Russia shells Odessa and Mykolaiv, Ukraine Lysychansk, claiming to have destroyed Russian headquarters. Russia allegedly arrests those responsible for the explosions in Crimea the day before. Meanwhile, the tone in the dispute over visas for Russians is getting sharper, and opponents are also talking about war here. The 175th day of the war at a glance:

Russia shells university in Mykolaiv

Both Ukraine and Russia reported their own successes this Wednesday. The Russian armed forces fired rockets at both the city of Mykolaiv and the port city of Odessa. According to Mykolaiv Mayor Olexander Sienkevich on Telegram, Russian troops fired two rockets at Mohyla University. There were apparently no injuries, but the building was damaged. In addition, Russian soldiers in the Donbass are still trying to capture the cities of Soledar and Bakhmut. According to the Kiev general staff, there were heavy attacks there and north-west of the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk. An air base near Schytomir is said to have been attacked by Russian fighter jets.

Ukraine claims Russian headquarters in Lysychansk have been destroyed

Ukraine, on the other hand, claimed successes in the south and a successful attack in the Donbass. Accordingly, the “Kyiv Independent” reported, citing the Task Force South of the Ukrainian armed forces, that 15 Russian soldiers had been killed. In addition, a tank guided missile and several armored vehicles are said to have been destroyed. It was not disclosed where exactly the attack happened. Elsewhere, however, the Ukrainian information is precise. The Russian headquarters in the city of Lysychansk in eastern Ukraine, which was captured in July, is said to have been hit. The governor of the Luhansk region, Serhiy Hajdaj, assumed that up to a hundred Russians would be killed. In fact, videos of a destroyed building appeared on the Nexta news portal. Whether this is actually the headquarters remains unclear. According to deposed mayor Ivan Fyodorov, there were explosions in the Russian-occupied southern Ukrainian city of Melitopol. There was no information about possible victims. Fyodorov, however, claimed that Russian forces “paniced” and dragged their families out of the city. He referred to unspecified Ukrainian sources.

Russia is recruiting soldiers in Central Asia

Russia’s losses have been significant since the beginning of the war. Recently there have been repeated reports of forced recruitment, because the Kremlin wants to prevent general mobilization at all costs. According to Ukrainian military intelligence, Russia is conducting a recruitment campaign in Central Asia. As “Kyiv Independent” writes, this is aimed primarily at citizens of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. This also seems to be due to the fact that in regions close to the border, such as Chechnya, there is growing dissatisfaction with the Russian methods. Many of the so-called volunteers are said to be rural residents who would be forced under threat of prosecution on fabricated charges or under torture to join Russian forces in Ukraine.

Arrests after Crimean explosions

On the other hand, Russia is more successful in resolving the explosions on the Crimean Peninsula. Six men were arrested, who are probably accused of sabotage. The Russian authorities do not explain this explicitly, but so far the Kremlin’s official explanation for the explosions is sabotage. According to the Russian domestic secret service FSB, the men are said to all belong to the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir, which is banned as a terrorist organization in Russia. However, Russia also made mistakes in its own leadership and swapped the head of the Black Sea Fleet. Viktor Sokolov has been appointed as the new commander, according to the RIA news agency. In addition to the explosions on the previous day, a Russian air force base in Crimea was destroyed just over a week ago.

Ukraine threatens to shell Crimean bridge

Although Ukraine has so far remained silent on how it was involved in the Crimean blasts, President Volodymyr Zelenskyi’s adviser Mykhailo Podoliak has threatened to consider the Crimean Bridge a target. This connects the peninsula with the Russian mainland. “It is an illegal construction and the main supply gate for the Russian army in Crimea. Such objects should be destroyed,” Podoliak told the British “Guardian”. He wrote on Telegram: The bridge must be dismantled – “it doesn’t matter how: voluntarily or not”. The Kerch Strait Bridge is the main road and rail link between mainland Russia and Crimea. The 19-kilometer-long structure was inaugurated in May 2018 by Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin. Zelenskyy called on the people of Crimea to stay away from Russian military bases and ammunition dumps.

The UN and Turkey want to talk to Zelenskyy about “ending the war”.

Tomorrow’s meeting between Zelenskyy, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Lviv, Ukraine, is said to be about a diplomatic way out of the war. According to a statement by the Turkish Presidential Office, the “end of the war between Ukraine and Russia should be discussed through diplomatic channels”. The United Nations had previously shown much more reluctance.

Navalny confidante warns of “visa war against Russians”

The entry bans for Russian citizens that have been discussed across Europe in recent days are still not met with universal approval. After Chancellor Olaf Scholz had already expressed his disapproval, Russia expert Stefan Meister followed suit and opposed blanket entry bans. “What should be the goal? Punishment? Putting pressure on Putin through society?” wrote the scientist from the German Council on Foreign Relations on Twitter. “Do we really want to put Russian society under collective guilt?” Certainly many Russians supported Putin – but not all. “Russia is a repressive, always totalitarian state, in which any criticism of the Kremlin’s policies is severely punished.” The confidant of the imprisoned opposition politician Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Milov, made a similar statement. He warned of a “visa war against Russians” and said that in the end only Russian President Putin would benefit from it.

Gas turbine still in Germany

What also benefits the Russian President is the fact that, according to Siemens Energy, the turbine for the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline is still in Mülheim an der Ruhr. A spokesman for the company said there was no movement in sight. Russia continues to dig into documents with incomprehensible justifications. According to the information, the turbine is to be transported by truck. The turbine had been serviced in Canada, but has been in Germany since mid-July. Gazprom criticizes the lack of information on the repair.

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