Victorious news on 596th day of war: Russia’s newest ship damaged near Sevastopol, important bridge destroyed behind enemy lines

Ukrainian writer Serhiy Zhadan wins the Swedish PEN Prize 

Writer Serhiy Zhadan has been awarded the Kurt Tucholsky Prize for his contribution to freedom of expression. This is stated in a message on the website of the Swedish PEN.

Zhadan was described as one of the most important and distinctive voices of contemporary Ukrainian literature, depicting the war of aggression against his country and at the same time allowing art to make the world a better place.

"With Russia's full-scale invasion, Serhiy Zhadan has become the voice of a free Ukraine. His tireless work shows the significant role that literature can play even in the most dire circumstances," the Swedish PEN noted and reminded that in addition to his work, Zhadan is engaged in humanitarian activities.

The award ceremony will take place in Stockholm on the Day of Imprisoned Writers on November 15.

Ukrainian Navy damages Russian ship named Pavel Derzhavin near Sevastopol  

The Ukrainian Navy has damaged one of the newest ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, the Pavel Derzhavin, near the temporarily occupied Sevastopol. 

Captain Dmytro Pletenchuk, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Navy, shared the details with Espreso TV.

The Russian Black Sea Fleet ship Pavel Derzhavin. Photo: ria.ru

"The Russian Black Sea Fleet ship Pavel Derzhavin is a rather rare bird. The Russians had two of these ships in the Black Sea Fleet, as far as I remember, out of a total of four. This is the newest ship of the near sea zone, which is a patrol ship. It was built in 2019 and put into service in 2020. Accordingly, it is a very new ship. Even in its appearance, it copies the stealth technologies (technology of reducing visibility – ed.) of the world leaders in naval construction. I'm not ready to say how well it meets stealth, but I can say that it is one of those ships that was unlucky to be left to patrol something," Pletenchuk said.

A bridge strategically important for Russia destroyed between Horlivka and Yasynuvata

On the night of October 12, a bridge on the M04 Horlivka-Yasynuvata highway, which was important for Russia’s logistics, was destroyed behind the enemy lines in the Donetsk region. This was reported by the advisor to the mayor of Mariupol, Petro Andriushchenko."The bridge between Yasynuvata and Horlivka 

is a bit “tired”. Not without the intervention of the inevitable force of retaliation from the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This greatly complicates the logistics of the occupiers. But. Not without a bonus. The bridge was right in front of the Akhmat truck. Unfortunately, there is no Tik Tok video* of this. Apparently, it's not worthy of victory," he wrote.

*The Akhmat special forces unit is a paramilitary organization in Chechnya, Russia, that serves as the security of the Head of the Chechen Republic. It has been deployed to fight in Ukraine. Its fighters gained notoriety for filming Tik Tok videos while being deployed.

Photo: Petro Andriushchenko

The bridge was located north of the Donetsk-Makiivka agglomeration, about 1 km east of the village of Vasylivka. It was a short route between Horlivka and Donetsk. Yasynuvata is located near Avdiivka, which has been under intense Russian attack lately. 

Czech Republic and Denmark are preparing a joint package of weapons for the Ukrainian Armed Forces

Denmark and the Czech Republic have joined forces in a project that aims to support Ukrainians with modern weapons in the fight for freedom, democracy and the right to self-determination against Russian aggression. This was reported by the Communications Department of the Czech Ministry of Defense.

As the first part of the project, both countries expect to supply almost 50 infantry fighting vehicles and main battle tanks, 2,500 pistols, 7,000 rifles, 500 handguns and 500 sniper rifles, electronic warfare and ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance equipment, including a significant amount of large-caliber ammunition).

The delivery includes both modern Czech weapons and refurbished equipment already in service with the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The list was created taking into account the requirements and needs of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in order to enhance their combat capability.

The Czech Republic and Denmark also plan to provide Ukraine with 500 large-caliber machine guns, 280 recoilless guns, 7,000 anti-tank weapons, 10,000 hand grenades and 60 mortar systems. The delivery will also include a significant number of anti-drone systems.