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Ukraine downs 29 Russian drones, missile
Warsaw, Kyiv make breakthrough on Ukrainian grain transit; Russia vows no new mobilisation as 335,000 sign up to fight
REUTERS
Ukraine destroyed 29 of 31 drones launched by Russia and one cruise missile, its air force said yesterday, most of them targeting the regions of Mykolaiv and Dnipropetrovsk.
The waves of overnight attacks lasted more than three hours, the southern command of Ukraine’s forces had said earlier.
Falling debris in the southeastern city of Dnipro caused a fire at a private firm that was quickly doused, said Serhiy Lysak, governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region.
Damage to manufacturing facilities at an industrial enterprise in the city of Pavlohrad led to a fire that was also put out, he added on the Telegram messaging app.
Sixteen drones were destroyed over the southern region of Mykolaiv, its governor, Vitaliy Kim, said.
The attacks came as Warsaw and Kyiv announced yesterday they had agreed to speed up the transit of Ukrainian cereal exports through Poland to third countries, a first step towards resolving their “grain war”.
It is the first breakthrough since the start of a diplomatic spat between the two allies that was triggered when Poland slapped a ban on imports of Ukrainian grain.
The populist government in Warsaw, which faces a general election on October 15, said the embargo was designed to protect local farmers against a collapse in cereal prices.
Ukrainian exports transiting Poland on route to world markets -- in Africa and the Middle East in particular -- remain authorised.
Under yesterday’s agreement, which also involves Lithuania, some Ukrainian grain destined for world markets will transit directly through Poland without undergoing quality checks at the Polish border.
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said yesterday Russia has no plans for an additional mobilisation of men to fight in Ukraine as more than 335,000 have signed up so far this year to fight in the armed forces or voluntary units.
Russia has been bolstering its armed forces and ramping up weapons production in the expectation of a long war in Ukraine, where front lines have barely shifted for a year.
“There are no plans for an additional mobilisation,” Shoigu was shown telling top generals on state television. “The armed forces have the necessary number of military personnel to conduct the special military operation.”
Shoigu, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, hailed the patriotism of those who had signed up.
“Since the start of the year, more than 335,000 people have entered military service under contract and in volunteer formations,” Shoigu said. “In September alone, more than 50,000 citizens signed contracts.”
Those figures indicate that Russia has made significant progress both in signing recruits and in absorbing many fighters from the Wagner mercenary force into “voluntary formations”.
Putin ordered a “partial mobilisation” of 300,000 reservists in September last year, prompting hundreds of thousands of young men to flee Russia to avoid being sent to fight.
Putin has repeatedly said there is no need to repeat the mobilisation, which some Russian officials say was a mistake as it prompted so many to leave.