War in Ukraine: 20 drones shot down, the president of the Russian Duma threatens the West once again… an update on the situation

Les troupes russes a frappé l'hôtel Kryvyi Rih le 27 août dernier. MAXPPP – Mykola Miakshykov/Avalon

Every day, Midi Libre takes stock of the situation in Ukraine. This Wednesday, September 11, 2024, discover the latest news about this conflict.

Blinken and Lammy in Ukraine to show Washington and London's support for kyiv

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and British Foreign Secretary David Lammy arrived in Ukraine on Wednesday at a time seen as crucial for support for Kiev. The top U.S. diplomat said he would use his visit to ask Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other officials directly about Kiev's current military goals and how Washington can help achieve them. “This is a defining moment for Ukraine in the midst of what is a period of intense struggle against a Russia that continues to escalate its aggression,”, Antony Blinken said Tuesday in London at a news conference alongside David Lammy.

In Kiev, the British Foreign Secretary announced that Britain would provide 600 million pounds (709.06 million euros) in additional aid to Ukraine. This aid, which represents “vital support for Ukrainians as they continue to suffer relentless Russian attacks”, David Lammy said, includes £242 million in funding, including for humanitarian needs, and £484 million in loan guarantees to the World Bank before the end of the year. Britain already commits £3 billion a year to support Ukraine militarily. “Together with the United States, we stand firmly behind Ukraine for as long as it takes,”, David Lammy added in a statement.

The visit comes after the United States announced that Iran had supplied ballistic missiles to Russia, a move that Antony Blinken called a “serious escalation.” In response, the United States imposed new sanctions on Iran on Tuesday, while other Western countries, including France, are preparing to take similar measures. US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that his administration was “considering” whether to lift restrictions that Washington imposes on Ukraine on the use of long-range weapons.

The US Secretary of State has refused to say whether Washington will allow kyiv to use long-range American weapons to strike the heart of Russia, as requested by Volodymyr Zelensky. Multiple factors must be taken into account, he said. The speaker of the lower house of the Russian parliament, issuing yet another threat to Western countries, said that Russia will consider the United States and its allies as co-belligerents if they allow Ukraine to use long-range missiles against its territory.

For his part, Iran's foreign minister denied that Tehran had supplied ballistic missiles to Russia, adding that sanctions would not solve any problems. “Iran has NOT delivered ballistic missiles to Russia. Period (…) Sanctions are not a solution, but part of the problem”, Abbas Araqchi said on the social network X.

Ukraine shot down 20 drones launched by Russia overnight

The Ukrainian Air Force said it shot down 20 of 25 drones launched by Russia overnight Tuesday into Wednesday in six regions of the country. Russian forces also used nine missiles, the air force added on the Telegram messaging app. Kyiv Region Governor Ruslan Kravchenko reported no damage to residential or critical infrastructure or casualties in the region surrounding the capital. Ihor Tabourets, governor of Cherkasy in the center of the country, said air defenses shot down one drone over the region, without mentioning any damage. Six drones were shot down in the Dnipropetrovsk region, according to its governor Serhiy Lyssak.

Various night attacks in the central region injured one person and damaged four residential buildings and infrastructure. The army also shot down five drones over the Kherson region, where attacks injured 13 people over the past 24 hours, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said. Russia also targeted a hospital in the Chernihiv region in northern Ukraine, an attack that did not cause any casualties according to preliminary information, its governor Vyacheslav Chaus said.

Russian Duma speaker threatens Western powers again

Russia will consider the United States and its allies as co-belligerents if they allow Ukraine to use long-range missiles against its territory, the speaker of the lower house of the Russian parliament said on Wednesday, issuing yet another threat to Western countries. The United States, Germany, France and Great Britain “become parties to the war in Ukraine”, Vyacheslav Volodin wrote on Telegram. Moscow accuses Western countries of becoming co-belligerents every time the supply of new weapons to Ukraine is mentioned, even though this does not correspond to the definition of co-belligerence in international law. “Our country will be forced to respond by using more powerful and more destructive weapons to protect its citizens”, the Duma speaker threatened without giving further details.

US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that his administration was “considering” to a possible lifting of restrictions that Washington imposes on Ukraine on the use of long-range weapons. Sources have also told Reuters that the United States is considering providing Kiev with cruise missiles that could allow strikes deeper into Russia, including targeting bases from which planes bombing Ukraine take off.

The debate over the issue has accelerated since the United States announced that Iran had supplied ballistic missiles to Russia, a move that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called a “serious escalation”.