(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Ukraine Invasion Day 568: missile strikes on occupied Sevastopol, Crimea [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-09-13 Ukrainian forces conducted missile strikes on occupied Sevastopol, Crimea, on September 13, damaging a Russian landing ship, a Kilo class submarine, and port infrastructure. "We have observed no indicators that the #Kremlin's intent to control [all of] #Ukraine has changed, even despite the battlefield setbacks and problems at home, there is no indication that #Putin is seeking any sort of offramp. Fortunately, it's never been just about the intent. It's always been about capability. The fact that we're here in #Kyiv is actually a testament to that; it's not b/c #Putin stopped wanting to take Kyiv, it's b/c he was denied the capabilities to do so." Ukrainian forces advanced in western Zaporizhia Oblast and reportedly advanced near Bakhmut amid continued counteroffensive operations on both sectors of the front on September 13. Geolocated footage published on September 12 indicates that Ukrainian forces made limited gains south of Robotyne (12km south of Orikhiv) in western Zaporizhia Oblast.[11] The Ukrainian General Staff reported on September 13 that Ukrainian forces achieved unspecified partial successes near Robotyne as well as near Klishchiivka (7km southwest of Bakhmut), Andriivka (10km southwest of Bakhmut), and Kurdyumivka (13km southwest of Bakhmut) in the Bakhmut direction.[12] x "Regardless of how deliberately Ukraine has emulated others’ successful approaches [in the information environment], it is clear that effective practices migrate across both time and geography." https://t.co/1Yo9T6Mzjx — Modern War Institute (@WarInstitute) September 13, 2023 Ukrainian forces conducted missile strikes on occupied Sevastopol, Crimea, on September 13, damaging a Russian landing ship, a Kilo class submarine, and port infrastructure. The Department of Strategic Communications of the Ukrainian Armed Forces stated that Ukrainian forces successfully conducted missile strikes on Russian naval means and port infrastructure in occupied Sevastopol.[1] Main Military Intelligence Directorate (GUR) Spokesperson Andriy Yusov stated that the missiles struck the Russian state-owned ship repair facility Sevmorzavod, damaging repair facilities as well as a landing ship and a submarine, both of which he described as unrecoverable.[2] The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) claimed that Russian air defenses intercepted seven out of 10 Ukrainian cruise missiles targeting the Sevmorzavod ship repair facility but acknowledged that Ukrainian missiles struck two ships under repair.[3] Geolocated footage published on September 13 shows explosions at the dry dock in the Sevastopol port.[4] Satellite imagery published on September 12 shows one Ropucha class landing ship and one Kilo class submarine at the dry dock, and satellite imagery published on September 13 shows that the Ukrainian missile strike likely destroyed the two vessels.[5] Ukrainian Southern Operational Command Spokesperson Captain First Rank Nataliya Humenyuk stated that there were no Russian missile carriers present during the strike but noted that Ukrainian intelligence is still unaware of which submarine was at the dry dock.[6] The apparent destruction of the two vessels will likely render the dry dock inoperable until Russian forces can clear the debris, which may take a significant amount of time. The extent of the damage to Sevmorzavod’s repair facilities beyond the dry dock is unclear, and any damage to one of the Russian Black Sea Fleet’s main repair facilities in occupied Crimea will likely have reverberating impacts in the event of further Ukrainian strikes on Russian naval assets. www.understandingwar.org/... Russian officials largely did not address the strike, while select Russian ultranationalists responded with predictable outrage. Crimean occupation officials claimed that the strikes damaged residential buildings and injured several dozen people, although they did not say whether the injured were Russian military personnel.[7] Prominent Kremlin propagandist Vladimir Solovyov expressed deep anger at the strike and called for retaliatory strikes on Western facilities that produced the alleged missiles that Ukraine used in the strike.