[Korrespondent] 23:08 Pushilin said that the Armed Forces of Ukraine "grouped serious forces" in the north of the "DPR" - "it is possible that they will try to go on the counteroffensive." Meanwhile, Russian military correspondents write that the Armed Forces of Ukraine are bypassing Liman from two sides and taking the city in "pincers".
23:04 Putin's threats to use nuclear weapons will not affect the military support of Ukraine, said US Department of Defense spokesman Brigadier General Patrick Ryder.
22:50 This evening in the Nikolaev region, the military of the anti-aircraft missile Odessa brigade of the air command Pivden shot down four Russian Shahed-136 kamikaze drones of Iranian production with two medium-range anti-aircraft missiles at once, the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported.
22:47 In the Khotyn community of the Sumy region, three people were injured as a result of Russian shelling, said the head of the OVA Dmitry Zhivitsky.
22:45 In Russia, agendas for 300 thousand people were printed and signed in advance, even before the decision to mobilize appeared - Ukrainian intelligence proved this. "But the Russian leadership is preparing to take up to a million men into the army - this is the main thing that they are now silent about. We know that they will take everyone indiscriminately. Not only the military in the reserve, but any men," Zelensky said in an evening video message .
22:43 Zelesky said that today he held a meeting of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief: "The questions are clear. The front line. Providing for our military. And the new threats that Russia creates. I will note right away: any decisions of the Russian leadership do not change anything for Ukraine. We should be interested in only our tasks. This is the liberation of our country, the protection of our people and the mobilization of world support for the realization of our tasks."
According to the president, the entire international community is now being diplomatically mobilized: “The circle of those who support us is now not limited to our traditional partners and those who openly supported our state after February 24. Almost everyone now supports us - this is such a reaction to new Russian escalation steps In particular, the farce with the preparation of pseudo-referendums in the occupied territory demonstrates what happened in 2014 in Crimea and Donbas."
The head of state commented on the possibility of negotiations: "When Russia claims that it allegedly wants negotiations, but itself announces mobilization... When Russia knows Ukraine's clear position about the impossibility of a diplomatic process after Russia holds any pseudo-referenda... Everything is clear to everyone. Russia itself buries the prospect of negotiations with his own hands."
22:27 Zelensky, in an evening video message, commented on the Russian decision to mobilize: "This is a frank admission that their regular army, which had been trained for decades to capture someone else's, could not stand it and crumbled. And now, due to mobilization, Russia's war against Ukraine for most citizens of the Russian Federation "This is not something on TV or on the Internet, but something that has entered every Russian home. It is the fact of Ukrainian strength that the Russian leadership reacts to, changing tactics and trying to draw even more Russian citizens and resources into the war."
22:00 Zelensky addressed the Russians in Russian: "55,000 Russian soldiers died in this war in six months. Tens of thousands were wounded, maimed. Do you want more? No? Then protest. Fight. Run away. Or surrender to Ukrainian captivity. These are options for you to survive."
21:07 The Czech Foreign Ministry announced that it would not issue humanitarian visas to Russians leaving from mobilization.
20:45 The representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense Vadim Skibitsky, in an interview with ITV News, did not rule out that Russia would use nuclear weapons against Ukraine: "The explosion of tactical nuclear weapons will affect not only Ukraine, but also the Black Sea region. We remember the history of Chernobyl. Perhaps we there will be another catastrophe on our territory, in Eastern Europe." According to him, the consequences of the use of nuclear weapons may affect other countries - in particular Poland, Turkey and Bulgaria.
20:34 The General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces announced that 120,000 people will be called up for military service in the fall, but "the events of the upcoming call-up have nothing to do with the conduct of a special military operation"; "There is no talk of any mobilizations, calls for full-time students studying at universities."
20:07 The Armed Forces of Ukraine successfully repelled enemy attacks in the areas of the city of Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region, as well as the village of Zaitsevo and the village of Novomikhailovka in the Donetsk region, the General Staff said in an evening report .
