Ukraine…Russia Day 1,651…Evening….Why Putin Could be Pushing So Hard…….

Below in my Daily Kos link?

A report that the Russian President maybe afraid that NOT getting at least the Donbas Region would be dangerous to his health….

The Russian Economy IS getting worse….

The Ukraine Capital Kyiv is STILL under constant attack….

Russian efforts to set up their own satellite network like musk’s Starlink has setbacks….

The Russian’s get together with China and India…..

Trump invites the Russian Finance minister to hang with G-20 ministers in the US…..

The Guardian…..

• No economic relief for Russia is ‌possible ‌until its war in Ukraine ‌ends, the US treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, has told a Russian counterpart.Bessent met with Anton Siluanov, the Russian finance minister, at a G20 finance ​leaders’ meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, where Moscow’s representatives were a surprise and unwelcome presence. A source told Reuters that Bessent said no agreements of any kind were ‌possible ‌until the war ended.

• The Russian finance minister’s ⁠first in-person G20 appearance ​since Russia ​invaded Ukraine ​has irritated ​European officials ‌who are ​working ​on more sanctions against Russia. Britain on Monday ramped up pressure on ⁠shadow financial systems underpinning Russia’s war economy, doubling penalties for sanctions breaches, the UK treasury said. Fines would increase from 50% of the value of a sanctions breach to 100%, said John ⁠Healey, the UK finance minister. The UK’s National Crime Agency issued a nationwide ‌alert targeting the Kremlin-backed A7 network, which the British government has said was used to route funds and evade restrictions.

• Four people ⁠were killed and more than ​a dozen injured in Russian air attacks on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv and the surrounding region on Tuesday, local authorities said, as a sixth day of strikes began. In Kyiv, three people were killed ⁠and another five wounded, and a fire broke out in a non-residential area. In ‌Boryspil in the wider Kyiv ‌region, one person was killed and another nine, including a child, were injured after missiles and drones ‌damaged an apartment building and a business, said the governor, Tymur Tkachenko. Odesa in Ukraine’s south came under heavy attack on Monday night, including by glide bombs, local officials said.

Kyiv suffers hours of daytime air raids as Russia deploys new jet-powered drones

• It comes as Kyiv endures hours of daytime air raids and air raid warnings, Dan Sabbagh writes from the Ukrainian capital. Russia fired 800 jet-powered drones into Ukraine in the previous four days. Past versions of the Iranian-style Shahed drones were propeller-driven. In response, Ukrainian engineers are racing to make faster interceptor drones. “Four companies have developed the relevant interceptor drones, and one company has the most successful technology,” said Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s president.

• Nato ⁠fighter planes were scrambled, Latvia’s military said early on Tuesday, after ⁠a ​warning ‌of a ‌possible air ‌threat near the town of Ludza, close ‌to the Russian border. Separately, Russia’s ​north-western Leningrad region issued a drone ⁠threat alert, according ​to the governor, ‌Alexander ​Drozdenko.

• More than a dozen drones heading for Moscow were shot down, claimed the mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, on Tuesday morning. Ukrainian drones also caused damage in the Samara region, home to ⁠a number of major oil refineries about 800km (500 miles) south-east of Moscow, the local governor said. ​Finland restricted air ‌and maritime traffic close ​to Russia, armed ​forces of both countries said, as Russia’s north-western Leningrad region, home to major export ports, came under drone attack.

• Ukrainian drones have hit another Wildberries warehouse, this time in Ekaterinburg, Russia. The Russian local governor confirmed the strike ‌on Monday, claiming that drones ‌and debris ‌also struck residential buildings. There were ​no casualties, ​he said.

• The suspected Russian “shadow fleet” oil tanker MV Sun was boarded ⁠by the ⁠European Union’s ​naval mission in the Mediterranean on Sunday, said Kaja Kallas, the EU’s ⁠foreign policy chief. “The oil ‌tanker MV Sun, suspected ‌of sailing under false flag in breach of international maritime law, was boarded on August 30 in the ‌Mediterranean by Operation Eunavfor Med Irini forces for ​flag verification,” Kallas posted.

• The war in Ukraine must end for humanity’s sake, India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, ​told Vladimir Putin as the two met in Kyrgyzstan. “Every day that the war continues, humanity is, in effect, set back ​a step, whilst every step towards peace gives all of humanity real hope for peace,” Modi said. “We need to move from endless war to an end to the war, to a cessation of hostilities. And we will need to move precisely in this direction.”

• Despite international condemnation and sanctions, India, along with China, has remained one of the biggest buyers ‌of Russian oil, which has helped Moscow fund its war against Ukraine. Modi and the Russian president met on the sidelines of ‌the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit where Putin ⁠and his Chinese ​counterpart, Xi ⁠Jinping, also metand briefly discussed ⁠the ​Ukraine war, the ​Kremlin ​said.

