Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 172

Because the Russia-Ukraine struggle enters its 172nd day, we check out the primary developments.

Listed here are the important thing occasions from Sunday, August 14.

Combating

• Russia and Ukraine have blamed one another for the newest spherical of shelling across the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Europe’s largest, which is in Russia’s management and has come beneath hearth repeatedly up to now week.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday stated any Russian soldier who shoots on the plant or makes use of it as cowl would turn out to be a “particular goal”, repeating accusations that Moscow was utilizing the ability station as nuclear “blackmail”.
• Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak accused Russia of “hitting the a part of the nuclear energy plant the place the vitality that powers the south of Ukraine is generated”.
• Professional-Moscow officers within the occupied space have blamed the shelling on Ukrainian forces, with Vladimir Rogov, a member of the Moscow-installed administration, saying the Zaporizhzhia plant, and the city the place it’s positioned, Energodar, “are once more beneath hearth by Zelenskyy’s militants”.
• Western powers have expressed growing concern over the plant since Russian forces took management of the ability in early March. They’ve known as on Moscow to withdraw its troops from the plant, which remains to be run by Ukrainian technicians.
• The UK’s navy intelligence stated Russia’s precedence within the final week has doubtless been to “reorient models to strengthen southern Ukraine” amid a Ukrainian counteroffensive.

Diplomacy

• The top of the North American division on the Russian overseas ministry has stated any doable seizure of Russian property by the US will utterly destroy Moscow’s bilateral relations with Washington, in keeping with the TASS information company. The US has seized billions of {dollars} of property of Russians beneath sanctions because the invasion started.
• Russia has additionally instructed the US that diplomatic ties could be badly broken and will even be damaged off if Washington declares Russia a “state sponsor of terrorism”, TASS cited a high overseas ministry official as saying. Zelenskyy and several other US legislators have known as for Russia to be designated as such.

Economic system

• Two extra ships left from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports on Saturday, Turkey’s defence ministry stated, bringing the whole variety of ships to depart the nation beneath a United Nations-brokered deal to 16.
• A UN-chartered ship, MV Courageous Commander, is about to turn out to be the primary humanitarian meals cargo for Africa to depart from Ukraine because the Russian invasion. A UN official has stated the ship will journey within the coming days from the Ukrainian port of Pivdennyi to Ethiopia alongside the Black Sea hall brokered by the UN and Turkey. It’s set to hold 23,0000 tonnes of wheat.
• Zelenskyy’s chief financial adviser has stated securing a brand new $5bn mortgage from the IMF would assist guarantee Ukraine’s different collectors that its macroeconomic scenario was beneath management.
• The US has expressed concern that an Indian ship earlier this yr used a high-seas switch to export gas to New York constructed from Russian crude, a high Indian central banker stated. US sanctions on Russia prohibit imports to the US of Russian-origin vitality merchandise, together with crude oil, refined fuels, distillates, coal and gasoline.
• Hungary stated Russia has begun to ship extra gasoline to the nation following a July go to to Moscow by its overseas minister. Hungary has resisted European Union’s efforts to scale back Russian gasoline consumption.