Russia’s assault on the town of Avdiivka in the eastern Donetsk region has been repelled so far, with more than 20 attacks in the vicinity countered over the past day, Kyiv’s General Staff said on Facebook. Russia has captured about 4.5 square kilometers (1.7 square miles) around Avdiivka since Tuesday without securing “major breakthroughs,” said US-based military analysts at the Institute for the Study of War. Russia’s “exact objectives” in its offensive there remain unclear, ISW said.
The US on Thursday imposed the first sanctions for violations of the price cap on Russian oil introduced by the G-7 nearly a year ago, as signs mount the restriction is failing to cut Kremlin revenues as hoped. The International Olympic Committee suspended Russia for a “breach of the Olympic charter” after Moscow moved to incorporate regional sports organizations from the four Ukrainian territories it illegally annexed in 2022. Russian competitors can still, for now, compete as neutral athletes.
Having not targeted Ukraine with long-range aviation aircraft in three weeks, Russia is likely to be “preserving existing stocks of AS-23 missiles as well as using this pause to increase usable stocks” in anticipation of heavy strikes over the winter, the UK defense ministry said on a thread on X, formerly Twitter. It added that during a similar pause in the spring Russia had probably depleted its AS-23 missile stocks.
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Markets
Oil is on track for a modest weekly gain after a volatile week, as fears the Israel-Hamas war could destabilize the Middle East and crimp global supply are balanced by signs of flagging demand. Saudi Arabia and Russia on Thursday reaffirmed their close cooperation in the oil market with a public show of unity at a major industry event in Moscow.
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- President Vladimir Putin takes part in CIS leaders summit in Kyrgyzstan
- Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto visits Moscow
