Prepared by Sofia Oliynyk, Maryana Zaviyska, Anna Dovha
Foreign policy.
At the UN General Assembly, Zelensky proposed a ‘peace formula’ to the world. It consists of five components:
- punishment of Russia for aggression;
- protection of life;
- restoration of security and territorial integrity;
- security guarantees;
- determination to defend.
Also during the session of the UN General Assembly, Emmanuel Macron stated that the countries that refuse to side with Ukraine in the war against Russia are ‘accomplices’ of the new Russian imperialism. Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda meanwhile called on UN member states to create a tribunal to punish Russian atrocities. Meanwhile, Volodymyr Zelensky issued a decree on the establishment of a special international tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine.
On September 22, Norway officially suspended the agreement on a simplified visa regime with the Russian Federation.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told his lawmakers that everything must be done to lift EU sanctions against Russia for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the end of the year. He said that the sanctions hurt Europe’s economy more than Russia’s. According to Orban, after the restrictions are lifted, the price of gas will immediately halve, and the economy of European countries will recover, contain inflation and reduce the risk of recession.
The First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska took part in the HeForShe Global Summit and the Women in Conflict Forum within the 77th session of the UN General Assembly in New York. Olena Zelenska spoke about the situation of Ukrainian women in wartime conditions. The First Lady also held a meeting with the Executive Director of UN Women, Seema Bacchus. The interlocutors discussed the necessity and relevance of further development of the network of shelters, training of specialists to work in them.
After the meeting of G7 ministers in New York, German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock reported that the countries of the Group of Seven (G7) do not recognize the so-called referendums on the occupied territories of Ukraine. G7 called on all states to unequivocally condemn any so-called referendums in the occupied territories of Ukraine and not to recognize their results.
European Union foreign ministers agreed on September 21 to prepare new sanctions on Russia and increase weapons’ deliveries to Kyiv after President Vladimir Putin ordered the country’s first wartime mobilization since World War Two to fight in Ukraine, Reuters reported.
Partial mobilization.
After Putin’s recent address, Russia authorities published the decree among all on partial mobilization. However, not all information was public, as one paragraph was kept secret. The secret seventh paragraph of the decree on mobilization in the Russian Federation allows the Ministry of Defense to call up one million people. Meanwhile, after the announcement of partial mobilization, as of September 22 11:00 pm, at least 1329 people in 42 cities were detained at protests against mobilization. The most detainees were recorded in Moscow – at least 527. After the announcement of partial mobilization for the war in Ukraine, Russians are trying to leave the country en masse. Long queues were seen at the borders with Finland, Georgia, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan. According to Russian ticketing websites, all direct flights to visa-free countries were sold out by at least Friday, September 23. Flights from Moscow to Istanbul, Yerevan, and Baku are among the most crowded. Google Trends data also show that over the past day, the number of requests to ‘leave Russia’ among Russians has increased. Also, the number of searches of the local ticket aggregator ‘Aviasales’ increased fourfold.
In response to Russian attempts to avoid mobilization the Prime Minister of Estonia Kaja Kallas announced that Estonia will not give asylum to Russians trying to avoid mobilization. Also, the Ministry of Foreign affairs of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs reported that due to security concerns, Latvia does not issue humanitarian or other types of visas to Russian citizens who avoid mobilization, as well as the border restrictions imposed on Russian citizens with visas since September 19. In addition, the Government of Kazakhstan refused to issue permanent residence permits to Russian citizens who want to leave the Russian Federation after the announcement of partial mobilization without Russia’s permission. Meanwhile, the Embassy of Kyrgyzstan in Russia called on its citizens not to take part in Russia’s war against Ukraine and reminded that this is punishable by criminal liability. The embassy of Uzbekistan in the Russian Federation made a similar statement. At the same time, the Defense Minister of Lithuania Arvydas Anušauskas stated that the Lithuanian rapid response forces are increasing their level of readiness to prevent any provocations from the Russian side.
Cities under attack.
