Ukraine War News Today - Top Stories and Breaking Updates from Kyiv Post

German investigators believe the suspect – known only as Serhii K. – was part of a Ukrainian cell that purportedly executed the plot to blow up Russia’s underwater gas pipelines.

Italian police arrested a 49-year-old Ukrainian man in the early hours of Thursday morning, alleging his involvement in the 2022 underwater bombing of the Nord Stream gas pipelines that once connected Russia to Western Europe.

On Sept. 26, 2022, three pipes belonging to Nord Stream 1 and 2 exploded at the bottom of the Baltic Sea, roughly 300 km (186 miles) from the German seaport of Rostock. 

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro accuses New Delhi of “profiteering” and “perpetuating the war” in Ukraine as it continues to buy Russian oil despite the US tariffs.

WASHINGTON, DC – In a rare and striking public appearance, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro delivered a scathing critique of India’s role in the global energy market, directly linking the country’s purchases of Russian oil to Moscow’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. 

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Thursday, Navarro framed India’s actions as a “laundromat for the Kremlin” and a “profiteering scheme” that is undermining international sanctions and costing American taxpayers.

Join Kyiv Post inside a Ukrainian POW camp, where captured Russian and foreign fighters reveal life behind the fences: their routines, work, meals, and views on the war.

Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, approved a nearly $1 billion increase in non-military expenditures, covering digital transformation, schools, medicines and veterans’ support.

Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, approved changes to the 2025 state budget to raise mostly non-military expenditures by Hr.41.3 billion ($992.8 million) on Wednesday.

The extra funding, with 229 votes in favor, will go toward the reserve fund, digital transformation, school, medicines, veterans support, housing for displaced persons and further needs.

Following an uncharacteristic update slamming Moscow’s invasion, the US president issued another update likening him and Putin to Nixon and Khrushchev – in a historic Cold War debate.

US President Donald Trump has issued a cryptic message hinting at a potential fallout with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Thursday. 

In a Truth Social update, Trump first acknowledged Russia invaded Ukraine and that Kyiv has been on the defensive – while blaming his predecessor Joe Biden for “not [letting] Ukraine fight back” – before hinting “interesting time ahead.” 

After another major Russian strike, the US president shifted tone – acknowledging Russia’s invasion, noting Kyiv is on the defensive, and hinting the situation may soon change.

US President Donald Trump tacitly acknowledges Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and notes Kyiv has been on the defensive – while hinting at turning the tables – in a sudden shift of tone on Thursday, Aug. 21.

Trump’s remarks – one of his most pro-Ukrainian to date – came after Russian missiles destroyed the office of a US-based electronics manufacturer in western Ukraine, though it is unclear if the events are related.

Russian officials announced all the Ukrainian robot aircraft “were shot down.” Major fires were reported in occupied Crimea, and in Russia’s Rostov region and Voronezh regions.

Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) pilots and ground crews on Thursday, Aug. 21, launched a new round of nighttime drone strikes against Kremlin assets hundreds of kilometers behind the fighting front, in one attack scoring multiple hits on a base belonging to Russia’s army intelligence agency – the GRU.

Attack on GRU compound in Crimea

The manufacturer of Ukraine’s new long-range missile said the production capacity is one per day at present, with the goal of reaching seven per day by October.

Fire Point, the Ukrainian manufacturer of Kyiv’s new Flamingo cruise missiles, said the current production capacity is one per day, with the goal of reaching seven per day by October.

Initial unveilings of the missile suggest that it visually resembles the FP-5 system made by UK-based Milanion Group, which has a stated production capacity of 50 missiles per month.

Zelensky says Ukraine won’t trade land for peace, rules out China as guarantor, pushes US for sanctions and drone deal, and confirms Flamingo missile mass production.

President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking with journalists on Wednesday, Aug. 20, outlined Ukraine’s firm stance on territories, NATO, sanctions, and new weapons while stressing that Moscow is “trying to invent a victory.”

Moscow is trying to invent a victory

The situation at the front is currently difficult, but not as bleak as Russian leader Vladimir Putin portrays, Zelensky told reporters.

The reported strike on Thursday is the latest claim from Kyiv of targeting Russian logistics in occupied regions, set against ongoing peace talks and potential territorial concessions.

Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SSO) said it had struck Russian trains carrying fuel and lubricants near the Dzhankoy railway station in occupied Crimea on early Thursday.

