Ukraine's defense ministry asks Crimea residents to provide details of bases and movements of Russian forces
From CNN's Julia Kesaieva
Ukraine's defense ministry has appealed to informants in Crimea to relay details of the movements of Russian forces.
The Defense Intelligence Unit said on its Telegram channel that it wanted residents of Crimea to provide "the exact location of the deployment points and residential addresses of the occupying forces (preferred geo-referencing with coordinates)" as well as details of where senior officers lived.
It also asked people to provide the "locations and routes of movement of military equipment" and "accurate data of local collaborators who switched to the side of the enemy."
Ukraine has not acknowledged any attacks on Russian military locations and equipment in Crimea.
12:28 p.m. ET, August 31, 2022
Heavy explosions reported in several parts of Kherson in southern Ukraine
From CNN's Julia Kesaieva and Tim Lister
There are multiple reports of heavy explosions in the Nova Kakhovka area of the Ukrainian region of Kherson in the south.
The town, which is occupied by Russian forces, is strategically placed on river Dnipro, with a bridge that has been repeatedly attacked by Ukrainian forces.
In the last few weeks, ammunition depots in the area have also been struck.
Local social media accounts speak of air strikes and a large fire in the vicinity of a furniture factory.
There are also reports of fresh explosions near the main Antonivskiy bridge across the Dnipro south of Kherson city, as well as explosions in the nearby Oleshkiy area.
There has been no official comment from either side on the reports.
The reports come days after Ukraine announced a new offensive in the south aimed at dislodging Russian forces in Kherson.
5:02 p.m. ET, August 31, 2022
Divisions remain within EU after political agreement to suspend visa facilitation deal with Russia
From CNN's Chris Liakos, Boglarka Kosztolanyi and Duarte Mendonça
A Dutch passport control for truck drivers on January 4, 2021. (Sem Van Der Wal/ANP/AFP/Getty Images/File)
Divisions within the European Union remain following today’s informal EU foreign ministers meeting held in Prague.
While the ministers reached a political agreement to fully suspend EU’s visa facilitation agreement with Russia, the bloc remains split when it comes to an outright visa ban.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Wednesday that several member states, including his country, “have raised their voice” against an EU blanket visa ban.
In a statement released after the meeting, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said that he supported ending the EU’s visa facilitation agreement with Russia but that “this alone would not be enough,” adding that Estonia and other neighboring countries that share a border with Russia and Belarus would consider a national visa ban.
“Until we have reached an agreement on how to restrict the entry of Russian nationals to the European Union, Estonia and other countries that share a border with Russia and Belarus will consider a national visa ban or restricting border crossings for Russian nationals with EU visas,” Reinsalu said in the statement released on the foreign ministry’s website.
“At the informal meeting, the foreign ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland issued a joint statement on the substantial increase in Russian citizens entering the European Union and the Schengen area and the security threat it poses,” the statement added.
Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told journalists that the EU today took a step “in the right direction,” according to Finnish public broadcaster YLE.
“A common approach will prevent a potential visa shopping by Russians going here and there trying to look for the better conditions,” EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a news conference following the meeting.
Visas were already restricted to some categories of Russian nationals. Borrell said that this is not a legal text but only a political agreement at this point.
12:23 p.m. ET, August 31, 2022
More security assistance for Ukraine will be announced in the days ahead, US official says
From CNN's Betsy Klein
National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby answers questions during a briefing at the White House on August 4, in Washington, DC. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
John Kirby, the United States' National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, said Wednesday to expect another announcement of military aid for Ukraine in the coming days.
“We ... committed more than $13 billion of security assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and we will continue to do that. And there will be announcements of future security assistance in the coming days,” he told reporters.
US aid provided so far: This would come after US President Joe Biden announced $2.98 billion in military assistance for Ukraine last Wednesday. The US has provided approximately $13 billion in military aid to Ukraine since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began Feb. 24, a National Security Council official told CNN.
Since the beginning of the war, the US has provided $7 billion in grants for direct budget support and over $1.5 billion of humanitarian aid for Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees, the official said.
11:05 a.m. ET, August 31, 2022
IAEA director says Zaporizhzhia mission is not risk-free but he looks forward to continuing presence
From CNN's Tim Lister
Rafael Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said that his team's mission to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is "not risk-free" but has to be carried out.
Speaking to journalists in the city of Zaporizhzhia, which is in Ukrainian-held territory, Grossi said that visiting the plant was something "we need to do."
He said the visit would be carried out under the auspices of the safeguards agreement that the IAEA had with the Ukrainian government.
Grossi said he had brought an experienced team — the "best and brightest," as he called them — "and we will have a pretty good idea of what's going on" at the plant.