20:01 The Saudi crown prince said in a conversation with Zelensky that Riyadh is ready to mediate between the parties to the conflict in Ukraine, Al Hadath TV channel reported.
19:42 German Interior Minister Nancy Feser said that Russian men fleeing mobilization can apply for asylum in Germany: "Anyone who opposes the Russian regime and is therefore in great danger can apply for asylum because of political persecution. Practice decision-making by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees has already been adjusted accordingly."
Federal Minister of Justice Mark Buschmann added that "everyone who hates Putin's way and loves liberal democracy is very welcome in Germany."
19:09 Between Ukraine and Russia there was the largest exchange of prisoners since the beginning of a full-scale war. About who won more in it - in the material Big exchange .
18:40 Blinken said the US will continue to support Ukraine as it defends itself, strengthening its position to reach a diplomatic solution at the negotiating table.
18:37 The Belarusian media write that draft draft evaders from Russia have begun to be caught in the country. Thus, the Belarusian security forces received a verbal order to monitor apartments that are rented out, contact their owners and monitor new cars on Russian numbers. Also, at the airport in Minsk, they began to check men with Russian passports.
18:34 Chinese Foreign Ministry calls for the resumption of direct dialogue between Moscow and Kiev without preconditions.
18:08 The Finnish government considers it necessary to stop Russian tourism, as well as transit through the country, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said.
18:00 Zelensky signed a decree on the formation of a working group that will develop the issue of creating a special international tribunal for war crimes against Ukraine. The group was headed by the head of the OP Andrey Yermak.
17:33 Norway has officially suspended the visa facilitation agreement with the Russian Federation.
17:04 Zelensky held a meeting in Kiev with Italian Defense Minister Lorenzo Guerini.
16:27 At an enemy checkpoint in Vasilyevka, Zaporozhye region, men aged 18 to 35 were not allowed out towards Zaporozhye today, Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov said. According to him, the goal of the occupiers is to mobilize men. Fedorov warned that a hunt for men is being prepared in the occupied territories of the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions, just as it was in 2014 in the LDNR. "It is necessary now either to try to leave towards Zaporozhye, or choose an alternative route - towards Georgia through the temporarily occupied Crimea. There is little time left," Fyodorov warned.
16:22 The number of civilian casualties due to the Russian occupation of Izyum may exceed a thousand people, said Deputy Mayor Vladimir Matsokin: "Today we can say that such burials are not in one place, but at least in three ... And if at first we estimated that the number of civilian casualties in our community is a thousand people, I am afraid that this figure can only increase."
16:19 EU leaders may approve new measures against Russia at a meeting in Prague on October 6-7, writes Reuters.
16:02 The SBU intercepted the "DPR" documents regulating the involvement of minors in the "referendum". In this way, the invaders hope to expand their "electoral base." According to the materials received, the leaders of the occupation administration plan to involve local residents from 13 to 17 years old in pseudo-voting. In order to strengthen control over "turnout", minors should be accompanied to "polling stations" by parents, guardians or representatives of "orphanages".
Also, in order to cheat indicators of the pseudo-referendum, it is planned to involve families from the Donetsk region who have local registration, but temporarily left for the Russian Federation. The relevant documents are prepared by the local "CEC".
15:47 The forests of the Kiev region cannot be visited for at least another year because of the mines left there. These territories would have been cleared of mines faster, but now the sappers have been sent to the Kharkiv region, where there is more work, said Roman Primush, deputy head of the State Emergency Service.
15:39 The G7 countries do not recognize Russia's pseudo-referendums in the occupied territories of Ukraine, new sanctions will be introduced in response, German Foreign Minister Annalena Burbock said after a meeting of G7 ministers in New York: "Any referendums held under the conditions of the Russian military presence, intimidation and forced deportation cannot be free or fair".
The G7 emphasizes that any annexation of Ukrainian territory will be a gross violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and the UN Charter. The ministers called on all states to condemn pseudo-referendums and not recognize their results.
15:34 The Latvian parliament approved amendments according to which Russians will not be extended residence permits on the grounds that they have real estate and investments in Latvia, and will not be issued work visas. Residence permits already issued to Russians will now only be valid until September 1, 2023, and in order to renew them, you will need to confirm your knowledge of Latvian.
