WESTERN PERSPECTIVE
Three Ukrainian military pilots die in mid-air collision
Three Ukrainian military pilots including a "mega talent" who yearned to fly F-16s were killed on Friday when two L-39 combat training aircraft collided over a region west of Kyiv on Friday, the air force said on Saturday.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who is counting on swift training of crews to fly up to 61 F-16 fighter jets promised by his Western allies, said in his nightly video address that the three men included Andriy Pilshchykov, callsign Juice, "a Ukrainian officer, one of those who greatly helped our state."
Air force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat described Pilshchykov -- who was fluent in English and aged 29 when Reuters interviewed him in December -- as a "mega talent" and leader of reforms.
"You can't even imagine how much he wanted to fly an F-16," Ihnat wrote on his Facebook page. "But now that American planes are actually on the horizon, he will not fly them."
Ukraine's prosecutor general's office announced a criminal investigation had been opened into whether flight preparation rules were violated.
"It is too early to discuss details. Certainly, all circumstances will be clarified," Zelenskiy said.
The air force announced the crash on its Telegram app. "We express our condolences to the families of the victims. This is a painful and irreparable loss for all of us," it said.
Zelenskiy noted that the third Saturday in August is also when Ukrainian military and civilian aviation celebrate their professional day, and said the introduction of F-16s would mark a "new level" for military aviation.
"This will also bring civil aviation back to the Ukrainian skies, as it will move us closer to victory and provide Ukraine with greater security," he said.
Radio Svoboda shared video of blackened, mangled aircraft remains being removed from a field far from the frontlines at the village of Sinhury, about 10 kms (6 miles) south of Zhytomyr and about 150 kms (90 miles) west of Kyiv.
In the video, an unnamed man said he heard an explosion in the air above the school building and then two planes falling in smoke and flames. A woman described seeing two planes flying at a distance from one another than coming closer and closer to each other before the crash.
Military analyst and former pilot Roman Svitan, in an interview posted by online outlet Espreso TV, said the crash was "most likely" related to formation flying. He said the standard distance was 50-70 meters but that sometimes planes flew practically on top of each other at a distance of 3 to 4 meters.
He said the L-39 was at once a fighter, an attack aircraft, a bomber and a training plane but that in formation flying, especially at low altitudes, "there's no time for ejection."
Zelenskiy offered condolences to the pilots' families and added, "Ukraine will never forget anyone who defended the free skies of Ukraine."
** Ukraine will speed up advance on southern front, commander says
Ukrainian forces believe they have broken through the most difficult line of Russian defences in the south and will now be able to advance more quickly, a commander fighting in the south told Reuters.
Ukraine launched a counteroffensive in June, but well-prepared Russian defence lines reinforced by minefields have slowed their southward advance towards the Sea of Azov.
Ukrainian forces said on Wednesday they had raised the national flag in the settlement of Robotyne in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, about 10 km (six miles) south of the frontline town of Orikhiv.
"We don't stop here," said a commander who led some of the troops into Robotyne and who uses the callsign "Skala," eponymous with the battalion which he leads.
"Next we have (the town of) Berdiansk, and then more. I made it clear to my fighters at once: our goal is not Robotyne, our goal is (the Sea of) Azov."
Robotyne is about 100 km from Berdiansk, a port on the shores of the Sea of Azov, and 85 km from the strategic city of Melitopol. Both are occupied by Russian forces following Moscow's full-scale invasion in February last year.
Moscow has not confirmed that Ukraine has advanced into Robotyne.
A U.S. official said last week that Ukrainian forces did not appear likely to be able to reach and retake Melitopol in their counteroffensive, intended to split Russian forces in the south.
Defending Ukraine's strategy this week, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy dismissed suggestions that his country's troops were spread too thinly and repeated his belief that Kyiv would regain all Ukrainian territory that has been seized by Moscow.
"We have passed the main roads that were mined. We are coming to those lines where we can go (forward). I'm sure we'll go faster from here," Skala said.
He said two houses were still under Russian control in Robotyne: "We're fighting for them, and then we'll have full control (of Robotyne)."
Skala said Ukrainian troops had now entered territories where there were only "Russian logistics" groups, and where he made clear he did not expect Russian defences to be as difficult to break through.
"We are moving on to liberate all our territories," he said.
RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE
Ukraine confirms ‘secret meeting’ with NATO generals
Western officials are regularly receiving up-to-date reports from the battlefield in Ukraine, President Vladimir Zelensky’s top adviser has said, confirming a report about a recent meeting between Kiev’s top general Valery Zaluzhny and NATO commanders.
“There are a lot of meetings like that,” Mikhail Podoliak told a Ukrainian TV channel Saturday. According to Podoliak, Kiev’s military strategy stays “flexible,” evolving in accordance with the situation on the ground.
“The General Staff is constantly making adjustments, depending on what is happening on the front line,” the adviser said. “Obviously, these adjustments are always being discussed with our partners in order to actualize the deliveries of additional [weapons].”
The Guardian reported on Saturday that “eleven days ago, some of the most senior soldiers in the NATO alliance traveled to a secret location on the Polish-Ukrainian border” to meet with Zaluzhny and “his entire command team.” The goal of the five-hour meeting was to “help reset Ukraine’s military strategy” in light of its sluggish offensive, the newspaper said. Ukrainian and NATO officials reportedly also discussed plans for the winter and beyond.
Kiev’s much-anticipated offensive, launched in early June, has so far failed to win any significant territory, costing the Ukrainian army heavy losses in men and Western-supplied armor in the process.
The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal reported recently that US and British officials had disagreements with Ukrainian planners over tactics. It was said that one of the complaints was that the Ukrainian army had dispersed its most-equipped units along the front line, instead of focusing on a concentrated strike in one place.
After Washington’s approval, Denmark and the Netherlands promised last week to send their US-made F-16 fighter planes to Ukraine. The jets have long been on Kiev’s ‘wish list’, as the country hopes to salvage its combat operations.
Russia, meanwhile, has repeatedly warned that Western weapons would not change the course of the conflict, and would only draw NATO closer to open confrontation with Moscow.
** West pushing everyone towards WWIII, ignoring signals from Moscow – Medvedev
Russia’s opponents in the West are pushing everyone towards World War III, ignoring signals from Moscow, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview with TASS and RT.
"Frankly speaking, it would have definitely been better if they had heard them [the signals]. In any case, the world would not have to face the threat of World War III. In fact, this is where our opponents are actively pushing everyone," he said, commenting on the idea that Russia’s tough response to Georgia’s 2008 aggression should have served as a strong signal to the US and its NATO allies of the need to listen to Moscow’s concerns.
However, "they failed to hear our signals," Medvedev emphasized.
Reuters/RT/Tass
