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7:17 AM

General CQ Brown succeeds Mark Milley as US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs.

The chairman is the highest-ranking member of the U.S. military. Milley served in the role for four years before retiring on Sept. 29.

6:19 AM

ISW: Russia's FSB supports law expanding digital surveillance.

Amendments to a proposed bill in the Russian State Duma would allow law enforcement agencies direct access to personal data from Russian internet, banking, and telecom companies.

5:25 AM

Ukrainian refugee children in EU face 'perpetual uncertainty'.

Children who fled Ukraine for EU countries following Russia's all-out war struggle with language barriers, disrupted education, and psychological trauma, the EU's Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) reported on Sept. 29.

4:20 AM

Bryansk Oblast governor claims Ukrainian attack disrupted local power supply.

Governor Alexander Bogomaz claimed that Ukrainian forces attacked the village of Pogar and disrupted the local power supply in the early hours of Sept. 30.

3:53 AM

Russian forces attack 9 communities in Sumy Oblast.

The communities of Esman, Shalyhyne, Mykolaiv, Putyvl, Velyka Pysarivka, Khotin, Krasnopillia, and Yunakivka came under fire.

3:29 AM

Putin declares holiday commemorating occupation of Ukrainian regions.

Russian dictator Vladimir Putin signed a decree marking Sept. 30 as a "reunification day" commemorating Russia's illegal annexation of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts.

2:34 AM

Russian attack damages infrastructure in Vinnytsia Oblast.

On attack on Vinnystia Oblast the night of Sept. 30 damaged an infrastructure facility in the region, Oblast Governor Serhii Borzov reported via Telegram.

2:17 AM

Armenia sues Azerbaijan in International Court of Justice.

The request calls on the court to uphold the rights protected under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD).

1:32 AM

Front-line photographer Volodymyr Myroniuk killed in action.

Myroniuk, aged 59, was an independent photographer who documented Ukrainian soldiers at the front.

12:37 AM

New round of Russian conscription will include Ukraine's occupied territories.

The fall 2023 conscription will include the illegally annexed areas of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.

10:59 PM

Ukraine removes companies from 'international sponsor of war' list as part of military aid negotiations.

The NACP hopes that this will "lead to Hungary’s unblocking of €500 million of vital EU military aid for the Ukrainian people, and will also eliminate the possibility of Greece blocking the future EU sanctions package aimed at reducing Russia’s ability to continue the war."

9:15 PM

Deputy Economy Minister: Ukraine aims to reach pre-war levels of growth in 4 years.

Ukraine aims for its economy to regain pre-war levels of growth in four years, Deputy Economy Minister Oleksii Sobolev said in an interview with Ukrinform on Sept. 29. Sobolev expects further integration with the European Union and joining NATO will be a prerequisite for strong growth in the future.

8:09 PM

Reuters: Romania moves air defense systems to border with Ukraine.

Romania is moving its air defense systems closer to its border with Ukraine, Reuters reported on Sept. 29. Additional measures include the deployment of four U.S. F-16 jets and an expanded no-fly zone.

7:54 PM

War update

Ukraine war latest: Russia reduces offensive pace on Kupiansk-Kreminna line

7:23 PM

Norway restricts entry to Russian cars.

Russian-registered cars with nine or fewer seats will not be able to enter Norway from midnight on Oct. 2, the Norwegian Foreign Ministry announced on Sept. 29.

6:44 PM

Gazprom reports gas production drop of 25%.

The state-owned Russian energy company Gazprom has released figures showing that its gas production fell by 25%, Russian news agency Interfax reported on Sept. 28. The reporting period compares the first half of 2023 with the first half of 2022.

5:30 PM

Russians to compete as neutral athletes at 2024 Paralympics.

Russian athletes will be able to compete as individual or neutral athletes at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, the International Paralympic Committee announced on Sept. 29.

4:46 PM

Belarus weekly

Belarus Weekly: 2 Belarus delegations compete for attention at UN General Assembly

4:43 PM

UK sanctions Russians involved in organizing sham elections in occupied parts of Ukraine.

