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Ukraine Shoots Down 22 Russian Drones That Targeted Odesa Region, Kyiv Says

By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service September 03, 2023

Ukraine's air-defense systems shot down 22 of the 25 Iranian-made Shahed drones that Russia launched on the southern Odesa region in the early hours of September 3, Ukraine's Air Force said.

At least two civilians were injured in the "several waves of attacks" that hit a Danube River port infrastructure, Ukrainian authorities said, adding that the strikes lasted about 3 1/2 hours.

The Danube has become Ukraine's main route for exporting grain since the collapse in July of a United Nations-brokered deal allowing safe shipments from the Black Sea.

Russia has since increased attacks on Ukraine's southern Odesa and Mykolayiv regions, home to ports and infrastructure that are vital for the shipment of grain.

The Russian military said its latest drone strikes hit the Ukrainian port of Reni on the Danube River, on the border with Romania.

"Today at night, the Russian Army carried out a group drone strikes on fuel-storage facilities used to supply military equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the port of Reni, in the Odesa region," the military said on September 3.

"All designated targets were hit," it claimed.

At least one person was killed and six others were wounded by Russian shelling in Ukraine's northeastern Sumy region late on September 2, the regional military authorities said.

The artillery attack caused multiple explosions that also damaged private homes and vehicles, as well as the premises of a former utility company, according to local officials.

In Russia, the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, claimed that some 280,000 people have signed up so far this year for professional service with Russia's military.

The former Russian president made the comments in Russia's Far East, where he said he was meeting local officials to work on efforts to beef up the armed forces.

"According to the Ministry of Defense, since January 1, about 280,000 people have been accepted into the ranks of the armed forces on a contract basis," including reservists, state news agency TASS quoted Medvedev as saying.

Last year, Moscow announced a plan to expand its combat personnel more than 30 percent to 1.5 million, an ambitious task made harder by Russia's heavy casualties in its ongoing war in Ukraine.

According to Britain's Defense Ministry, Russia in recent months has been appealing to citizens of neighboring countries with recruitment adverts for individuals to fight in Ukraine.

"There have been recruitment efforts in Kazakhstan's northern Qostanai region, appealing to the ethnic Russian population," the ministry said on its daily bulletin on September 3.

"Online adverts have been observed in Armenia and Kazakhstan offering $5,140 in initial payments and salaries from $1,973," according to the bulletin.

Central Asian migrants in Russia have also been approached by military recruiters with promises of fast-track citizenship and salaries of up to $4,160, it said.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-shahed- drones-odesa-attack/32576397.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.