15:27 Russian media published a photo of the ballot at the "referendum" in the Zaporozhye region. "Voters" are offered to answer three questions at once: do they support secession from Ukraine, the formation of an independent state by the Zaporozhye region and joining the Russian Federation.
14:43 The closed clause of Putin's decree says that up to 1 million people need to be mobilized, the Russian edition Novaya Gazeta reports, citing a source in the Russian presidential administration. According to him, at first they wanted to put the entire text of the decree under the heading “for official use”, but later only one item was classified. "The figure was corrected several times and, as a result, settled on a million," the source said.
14:18 "Mayor" of Donetsk Aleksey Kulemzin reported six dead in the shelling of the covered market, six more people were injured.
14:16 Aksyonov promised the Crimeans called up as part of "partial mobilization" a one-time payment of 200 thousand rubles.
14:10 Pushilin said that it was he who concluded an agreement with the Ukrainian side on the exchange of prisoners. He also confirmed Medvedchuk's release. According to the leader of the "DNR", out of 55 prisoners released by the Ukrainian side, five people are from Donbass, the rest are servicemen from the Russian Federation.
13:48 Ukrainian male students who study abroad can no longer travel abroad during martial law, Andriy Demchenko, a representative of the State Border Service, said in a commentary to LIGA. According to him, since September 14, the top military leadership has canceled the possibility of male students crossing the Ukrainian border due to massive forgery of documents. In July-August alone, about 600 people were identified at the border who used fake documents about studying in foreign educational institutions.
13:32 Peskov, when asked by journalists whether the "special operation" can be called a "war" after the announcement of partial mobilization, answered: "No, this is a special military operation."
13:13 The SBU reported suspicion to a metropolitan blogger who filmed provocative streams for the Russian media discrediting the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He filmed the video during the movement of military convoys or vehicles of Ukrainian defenders on the territory of the capital region. In his streams, the blogger insulted the Ukrainian military, and also tried to record their faces and car license plates. The media write that we are talking about the founder of the road accident Kiev UA resource, Vlad Antonov.
12:59 Ukraine is working on the exchange of prisoners in the "all for all" format, Prosecutor General Andrei Kostin said.
12:54 "Mayor" of Donetsk Aleksey Kulemzin announced a missile attack in the area of the city administration along Artem Street. Also, according to him, as a result of the shelling of the covered market in the city center, there are many injured, there are dead.
12:37 In Melitopol, the invaders staged a terrorist attack in a crowded place in order to accuse the Ukrainian authorities of terror on the eve of the pseudo-referendum, Mayor Ivan Fedorov said. According to him, the explosion occurred at the Central Market of Melitopol, where there is always a large crowd of people. As a result of the explosion, six Russian servicemen were "injured", including liquidated.
12:26 This morning, the enemy inflicted nine attacks on Zaporozhye, including a hotel and a restaurant in the central park of the city. The object received significant damage, one person died, said the head of the OVA Alexander Starukh. Another rocket hit the TV tower. The old woman explained this by the fact that the enemy is preparing for a propaganda information campaign. The missile also hit a critical infrastructure energy facility. For a while, the backup generator had to be turned off, including in the regional hospital. The problem has already been solved, but the infrastructure still needs to be restored.
In turn, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation stated that the bases of the Ukrainian military near Zaporozhye were allegedly destroyed.
12:18 North Korea has never supplied weapons to Russia and is not going to do so, North Korea's central telegraph agency said, citing an official from the country's Defense Ministry.
11:47 Aksyonov said that in three regions of Crimea today "electronic warfare systems were suppressed and Ukrainian military drones were shot down by air defense forces." Meanwhile, Ukrainian publics write that the Russians shot down their own drone in Dzhankoy.
11:20 Alain Delon will conduct an interview with Zelensky, French TV channel BFMTV reported. It will be shown on the French TV channel TV5 at 13:30 on Friday, September 23rd. This will be the 86-year-old's first public on-air appearance in over a year. For the past ten years, the artist has been retired. Earlier this week, the actor already expressed support for Ukraine in the war against Russia.