The city in northern Crimea also hosts an airfield for the Russian military, which has previously been a target of multiple Ukrainian strikes, including once in 2024 that took out a Russian S-400 missile system.

The Swedish armed forces has been tasked with making preparations and establishing the base so that it would be operable by the end of 2027.

Sweden will host a NATO logistics headquarters in the town of Enkoping, northwest of Stockholm, to troop movements in Northern Europe, the government said Thursday.

“NATO presence in Sweden strengthens our security and deterrence. The logistics centre assists the defense of NATO’s northern flank,” Defense Minister Pal Jonson said.

During an overnight attack in western Ukraine, Russia targeted the plant of Flex Ltd, a US-based electronics manufacturing leader listed on Nasdaq, causing extensive damage and casualties.

During a massive combined overnight Wednesday-Thursday air strike on Ukraine, Russia struck the Flex Ltd plant in Mukachevo, a subsidiary of a US-based electronics manufacturing services company listed on Nasdaq. 

The news was first reported by Ukraine’s foreign minister Andriy Sybiha and later confirmed by local officials: 

Ukrainian forces near Pokrovsk eliminated more than 200 Russian troops in three days, the General Staff reported, adding that several Donetsk settlements have been cleared.

Ukrainian troops in the Dobropillya direction near Pokrovsk (Donetsk region) continue clearing Russian forces, with more than 200 Russian soldiers killed over the past three days, according to the General Staff.

As per the report on Telegram, active joint actions by the Armed Forces (AFU) and the National Guard, including units of the Azov 1st Corps, have inflicted significant losses on Russia.

Russia launched more than 600 missiles and drones in one of the largest attacks of the war.

Russia carried out one of the largest attacks of the war, launching more than 600 drones and missiles, according to the Ukrainian Air Force.

In a statement on Telegram, the Air Force reported that in the early hours of Aug. 21, Russia launched 574 Shahed attack drones and decoys, along with 40 missiles, including:

Latest from the British Defence Intelligence.

• Open source reporting indicates Russian children and youngpeople are being taught and trained in the operation andtechnical underpinnings of uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) atmore than 500 schools in Russia, as well as 30 colleges withpractical training centres. More than 2,500 teachers arereported to have been trained to teach in this field. This formspart of Russia’s Minister of Education and Science Valery Falkov’sMay 2024 stated intention to have trained one million UASspecialists by 2030.
• On 12 June 2025 Russian President Putin also reportedly statedthat the development and deployment of a separate branch ofspecific uncrewed systems forces within the Russian ArmedForces was currently taking place.
• The teaching and instruction of Russian children and youngpeople in the use of UAS is a notable development in the highlylikely continuing militarisation of Russian education, a trendwhich has increased since Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine in2022. Together with Putin’s reported statement, this alsohighlights the continually increasing importance of UAS in theRussia-Ukraine conflict, as well as Russia’s almost certain intent tosignificantly increase both its UAS proficiency, and the scopeand scale of its UAS capabilities, in the longer term.

US defense official Elbridge Colby told allies Washington will play only a limited role in Ukraine’s security guarantees, signaling Europe must take the lead in ensuring lasting peace.

The United States plans to play a minimal role in any Ukraine security guarantees, according to Politico, citing US Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby.

“The Pentagon’s top policy official told a small group of allies Tuesday night that the US plans to play a minimal role in any Ukraine security guarantees, one of the clearest signs yet that Europe will need to shoulder the burden of keeping lasting peace in Kyiv,” Politico wrote.

After US summits, debate shifts to what Western security guarantees for Ukraine should look like — and whether they can truly deter Russia.

Following redoubled diplomatic efforts to achieve peace at the summits in Alaska and Washington, discussions are now focusing on what form the West’s security guarantees for Ukraine could take.Europe’s commentators look at who can provide support, and in what form, and whether such measures can deter Russia in the long run.

US planes needed for this to work

Europe on its own can’t provide effective security guarantees, The Times (Great Britain) stresses:

Russia hit Ukraine overnight with Shahed drones, Kalibrs, and Kinzhal missiles, striking western regions and Zaporizhzhia.

Russia launched a massive attack on Ukraine on Aug. 21, using Shahed drones, Kalibr cruise missiles, and Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles.

Starting in the evening of Aug. 20, groups of Shahed drones were launched from multiple directions. While Kyiv was initially believed to be the main target, the Ukrainian Air Force later clarified that drones were heading in various directions.

