Victory Chronicles-DAY 1315

Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces reported on Sept. 30 that their drones successfully destroyed the radar of a Russian S-400 Triumph surface-to-air missile system in the occupied Crimean Peninsula that was illegally annexed in 2014. The overnight strike specifically targeted the radar station, the so-called eyes of the S-400 complex.

The operation carries both tactical and symbolic weight since the system is designed to detect and shoot down drones that were by itself struck by a Ukrainian drone. Deprived of its radar, the S-400 loses much of its ability to track and guide missiles, effectively blinding one of Russia’s most advanced air defense assets.

Kyiv has increasingly relied on long-range drones to disrupt Russian positions in Crimea, a peninsula Moscow illegally annexed in 2014. For Ukraine, such strikes are meant to chip away at Russia’s sense of security deep behind the front lines – showing that even expensive weapons are vulnerable.

EU pledges 2 billion euros ($2.1 billion) for Ukraine drone expansion. The European Union (EU) commits to providing Ukraine with 2 billion euros ($2.1 billion) to expand its drone capabilities, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Sept. 30.

Speaking alongside NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, von der Leyen called Ukraine Europe’s “first line of defense” and urged continued military aid as the Russo-Ukrainian war enters its third year. 

She said the funding will help Kyiv scale up its drone capacity at a time when Russia has leaned heavily on Iranian-designed Shahed drones to hit civilian targets.

The initiative also carries weight for Europe. Von der Leyen noted that the deal will strengthen the EU’s own access to drone technology, while for Ukraine, drones remain a lifeline – eyes in the sky and strike weapons that can tip the balance in battles across the front.

Ukraine doesn’t publicly disclose its military casualty figures. However, it estimates that Russia has thus far suffered more than 1.1 million casualties in military personnel killed in action, wounded, lost or in captivity. 

Russian drone strike kills family of four in northeastern Ukraine. A Russian drone strike killed two parents and their two young children overnight on Sept. 30 when it hit their home in the village of Chernechchyna in Ukraine’s Sumy region, local officials said.

Regional GovernorOleh Hryhorov said the unmanned aircraft struck the family’s house directly, leaving no survivors. Rescuers pulled the bodies of a 35-year-old father, a 26-year-old mother, and their sons, who were aged 6 and 4 years old from the rubble.

The village straddles Ukraine’s northern border with Russia, an area that has come under repeated attacks since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. 

Ukrainian intelligence says it killed Russian officer in cross-border strike. Ukraine’s military intelligence agency said on Sept. 30 that its operatives had eliminated a Russian National Guard Lt. Col. colonel and two other servicemen inside Russia’s Stavropol region on Sept. A video shows a remotely triggered explosion that struck the unit en route to a training ground. The officer led the special forces group Avangard and was accompanied by an aide and driver. 

Officials noted the strike, conducted with support from the anti-Kremlin Caucuses Liberation Movement, dealt a rare blow to Russian command inside its own territory. 

Key Takeaways

• Kremlin ruler Vladimir Putin issued the decree to start the semi-annual fall conscription cycle on Oct. 1.
• The Kremlin plans to spend 17 trillion rubles ($183 billion) on national security and defense in 2026 — about 38 percent of its planned annual expenditures.
• The Russian government is planning to increase funding to televised propaganda – in line with increased restrictions on social media and internet access.
• U.S. Special Envoy to Ukraine General Keith Kellogg acknowledged that Ukraine has U.S. permission to conduct long-range strikes against Russian territory.
• Kremlin officials are trying to preemptively deter the United States from providing Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles.
• European officials continue to report unidentified drones operating within NATO airspace.
• The pro-European Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) won a parliamentary majority in the Sept. 28 elections in Moldova, as Kremlin-linked Moldovan politicians and Russian officials are preparing to appeal the results and call for protests in the coming days.
• Ukrainian forces advanced near Lyman and in the Dobropillya tactical area. Russian forces advanced near Velykyi Burluk, Lyman, Siversk, Novopavlivka, and Velykomykhailivka and in the Kostyantynivka-Druzhkivka tactical area.

• Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry condemns international media outlets for joining Russian propaganda tour in temporarily occupied territories
• Zelenskyy says Ukraine launches mission in Denmark to share drone countermeasure expertise
• Russian channels report attack on plant in Russia’s Bryansk Oblast
• Czech Republic bans entry of Russian diplomats without accreditation
• Stoltenberg admits NATO’s support for Ukraine after 2014 was insufficient