Kharkiv region. On the night of September 21, the Russian invaders shelled Kharkiv. Two apartment buildings were damaged, 1 person was injured, and 10 people were blocked in their apartments due to the destruction of the stairwell. An industrial building was also partially destroyed by rocket hits. In the evening, the Russian military continued firing at the city. As a result, 7 garages were destroyed. No casualties were reported. On the territory of the region, the Chuguyiv, Izyum, Kupyansk, and Kharkiv districts were under the Russian attacks. Residential buildings, farm buildings and the upper sluice of the Pechenih dam were damaged. 5 people were injured, one of them is a 13 year-old child. Near the village of Grakove, 3 workers were blown up by a mine during repair work. One person was killed and 2 people were injured.
Mykolaiv region. During September 21, the Russian invaders attacked the area of the National Historical and Archaeological Reserve ‘Olvia’ three times. At the same time, the coastal zone of the city of Ochakiv was shelled. As a result, a fire broke out on the tugboat. Villages located on the dividing line of the Berezneguvat community remain under constant fire. On the night of September 22, the city of Mykolaiv was under a massive missile attack. As a result, multi-story buildings were damaged, windows were broken, gas pipelines, water pipes, cinema and theater courtyards, and administrative buildings were damaged.
Dnipropetrovsk region. On the morning of September 21, the Russian invaders shelled Nikopol and Kryvyi Rih districts. In Nikopol. one person was injured and more than 20 high-rise buildings and private houses, cars, gas furnaces and power lines were damaged. The Russian shells also damaged a local bakery, a kindergarten, a library, and several shops. Several private houses were damaged in Velika Kostromka where 350 families were left without electricity. During the day, the Russian occupiers fired at Synelnykivsky district where infrastructure facilities and agricultural enterprise were attacked. In the evening, the Russian military continued shelling the Nikopol district. As a result, one person was killed and 2 people were injured. On the night of September 22, the Nikpol and Kryvyi Rih districts were under shelling. As a result, in Nikopol, one person was killed, 17 high-rise and private buildings, gas pipelines and power lines were damaged. Russian shells also hit two hospitals, a school, a football field, a local history museum, administrative buildings, several shops and a market.
Zaporizhzhia region. On September 22, the Russian military attacked Zaporizhzhia. As a result of missile attacks, civil infrastructure was damaged. Also, the Russian invaders launched a missile attack on a hotel in the central park of Zaporizhzhia. As a result of the attack an employee of the hotel was killed. In the city, 21 private houses were damaged and one person was killed, 5 people were injured.
Sumy region. On September 21, Russian invaders shelled the village of Volfine. Three private houses were damaged, one house burned down. Also, as a result of the Russian attacks, the premises of the Athens psychoneurological boarding school, substation and power grid were damaged in the region. As a result of Russian shelling of the village of Volfine on September 22, grain warehouses on a local farm caught fire. Also, during the day, the Russian military fired at the village of Yzdetske. As a result, one person was injured, 7 private houses and 6 cars were damaged. In the evening, the Russian invaders attacked the village of Khotin. As a result, three people were injured, an enterprise, a private house and 2 private cars were damaged.
Cities under occupation.
Crimea. In places densely populated by Crimean Tatars, large-scale actions are being taken to forcibly deliver residents to mobilization collection points for further inclusion in the Russian armed forces. The occupation court sentenced the deputy chairman of the Mejlis, Nariman Dzhelal, to 17 years in prison and a fine of 700,000 rubles. Nariman Dzhelala suggests that the criminal case against him was opened because of his participation in the Crimean platform.
Zaporizhzhia region. According to the new decree of the occupying authorities, from October 1, travel outside the temporarily occupied part of the region is allowed only on the basis of a special pass. On the morning of September 21, massive searches were conducted by the Russian invaders in the city of Berdyansk. In the temporarily captured territory of the Zaporizhzhia region, the Russian occupiers promise cash rewards and household appliances to local residents for providing passport data and obtaining citizenship of the Russian Federation.
Kherson region. Russian occupiers kidnapped a school nurse of the village of Verkhni Sirogoza. Also, the Russian military conducted an illegal search of the home of a 54-year-old man, threatened and beat the owner, and accused him of ‘Nazism’. After that, the occupiers kidnapped him. Currently, their whereabouts are unknown.
Luhansk region. In the city of Starobilsk the occupation authorities forbade the local population to leave the city between September 23 and 27. The Russian occupiers are creating armed groups to go around homes and force people to participate in the so-called ‘referendum’.
