The Ukraine war has been raging for 545 days. The mayor of the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih reported a missile strike that left one person injured, and damaged an energy facility.

Two drones crashed in Krasnogorsk in Russia’s Moscow region, causing damage to a building and some cars.

A report by the New Yorker claims tech billionaire Elon Musk held “regular” consultations with the Kremlin and discussed the war in Ukraine with Putin.

The Ukrainian army has seen successful advances near the town of Robotyne in the Zaporizhzhia region, according to an ISW briefing.

Read the top overnight headlines in Novaya-Europe’s round-up.

Mayor: explosion rocks Kryvyi Rih

Kryvyi Rih Mayor Oleksandr Vilkul has reported an explosion in the city overnight that he said was caused by a Russian missile. Vilkul said that one senior citizen was injured in the attack, sustaining multiple face wounds, and 20 residential buildings and the city’s energy infrastructure were also damaged.

The Russian military also attacked the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia overnight, damaging four apartment buildings, senior city official Anatoly Kurtev reported. The regional governor noted that attack drones had been used in the strike.

Two drones shot down in the Moscow region

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin reported that Russian air-defence systems had intercepted two incoming attack drones in the early hours of Tuesday.

The regional governor Andrey Vorobyov said that the emergency services had been dispatched to the town of Krasnogrosk, where one of the drones crashed. “The impact shattered windows in an apartment block and damaged cars,” he said, adding that no residents had been injured.

The Russian Defence Ministry has accused Kyiv of launching the attack, adding that two more drones were intercepted in the south-western Bryansk region.

The New Yorker: Elon Musk, Putin had phone conversation

Contorversial tech billionaire Elon Musk confirmed to the Pentagon in autumn 2022 that he had discussed the war in Ukraine with Russian President Vladimir Putin, The New Yorker reported on Monday, citing Pentagon staffers.

According to one source that spoke to The New Yorker on condition of anonymity, Musk said “I had this great conversation with Putin,” to which the staffer replied: “Oh, dear, this is not good”.

The second Pentagon official interviewed by The New Yorker said that Musk spoke to Putin several weeks before setting out his own peace plan for Ukraine, which drew widespread condemnation for its Russia-friendly terms. According to the report, such consultations with the Kremlin were “regular” occurrences for Musk.

Ukrainian army gains tactical success near Robotyne — ISW

Ukrainian troops secured tangible gains against Russian forces to the east of the village of Robotyne, in the western part of the Zaporizhzhia region between 20-21 August, the US Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported, citing Ukraine’s Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar and several Russian military bloggers.

In particular, the Ukrainian army is claimed to have progressed in its offensive southeast of Robotyne and south of Mala Tokmachka, while Russia’s counter-attack in the area failed. Russian troops retreated from several positions near the village of Verbove, possibly in response to Kyiv’s advance south of Mala Tokmachka.

The ISW said that Ukrainian attacks near the village were tactically significant, since an advance in the region would allow the Ukrainian army to avoid heavily-mined areas while conducting operations.