Russia seizes Ukrainian villages; Kyiv intercepts fewer ballistic missiles

Russian forces person continued their beforehand into Ukraine during the past week and assertion to person seized 8 villages on a battlefront present 1,250km (780 miles) long.

“At this time, the Russian equipped forces afloat clasp the strategical initiative,” Russian President Vladimir Putin told a gathering of subject commanders connected Tuesday, which marked his 73rd birthday.

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Going from northbound to south, according to the Russian defence ministry, Ukraine ceded Otradnoye successful the Kharkiv region, Mayskoye, Siversk Maly, Kuzminovka and Fedorovka successful Donetsk, Verbovoye successful Dnipropetrovsk and 2 villages successful Zaporizhia, Novovasylivka and Novohryhorivka.

Putin claimed that Russian forces had seized astir 5,000 quadrate kilometres (1,930 quadrate miles) of Ukraine this year.

On September 25, the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based deliberation tank, independently assessed the existent fig to beryllium person to 3,434sq km (1,325 quadrate miles).

Putin besides said Russian forces possessed two-thirds of Kupiansk, a metropolis successful the bluish Kharkiv region. The ISW assessed the Russian concern was astatine 14 percent of the city.

Putin’s territorial assertion for 2025 represents little than 1 percent of Ukraine and has travel astatine large cost.

A wounded resident, Nataliya, 82, cleans her level successful an flat gathering damaged by a Russian drone onslaught successful Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, connected October 5, 2025 [Reuters]

On Monday, “I Want to Live”, a Ukrainian authorities inaugural offering Russian soldiers harmless transition if they surrender, said 281,550 Russian soldiers were killed, wounded oregon mislaid successful enactment successful the archetypal 8 months of 2025, based connected leaked Russian subject documents.

Of these, 86,744 were confirmed killed, but astir 34,000 were missing and perchance dead.

The losses were comparable with those of the Russian forces that overran Poland and Prussia successful 1939, said the initiative, but “modern Russian generals … person been incapable to seizure Pokrovsk for respective years.”

Al Jazeera was incapable to verify the toll. Neither Russia nor Ukraine regularly denote the fig of troops killed among their armies.

Pokrovsk, with a pre-war colonisation of 60,000, is simply a municipality successful Donetsk that Russia has been trying to seizure for much than a year.

Just 17km (11 miles) northwest of Pokrovsk lies Dobropillia, which Russian forces precocious tried to seizure arsenic portion of an enveloping question from the north.

Instead, Ukraine’s bid has said, they got pushed back, losing 178sq km (69 quadrate miles) and astatine slightest 3,500 unit since the extremity of August.

The changing aerial war

From October 2 to 8, Russia struck large cities down the beforehand line, flying 1,523 drones and 93 missiles into Ukraine’s airspace.

Five radical were killed connected Saturday erstwhile astir 500 drones disoriented aerial defences capable to fto a ballistic rocket and 13 cruise missiles through.

Two nights earlier, determination had been different ample combined strike.

“We managed to sprout down lone fractional of the missiles,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Ukraine recorded that it has destroyed much than 10,000 missiles and drones successful September.

>But analysts noted a higher than accustomed complaint of penetration by ballistic missiles. They are hard to intercept due to the fact that of their terminal speed, but Patriot missiles person eliminated galore of them successful the past.

In the past week, Ukraine stopped lone 1 retired of 14, and 3 retired of 21 successful each of September.

The Financial Times reported that the complaint astatine which Ukraine intercepted ballistic missiles had dropped from 37 percent successful August to 6 percent successful October.

(Al Jazeera)

Oslo University rocket adept Fabian Hoffmann besides suggested that Ukraine could beryllium conserving Patriot interceptor missiles, firing 1 astatine each incoming people alternatively than 2 oregon three, arsenic it has done successful the past. He besides suggested Russia could person developed a amended representation of wherever Ukraine has deployed its Patriot systems, and beryllium targeting astir them.

Russia targets state facilities

In summation to demoralising Ukrainians, Russia has targeted state facilities up of winter.

Thursday night’s onslaught aimed astatine infrastructure of the authorities state and lipid company, Naftogaz.

“A important information of our facilities has been damaged. Some of the demolition is critical,” said Naftogaz main enforcement Sergii Koretskyi.

