Topline
The U.S. embassy in Kyiv issued an alert on Tuesday urging Americans to leave the country immediately, warning of imminent Russian attacks against civilian infrastructure as the invasion approaches the six-month mark on Wednesday, a day when Ukraine will also commemorate its independence from Soviet rule.
Officials warned Russia may step up attacks ahead of Ukraine’s independence day.
Key Facts
Russia is planning to step up attacks against civilian infrastructure and government facilities in Ukraine “in the coming days,” the U.S. State Department warned in an alert issued Tuesday.
The U.S. embassy in Kyiv said the situation in Ukraine “is highly volatile” and may deteriorate “without warning,” urging Americans still in the country to remain vigilant and leave the country using ground transportation if it is safe to do so.
The alert, the embassy’s first specific warning in months, comes ahead of Ukraine’s Independence Day on Wednesday, which also marks six months since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion.
Officials fear Russia will intensify attacks to mark the occasions and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Russia “could try to do something particularly ugly, something particularly vicious” this week.
Authorities in the capital, Kyiv, have stepped up security, banned mass events and canceled major festivities like the parade down the main street—the street has instead been lined with captured and destroyed Russian military equipment—and other cities, such as Kharkiv, have extended overnight curfews.
Key Background
After six months of war, many Ukrainians have become accustomed to the sound of air raid sirens. Officials have urged people to be cautious this week, however, particularly with the symbolic dates approaching and escalating tensions surrounding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, several attacks against Russian military targets in Crimea and the death of Daria Dugina—the daughter of ultra-nationalist Alexander Dugin, a close ally of Putin—which Moscow blames on Ukraine. Zelensky warned Moscow may be planning possible show trials of captured prisoners of war after reports emerged that Russian-backed authorities were setting up steel cages in the occupied city of Mariupol.
Further Reading
Crimea, Once a Bastion of Russian Power, Now Reveals Its Weakness (NYT)
Ukraine warns Moscow against ‘despicable show trial’ of POWs (Politico)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2022/08/23/russia-stepping-up-civilian-strikes-as-ukraines-independence-day-approaches-us-warns/