Explosions reported in Kyiv, air defense at work

An oil refinery in Kazakhstan is set to process Russian crude and send 70% of its diesel and gasoline output back to Russia amid shortages as a result of Ukrainian attacks, Kazakh Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov said Aug. 25.

The incident marks one of the first known attempts to target a military equipment manufacturer in Slovakia, according to Dennik N.

The High Anti-Corruption Court on Aug. 25 placed Iryna Mudra, a former deputy head of the President's Office, in custody for two months in a graft case and set bail at Hr 20 million ($448,000).

"Сhildren cannot be used as instruments of war or occupation," First Lady of Lithuania, Diana Nausediene, said.

"Our contribution plays a major role in getting funds to Ukraine, but it is not sufficient on its own," a European Commission spokesperson said, adding that other partners must "follow suit."

"They don't believe in the strength of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin's air defenses," the source said.

Peter Novak, a Slovak with 25 years of experience in the IT and banking sectors, replaced former board member head Mykola Hladyschenko after he was officially dismissed from his position on Aug. 21 by the government due to his suspected involvement in a money laundering scheme.

The decision could help Ukraine move closer to producing the missiles at home. The U.K. has agreed to let European defense company MBDA share classified technical information on British-made parts of SCALP missiles with Ukraine, the U.K. government said on Aug. 24.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Russia considers Donbas its own territory and that it is "unlikely" to be governed by a "third party."

Stolar fled abroad more than a month ago and faces the charges of organized crime, embezzlement, corporate raiding, forgery, and hacking.

German investigators also found what appeared to be about 50 grams of hexogen, a military explosive, the German media reported.

Russia launched an Iskander-M ballistic missile, a Kh-31P guided missile, and 150 drones at Ukraine, the Air Force said. As of 9 a.m., air defenses had downed or suppressed 124 drones, while strikes were recorded at 17 locations. The attack was still ongoing at the time of the report.

Ukrainian forces struck several targets, including the fourth generation fighter jet on Millerovo air base in Russia's Rostov Oblast.