Nearly 700,000 Russian military personnel deployed in Ukraine, intelligence says
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Trump says he’d ‘love’ to host Putin, Xi at next year’s G20 summit in US
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sept. 5 he’d “love” to host the Russian and Chinese leaders during a G20 summit in Miami in 2026. The next year’s meeting of the G20, a forum of the world’s largest economies, will be held at Trump National Doral golf course in Florida. Trump said he intends to invite additional observers, including Poland, to the event.
The next year’s meeting of the G20, a forum of the world’s largest economies, will be held at Trump National Doral golf course in Florida, the U.S. president announced during a press briefing at the Oval Office.
Apart from the 19 member states, the EU, and the African Union, Trump said he intends to invite additional observers, including Poland.
When asked whether Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to join the event, Trump said he would “love them to if they want to.”
The U.S. president added that Putin and Xi could join as “observers,” despite Russia and China being full members of the group.
“I’m not sure they want to be an observer. If they want to, we can certainly talk,” Trump added.
Last month, Trump hosted Putin in Alaska as part of Washington-led efforts to negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war.
The Aug. 15 summit in Anchorage ended without any concrete agreements on ending the hostilities and was seen as a clear break from the Western diplomatic isolation imposed on Putin over the invasion of Ukraine.
Xi has not visited the U.S. since 2015, his first and so far only state visit since becoming China’s president in 2013.
After returning to office in January, Trump’s foreign policy aimed to restore relations with Russia in order to pull Moscow away from Beijing. Despite the efforts, Russian-Chinese ties have only seemed to grow stronger, as Putin praised the “unprecedented level” of the relationship during his recent four-day visit to China.
Commenting on pictures of Xi, Putin, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi together at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin, Trump said it “looks like we’ve lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest China.”
Nearly 700,000 Russian military personnel deployed in Ukraine, intelligence says
There are close to 700,000 Russian service members deployed in Ukraine, a Ukrainian military intelligence spokesperson said. The majority is deployed in Donetsk Oblast, which shows Russia’s priorities, he said. Ukraine’s army fields almost 900,000 service members across the country, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said in January that Russia continues to hold a numerical advantage in some front-line sectors due to the concentration of forces.
“The majority is deployed in Donetsk Oblast, which shows… (Russia’s) priorities,” Yusov said in an interview with Ukrainian news channel Novyny.Live.
Ukraine’s army fields almost 900,000 service members across the country, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said in January that Russia continues to hold a numerical advantage in some front-line sectors due to the concentration of forces.
At the time, the Russian contingent in Ukraine counted 600,000 troops, Zelensky said.
Despite reportedly suffering over 1 million soldiers killed and wounded during the full-scale war, Russia has been consistently able to offset its losses by fresh contract soldiers, while Kyiv faces increasingly critical manpower shortages.
Moscow has also received North Korean reinforcements, with thousands of troops expected to arrive after the initial batch of 11,000-12,000 soldiers who were deployed in Russia’s Kursk Oblast in late 2024.
The North Korean contingent helped Russia fend off a Ukrainian incursion into the Russian border region, reportedly suffering 2,000 soldiers killed in combat.
When asked if North Korean troops have joined hostilities on Ukrainian territory, Yusov responded that Pyongyang’s forces currently remain in Russia.
North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, who met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing earlier this week, has been a key ally to Moscow during the full-scale war, providing not only soldiers but also artillery shells and ballistic missiles.
“Along the entire front, 40-60% of artillery shells fired at Ukraine and Ukrainian soldiers are North Korean-made — these are huge numbers,” Yusov said.
“If this factor were taken away, Russia’s fire support and strike capabilities would be much smaller,” the spokesperson said, noting that North Korean artillery and missile supplies play a much more significant role than the troop deployment.
Nearly 700,000 Russian troops deployed in Ukraine
Ukrainian military intelligence reports that nearly 700,000 Russian personnel are currently deployed in Ukraine. The majority are concentrated in Donetsk Oblast, highlighting Moscow’s strategic priorities. An initial batch of 11,000–12,000 North Korean troops was deployed in Russia’s Kursk Oblast in late 2024.
Ukraine’s armed forces number nearly 900,000 nationwide. President Volodymyr Zelensky noted earlier this year that Russia maintains a numerical advantage in some front-line sectors due to concentrated troop deployments, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
Despite reportedly suffering over 1 million casualties since the start of the war, Russia has continued to replenish its forces with contract soldiers. Meanwhile, Kyiv faces critical manpower shortages.
Russia has also received support from North Korea. An initial batch of 11,000–12,000 North Korean troops was deployed in Russia’s Kursk Oblast in late 2024, helping repel a Ukrainian incursion. While Pyongyang’s forces have not yet entered Ukraine, they provide significant military aid, including artillery shells and ballistic missiles.
“Along the front, 40–60% of artillery fired at Ukraine is North Korean-made,” Yusov said, emphasizing that these supplies significantly enhance Russia’s firepower beyond troop numbers.
