The Kyiv Independent Live in London: October 2
Days until event:
The warhead was designed to destroy high-voltage pylons and steel bridges and contains a 40-kilogram main charge and four additional destructive modules, Serhii Beskrestnov said.
Putin repeatedly said in interviews in early March 2022 that conscripts were not being asked to participate in the invasion and would not be sent to fight. Only days later, Russia’s Defense Ministry to acknowledged that some conscripts had been deployed to Ukraine and captured.
"We fought until the last moment, both publicly and privately, to prevent this from happening," Sybiha said. "You removed two oligarchs, and we will add twenty."
Putin's comments echoed warnings Russia issued to NATO on Sept. 30, saying that it would be ready to use nuclear weapons if alliance members attempt to isolate the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
Led by a "sanctioned and convicted criminal fraudster," and a state-owned Russian bank tied to the military, the A7 shadow network has helped Russian entities evade sanctions since 2024.
The latest strike follows other attacks on the Southern Bridge on Oct. 1, where two Russian drones hit near the bridge's supports. This was the first time Russian drones have targeted one of the capital's bridges.
The jet-black Russian munition slammed into the Presidium building of Ukraine's National Academy of Sciences, an iconic Tsarist-era structure right in the center of Kyiv, setting the building on fire. Survivors climbed out of the windows and clambered onto the building's ledges, fleeing the flames and choking black smoke. Two people were killed in the attack. Around an hour later, an identical munition struck a private medical clinic a few blocks away. The Geran-5 jet-powered drone is Russia's
The Kyiv Independent's coverage of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, after eight years of aggression against Ukraine that began in 2014 with the annexation of Crimea and fighting in Donbas. The war has resulted in tens of thousands of military and civilian casualties and displaced millions of Ukrainians. NATO and Western allies have provided military aid to Ukraine while the conflict continues across fronts in Ukraine’s south and east.
Compared to the most recent figure from July 2026, the decree increases total staff by only around 15,500, is the fourth such incremental raise announced this year.
