Russia's suspension of participation in grain agreement, release of 52 Ukrainians from captivity: today's highlights

Russia suspends participation in “grain agreement” due to explosions in Sevastopol

The Russian Defense Ministry said that Russia suspends participation in the “grain agreement”. They say that the reason was the “terrorist attack” on the ships of the Black Sea Fleet and civilian vessels, which was allegedly carried out by Ukraine with the participation of specialists from the UK. This was reported by the Russian propaganda media RIA Novosti.

It refers to the explosions that occurred in Sevastopol on the morning of October 29. As a result, at least one Russian minesweeper was damaged. The occupiers say that the Ukrainians allegedly involved 9 drones and 7 autonomous marine drones.

The Russians say that “the same unit of British specialists” that helped the Ukrainians to arrange explosions in Sevastopol is also involved in the explosions of the Nord Stream pipeline.

52 more Ukrainians are released from captivity

Ukraine has returned 52 people from captivity in another large exchange. Among them are the military and a doctor who were at the blocked Azovstal in Mariupol. This was announced by the Head of the Presidential Office Andriy Yermak.

Officers, medics, sergeants, and soldiers were released from captivity. Among them are 12 soldiers of the National Guard, including two Azov members, 18 representatives of the Navy, 8 officers of the State Border Guard Service, 9 officers of the Defense Ministry, and 3 fighters of the Armed Forces. Two more are civilians.

Occupants hit the infrastructure in Zaporizhzhia

Russian troops shelled Zaporizhzhia on the afternoon of October 29. This was reported by the head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration Oleksandr Starukh. He also noted that the Russians fired at critical infrastructure facilities. There were no casualties. The strike resulted in the destruction of an industrial facility.

Over 70 thousand Russian servicemen were killed in a full-scale war against Ukraine

The Armed Forces of Ukraine have killed approximately 70,250 Russian occupants since February 24. Only on October 28, Russia lost 550 of its military. This was reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as of the morning of October 29.

Estimated losses of the occupiers for the entire time of the full-scale war:

• tanks — 2659;
• armored combat vehicles — 5401;
• artillery systems — 1708;
• multiple launch rocket systems — 380;
• air defense systems — 195;
• aircraft — 273;
• helicopters — 252;
• drones of operational and tactical level — 1406;
• cruise missiles — 351;
• motor vehicles and tankers — 4107;
• special hardware — 152.

Border guards stop the advance of Russian reconnaissance in the Siverskyi direction

Ukrainian border guards shot down a Russian UAV in the Siverskyi direction and stopped the advance of enemy reconnaissance men. This was reported by the press service of the State Border Guard Service. Recently, Russians tried to reconnoiter the approaches to the position using a UAV. Ukrainian border guards started shooting at the drone, after which it began to descend sharply and fell.

Border guards set up observation posts along the Siverskyi Donets river. When it got dark, two ground reconnaissance groups tried to approach from the opposite bank of the river. The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine stated that they used “concentrated fire” to stop the advance of the occupiers. Then the Russians did not conduct further reconnaissance in this direction.