News.Az
Nearly 700,000 Russian military personnel deployed in Ukraine, intelligence says
There are close to 700,000 Russian service members deployed in Ukraine, a Ukrainian military intelligence spokesperson said. The majority is deployed in Donetsk Oblast, which shows Russia’s priorities, he said. Ukraine’s army fields almost 900,000 service members across the country, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said in January that Russia continues to hold a numerical advantage in some front-line sectors. Despite reportedly suffering over 1 million soldiers killed and wounded during the full-scale war, Russia has been consistently able to offset its losses by fresh contract soldiers.
“The majority is deployed in Donetsk Oblast, which shows… (Russia’s) priorities,” Yusov said in an interview with Ukrainian news channel Novyny.Live.
Ukraine’s army fields almost 900,000 service members across the country, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said in January that Russia continues to hold a numerical advantage in some front-line sectors due to the concentration of forces.
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At the time, the Russian contingent in Ukraine counted 600,000 troops, Zelensky said.
Despite reportedly suffering over 1 million soldiers killed and wounded during the full-scale war, Russia has been consistently able to offset its losses by fresh contract soldiers, while Kyiv faces increasingly critical manpower shortages.
Moscow has also received North Korean reinforcements, with thousands of troops expected to arrive after the initial batch of 11,000-12,000 soldiers who were deployed in Russia’s Kursk Oblast in late 2024.
The North Korean contingent helped Russia fend off a Ukrainian incursion into the Russian border region, reportedly suffering 2,000 soldiers killed in combat.
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When asked if North Korean troops have joined hostilities on Ukrainian territory, Yusov responded that Pyongyang’s forces currently remain in Russia.
North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, who met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing earlier this week, has been a key ally to Moscow during the full-scale war, providing not only soldiers but also artillery shells and ballistic missiles.
“Along the entire front, 40-60% of artillery shells fired at Ukraine and Ukrainian soldiers are North Korean-made — these are huge numbers,” Yusov said.
“If this factor were taken away, Russia’s fire support and strike capabilities would be much smaller,” the spokesperson said, noting that North Korean artillery and missile supplies play a much more significant role than the troop deployment.
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Read also: Behind Ukraine’s manpower crisis lies a bleak new battlefield reality for infantry
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Ukraine detains fugitive lawmaker suspected of collaboration with Russia
Ukrainian authorities detained a fugitive lawmaker from a banned pro-Russian party, who is wanted for treason. The suspect’s name was not officially disclosed, but a law enforcement source identified him as Fedir Khrystenko. In July, the lawmaker was charged with high treason and abuse of influence. The news comes amid growing tensions between the SBU and NABU, Ukraine’s chief anti-corruption agency established as part of post-EuroMaidan anti-graft reforms. The two agencies have exchanged accusations and launched probes targeting one another’s officials, including a senior SBU official charged with illicit enrichment.. The lawmaker was brought before the court on Sept. 6 and is currently in custody as the investigation is ongoing.
Though the suspect’s name was not officially disclosed, the Kyiv Independent’s law enforcement source identified him as Fedir Khrystenko, a 41-year-old lawmaker and a former member of the now-banned pro-Russian party, Opposition Platform — For Life.
According to the SBU, the suspect was recruited by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) long before the outbreak of the full-scale war in 2022 and actively cooperated with Russian intelligence.
Prosecutors say the suspect set up an “influence mechanism” over the leadership of an unnamed law enforcement agency between 2020 and 2021, enabling Russia to obtain sensitive information.
After the start of the all-out invasion, the lawmaker left Ukraine and continued his illegal activities from abroad, the prosecutors said. In July, the lawmaker was charged with high treason and abuse of influence.
Khrystenko was widely reported to have resided in the United Arab Emirates after he left Ukraine. The Gulf country is a common destination for Ukrainian ex-officials, and many own property there.
Citing sources, Ukrainska Pravda reported on Sept. 5 that the pro-Russian lawmaker might be extradited from Dubai to Ukraine in the coming days. While the SBU claims the suspect was detained in Ukraine, the circumstances of the arrest are not immediately clear.
The lawmaker was brought before the court on Sept. 6 and is currently in custody as the investigation is ongoing.
According to the Kyiv Independent’s law enforcement source, Khrystenko was responsible for “strengthening Russian influence” over Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and maintained close ties with senior figures in the agency.
These included Ruslan Mahamedrasulov, a senior NABU official detained by the SBU in July over alleged business dealings in Russia, the source claimed.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims.
The news comes amid growing tensions between the SBU and NABU, Ukraine’s chief anti-corruption agency established as part of post-EuroMaidan anti-graft reforms.
In recent months, the two agencies have exchanged accusations and launched probes targeting one another’s officials. Most recently, NABU charged a senior SBU official — reported to be ex-cybersecurity chief Illia Vitiuk — with illicit enrichment.
The pressure against NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Office (SAPO) escalated in July, when the SBU raided NABU offices and accused some of its employees of links to Russia.
President Volodymyr Zelensky’s lawmakers then unexpectedly passed a law dismantling the independence of the two anti-graft agencies, though the parliament rolled back the changes after mass street protests and a pushback from Kyiv’s European partners.
Ukrainska Pravda reported that, according to its sources, the SBU tried to contact Khrystenko in Dubai on Aug. 4 to obtain testimony against NABU employees as part of the crackdown against the alleged “Russian influence” in the agency.
Talking to the news outlet, Khrystenko denied contact with NABU detectives or Russian intelligence services and claimed he fears for his life.