• Indonesia said it was investigating claims that several citizens had joined the Russian military to fight in the war in Ukraine. Information from Ukrainian authorities was being checked, the foreign ministry in Jakarta said. It did not say how many Indonesians were under suspicion, but they risk losing their citizenship. “If the involvement of Indonesian citizens in the armed forces of a foreign country is verified, it is an individual act and does not represent the policy or position of the Indonesian government,” the foreign ministry said.

• Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that he ⁠held a “detailed ⁠and ​constructive” call with US envoys ⁠Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Both sides were ⁠working to finalise dates for ​their visit ‌to Ukraine. “I ‌also informed them about the situation on the battlefield, where Russia’s gains have been sparse and at the cost of ‌huge losses, and about the strikes,” Zelenskyy said. “We shall see what the US president’s representatives manage to achieve. September ⁠could bring about a lot ​of ​changes. And we, together ​with our partners, must ​do ‌everything we ​can ​to protect people.”

• Polish prosecutors are investigating a fire at a drone factory as an act of terrorism arranged by a foreign intelligence service.The fire at the WB Electronics factory in the central city of Skarzysko-Kamienna was started deliberately using a “device containing flammable materials”, a prosecution statement said. Several countries in eastern Europe have said they have been the target of spying and sabotage as part of a “hybrid war” by Russia.

• Ukraine’s top sanctions official, Vladyslav Vlasiuk, will visit Washington this week to urge members of the US House ⁠of Representatives to approve sweeping ⁠Russia sanctions legislation. It would enable the president to sanction Russian officials and authorise tariffs on China, India and other countries for buying Russian oil ​and gas. Some US lawmakers and industries are wary, though, that Donald Trump might abuse the powers that the legislation contains. The House ​has not yet scheduled a vote on the legislation.….

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ISW…Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, August 31, 2026

1. Russia’s second batch of Rassvet satellites appears to have failed to reach intended operational altitudes, marking another setback in Moscow’s efforts to rapidly develop a Russian analogue to Starlink.
2. Russia is likely rushing to launch Rassvet satellites to compensate for the loss of Starlink connectivity over Ukraine.
3. Russia will likely continue struggling to establish an analogous version of the Starlink constellation unless it dramatically increases the number of successful Rassvet satellite launches.
4. Ukrainian strikes against Rassvet satellite production and launch sites threaten to further degrade Russia’s ability to establish a successful constellation on a timeline Russia deems acceptable.
5. Russian President Vladimir Putin appears to remain in favor of conducting covert mobilization following Russia’s September 18-20 State Duma elections and appears committed to sustaining his existing force generation mechanism.
6. Russian President Vladimir Putin met separately with People’s Republic of China (PRC) President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 31 ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.
7. Russian officials continue to implicitly threaten NATO in the Arctic as part of its rhetorical efforts to deter NATO defensive and cohesion measures in the region.
8. US, Ukrainian, and Russian officials appear to be resuming limited bilateral negotiations to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
9.  Ukrainian forces recently advanced in the Sumy, Borova, and Slovyansk directions and the Kostyantynivka-Druzhkivka tactical area, and Russian forces recently advanced in the Slovyansk direction and Kostyantynivka-Druzhkivka tactical area.
10. Ukrainian forces continued their long-range strike campaign against Belgorod Oblast, including Ozon (Wildberries’ main competitor) marketplaces, on the night of August 30 to 31.
11. Russia launched one Kh-59 cruise missile and 121 drones against Ukraine overnight.

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Daily Kos grunt report for Today….

NEXTA on X: ““They’ll hang me.” Putin, cornered, is preparing a new escalation of the war According to The Economist, the Russian dictator has found himself in a dead end but is afraid to show weakness. He believes that ending the war without capturing all of Donbas would threaten not only his power but also his life. One insider told the publication that Putin said to his associates: “They’ll hang me.” After weeks of deliberation over the summer, the dictator decided not to wind down the war but to raise the stakes again. His main problem is the lack of tangible results despite enormous losses. The war is dragging on, Ukrainian drones are reaching deeper into Russian territory, and the feeling of normal life is gradually disappearing. Discontent is growing inside Russia. The mood among the elite is even darker. The Kremlin may therefore move on several fronts at once: intensify strikes on Ukraine, expand sabotage and hybrid warfare against Europe, and send another 300,000–400,000 troops to the front without formally announcing a new mobilization. However, Putin does not understand that escalation will not solve any of his problems. It will only increase the cost of the war and could destabilize the system even further.”