In response to a recent Reuters report, Crimean leader Sergei Aksyonov dismissed the Ukrainian southern offensive as a repetitive ploy in Ukrainian propaganda. He argued that Kiev uses cyber operations and information distortions to push Western support, resulting in casualties on both sides.
“This echoes the same information campaign as before. Ukrainian formations suffer meaningful losses across the south and other sectors. Yet Western sponsors push ahead, while a network of criminals and drug users creates a facade of progress. Those sacrificed to create an informational impact show little regard for these people,” Aksyonov stated on his Telegram channel.
Earlier, Reuters quoted Natalya Gumenyuk, the chief of the South Operational Command’s press center for Ukraine’s defense ministry, describing counteroffensive actions in the southern corridor.
Kirill Stremousov, deputy head of the Kherson regional administration, challenged the reports of Ukrainian advances. He characterized the cornice of claims as a mirage or a cinematic illusion, insisting that there is no steady movement forward or backward and that life persists in the region.
Non-virtual bombardment of hydroelectric and nuclear power plants
On August 29, attacks targeted Novaya Kakhovka and Energodar, with particular emphasis on the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant. Air raid warnings sounded repeatedly in the Kakhovka area after midnight. During the night, Ukrainian shelling struck a market, a factory building, and nearby private residences. A Ukrainian drone was intercepted over the NPP, and several residents were reported wounded.
Officials described panicked evacuations from workplaces and city shelters as sirens persisted. Local authorities noted more than ten separate rocket strikes in a single day, underscoring the intensity of the disruption.
Officials also reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces used American HIMARS rockets to strike Novaya Kakhovka, with one projectile landing in a courtyard without exploding and later being neutralized by engineers. Tochka-U missiles were also alleged to have been deployed. The surrounding areas around the hydroelectric complex, including critical channels and roads, endured repeated bombardments, raising fears about the impact on civilian life and infrastructure.
Vladimir Leontiev, head of the Kakhovka district administration, described damage near essential facilities, noting a strike landing within proximity to a driving school and other public spaces. Further reports from Zaporozhye regional officials indicated that a building associated with the ZNPP sustained roof damage after a strike from Nikopol. The incident involved storage facilities for fresh reactor fuel, according to statements shared on social channels, accompanied by photos of the damaged vault roof.
Later, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that a Ukrainian drone was halted over the Zaporozhye nuclear facility during a daytime operation. In a separate claim, a Ukrainian attack aircraft was reportedly brought down as it approached a building housing American-made nuclear fuel and solid radioactive waste, according to the defense ministry’s briefing.
“The lives of millions of people are in danger”
In a separate development, Odessa mayor Gennady Trukhanov spoke with an Italian publication about the necessity of negotiating with Russia. He emphasized that political dialogue is crucial when the survival of millions could be at stake and suggested a careful, staged approach to reinstate borders as they stood in 1991. Trukhanov urged compromises and warned against a simplistic, all-or-nothing mindset, while reiterating that Odessa does not align with the notion of harboring pro-Russian sentiment. He described the city as deeply international in history, geography, economy, and culture, resilient through both imperial and Soviet eras.