Russia’s dependence on Iranian-made drones to attack Ukrainian targets exposes Moscow as “bankrupt” both politically and militarily, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday.
Using Iranian weaponry amounted to an acknowledgement of failure by the Kremlin, he added.
“For decades, they spent billions of dollars on their own military industrial complex. And in the end, they bowed down to Tehran in order to secure quite simple drones and missiles,” Zelenskyy said in a nightly video address.
Ukraine says Russia’s latest attacks on infrastructure have relied on Iranian-made Shahed-136 “kamikaze” drones. Iran denies supplying unmanned aerial vehicles to Russia.
In his address, Zelenskyy also thanked everyone who helps Ukraine with anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense. According to the president, the German “IRIS-T” has shown itself as “a really effective system.”
“We are working with partners to provide even more protection to the Ukrainian sky,” Zelenskyy added.
Here are the other main headlines from the war in Ukraine on October 19.
Russia announces evacuation from Kherson
The battle for Kherson will begin in the “near future,” a Russian-installed official said late Tuesday.
Kirill Stremousov urged the population to leave the region immediately.
Kherson is one of four partially-occupied Ukrainian regions that Russia “annexed” following referendums widely-judged as illegal.
On Tuesday, the Kremlin-appointed head of the area, Vladimir Saldo, announced the evacuation of civilians of four communities near the Dnipro river, citing the risk that Ukrainian shelling could damage a nearby dam.
Russian commander admits situation for his troops is ‘tense’
The new Russian military commander for Ukraine operations said that Russia’s army is preparing to evacuate civilians from Kherson region.
“The Russian army will above all ensure the safe evacuation of the population” of Kherson, General Sergey Surovikin told Russian state television,
Surovikin, who has been in the job for the past 10 days, added the combat situation there was “very tense.”
“The enemy is not abandoning its attempts to attack Russian troop positions,” he added, in a rare admission of the pressures being felt by his forces.
Germany sends further military support to Ukraine
The government revealed on Tuesday that it had supplied Ukraine with five more armoured recovery vehicles. That doubles the total amount sent by Germany.
Berlin also delivered seven bridge systems to enable the crossing of rivers.
As well as more ammunition, Germany has also sent winter clothing, power generators and first aid kits.
US and allies to raise Iranian drone transfers to Russia at UN
The United States, Britain and France plan to raise alleged Iranian arms transfers to Russia at a closed-door UN Security Council meeting on Wednesday, diplomats said, after Ukraine said Russia’s having obtained drones violated a Council resolution.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the diplomats said the three – which also believe such transfers violate UN Security Council Resolution 2231 – told their Council counterparts they would ask a UN official to brief members on the issue.
Russia launched dozens of “kamikaze” drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on Ukraine on Monday, hitting energy infrastructure and killing five people in the capital Kyiv. Ukraine says they are Iranian-made Shahed-136 attack drones.
More from DW’s coverage of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Suicide drones are said to have been used to attack the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Tehran has denied supplying Moscow with the equipment. What do we know about drone imports?
After the rockets comes the propaganda — pro-Russian voices have claimed that wounded people in Kyiv were just actors staging their suffering. But a DW fact check shows that the victims are real.
dh/rt (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)