11:16 Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan have banned their citizens from participating in the war against Ukraine and warned that this is punishable by imprisonment for a term of five to ten years, writes Anadolu.
11:07 Erdogan called the exchange of prisoners "an important step" towards ending the war. According to him, the exchange of prisoners took place as a result of negotiations with Putin and Zelensky, mediated by Turkey.
10:58 "Authorities" of the occupied Zaporozhye region said that the explosion in Melitopol was "a terrorist attack by Ukrainian special services aimed at intimidating citizens on the eve of the referendum", three people were injured.
10:31 An explosion thundered in Melitopol, previously in the central market area, according to the occupying "authorities" of the Zaporozhye region.
10:25 British intelligence believes that Russia is likely to face logistical and administrative problems in mobilizing 300,000 people. According to analysts, the Russian Federation will try to assemble new formations with a large number of mobilized reservists, who are unlikely to be combat-ready for several months. And even this limited mobilization is likely to be extremely unpopular with part of the Russian population. Putin is taking significant political risks in the hope of building much-needed combat power, the intelligence says.
Also, the British Ministry of Defense believes that this step by Putin "is in fact a recognition that Russia has exhausted the supply of volunteers who want to fight in Ukraine."
10:16 The General Staff announced the estimated losses of the enemy on the morning of September 22. The enemy suffered the greatest losses in the Kramatorsk and Donetsk directions.
- personnel - about 55,510 (+400) people liquidated,
- tanks - 2236 (+9),
- armored combat vehicles - 4776 (+28),
- artillery systems - 1341 (+1),
- MLRS - 318 (+0),
- air defense systems - 169 (+1),
- aircraft - 253 (+0),
- helicopters - 218 (+1),
- UAV operational-tactical level - 941 (+9),
- cruise missiles - 240 (+1),
- ships/boats - 15 (+0),
- automotive equipment and tankers - 3630 (+20),
- special equipment - 125 (+0).
10:03 The FSB announced that it allegedly prevented an attempt by "Ukrainian special services" to commit a terrorist attack at an "oil and gas complex facility that supplies energy" to Turkey and Europe. A Russian "recruited by the SBU" in Ukraine and four more Russians - "accomplices of the Ukrainian special services" who ensured the "preparation of sabotage" - were detained.
10:01 The Russians destroyed the refrigerator cars with the bodies of their soldiers, hitting the station in Kharkov, said the speaker of the Odesa OVA Sergey Bratchuk.
09:59 The enemy hit Zaporozhye and the suburbs with nine missiles, said Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Kirill Tymoshenko. The hotel in the central park was damaged, there is significant damage, people remain under the rubble, rescuers are working. There is also a hit in an electrical substation and a TV tower.
09:57 At night, Nikolaev was subjected to massive rocket fire, previously by S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems. Damaged multi-storey buildings, gas pipeline, water supply, administrative buildings. Previously, without casualties and victims, said the head of the OVA Vitaly Kim.
09:52 In the Kharkiv region, not far from the village. Grakovo, Chuguevsky district, during the repair work, two employees of Kharkovoblenergo and one employee of the State Emergency Service were blown up by a mine. One of them died, two were hospitalized with injuries, Oleg Sinegubov, head of the OVA, said. Over the past 24 hours, five people were wounded in the Kupyansky district, including a 13-year-old child, and one was wounded in the Kharkovsky district.
09:48 As of the evening of September 21, 338 bodies have already been exhumed in Izyum - 320 civilian and 18 military, the prosecutor's office said.
09:37 The Russians fired at night on the Nikopol and Krivoy Rog districts of the Dnipropetrovsk region, the head of the OVA, Valentin Reznichenko, said. In Nikopol, as a result of shelling of the central quarters, one person was killed. In Krivoy Rog, a two-story building was on fire due to an attack by an enemy kamikaze drone, people were not injured.
