A tower of smoke rises from an explosion at the Zagorsk Optical-Mechanical Plant near Moscow, August 9, 2023

Wednesday’s Coverage: China Maneuvers Over Russia’s Invasion

Map: Institute for Study of War

UPDATE 1439 GMT:

Russia’s Central Bank is halting purchases of foreign currency on the domestic market for the rest of 2023, after the rouble sunk to its lowest point in 16 months.

The rouble is currently trading at 97.6:1 v. the US dollar.

“The decision was made in order to reduce the volatility of financial markets,” the Central Bank said.

Just after the start of Vladimir Putin’s invasion in February 2022, the rouble dropped to 135:1 v. the dollar. It rebounded sharply when the Central Bank raised interest rates to 20% and insisted that purchases for oil and gas be made in roubles rather then euros or dollars.

UPDATE 1111 GMT:

Ukraine has established a temporary Black Sea “humanitarian corridor”, with the first ships using it within days, says Navy spokesperson Oleh Chalyk.

Chalyk said the corridor will be used by commercial ships with grain and agricultural products blocked at Ukraine’s Black Sea ports by Russia.

The corridor will be very transparent, we will put cameras on the ships and there will be a broadcast to show that this is purely a humanitarian mission and has no military purpose.

The Navy said Russia’s military threat and the risk of mines in the Black Sea remain.

At the start of August, up to six ships broke the Russian blockade and reached the Danube River port of Izmael, across the border from Romania. The next day, Russia hit the port with missiles, setting grain stores ablaze.

UPDATE 0917 GMT:

The co-founder of “Russia’s Google” Yandex, Arkady Volozh, has condemned Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation”.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is barbaric, and I am categorically against it. I am horrified about the fate of people in Ukraine – many of them my personal friends and relatives – whose houses are being bombed every day.

Although I moved to Israel in 2014, I have to take my share of responsibility for the country’s actions.

Volozh, who holds both Russia and Israeli citizenship, now describes himself as a “Kazakhstan-born Israeli tech entrepreneur” on his personal website.

He stepped down as CEO of Yandex and left the board of directors after the European Union included him on its list of sanctions against Russian entities and individuals in June 2022.

UPDATE 0912 GMT:

A Russian missile strike killed three civilians — two young women and a man — and wounded nine in the Zaporizhzhia region in southern Ukraine late Wednesday.

A video of Svitlana Semeykina and Khrystyna Spitsyna, 21 and 19 years old, singing in Zaporizhzhia city just before they were killed:

UPDATE 0721 GMT:

The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant was again disconnected from its last remaining main external power line overnight, says Ukraine State nuclear company Energoatom.

The plant, Europe’s largest with six reactors, was switched to a reserve line which has less than half of the power capacity of the main power line.

“Such a regime is difficult for the reactor plant. Its duration is limited by the project’s design, and it can result in failure of the main equipment of the energy unit,” Energoatom posted.

Occupying the plant since March 2022, the Russians have turned the plant into a military base, shelling Ukrainian towns and cities across the Dnipro River.

UPDATE 0635 GMT:

Ukraine’s military are claiming further “gradual” advances by the counter-offensive in the east and south of the country.

The Ukraine General Staff said on Wednesday that it has had “partial success”. It cited the securing of more positions south of the city of Bakhmut on the eastern front, and operations on the southern front towards the port cities of Melitopol and Berdyansk.

Geolocated footage posted on Wednesday indicated that Ukrainian forces have advanced northeast of Robotyne, in the western Zaporizhia region on the southern front. Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said forces were also partially successful south of Velyka Novosilka and southeast of Orikhiv.

Ukraine military spokesman Serhii Kuzmin said Ukrainian forces have reached the Russian first line of defense in the direction of Melitopol and Berdyansk.

A leading Russian military observer supported the claims, saying Ukrainian forces have advanced into Urozhaine in the Donetsk-Zaporizhia border area on the southern front. He echoed that Ukraine’s troops may have captured some Russian positions south of Bakhmut

UPDATE 0619 GMT:

Russian drones have destroyed a fuel depot in the Rivne region in western Ukraine.

Standing in front of the burning site, Governor Vitaly Koval said there were no casualties from the attack.

UPDATE 0608 GMT:

Russian officials claims 13 Ukrainian drones have been downed — 11 near Sevastopol in Russian-occupied Crimea and two aimed at Moscow.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed the Crimean operation, close to the city which is Moscow’s Black Sea naval base.

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said one drone was downed in the Kaluga region southwest of Moscow and a second on the capital’s central ring road.

Arrivals and departures were restricted at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport for 5 1/4 hours and at Domodedovo Airport for 2 1/4, with almost 30 flights affected.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: At least one person was killed and more than 60 wounded in an explosion at a plant near Moscow on Wednesday.

The Zagorsk Optical-Mechanical Plant at Sergiyev Posad is involved in projects for the Russian military. Russian outlet Agentstvo said it has participated in devel9pment of the next-generation strategic stealth bomber Poslannik.

Russian State media claimed that pyrotechnics caught fire “in the area of ​​​​the boiler room”. Reports said that the blast was at a plant facility leased by Russian pyrotechnics company PiroRoss. Authorities are said to have opened a criminal case over violation of industrial safety requirements, detaining PiroRoss Director Sergey Chanakev.

Some observers questioned that explanation. Ukrainian political advisor Anton Gerashchenko posted: