September 6, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news

The death toll from the Russian missile attack on a market in the eastern Donetsk region town of Kostiantynivka has risen to 17, Ukraine’s Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko said in a Telegram statement.

A child was among the 17 dead, according to Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. The attack is one of the deadliest in months.

The number of injured has risen to 32, Klymenko added.

A Russian S-300 missile appears to have landed in the middle of the town, according to reports from the scene. Videos from the ground show a fierce fire and thick black smoke rising, with at least one casualty visible on the ground.

According to the unofficial reports, the market is located near a shopping center. 

Kostiantynivka is close to the front lines around Bakhmut and frequently crowded with military personnel.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has described the attack as “utter inhumanity,” saying that the number of dead and injured may rise. “This Russian evil must be defeated as soon as possible,” he added.

Editor's note: The death toll and number of injured has been updated to reflect the latest information provided by authorities.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US is “determined to continue to walk side-by-side” with Ukraine when he met with President Zelensky in Kyiv on Wednesday, as he called Ukraine’s progress in the counteroffensive “very, very encouraging.”

“President Biden asked me to come, to reaffirm strongly our support. To ensure that we are maximizing the efforts that we're making and that other countries are making, for the immediate challenge of the counteroffensive, as well as the longer-term efforts to help Ukraine build a force of the future that can deter and defend against any future aggression,” Blinken said.

Blinken said that he looks forward to getting an assessment from Zelensky after his visit to the conflict’s frontlines.

Zelensky said it is always a “great message of support” for Ukraine when US officials visit, noting that this is a “tough period” for Ukrainians.

The Ukrainian president expressed gratitude to President Joe Biden and to Congress for showing “great unity” in a bipartisan fashion when it comes to Ukraine.

“When you speak about Ukraine you are always together, thank you so much,” Zelensky said. “We are happy that we can count on you.”

Zelensky said that the US financial support for Ukraine’s budget is “crucial” and noted that a difficult winter is ahead.

“We are happy that we not alone through this winter,” Zelensky said.

The US is expected to include depleted uranium munitions for the first time in a military aid package to Ukraine, which is anticipated to be announced on Wednesday, a US official told CNN.

The munitions can be fired from the US-made Abrams tanks that are set to arrive in Ukraine this fall. The munitions can pierce armored plates like those found on tanks because they are made of a highly dense metal, a byproduct from fuel production for nuclear power plants. Depleted uranium rounds are nearly 70% denser than lead, which is the metal used in standard rounds of ammunition.

The munitions are mildly radioactive, raising questions about their safety and the risk they could pose to civilians — but they have been stripped of most of their radioactive matter and can't produce a nuclear reaction. The US has the munitions stockpiled around the world, a US official told CNN.

The UK defense ministry confirmed in March that it would be sending ammunition containing depleted uranium to Ukraine, which Russian President Vladimir Putin protested. “I would like to note that if all this happens, Russia will have to react accordingly,” he said during a press conference in March. “I mean that the collective West is already starting to use weapons with a nuclear component.” The British ministry said Russia was “deliberately trying to disinform.”

The International Atomic Energy Agency has said that depleted uranium is “considerably less radioactive than natural uranium.” The agency added that the “main conclusion” of studies done on the health of military personnel exposed to depleted uranium is that exposure could not be linked to any statistically significant increases in the personnel’s mortality rates.

Deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh told CNN on Wednesday that the US is confident the Ukrainians would use the munitions responsibly if and when they are provided.

The move to provide the depleted uranium rounds comes after US President Joe Biden's administration decided to send controversial cluster munitions to Ukraine earlier this year. Both types of ammunition, the US believes, will help the Ukrainians break through Russian defensive lines and pierce Russian tanks amid the ongoing counteroffensive.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed gratitude to diplomats in Ukraine as he spoke to US embassy staff in Kyiv during his unannounced visit to Ukraine on Wednesday.

“It is quite simply inspiring to your colleagues to see the work that you're doing and the way that you're doing. I feel very strongly all the way back in Washington. You are at the top of our minds back home,” Blinken said, speaking to the diplomats’ “remarkable courage.”