09:18 The American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) believes that partial mobilization in the Russian Federation will not affect the course of the war in the coming months. At the same time, such a move exposed the many problems that Russia is facing in its hesitant invasion of Ukraine, and which Moscow is unlikely to be able to resolve in the coming months. The mobilization of part of the Russian reserve may be enough to maintain the current level of the Russian armed forces in 2023 by compensating for Russian losses, according to analysts, although this is not obvious. In addition, Russian reservists are initially poorly trained and do not undergo retraining after the expiration of the conscription period.
Partial mobilization, therefore, will not deprive Ukraine of the opportunity to liberate more of its occupied territory during the winter, according to ISW.
08:58 In the morning, the enemy launched a missile attack on Zaporozhye. Infrastructure facilities became the main target of the occupiers, residential buildings around were also damaged. According to preliminary information, it is known about one dead and five wounded, said the head of the OVA Alexander Starukh.
08:36 In the Donetsk region over the past day, as a result of Russian shelling, five civilians were killed - two in Kurakhovo, one each in Bakhmut, Avdeevka and Karlovka. Another 12 people were injured, Pavel Kirilenko, head of the OVA, said.
07:40 The Armed Forces of Ukraine repelled enemy attacks in the areas of the settlements of Zaitsevo, Odradovka and Novomikhailovka, the General Staff said in the morning report .
06:09 The EU will introduce new sanctions against the leadership of Russia and people involved in organizing "referendums" in the "DPR", "LPR", Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, according to a statement by the EU foreign ministers, which was read out by Borrell. In addition, according to him, EU foreign ministers agreed to increase arms supplies to Ukraine.
02:17 The patronage service of Azov published a photo of the released defenders:
02:02 Zelensky at a meeting of the UN General Assembly presented the Ukrainian five-point peace formula: "First: punishing the aggressor. Second: protecting life. Third: restoring security and territorial integrity. Fourth: security guarantees. And fifth: decisiveness. We are ready for peace. "But to a fair and just world. That is why the whole world is with us... Russia wants war. But Russia cannot stop the course of history. Humanity and international law are stronger than one terrorist state. Russia will have to end this war. The war it start."
According to the president, the five commanders of the defenders of Mariupol will remain in Turkey until the end of the war - these are the terms of the exchange. In Turkey, they will be under the personal protectorate of the Turkish president and in comfortable conditions. They will also have the opportunity to meet in person.
01:59 A complete list of released Ukrainian servicemen has appeared online . Of the 215 people - 124 officers.
01:37 Zelensky commented on the exchange of prisoners: "This is definitely a victory for our state, for the whole society. And most importantly, for 215 families who will be able to see their loved ones in safety. Hero of Ukraine Yevhen Bova. Hero of Ukraine Lev Pashko. Hero of Ukraine Denis Prokopenko. A total of 108 fighters of Azov, 188 heroes of Azovstal and Mariupol. Eight were wounded during the Russian terrorist attack in Yelenovka. A total of 215 heroes! These are the soldiers of the National Guard, our army, the Navy, others. Once again, I thank everyone who realized this victory for Ukraine."
01:03 Yermak spoke about a large exchange of prisoners, which took place in several stages and in different locations. Ukraine returned 215 people from Russian captivity - "these are the military, border guards, policemen, sailors, National Guardsmen, Troshniks, customs officers, civilians ... Among them are officers, commanders, Heroes of Ukraine, defenders of Azovstal and pregnant military women ."
"Denis Prokopenko "Redis", Sergei Volynsky "Volyn", Svyatoslav Palamar, Denis Shlega, Oleg Khomenko - commanders from Azovstal - they are already safe. This is the result of personal agreements between President Zelensky and President Erdogan," Yermak wrote. He also confirmed the release of ten foreigners who fought for Ukraine and were threatened with death - they are already in the city of Riyadh.
" We exchanged 200 of our heroes for Medvedchuk , who has already given all possible evidence to the investigation. And the five heroes-commanders of Azovstal - for 55 Russian prisoners who are of no interest to us," Yermak added.
00:12 Putin announced partial mobilization. Partial mobilization can become massive at any moment, experts warn