There are new satellite images of a failed test of the Sarmat missile that Putin frightened us with; the next few months will be decisive in the Russian Federation’s war against Ukraine — Zelenskyi; night airstrike on Zaporizhzhia — 20 injured; Russia has probably increased the range of guided bombs.
There are new satellite images of a failed test of the Sarmat missile that Putin frightened us with
OSINT analyst George Barros has released new Maxar satellite imagery that shows a failed test of the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile at the Plesetsk cosmodrome.
In his post shared on X, Barros noted that a large crater, approximately 62 m wide, along with significant damage on and around the launch pad at the launch silo site, suggests the missile exploded shortly after ignition or launch
For reference: Sarmat is a Russian strategic missile system featuring an intercontinental ballistic missile. The Russians claim that its capabilities allow it to bypass all modern missile defence systems and it is believed to be the weapon with the longest range in the world.
According to official Russian data, the Sarmat missile has a range of over 11,000 km and can carry a warhead weighing 100 tonnes.
Prior to that, the MeNMyRC OSINT project released satellite images showing that a Sarmat ICBM had exploded during a test in Plesetsk, Russia.
In June 2023, during a meeting with military graduates, the ruler of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, boasted of the latest weapons in the army and threatened to put new Sarmat launchers with a new heavy missile on combat duty. He also stated that plans to increase the potential of all components of the Russian armed forces would be fully implemented.
Western media have reported five failed Sarmat launches.
According to CNBC, the Sarmat’s longest test flight lasted just over two minutes. The missile flew just over 35 km before losing control and crashing. The only successful launch of the missile supposedly took place on 20 April 2022.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin ordered the Sarmat to be put on combat duty in 2022, which was done in September 2023.
“We don’t have much time.” The next few months will be decisive in the Russian Federation’s war against Ukraine — Zelenskyi
President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, who flew to the USA the day before, said that the next few months would be decisive in Russia’s war against Ukraine. “
“We don’t have much time. The next few months will be decisive in this war — Russia’s war against Ukraine, and all of you because this is Russia’s war against freedom itself. We are short of time to define what the outcome will be. And we must define it. Not Russia, not their bloody allies,” the head of state emphasized during his speech at the American Academy of Achievement award ceremony.
According to him, we need not to lose the next few months in war, so that we don’t lose the next decades.
Zelenskyi also reminded that Ukraine already has a plan for victory.
“And I present this plan to America: to President (USA Joe – ed.) Biden, to Congress, to both presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, and to all our allies in the world. I believe this will be our joint achievement for the sake of freedom, without any compromises at the expense of freedom,” the President of Ukraine emphasized.
On September 22, Zelenskyi arrived in the USA to participate in the UN General Assembly.
It is expected that on September 23, the President of Ukraine will speak at the Summit of the Future at the UN headquarters, and on September 24, the head of state will speak at a meeting of the UN Security Council dedicated to Russia’s war against Ukraine, and on September 25, — at the UN General Assembly.
On September 18, Zelenskyi said that Ukraine had prepared all points of the victory plan.
According to Bloomberg, Volodymyr Zelenskiy will push Joe Biden to provide an official invitation to Ukraine to join NATO and commit to a sustained supply of advanced weapons as part of the Ukrainian president’s “victory plan” to bring the war with Russia to an end.
On September 20, the president stated that Ukraine’s victory plan is designed for quick decisions by Ukraine’s partners from October to December 2024. The Times wrote on September 22 that Zelenskyi’s victory plan consists of four key points, including security guarantees, the Ukrainian operation in the Kursk region, the supply of weapons and financial assistance.
An overnight airstrike on Zaporizhzhia – more than 20 people were injured; Russia probably increased the range of guided bombs
On the night of September 23, the Russians made seven strikes on the territory of the regional center and district.
“According to preliminary data – by KAB guided bombs,” the official message ran. According to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, the airstrike damaged various public and private buildings. Firefighters extinguished the fire of the car and the balcony of one of the apartments.
Emergency work continues.
Commenting on the airstrikes on Zaporizhzhia, Serhiy Bratchuk, spokesman of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army South, said on the air of the FREEDOM TV channel that the Russian occupiers could modernize guided air bombs to increase the range of strikes on the territory of Ukraine.
“Unfortunately, the enemy is improving its weapons today. In fact, the formula for converting general purpose bombs into guided bombs is being implemented in practice,” Bratchuk noted. According to him, Russia uses changes in tactical and technical characteristics, applies universal modules for planning and adjusting fire.
“This is what allows the enemy to use guided bombs for attacks on the city and most importantly, to increase, their range. Today we can talk about the fact that, quite likely, they began to reach a distance of up to 80 km,” Bratchuk emphasized.
On Sunday, September 22, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi reported that during the week the enemy used more than 900 guided aerial bombs, about 400 Shaheds, and almost 30 missiles of various types.
How war is shaping Ukrainian literature. Ukraine in Flames #664
Ukrainian literature, like many other aspects of our country, has been significantly affected by the war. Previously we spoke about veteran and volunteer prose, but since February 24 of 2022, the Russian-Ukrainian war has become a cornerstone of all Ukrainian literature. War-related literature in Ukraine has already been developing for 10 years, but Russian aggression has now reached a new level. For almost three years, we have been living amid mobilization, rocket fire, and constant destruction. Watch Ukraine in Flames #664 to find out about what has changed since the full-scale invasion, the new genres writers are exploring, and which authors deserve the most attention.
Guests:
- Iryna Bilotserkovska, co-founder and director of the publishing house “Bilka”
- Anastasia Korotka, literary critic, editor, organizer of cultural events
- Tamara Gorikha Zernya, writer, laureate of the Shevchenko Prize