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from ISW:

• The Kremlin is demanding that Russia have a veto over any Western security guarantees for Ukraine in an effort to undermine ongoing US, European, and Ukrainian efforts to establish conditions for lasting peace in Ukraine.
• The Kremlin appears to be demanding that any security guarantees be based on those proposed in the Istanbul 2022 framework, which would grant Russia and its allies the right to veto Western military assistance to Ukraine and leave Ukraine helpless in the face of future Russian threats.
• The Kremlin is continuing to indicate that Russian President Vladimir Putin is unwilling to have an immediate bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the timeline proposed by US President Donald Trump.
• The Russian economy continues to face budget deficits as a result of increased defense spending and detrimental effects of Western sanctions and secondary tariffs.
• Secondary tariffs are likely forcing Russia to sell oil below market price, which could be decreasing the incoming flow of foreign funds into the Russian economy and depleting Russia’s primary source of wealth.
• The Kremlin is reportedly considering replacing Russian Investigative Committee (Sledkom) Chairman Alexander Bastrykin, likely as part of the Kremlin’s efforts to form a new and younger elite.
• Ukrainian forces advanced near Pokrovsk. Russian forces advanced in northern Sumy Oblast and near Lyman, Toretsk, and Velykomykhailivka.

Retired US Army Colonel Richard Williams argues Russia will only stop fighting when faced with a direct military challenge, proposing a high-risk solution.

WASHINGTON DC – A retired US Army colonel and veteran of NATO leadership, in an interview with the Kyiv Post, argues that Russia’s ongoing conflict in Ukraine has reached a diplomatic stalemate that can only be resolved by direct military confrontation with Russia.

His assessment comes as the Kremlin, in a stark contrast to recent optimistic statements from Western leaders, is signaling a slow-walk on any peace deal for Ukraine, showing daylight between Moscow and President Donald Trump’s intentions to end the war.

As lawmakers debate funding for drone programs, a new congressional report says the US must adopt superior, adaptable technology to maintain its edge, learning from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

WASHINGTON DC - The gritty, real-time battlefields of Ukraine are serving as an unexpected, brutal laboratory for modern warfare, and the US military is taking notes.

As the Pentagon lobbies Congress for robust Fiscal Year 2026 funding for its Small Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (sUAS) – or drones – a new Congressional Research Service report lays bare the high stakes, revealing how lessons from Eastern Europe’s war-torn country are directly informing the future of American defense strategy.

Atlantic Council analysts explain, “pressure, not goodwill” is what’s going to drive Putin to deal seriously, given that Russia has shown “no flexibility since the deadline for sanctions lapsed”.

WASHINGTON DC – In a high-stakes diplomatic push that began in Alaska and ended at the White House, US President Donald Trump has forged a new, if fragile, path toward a potential peace settlement for Russia’s war in Ukraine.

As the dust settles on a week of intense negotiations, top foreign policy experts at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think-tank, are offering a nuanced assessment, pointing to both tactical missteps and the potential for a workable, if difficult, resolution.

The latest survey, conducted by The Economist and YouGov, highlights a significant divide between what Americans want to happen – Russia gets no Ukrainian territory – and what they expect to happen.

A new exclusive poll from The Economist/YouGov paints a picture of a deeply divided America, with a majority of citizens believing the country is on the wrong track and calling for a broader international effort to end the war in Ukraine.

The poll, conducted from August 15-18, is particularly significant as its findings were released in the midst of a historic White House summit on the conflict.

As Kremlin’s foreign minister dismissed the types of security guarantees that Putin reportedly okayed in Alaska, NATO has moved ahead with designing those kinds of agreements collectively.

The Kremlin on Wednesday said that any bilateral discussions about security guarantees between Kyiv and its respective partners in Europe and North America would have to include Moscow, or else risk become nothing more than a pipe dream for the West.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov menaced that “seriously discussing security guarantees without the Russian Federation is a utopia, a road to nowhere.”

Polish defense chief said it came at “a particular moment, where peace talks are underway, where there is hope that this war... has a chance to end. Russia provokes once again.”

Poland said on Wednesday that a Russian military drone flew into its airspace and exploded in farmland in the east of the country overnight, calling it a “provocation”.

“Once again, we are facing a provocation from the Russian Federation, with a Russian drone,” Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz told reporters.