Donetsk region. ‘Donetsk People’s Republic’ plans the involvement of minor citizens aged 13 to 17 years to participate in the fake referendum of the Russian Federation in the temporarily occupied territory of Donetsk region.
Prisoners of war.
On September 21, an exchange of Ukrainian prisoners of war took place. As a result of the exchange, Ukraine returned 215 Ukrainian defenders, including 108 soldiers of the ‘Azov’ regiment. 200 of them were exchanged for Viktor Medvedchuk. According to the agreements, until the end of the war, 5 commanders of the Azov regiment will remain in Turkey under Erdogan’s protectorate. Also, through the mediation of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Muhammad bin Salman, 10 foreigners who were captured during the war in Ukraine were released from Russian captivity. Three of them, British citizens Sean Pinner and Aiden Eslin, as well as Moroccan citizen Brahim Saadoun who were sentenced to death in the Donetsk People’s Republic. The special operation regarding the exchange of prisoners from Azovstal was prepared in 4 countries – Ukraine, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Turkey.
Dmytro Lubinets, the Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, reported that many of the defenders released from Russian captivity were kept in ‘solitary cells’, were given very little food and practically no means of personal hygiene. Also, the Ukrainian military has never seen representatives of the Red Cross while they were in captivity. The Head of Intelligence Kyrylo Budanov added that some released soldiers were tortured.
As of September 22, 2022, a total of 802 Ukrainian citizens were released from Russian captivity and 20 exchanges have taken place during the full-scale invasion.
Human rights.
During the shelling of Kharkiv, the Russian military fired at special wagons where, in accordance with the norms of international humanitarian law, Ukraine kept the bodies of liquidated Russian soldiers.
Economic security.
The International Financial Corporation allocated 30 million dollars for investments in Ukraine and Moldova.
Amazon canceled the commission for Ukrainian entrepreneurs for a year.
Energy security.
On the night of September 21, the Russian invaders shelled Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. As a result of the attack, emergency generators were activated. Also, on September 21, during the attack on Mykolaiv, the Russian invaders tried to attack the Slovyansk Thermal Power Plant.
The IAEA conducted inspections at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and at the Institute for Nuclear Research of the National Academy of Sciences.
On September 22, in Pittsburgh, USA, a tripartite meeting was held between the Minister of Energy of Ukraine Herman Galushchenko, the Minister of Energy of the United States Jennifer Grenholm and the Director General of the IAEA, Raphael Grossi. The necessity and ways of the fastest possible deoccupation and demilitarization of the Zaporizhia NPP, returning it to the control of a legitimate Ukrainian operator were discussed. Also, during his visit to Pittsburgh, Herman Galushchenko met with Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, Jonathan Wilkinson. Jonathan Wilkinson emphasized the readiness of the Canadian side to support the restoration of the destroyed energy infrastructure.
Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal met with the Prime Minister of Great Britain Liz Truss in New York. Liz Truss declared her readiness to provide financial support to Ukraine for the purchase of gas and to promote the involvement of British business in the development of the Ukrainian gas production sector.
The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Raphael Grossi, announced during the UN General Assembly meeting that he will come to Ukraine again in the near future to discuss the situation at the ZANP, UNN reported.
ENTSO-E has increased the available transmission capacity for electricity export between Ukraine and Europe by 50 MW at night. Now Ukrainian electricity producers can export a total of 300 MW per day to Romania and Slovakia.
The International Atomic Energy Agency announced the start of negotiations with Ukraine and Russia regarding the organization of a safety zone around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
Sport.
The Executive Committee of the International Judo Federation decided to not allow the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus in international judo events until January 2023 due to current international circumstances.
Awards.
Ukrainian student of the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute Ihor Klymenko became the winner of the Global Student Prize 2022. A student of the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics won 100,000 dollars for the development of technologies for remote demining.
Reading corner.
Statistics.
- General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine announced the total estimated losses of the Russian military as of 10 a.m., September 23, 2022: personnel – around 56060, tanks ‒ 2254, APV ‒ 4796, artillery systems – 1355, MLRS – 326, anti-aircraft warfare systems – 170, fixed-wing aircraft – 254, helicopters – 219, operational-tactical level UAV – 950, cruise missiles –240, boats and light speed boats – 15, soft-skinned vehicles and fuel tankers – 3659, special equipment – 126.
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