The Ukraine war has been raging on for 544 days. The missile strike on Ukraine’s Chernihiv has now left 156 people injured.
Russia claims to have detected and downed two more Ukrainian drones in the Moscow region in the morning. All Moscow’s airports had to introduce flight restrictions.
The upcoming BRICS summit in South Africa can extend invitations to join the club for several countries. At the same time, the association is yet to define its candidate selection criteria, the Financial Times reports, citing sources.
Read the top overnight headlines in Novaya-Europe’s round-up.
Russia’s missile strike on Chernihiv leaves 156 people injured
The Russian strike on Chernihiv on the afternoon of 19 August has killed seven people and injured 156 more, the deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Oleksiy Kuleba, reports in his Telegram channel.
He notes that a search and rescue operation has already been completed at the site. In total, 41 victims were taken to hospital. Moreover, 66 residential houses, 10 administrative buildings, and 67 vehicles were damaged.
On August 19, a Russian missile hit downtown Chernihiv. “An ordinary Saturday afternoon, which Russia turned into a day of pain and losses,” the Ukrainian president wrote.
At the time of the strike, a drone exhibition was taking place in the city drama theatre. One of its organisers, Maria Berlinska, said that the announcement of the event was published in the public domain, but the exact location of the exhibition was reported only to registered verified participants a few hours before the event.
Russian Defence Ministry says drone downed in Moscow region
The Russian Defence Ministry said that a Ukrainian drone had been detected over the Moscow region at about 6:50 AM Moscow time. According to the ministry, it was shot down with the help of electronic warfare equipment. The drone fell in the Odintsovo district with no casualties.
Telegram channels reported that all airports of Moscow had introduced flight restrictions. Planes were redirected to alternative airports in Nizhny Novgorod, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Samara, or Minsk. An hour later, Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport was the only one to resume its operation. At the same time, a Domodedovo representative told RBC that the airport also temporarily did not accept flights.
Vnukovo Airport told RIA Novosti that restrictions on arrivals and departures had been introduced for “reasons beyond its control”. The pilot of one of the flights heading to this airport announced that “all Moscow airports are closed” to the passengers.
The Russian Defence Ministry soon reported that another drone had been shot down over the Moscow region at 8:16 AM Moscow time.
UPD: Vnukovo and Domodedovo Airports have resumed normal operations, RBC reports.
UPD2: Russia’s air travel agency specified that flights had been temporarily restricted in Moscow’s four airports — Vnukovo, Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo and Zhukovsky. In this regard, 45 passenger flights and two cargo flights were diverted to alternative airports in Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, and St. Petersburg. As of 9:00 AM Moscow time, all airports were operating normally.
FT: BRICS summit in South Africa can invite several countries to join
The upcoming BRICS summit in Johannesburg is expected to invite several potential members to join, the Financial Times reports, citing sources.
According to the journalists, Argentina, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia can become new members of the club. At the same time, admission criteria is still yet to be determined by the BRICS leaders.
The BRICS expansion issue has become a stumbling block between China and India. FT reports that the two governments disagree whether the bloc should fight for economic interests of developing countries or become a political power that defies the West.
The BRICS summit is scheduled to take place in South Africa on 22-24 August. Invitations to attend the event have been sent to leaders of around 60 states.