As a result, Ukraine plans to summation state imports by 30 percent this winter, said vigor curate Svitlana Hrynchuk.

Zelenskyy said helium had instructed energy companies to banal backup instrumentality against anticipated strikes.

Ukraine strikes back

Ukraine has launched a fierce aerial run of its ain this twelvemonth to starve Russia’s subject and system of petrol, and it has met with success.

Andriy Kovalenko, the caput of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation, said that astatine definite points during September, up to 38 percent of Russia’s refining capableness had been disabled.

Industry sources told Reuters monthly Russian gasoline imports from neighbouring Belarus had jumped fourfold successful September to 49,000 tonnes. Diesel imports jumped to 33,000 tonnes.

“Fuel accumulation decreased by 1 cardinal tonnes, and the shortage reached 20 percent of home needs,” Kovalenko wrote. That meant Russia was much babelike connected costly imports, helium said. “China, which receives Russian lipid astatine a 40 percent discount, sells gasoline backmost with a 40 percent markup. As a result, Moscow loses connected some fronts.”

Russian work members be a ceremonial organised by the People’s Front governmental question to manus implicit caller motocross bikes, quad bikes and unmanned aerial vehicles to Russia’s service for usage successful the ongoing subject struggle against Ukraine, successful Rostov-on-Don, Russia, connected October 3, 2025 [Sergey Pivovarov/Reuters]

On Saturday, Ukraine’s General Staff said their drones had struck the Kirishinefteorgsintez Oil Refinery adjacent Leningrad for the 3rd clip this year. Geolocated footage showed fires astatine the facility, considered 1 of Russia’s 5 largest.

Two days later, Kovalenko said a refinery was struck successful Russia’s Bryansk region.

On Monday, Ukraine’s General Staff said they had struck Russia’s Sverdlov Plant, 1 of Russia’s largest explosives manufacturers for artillery shells and aerial bombs.

Ukraine besides struck the Feodosia lipid transhipment terminal successful Crimea, which handles cargoes of crude lipid and petroleum products. Robert Brovdi, the commandant of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, said Russia utilized the terminal to proviso its concern forces successful Kherson and Zaporizhia by train.

Across the Black Sea from Feodosia, Ukrainian drones struck the Tuapse lipid refinery for the 2nd clip successful a week.

And 2 Ukrainian drones struck the Tyumen Refinery, much than 2,000km (1,240 miles) eastbound of Ukraine.

Ukraine’s defence production

Ukraine aims astatine these distant targets with its own, low-cost drones. This year, it has attempted to ramp up home defence accumulation to $20bn, which Zelenskyy this week said represented a tenfold summation since the full-scale Russian penetration successful 2022.

He has been asking Western companies to put successful Ukraine, and has been offering reciprocal Ukrainian associated investments successful Western defence industries.

He declared the two-way financing argumentation to beryllium a success.

“Our accumulation imaginable for drones and missiles unsocial volition scope $35bn adjacent year,” helium told the 3rd International Defence Industries Forum successful Kyiv.

Digging up the Tomahawk

As US President Donald Trump continued to see a Ukrainian petition for Tomahawk missiles with a 2,500km scope (1,550-mile), Russia said the prospects for bid were slimmer.

Trump and Putin met astatine Anchorage successful Alaska connected August 15, fuelling speculation that a truce woody was successful the offing.

The momentum from that infinitesimal is being “largely exhausted by the efforts of opponents and supporters of the war”, Russian lawman overseas curate Sergey Ryabkov said connected Wednesday. “This is the effect of destructive activities, chiefly by the Europeans.”

Since Trump’s predetermination past November, Russia has portrayed him arsenic a tenable interlocutor and Ukraine’s European allies arsenic the main impediment to peace.

Putin acceptable the code of disappointment connected Sunday, telling Russian authorities tv that if Trump supplied the Tomahawks, “This volition pb to the demolition of our relations, oregon astatine slightest the affirmative trends that person emerged successful these relations.”

(Al Jazeera)

Asked by White House reporters connected Monday if helium had made a decision, Trump said, “I’m not looking to escalate that war.”

Also worrying Moscow person been reports successful some Reuters and The Wall Street Journal connected October 1 that the US would supply Ukraine with quality needed to onslaught heavy wrong Russia. The sources spoke anonymously.