[8] Solovyov’s call for escalation with the West is boilerplate rhetoric for his domestic audience but is not reflective of any actual Kremlin position on the matter. www.understandingwar.org/... x Massive drone strike hits Danube ports #Ukraine #OSINT #GEOINT https://t.co/oaJ3hkysQc — Geopolitical Report (@GeoPioneerInc) September 14, 2023 x #Ukraine: The Pr. 775 "Minsk" landing ship, which was hit during the attack on the Sevastopol Shipyard, suffered serious damage on the superstructure. The aftermath of a heavy fire is also visible. Given the ship's age and level of damage - it is likely beyond economic repair. pic.twitter.com/XbTKn7dTqI — 🇺🇦 Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) September 13, 2023 The apparent destruction of the two vessels will render the dry dock inoperable until #Russia can clear the debris, which may take a significant amount of time. Jari Lairolahti @heartsteered x NEW: Looks like Elon Musk’s Starlink went out during yet another critical Ukraine offensive against the Russian Navy last night. The cruise missiles (not reliant on Starlink) hit their targets. But the drones - which rely on Starlink - were destroyed by the Russian military. pic.twitter.com/ypmealiTjp — Mueller, She Wrote (@MuellerSheWrote) September 13, 2023 Key Takeaways: Ukrainian forces conducted missile strikes on occupied Sevastopol, Crimea, on September 13, damaging a Russian landing ship, a Kilo class submarine, and port infrastructure. Ukrainian forces advanced in western Zaporizhia Oblast and reportedly advanced near Bakhmut amid continued counteroffensive operations on both sectors of the front on September 13. Russian forces conducted a series of Shahed-131/136 drone strikes targeting Sumy and Odesa oblasts on the night of September 12 to 13. Russian President Vladimir Putin is likely concerned that Russia’s growing relationship with North Korea may endanger Russia’s existing sanctions evasion schemes. The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) reportedly temporarily disrupted a Wagner Group force rotation to Syria amid reports of the Russian MoD’s ongoing efforts to subsume Wagner operations in Syria. Russian forces conducted offensive operations along the Kupyansk-Svatove-Kreminna line, near Bakhmut, along the Avdiivka-Donetsk City line, in the western Donetsk-eastern Zaporizhia Oblast border area, and in western Zaporizhia Oblast but did not make any confirmed advances. Reports from Western and Russian independent sources indicate that Russia has circumvented some Western sanctions to increase weapons production but still struggles to produce weapons at the pace required by the war in Ukraine. The Ukrainian Main Military Intelligence Directorate (GUR) published footage showing GUR and Ukrainian partisans conducting a drone strike on a Russian occupation passportization office in occupied Enerhodar, Zaporizhia Oblast on September 12. www.understandingwar.org/… x x YouTube Video kyivindependent.com/... x ⚡️ WAR IN #UKRAINE - SEP 13 ■ Engagements slightly above 7-day average ■ Troop losses above average, equipment slightly below ■ Highlight: 16 tanks ■ Area gains: +12 km² ■ Oryx: 30-day ratio reduced to 1.6x See dashboard for further information 📈 https://t.co/UfXgXLjtph pic.twitter.com/vny4fhUfFi — Ragnar Gudmundsson 🇮🇸🇺🇦 (@ragnarbjartur) September 13, 2023 x 📷Soldiers of Ukrainian Battalion Stugna on the drilling platform Crimea-1 (known as Ukraine until the Russian capture in 2014) in the Black Sea.#UkraineRussiaWar pic.twitter.com/R4NMKHh99M — MilitaryLand.net (@Militarylandnet) September 13, 2023 x Ukrainian military sources: our units have partial success south of Bakhmut; tactical gains are made; the enemy suffers losses Russian military bloggers: the front south of Bakhmut is collapsing; our units retreat from Klishchiyivka and Andriyivka; Artemovsk [Bakhmut] is lost — Michael MacKay (@mhmck) September 14, 2023 Russian Subordinate Main Effort #1 – Luhansk Oblast (Russian objective: Capture the remainder of Luhansk Oblast and push westward into eastern Kharkiv Oblast and northern Donetsk Oblast) Russian forces continued offensive operations along the Kupyansk-Svatove-Kreminna line but did not make any confirmed or claimed gains on September 13. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces conducted an unsuccessful attack northwest of Berestove (20km northwest of Svatove).