Latest news on Russia and the war in Ukraine

A supply of weapons costing as much as or less than a Russian oligarch’s yacht could enable Ukraine to have firepower parity with Russia, Ukrainian presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said in a tweet.

The weapons in question are 50 U.S.-supplied Himars, each of which cost $4 million, Podolyak wrote.

“50 systems — $200 million + ammunition. The price of achieving fire parity and destroying army logistics is less than…ru-oligarch’s yacht. It is not an enormous amount of money, but something that would completely change the course of this war,” the Ukrainian advisor said.

Himar stands for High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, and is a multiple rocket launcher originally designed for the U.S. military by Lockheed Martin and mounted onto trucks. The powerful system has been described as a “game changer” by U.S. officials, particularly for its long range and ability to inflict serious damage on enemy targets.

Moscow has made a request for a U.N. Security Council meeting today to discuss what is going on at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which has been under Russian occupation and surrounded by shelling and fighting since March.

The request was made by Russia’s ambassador to the U.N., Dmitry Polyanskyy, Russian state news agency RIA reported. It has not yet been confirmed as to whether the meeting will happen today.

International leaders have for months sounded the alarm over the potential for a nuclear disaster at the plant, which is Europe’s largest of its kind. U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres has pleaded for the demilitarization of the area and warned the situation has created a moment of “maximum danger for our world.”

— Natasha Turak

Monthly government payments to British households hosting Ukrainian refugees should be doubled to keep up with soaring inflation and enable them to continue hosting for longer than six months, the minister in charge of the program said.

“The costs … they’re paying maybe a big chunk of rent themselves, the mortgage payments have gone up and everything, and I think it’s perfectly reasonable, in my view, to increase the amount that we’re paying them,” Richard Harrington said in an interview with local media.

Currently the British government pays sponsors who host refugees a £350-monthly ($412) “thank you” payment. The minimum sponsorship period is six months, and Harrington wants to see that payment doubled for hosts who house refugees for longer than that. He said he has been pushing the government “very hard” to achieve that aim.

Some 25,000 households in the U.K. are hosting refugees under the Homes for Ukraine initiative, with each sponsor hosting an average of three refugees, Harrington said. More than 115,000 Ukrainians have come to the U.K. via its visa programs since Russia launched its invasion in February, with an additional 4,000 to 5,000 new arrivals weekly, he added.

— Natasha Turak

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an end to “nuclear saber-rattling,” warning that the world is facing an extremely dangerous precipice as fighting continues around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, Europe’s largest plant of its kind.

“Nuclear saber-rattling must stop … come to the negotiating table to ease tensions and end the nuclear arms race, once and for all,” Guterres said in a statement after a meeting with ambassadors at the U.N. Security Council.

This is a moment of “maximum danger for our world,” the U.N. chief said, stressing that “humanity’s future is in our hands” and that conflict must be placed with diplomacy and dialogue to “save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.”

Russian forces have occupied the plant since March, and its many employees still continue to work but describe having to operate in an atmosphere of terror.

— Natasha Turak

The U.S. State Department issued a security alert over increased Russian strikes on Ukraine and urged U.S. citizens to leave the country.

“The Department of State has information that Russia is stepping up efforts to launch strikes against Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and government facilities in the coming days,” the embassy said in an alert on its website. Russia has already positioned more of its missile-bearing warships in the Black Sea, government officials have said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has also warned his citizens of increased Russian attacks this week ahead of Ukraine’s Independence Day on Aug. 24, which will commemorate its 31st year of independence. Kyiv has banned large gatherings for most of the week.

— Natasha Turak

Russia could be planning to attack Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and government facilities soon, Reuters reported, citing a U.S. official.

“We have information that Russia is stepping up efforts to launch strikes against Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and government facilities in the coming days,” the official said, according to Reuters.

“Given Russia’s track record in Ukraine, we are concerned about the continued threat that Russian strikes pose to civilians and civilian infrastructure,” the official added.

Reuters reported that the official’s statement was based on U.S. intelligence that has been downgraded.

— Abigail Ng

The organization overseeing the export of agricultural products from Ukraine said that so far a total of 721,449 metric tons of grains and other foodstuffs have departed through the humanitarian sea corridor under the Black Sea Grain Initiative. 

The Joint Coordination Center, or JCC, said that more than 25 ships carrying grains and other crops have left Ukrainian ports.

The JCC also said that it authorized the movement of one outbound merchant vessel named Kafkam Etler to depart tomorrow from the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk. The vessel was approved to carry 2,437 metric tons of corn to Turkey.

— Amanda Macias