Blinken acknowledged the challenges – both logistically and emotionally – that the diplomats and the local Ukrainian staff who work at the embassy face each day.

Blinken thanked the diplomats who put work into organizing his visit, and the visits of other US officials.

“I just want to tell you how grateful I am for doing this work. Any visit in any embassy is challenging and complicated. To do it here, in the middle of a war, adds to the complexity,” he said. 

Blinken said he had a chance to meet with senior leadership at the embassy earlier in the day. He was introduced by the US Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink.

“Secretary Blinken’s presence here in Kyiv, and his many visits before, are proof that he is literally here with us in this fight,” said Brink. 

 Brink acknowledged the deadly Russian strikes overnight saying: “As we saw just last night again, it's dangerous and the pace of work is relentless.”

In remarks as Ukraine’s new defense minister, Rustem Umerov vowed to wrest back control of "every centimeter" of Ukrainian land from Russia and bring home all those in captivity.

He said he will “do everything possible and impossible for the victory of Ukraine — when we liberate every centimeter of our country and every one of our people,” speaking shortly after the Ukrainian parliament approved his appointment.

Umerov has been prominently involved with the return of prisoners of war.

“Forty-two million Ukrainians stand behind every soldier. Behind every soldier is a ministry that will do everything to protect and provide for all our people. Our people, their lives and dignity are our priority and highest value,” he added.

Some background: Umerov replaces Oleksii Reznikov, whose long tenure – he had been in the post since before the full-scale war started – had been damaged by contract scandals involving the defense ministry.

Reznikov submitted his resignation on Monday after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy cited the need for "new approaches," with the conflict entering a critical phase.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Kyiv for his third visit to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion. On the agenda: The progress of Ukraine’s counteroffensive. After securing pockets of territory on the southern front – more slowly than Kyiv and its allies had hoped – some analysts are suggesting that subsequent gains may come more quickly, now that Ukraine’s troops have breached the first and most heavily fortified line of Russian defense.

And, as if to signal its intent to build on this hard-earned momentum, Rustem Umerov has become Ukraine’s new defense minister, after his appointment was approved by parliament.

Here are the latest developments:

Here's the latest map of control:

Romania's defense minister, Angel Tilvar, has confirmed that parts of a Russian drone may have fallen on Romanian territory after it had targeted a Ukrainian port on the River Danube, which runs along the border between the two countries.

Tilvar spoke with CNN’s Romanian affiliate A3CNN while visiting the area Wednesday.

“We have covered a very large area, including the area that has been publicly discussed, and I confirm that in this area pieces that may be from a drone were found,” he told reporters in Tulcea. The wreckage will be taken for further analysis.

The defense ministry had initially denied reports earlier this week that parts of a Russian drone had fallen on the Romanian side of the Danube.

Ukraine's Danube ports have come under heavy and prolonged Russian bombardment in recent weeks, as Moscow targets Ukraine's grain storage facilities and infrastructure after allowing the Black Sea grain deal to lapse in July.

Many of the strikes have landed just across the border from Romania, a NATO member. Romania's defense ministry condemned an attack earlier this week “in the strongest possible terms,” calling it “unjustified and in deep contradiction with the rules of international humanitarian law.”

There were further drone attacks on the Ukrainian side of the river in the early hours of Wednesday, one of them killing an agricultural worker, according to a Ukrainian official.

Editor's note: The headline and first line of this post have been updated to better characterize officials' statements.

Commenting on US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to Kyiv, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that the United States has expressed its commitment to continue keeping Ukraine in a state of war “until the last Ukrainian.”

Peskov added that this would not alter the course of the war.

The Ukrainian parliament has approved the appointment of Rustem Umerov as the new defense minister.

Umerov, a Crimean Tatar, was formerly chairman of the State Property Fund, whose mission is to attract investment into Ukraine.

He replaces Oleksii Reznikov, whose long tenure – he had been in the post since before the full-scale war started – had been damaged by contract scandals involving the defense ministry.

Reznikov submitted his resignation on Monday after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy cited the need for "new approaches," with the conflict entering a critical phase.