Russia

Russia's 2026 parliamentary election delivered United Russia a supermajority, with 86 war veterans entering the Duma. Days earlier, Putin nationalized the Russian assets of Auchan, Nestlé, and Leroy Merlin. NHL star Alexander Ovechkin defended his campaign ad appearance, while the IPI demanded justice for journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna.

Russia's 2026 State Duma elections saw United Russia retain and expand its constitutional majority, with no opposition parties making gains and the anti-war Yabloko party barred from the ballot. The vote, held amid the war in Ukraine and economic strain, was widely seen as predetermined, though the Kremlin invested heavily in turnout and presentation. Analysts say the result will likely reinforce the status quo, but how the Kremlin uses the mandate remains an open question.

Ukraine's General Staff reports 1,660 additional Russian casualties on 21 September, bringing the total to over 1.52 million since February 2022. Weekly losses have ranged from 1,400 to 1,960 per day, with artillery and drone attrition particularly heavy. Figures are Kyiv's estimates and not independently verified.

Ukraine launched its largest drone attack on Moscow on 20 September, with over 1,600 drones. The Moscow Oil Refinery was hit, damaging a key unit and causing a major fire, while a residential building strike killed at least two. The attack, using multiple Ukrainian long-range weapons, is part of a coordinated campaign against Russian energy infrastructure.

Ukrainian drone attacks hit the Moscow oil refinery (supplying 40% of the capital's fuel) and the Yaroslavl refinery (Yanos) within four days, knocking out key distillation units. The strikes disrupt fuel supplies for Russia's military and civilian economy, part of a sustained campaign to degrade Russian refining capacity.

A wave of Russian drone and missile strikes across Ukraine in September 2026 has killed at least 16 civilians, targeting trains, shopping centres, fuel stations and bus stops. Ukraine struck a gas plant deep in Russia’s Arctic in response.

Russian drone and artillery attacks killed 10 civilians and wounded over 70 in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast between 10 and 19 September, striking a shopping centre, a minibus and infrastructure. The attacks follow a pattern of strikes on crowded civilian areas, which Ukraine’s foreign minister called a ‘tactic of coercion’.

Ukraine's General Staff reports 230 combat clashes in a day, with Pokrovsk and Kostiantynivka seeing the heaviest fighting. Ukrainian forces repelled attacks across multiple fronts, while the 425th Skelia Assault Regiment successfully evacuated 21 encircled soldiers from the 159th Brigade.

A Russian combined missile and drone attack on Kyiv on 17 September injured 20 people, including two children. EU Ambassador Katarína Mathernová stated that nearly 120 have been killed in Kyiv and oblast since August, calling the capital a 'frontline city.' The following day, Russia launched ballistic missiles at Kyiv.

Ukraine’s General Staff reports Russia suffered 8,800 casualties in the week to 18 September, bringing total personnel losses to 1,514,910. Daily losses ranged from 1,400 to 1,960, with heavy equipment destruction including 75 artillery systems in a single day. The figures, from Ukrainian sources only, indicate continuing high attrition on the front.

Putin nationalizes assets of Auchan, Nestlé, and Leroy Merlin on the eve of Russia's parliamentary election. NHL star Alexander Ovechkin defends his United Russia campaign ad, reinforcing Kremlin messaging. The moves suggest a regime tightening control over economy and loyalty.

A seven-year-old girl suffered acoustic trauma in a Russian UAV attack on the Bucha district, Kyiv Oblast, on 17 September. The strike is part of a relentless daily campaign of jet-powered drone attacks that has injured multiple civilians, including a two-year-old, and damaged homes and warehouses across the region since late August.

Russian missile and drone strikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian regions between late August and mid-September 2026 killed at least six civilians and injured dozens, hitting residential buildings and infrastructure. The attacks underscore Russia's strategy of attrition against urban centres and highlight Ukraine's need for more air defence.

A Russian cargo ship damaged by a drone attack ran aground off Turkey's coast near Istanbul. Days later, a Russian drone strike on a Tanzanian-flagged civilian vessel heading for a Ukrainian port killed its captain. The incidents underscore the ongoing threat to Black Sea shipping from both sides' attacks.

Ukrainian drones struck the Syzran oil refinery and Sebryakovcement plant overnight on 14-15 September, damaging the refinery's main crude distillation unit. Both the Syzran and Saratov refineries have halted crude processing, worsening Russia's fuel shortage.

Donald Trump claims Ukraine and Russia agreed not to strike energy infrastructure, but neither side confirms. The announcement follows Putin's threat of war if European troops deploy. The unverified deal could ease fuel prices, but strategic gaps remain.

Russian drone and missile strikes killed at least 16 people across Ukraine in mid-September 2026, including two police officers in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and two civilians at the Ukraine-Moldova border, as Moscow resumed near-constant attacks on Kyiv and other cities despite renewed US diplomatic efforts.

Ukrainian forces struck the Syzran oil refinery and drone facilities in Taganrog and Oryol, while hitting targets in the Black Sea. The strikes come amid disputed claims of an energy truce brokered by the US, with IEA warnings that Russia could lose 30% of refining capacity for 18 months.

Russian drone attacks on Zaporizhzhia and Kyiv on 10-11 and 15 September 2026 kill one energy worker and injure four civilians, including a mother and her son. Strikes hit homes, power grids, and petrol stations, disrupting electricity and emergency services.

Ukraine's General Staff reports 1,400 Russian soldiers killed or wounded on 15 September, bringing the total to 1,510,000 since February 2022. The figure follows a spike to 1,700 a day earlier, underscoring sustained attrition.