He said the mission would take a few days, but spoke of the possibility of a permanent or continuing IAEA presence at the plant, Europe's biggest nuclear power complex.
Grossi said his team's mission was a technical one that seeks to avoid a nuclear accident and required the political will of both sides in the conflict.
12:31 p.m. ET, August 31, 2022
EU foreign ministers reach political consensus to fully suspend visa agreement between EU and Russia
From CNN's Chris Liakos
European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, center, speaks with Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky and German Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock during a meeting in Prague, Czech Republic on August 31. (Katerina Sulova/CTK/AP)
Following a two-day informal meeting in Prague, the European foreign ministers have reached political consensus to fully suspend the visa facilitation agreement between the European Union and Russia.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said in a news conference following the meeting that this decision “will significantly reduce the number of new visas issued by the EU member states” given that the process would become more difficult and take longer.
Visas were already restricted to some categories of Russian nationals. Borrell said that this is not a legal text but only a political agreement at this point.
The agreement will have to be approved by all member states at an European Council level.
Borrell said that since mid-July, there has been a “substantial increase on border crossings from Russia in neighboring states,” which has become “a security risk for these states.”
“We have seen many Russians traveling for leisure and shopping as if no war was raging in Ukraine,” Borrell said.
“It cannot be business as usual,” he added.
9:46 a.m. ET, August 31, 2022
Ukrainian official says there have been "successes" in counteroffensive, while Russia disputes claims
From CNN’s Jo Shelley in London, Olga Voitovych in Kyiv and Uliana Pavlova
The Ukrainian Armed Forces have had “successes” in fighting in three areas of Kherson, according to Yurii Sobolevskyi, deputy head of the regional council.
Sobolevskyi told Ukrainian television that the successful operations were in the cities of Kherson, Beryslav and Kakhovka. He did not provide further details.
Separately, Natalia Humeniuk, a spokesperson for Ukraine's Operational Command South, said: “We are currently continuing our work on destroying the enemy's logistics centers, cutting off transportation to draw up [its] reserves, and destroying ammunition depots. This work is quite effective.”
A report released by the UK’s Ministry of Defence on Wednesday said Ukrainian forces had pushed Russian forces back “some distance in places” in the south.
“Ukrainian armoured forces have continued to assault Russia’s Southern Grouping of Forces on several axes across the south of the country since Monday,” according to the report. “Ukrainian formations have pushed the front line back some distance in places, exploiting relatively thinly held Russian defences.”
What Russia says: A post on the Russian defense ministry’s Telegram channel on Wednesday claimed that Ukrainian attempts to “resume offensive operations” in areas of southern Ukraine had failed. The ministry said Russian forces inflicted heavy losses of equipment and personnel.
Here's a look at the areas claimed as part of the Ukrainian counteroffensive:
9:27 a.m. ET, August 31, 2022
War in Ukraine drives up UK food prices to new high
From CNN's Zayn Nabbi and Alex Hardie in London
People purchase goods at a supermarket in Reading, Britain on August 21. (Tim Ireland/Xinhua/Getty Images)
The price of food in the United Kingdom has increased at the "highest inflation rate since August 2008" as the country feels the impact of the war in Ukraine, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and NielsenIQ index.
Overall "food inflation accelerated strongly to 9.3% in August, up from 7.0% in July," which is "the highest inflation rate since August 2008" the report released Wednesday stated.
“Mounting cost pressures up and down supply chains meant shop price inflation hit a new high in August. The war in Ukraine, and consequent rise in the price of animal feed, fertilizer, wheat and vegetable oils continued to push up food prices," BRC Chief Executive Helen Dickinson said.
"Fresh food inflation in particular, surged to its highest level since 2008, and products such as milk, margarine and crisps saw the biggest rises,” Dickinson added.
Fresh food is now up to 10.5% from 8.0% in July.
“The rise in shop prices is playing into wider UK inflation, which some analysts are predicting could top 18% in 2023. The situation is bleak for both consumers and retailers," Dickinson added.
9:22 a.m. ET, August 31, 2022
Inspectors’ visit to nuclear power plant will take a few days, head of delegation says
From CNN’s Jo Shelley in London
Inspectors from the UN's nuclear watchdog will visit the Zaporizhzhia power plant for “a few days,” the head of the delegation told reporters on Wednesday.
“The mission will take a few days, and if we are able to establish a permanent presence or a continued presence ... then it's going to be prolonged. But this first segment, so to speak, is going to take a few days," Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi said.
Grossi described his team as being on a “technical mission” that “seeks to prevent a nuclear accident.”
Earlier Wednesday, the head of the Russian-appointed local administration told news agency Interfax that the team is expected to "see the work of the station in one day."
