A drone was shot down over the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea fleet in annexed Crimea on Saturday, local officials said, while at least 12 civilians were injured when a missile struck a town in southeastern Ukraine located close to a nuclear plant. Read about the day’s events as they unfolded on our liveblog. All times are Paris time (GMT+2).
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10:30pm: Russian crops, fertilisers must move 'unimpeded', Guterres says
Russian fertilisers and agricultural products must be able to reach world markets "unimpeded" or a global food crisis could strike as early as next year, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has warned.
"It is important that all governments and the private sector cooperate to bring them to market," the UN chief said from the Joint Coordination Center, which oversees the implementation of the Ukrainian grain export agreement signed in July by Kyiv and Moscow.
The agreement, of which the UN and Turkey are guarantors, also guarantees Russia the right to export its agricultural products and fertilisers despite Western sanctions.
"What we see here in Istanbul and in Odessa is only the more visible part of the solution. The other part of this package deal is the unimpeded access to the global markets of Russian food and fertiliser, which are not subject to sanctions," Guterres said, adding that despite this, Russian fertiliser and agricultural exports still faced "obstacles".
"Without fertiliser in 2022, there may not be enough food in 2023. Getting more food and fertiliser out of Ukraine and Russia is crucial to further calm commodity markets and lower prices for consumers," he said.
8:05pm: What happens if the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant is shut down?
A complete shutdown of the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant could lead to a "cascading energy grid failure" for Ukraine, says Mariana Budjeryn, senior research associate at the Harvard Kennedy School.
Click on the player below to watch the video.
6:05pm: Moscow accuses Kyiv of poisoning Russian soldiers
Russia's defence ministry has accused Ukraine of poisoning some of its servicemen in the Russian-controlled part of the southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia in late July.
The ministry said a number of Russian servicemen had been taken to a military hospital with signs of serious poisoning on July 31. Tests showed a toxic substance, botulinum toxin type B, in their bodies, it said.
"On the fact of chemical terrorism sanctioned by the (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelenskiy regime, Russia is preparing supporting evidence with the results of all the analyses," the ministry said in a statement.
Botulinum toxin type B is a neurotoxin that can cause botulism when ingested in previously contaminated food products, but it can also have medical uses.
An adviser to Ukraine's interior ministry said in response that the alleged poisoning could have been caused by Russian forces eating expired canned meat.
4:10pm: Ukraine, Russia must resolve outstanding issues before nuclear inspections begin
While Russia's Vladimir Putin has agreed "in principle" that independent inspectors can travel to the Moscow-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, a number of issues must be resolved before the inspections get under way, says FRANCE 24's chief foreign editor Rob Parsons, reporting from Kyiv.
Outstanding issues include the composition of the inspection team, what route they will travel along, and what exactly they will be looking for. Click on the player below for more.
3:15pm: Russian missile strikes homes in town near nuclear plant
A Russian missile has hit a residential area in the southern Ukrainian town of Voznesensk, located not far from a nuclear power station, wounding 12 civilians and heightening fears of a nuclear accident, Ukrainian officials say.
Vitaliy Kim, governor of the Mykolaiv region, said on the Telegram messaging app that four children were among those wounded in the attack that damaged several private houses and a five-storey apartment building.
The town is about 30 km (19 miles) from the Pivdennoukrainsk Nuclear Power Plant (PNPP), the second largest in Ukraine.
State-run Energoatom, which manages all four Ukrainian nuclear energy generators, described the attack on Voznesensk as "another act of Russian nuclear terrorism".
2:45pm: Russia-controlled region says it's exporting up to 7,000 tonnes of grain per day
The Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia is exporting up to 7,000 tonnes of grain per day by road and rail, according to Yevgeny Balitsky, the head of the Russian-installed administration there.
Ukraine has accused Russia, the world's largest wheat exporter, of stealing grain from territories it occupies. Moscow denies this.
In a social media post, Balitsky said supplies should rise when the Russia-controlled Ukrainian port of Berdyansk on the Azov Sea starts handling grain soon.
"The issue is about to be resolved, and we will also start loading dry cargoes to Turkey. Farmers will be able to sell their grain to Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, Egypt – the standard markets," Balitsky added.
11:15am: Drone shot down at Russia's Black Sea fleet headquarters
A drone was shot down over the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea fleet in annexed Crimea on Saturday, a local official said.
"The drone was shot down just above the fleet headquarters" in the city of Sevastopol, city governor Mikhail Razvojaev wrote on Telegram, blaming the attempt on Ukrainian forces.
"It fell on the roof and caught fire," he said, adding that there was no major damage or victims.
It was the second attempted attack against the fleet headquarters in less than a month and the latest to target Russian military infrastructure in Crimea, a Black Sea peninsula that Moscow seized and annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
11:07am: Moscow agrees, in principle, to IAEA visit of Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant
Moscow has agreed, in principle, that the IAEA should be allowed to visit the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. FRANCE 24’s Rob Parsons reports that technical teams from the IAEA, Russia and Ukraine will be discussing in the coming days what issues need to be addressed ahead of this visit.
8:45am: Two more grain ships have left Ukraine, says Turkey's defence ministry
Two more ships carrying grain have left Ukraine's Chornomorsk port, Turkey's Defence Ministry said on Saturday, bringing the total number of vessels to leave Ukraine's Black Sea ports under a UN-brokered grain export deal to 27.
The Zumrut Ana and MV Ocean S, which were authorised to depart on August 20, were loaded with 6,300 tonnes of sunflower oil and 25,000 tonnes of wheat respectively, the joint coordination centre set up to enable safe passage said in a statement.
6:50am: More than 21,000 people evacuated from occupied Ukrainian territories in ten days
More than 21,000 people have been evacuated in ten days from Ukrainian territories occupied by the Russian army, including more than 9,000 from the Zaporizhia region and more than 8,000 from the Kherson region, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Verechtchuk announced Friday.
3:35am: Several dead in new strikes in Kharkiv
Kharkiv (north-east), the second largest city in Ukraine, has been hit by fresh strikes, resulting in the deaths of at least fifteen people, the city's authorities said Friday.
00:10am: Eight mayors of European cities travel to Kyiv
The mayors of Marseille, Lyon, Athens, Florence, Helsinki, Oslo, Riga and Tirana travelled to Kyiv on Friday and ratified a memorandum of understanding "in the presence" of Volodymyr Zelensky "for a sustainable reconstruction of Ukrainian cities", according to a statement.
In this press release from the city of Marseille (south-east France), its mayor Benoît Payan explains that this text "intends to set up joint actions and reaffirms the ambition to allow, as soon as peace is restored, a rapid, ecological rehabilitation" and "respectful of the rule of law, as well as the civil and social rights of populations".
23:30: US Defence Department announces new military aid to Ukraine
The US Defence Department on Friday announced a new $775 million arms package for Ukraine aimed at helping Kyiv turn the tables and begin regaining territory occupied by Russian forces.
The Russian offensive, which began on February 24, has been brought to a standstill, a senior Pentagon official told reporters. The new package includes a range of precision missiles, anti-armour weaponry, surveillance drones, artillery and mine-clearing equipment that could boost Ukrainian offensive operations.
"You are seeing a complete and total lack of progress by the Russians on the battlefield," the official said, speaking to reporters on the condition of anonymity.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and REUTERS)
