Ukraine update: Kyiv gets new weapons and billions from Washington

Ammunition, weapons and equipment for Ukraine - the United States is putting together the largest package of military aid to date for the country attacked by Russia for one billion US dollars (around 980 million euros).

It should cover the critical security needs in the defense of Ukraine, said US President Joe Biden in Washington.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for an international travel ban for all Russians.

This threat is intended to prevent Russia from annexing occupied Ukrainian territories.

The situation in Europe's largest nuclear power plant, Zaporizhia, is causing concern.

It is occupied by Russian troops and has been hit by rockets several times in the past few days.

The warring parties blame each other.

Zelenskyy accused Russia of "nuclear terrorism".

According to the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), there is still no evidence of released radioactivity.

The White House in Washington made a similar statement.

But the fear of possible damage is growing.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned: "Any attack on a nuclear power plant is a suicidal affair." Ukraine is demanding that a mission from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) visit the power plant as a matter of urgency.

Zelenskyj calls for a travel ban for Russians

"The most important sanctions are to close the borders, because the Russians are taking their land away from others," Zelenskyy told the US newspaper "Washington Post".

Russians should "live in their own world until they change their philosophy".

He was reacting to the occupation authorities' announcement in the southern Ukrainian region of Zaporizhia that they would hold a referendum on joining Russia.

Similar plans exist for the occupied territory of Kherson.

There is a discussion in the EU to make it more difficult or to stop issuing tourist visas to Russians.

Even if travel is made more difficult by the cut flight and rail connections, many Russians traveled to the EU in the summer despite the war.

Russia's neighbor Latvia has already tightened visa regulations.

Finland is considering this, but demands a solution for the whole Schengen area.

It is not fair that Russia is waging a brutal war, but Russians can visit Europe as tourists as normal, said Prime Minister Sanna Marin.

Washington helps with guns and money

According to the Pentagon, the new US armaments package for Kyiv includes additional ammunition for the HIMARS and NASAMS rocket launcher systems and 1,000 Javelin anti-tank missiles.

There are also 50 armored medical treatment vehicles and medical material, including first aid kits, bandages and monitors.

The equipment is to be given directly to Ukraine exclusively from the stocks of the Ministry of Defense.

Overall, since President Biden took office a good year and a half ago, the United States has said it has pledged arms and equipment worth around $9.8 billion to Ukraine with the new package.

The United States is also making $4.5 billion available for current Ukrainian government spending, according to the US Agency for International Development.

Pentagon estimates Russia's casualties at 80,000 men

The US Department of Defense estimates that between 70,000 and 80,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or injured in the Ukraine war.

That's what Pentagon top official Colin Kahl said.

There is no current information from the official bodies in Russia on the number of victims.

Kahl further said that Russian President Vladimir Putin had not achieved any of his goals.

“His overarching goal was to overrun the entire country, bring about regime change in Kyiv, and wipe out Ukraine as an independent, sovereign, and democratic nation.

None of that happened.”

Grain exports by sea are starting

Several foreign ships with grain on board have been able to leave Ukrainian Black Sea ports in the past few days.

However, the first freighter, the "Razoni", was diverted from the destination port of Tripoli in Lebanon to Turkey and was anchored off the Turkish coast early Tuesday morning, according to the Marine Traffic information service.

In Lebanon, the customer did not want to accept the corn freight that had been delayed since the outbreak of war, Ukrainian media reported, citing diplomats.

Federal Development Minister Svenja Schulze (SPD) warned against too much euphoria after the first transports.

"Grain prices have fallen slightly, but are still at a high level," she told the "Rheinische Post" and the "General-Anzeiger".

However, one cannot be sure whether Putin will “continue to use grain as a weapon”.

The war had blocked Ukrainian ports since February.

In July, the UN and Turkey brokered an agreement on safe exports of the important producer.

The European gas emergency plan to prepare for a possible stop in Russian natural gas supplies comes into force this Tuesday.

The plan calls for all EU countries to voluntarily reduce their gas consumption by 15 percent from early August to March next year, compared to the average consumption over the past five years.

Against the background of the Ukraine war, Russia has already drastically reduced its deliveries to the EU.