 3 Russian MiGs violated its airspace connected September 19, and a Russian Ilyushin 20-M reconnaissance craft allegedly entered German airspace connected September 21.
Poland said it volition sprout down Russian craft violating its airspace successful future.
Reporters asked Trump astatine the UNGA if helium believed NATO countries should sprout down Russian craft if they participate their airspace.
“Yes, I do,” Trump replied.
Asked if the US would assistance NATO allies successful specified an event, helium said: “Depends connected the circumstance, but you know, we’re precise beardown toward NATO.”
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte past week said, “I wholly hold present with President Trump: if truthful necessary.”
“Let maine enactment it successful a condemnation that whitethorn beryllium a small shocking astatine archetypal glance,” said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz astatine a Dusseldorf quality league connected Sunday, erstwhile asked whether Europe was astatine warfare with Russia. “We are not astatine war, but we are nary longer astatine bid either.”
Russia has dismissed Europe’s concerns arsenic baseless.
“Statements astir shooting down Russian planes are, well, astatine the precise least, reckless, irresponsible. And, of course, unsafe successful their consequences,” Kremlin spokesperson Peskov said connected Friday.
English (US) ·