Victorious news of 545th day of war: Ukrainian forces break through Russian multi-echelon defense line in Zaporizhzhia region, SCALP missiles are already in Ukraine

Liberation of Robotyne opens the way for the Ukrainian army to recapture Tokmak

On August 22, Ukrainian defenders of the 47th Detached Mechanized Brigade entered the town of Robotyne in Zaporizhzhya. Civilians were evacuated by Bradley infantry fighting vehicles.

This information was later confirmed on the official website of the 47th Detached Mechanized Brigade. They stated that fighting was ongoing in Robotyne, and that the military were consolidating their positions.

"Two months of fierce fighting and the soldiers of our brigade, supported by other units, broke through the occupiers' multi-echelon defense line!" the brigade said.

Oleksandr Kovalenko, a military and political observer at the Information Resistance group, noted that Robotyne was the biggest obstacle to the Ukrainian Armed Forces' advance towards Tokmak.

"For quite some time there have been battles near Robotyne, on the left flank of this village. A wedge was driven between the village of Verbove, which reached the occupiers' defense line. Then the Ukrainian Armed Forces began to advance along the right flank between Robotyne and Kopani. And the Russians gradually found themselves surrounded by the Defense Forces. The liberation of Robotyne was a predictable process. The most interesting thing is how the advance of the Defense Forces will continue, because Robotyne opens the way for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to get to Tokmak. It's too early to talk about an open road, because the Ukrainian Armed Forces need to liberate three more villages - Novoprokopivka, Ilchenkove and Solodka Balka along the T-04-08 highway," Kovalenko explained.

Ukraine receives first batch of SCALP missiles

Ukraine has already received all the SCALP long-range cruise missiles that the French authorities promised to provide as part of the first batch of aid, said Ukraine's Ambassador to France Vadym Omelchenko.

"This batch was a test batch, and the missiles proved to be good. SCALPs will continue to be delivered. The main point with these deliveries is their pace, and the French are doing very well," the Ukrainian diplomat added.

He also stressed that if President Volodymyr Zelenskyy or his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron say that France has made a decision at the request of the Ukrainian side to provide some weapons, it means that they are "already in Ukraine and already working at the frontline".

SCALP is a Franco-British air-to-ground cruise missile, an analogue of the British Storm Shadow. It has a range of more than 250 km, is highly accurate and almost invisible to radar.

The first group of pilots started training to fly F-16 fighter jets 

Eight Ukrainian pilots have arrived at the Skrydstrup military air base in Denmark, along with 65 people who will be trained to maintain F-16s.

Thus, Denmark has begun training the first group of Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 fighter jets as part of its commitment to provide Ukraine with aircraft and strengthen its air defense.

Denmark will supply 19 F-16 aircraft to Ukraine, with the first six to be delivered before the New Year.

New €1.5bn tranche from the EU

The EU has disbursed a new €1.5 billion tranche to Ukraine. The funds were provided as part of macro-financial assistance for infrastructure rehabilitation.

"We are supporting Ukraine in its efforts to repair, recover and keep the state running. Today we paid a new €1.5 billion to Ukraine," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The EC President also stressed that there will be even more aid this year.

Military assistance from Croatia and demining programme

Croatia will provide Ukraine with a €30 million military aid package, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said after meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

He added that he will present a new military aid package to Ukraine worth about EUR 30 million at a government meeting on Thursday.

The Croatian prime minister also announced a major international demining conference on Ukraine in October, where Croatia, together with other EU countries and international organizations, will begin the process of assisting Ukraine in the demining process, in which Croatia has extensive experience.