The U.K. has announced new sanctions against Russian officials for their involvement in organizing sham elections in occupied territories of Ukraine, the British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly announced on Sept. 29.

4:23 PM

Zelensky commemorates victims of Babyn Yar tragedy.

President Volodymyr Zelensky took part in a commemorating ceremony at Babyn Yar, where Nazi Germany committed a massacre of the Kyiv's Jewish population, Ukraine's Federation of Jewish Communities reported on Sept. 29.

4:01 PM

Ukraine names suspects for sabotage at military warehouses in Luhansk Oblast, Czech Republic.

Ukraine's State Bureau of Investigation reported on Sept. 29 that it had identified Russian special service employees involved in the cases of sabotage at military warehouses in Ukraine and Czechia in 2014-2015.

3:46 PM

Podcasts

This Week in Ukraine Ep 27 – How Ukraine is destroying Russian military in Crimea.

Episode #27 is dedicated to the recent Ukrainian attacks in Russia-occupied Crimea.

2:15 PM

Media: Ukrainian strike destroys radar station in Russia's Kursk region.

Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) used a drone to destroy the Russian radar system Kasta in the Kursk region on Sept. 28, Ukrainian media outlet Hromadske reported on Sept. 29, citing its source in the SBU.

1:40 PM

Putin asks former Wagner commander to create 'volunteer units' for Ukraine war.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has instructed Andrei Troshev, the former chief of staff of the mercenary Wagner Group, to form 'volunteer units" for the war in Ukraine, according to a transcript of Putin's speech published by the Kremlin on Sept. 29.

11:59 AM

Energy Ministry: IAEA demands Russia immediately leave Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference has adopted a resolution on the immediate return of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant under Ukraine's full control, the Energy Ministry reported on Sept. 29.

MORE NEWS

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Media: Defense Ministry purchased summer jackets instead of winter attire for military in 2022

by Martin Fornusek August 10, 2023 6:45 PM 2 min read

A participant prepares to practice tactical and live-fire exercise on a training ground of one of the military battalions during the final testing of women's army combat uniform samples on July 12, 2023 in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Photo credit: Vitalii Nosach/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)

This audio is created with AI assistance

Ukraine's Defense Ministry purchased last year $33 million worth of "winter" clothes for the military, which were in fact summer attire, according to an investigation by Dzerkalo Tyzhnia published on Aug. 10

The Defense Ministry reportedly did not secure on time the import of fabric from Asia to produce winter attire for soldiers, the investigation said.

As winter approached, the ministry signed a contract with the Turkish company Vector avia hava yukleteri for the supply of winter clothing.

The company provided 233,000 jackets worth $20 million and 202,000 pairs of trousers worth $13 million, Dzerkalo Tyzhnia said, citing Ukrainian customs officers.

Based on data obtained by the journalists, the jackets provided by the Turkish company weighed only 1.1 kilograms. In comparison, Chinese jackets offered by a Bulgarian supplier weighed 2 kilograms. According to Dzerkalo Tyzhnia, this matches the difference in weight between summer and winter jackets.

Dzerkalo Tyzhnia also uncovered manipulation with the documents accompanying the shipment. The price of a batch of 4,900 jackets worth $142,000 was in another document "amended" to $421,000.

The journalists said that the margin of the profit remained with the Turkish company Vector avia hava yukleteri, owned by Ukrainian Roman Plentov from Zaporizhzhia.

In a subsequent criminal investigation, the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise established that the "winter" jackets and trousers supplied by the Turkish company "cannot be used for their intended purpose."

Dzerkalo Tyzhnia's investigation from January revealed that the armed forces had been trying to procure food at prices that were several times higher than in Kyiv grocery stores. The corruption scandal sparked rumors about a possible replacement of Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov until President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Reznikov would remain in his post.

Martin Fornusek

News Editor

Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He also volunteers as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.

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