[23] A Russian news aggregator claimed that Russian forces conducted offensive operations near Synkivka (9km northeast of Kupyansk) and Petropavlivka (7km east of Kupyansk) on September 12.[24]... Chechen Republic Head Ramzan Kadyrov posted footage claiming to show Chechen “Akhmat” Spetsnaz forces operating in the Serebryanske forest area (11km south of Kreminna).[26] The United Kingdom Ministry of Defense (UK MoD) reported on September 13 that elements of the Russian 25th Combined Arms Army (CAA) (reportedly formed under the Eastern Military District) have deployed to the frontline in Luhansk Oblast, supporting ISW’s previous reporting.[28] The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) also reported that Russian forces are regrouping and forming new assault units with personnel from the newly created 25th CAA in the Kupyansk direction.[29] The WSJ reported that the Russian military deployed 50,000 troops to retake Kupyansk but has had little success.[30] Ukrainian Kharkiv Oblast Head Oleh Synehubov reportedly stated that Russian forces have not captured a single new village in the Kupyansk direction since 2022 but have only expanded the contested “gray zone” around a number of settlements.[31] www.understandingwar.org/... Russian Subordinate Main Effort #2 – Donetsk Oblast (Russian objective: Capture the entirety of Donetsk Oblast, the claimed territory of Russia’s proxies in Donbas) Ukrainian forces continued counteroffensive operations around Bakhmut and reportedly advanced on September 13. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Ukrainian forces continued offensive operations in the Bakhmut direction and achieved unspecified partial successes near Klishchiivka (7km southwest of Bakhmut), Andriivka (10km southwest of Bakhmut), and Kurdyumivka (13km southwest of Bakhmut).[34] www.understandingwar.org/... Russian Supporting Effort – Southern Axis (Russian objective: Maintain frontline positions and secure rear areas against Ukrainian strikes) Ukrainian forces reportedly conducted offensive operations in the western Donetsk-eastern Zaporizhia Oblast border area on September 13 but did not make any confirmed advances. The Russian MoD and other Russian sources claimed that Russian forces repelled Ukrainian attacks along the Novodonetske-Novomayorske line (13–18km southeast of Velyka Novosilka) and near Pryyutne (16km southwest of Velyka Novosilka).[44] Russian forces conducted offensive operations in the western Donetsk-eastern Zaporizhia Oblast border area on September 13 but did not advance. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces unsuccessfully attacked south of Novodarivka (13km southwest of Velyka Novosilka).[45]... Footage published on September 12 purportedly shows snipers of the Russian 5th Tank Brigade (36th Combined Arms Army, Eastern Military District) operating in the Velyka Novosilka area.[47] www.understandingwar.org/... x In temporarily occupied Blahovishchenka, Zaporizhzhia region, three Ukrainian kamikaze drones attacked a "polling station" where already filled-in "ballots" from the Russian pseudo-elections were stored, hromadske's sources in the Security Service of Ukraine reported. pic.twitter.com/otmZ6hOgzA — Hromadske Int. (@Hromadske) September 13, 2023 x Some experts, including U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, say that the aggressive use of sanctions could threaten the dollar’s hegemony. Get the latest: https://t.co/YOGcU9qYFK — Council on Foreign Relations (@CFR_org) September 13, 2023 x Sky News published this video, entitled “Elon Musk questioned by Sky News reporter” Sky’s James Matthews asks Musk if his ‘ego and ignorance had cost Ukrainian lives’ after the billionaire admitted thwarting a Ukrainian attack on Russia. Also according to The Business… pic.twitter.com/lxePfHz45V — Yasmina (@yasminalombaert) September 13, 2023 https://t.co/bJfl8A4dyT English language edition of Domenico Losurdo’s Stalin: History and Critique of a Black Legend; Henry Hakamaki & Salvatore Engel-Di Mauro FREE PDF Iskra Books Henry Hakamaki & Salvatore Engel-Di Mauro FREE PDF Iskra Books [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/9/13/2193041/-Ukraine-Invasion-Day-568-missile-strikes-on-occupied-Sevastopol-Crimea Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/