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The apparent shift has alarmed European defense leaders, who see the presence of U.S. troops and support as a key deterrent against Moscow
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Russian forces struck a humanitarian demining team near Chernihiv on Thursday, killing two Ukrainian workers and injuring five others, local authorities and the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) confirmed.
The DRC said in a statement: “At the time of the incident, DRC teams were conducting purely civilian humanitarian activities—working to clear landmines and explosive remnants of war in order to protect communities and enable safe access to essential infrastructure, farmland, and homes.”
The attack targeted civilians conducting life-saving demining operations in the Kyselivska community of Chernihiv, a border region in northern Ukraine.
The organization described the strike as a “serious violation of International Humanitarian Law” and emphasized that humanitarian workers must never be targeted.
Chernihiv Regional State Administration head Viacheslav Chaus described the strike as “a deadly Russian hit on civilians.”
“First they littered the region with explosives and mines; now they are killing people who risk their lives clearing our land from the consequences of Russia’s invasion,” he added.
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Luke Rasmussen condemned the attack, calling it “yet another proof that Putin has no intention of ending his illegal war of aggression.”
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas added: “The death of aid workers employed by Danish Refugee Council in a missile strike underscores the brutality of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Attacks on humanitarian missions are a grave violation of international law. The EU will keep supporting Ukraine and will hold those responsible accountable.”
European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos also spoke out: “Striking a humanitarian demining team near Chernihiv, killing two and injuring five, is yet another brutal attack by Russia against civilian targets in Ukraine. It is a deliberate attack on peace and recovery.”
This strike follows previous attacks on humanitarian teams in Ukraine, highlighting the dual danger from unexploded ordnance and targeted missile strikes in frontline areas.
Humanitarian workers like those with the DRC are critical to recovery in regions affected by Russia’s ongoing aggression. Their work prevents further civilian casualties and restores safe access to farmland, infrastructure, and homes, even amid repeated threats from aerial attacks and mines.
Ukraine’s Armed Forces are expanding capabilities to counter strike drones like the Shahed and Geran, according to Commander-in-Chief General Oleksandr Syrskyi.
Russian forces regularly launch attack drones against Ukrainian cities across the country, hitting infrastructure, energy facilities, and civilian areas. Anti-drone defenses are vital to protect civilians and maintain Ukraine’s operational resilience.
The initiative follows a comprehensive meeting on drone defense, during which Syrskyi outlined the creation of a layered system to protect Ukrainian territory.
“Our joint task is to form more interceptor crews, train additional operators, and provide them with more effective strike systems and radar,” he said.
After the meeting, Syrskyi issued a series of tasks to address gaps and strengthen Ukraine’s UAV-interceptor operations. These include selecting and training personnel for new interceptor crews, forming additional regular units, and improving the performance of interceptor systems and radar coverage.
The Commander-in-Chief emphasized that air defense is a top priority, stating that the effectiveness of Ukraine’s “anti-Shahed” system directly affects the security of the rear areas.
Russian authorities have sentenced two Ukrainian media workers seized by Russian forces in occupied Melitopol in August 2023 to long prison terms, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
RSF says the convictions reflect Russia’s broader campaign to silence independent media in occupied territories, where Ukrainian journalists face harsh detention and unfair trials.
Heorhiy Levchenko, administrator of the Telegram channel Ria-Melitopol, was sentenced on 2 September to 16 years in a high-security penal colony, plus a one-year ban on internet use.
The court accused him of “high treason” and “incitement to extremism.” It claimed the channel was used for “anti-Russian and pro-Ukrainian propaganda” and to pass information to Ukrainian intelligence.
Vladyslav Hershon, an administrator of Melitopol tse Ukraina (“Melitopol is Ukraine”), received a 15-year sentence on 3 September from a military court in Rostov-on-Don, Russia.
He was prosecuted for “terrorism.” In letters to his family, Hershon described his detention as “every morning is hell.”
RSF condemned the sentences as a “travesty of justice” and warned that they signal a chilling precedent for the other journalists still imprisoned in Melitopol.
Only one of the group of seven journalists arrested in August 2023, Mark Kaliush, has been released to date in a prisoner exchange.
The remaining detained journalists face ongoing legal proceedings. Maksym Rupchov’s next hearing is scheduled for 8 October, Oleksandr Malyshev’s for 15 September, and Yana Suvorova’s for 18 September. Anastasia Hlukhovska has been missing since her arrest, with her location undisclosed by Russian authorities.
RSF emphasizes that these prosecutions are part of a broader pattern of repression targeting journalists in occupied Ukrainian territories. Media professionals are treated as spies, face baseless charges, forced confessions, and denial of fair defense.
“These are not trials, but political spectacles,” said Jeanne Cavelier, head of RSF’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia Desk. “Russia is weaponising its justice system to criminalise independent journalism in the occupied territories.”
“We call for the immediate release of Heorhiy Levchenko, Vladyslav Hershon, and all journalists imprisoned for their reporting,” she continued.
Melitopol, in Ukraine’s southeastern Zaporizhzhia oblast, has been under Russian occupation since February 2022.
At least 26 Ukrainian journalists remain imprisoned by the Kremlin either in occupied territories or inside Russia.
Across occupied regions and within Russia, Ukrainian journalists face severe repression. Their detentions are widely considered violations of international law and could amount to war crimes.
NATO member countries will contribute to the construction of new air bases where F-35 fighters will be stationed, Yle reported on 4 September.
The NATO Investment Committee will decide the size of each country’s contribution. Defence Properties CEO Matias Warsta expressed hope that the funding will reach over 100 million euros ($116 mn)
“I hope that we reach a three-digit figure, over one hundred million euros,” Warsta said, emphasizing this was his personal assessment.
Finland’s Ministry of Defence declined to provide forecasts on the amount other NATO countries might contribute.
According to Yle’s calculations, the potential 100 million euros ($116 mn) would represent one-fifth of the construction program worth approximately half a billion euros. The plan includes building shelters, maintenance facilities, and storage for new F-35 fighters in Rovaniemi, Siilinjärvi, and Tikkakoski.
NATO approved almost the entire Finnish F-35 infrastructure construction program as eligible for funding earlier this spring. The first F-35 fighters are expected to arrive at the Rovaniemi air base in late 2026, where construction work has already begun.
Finland has ordered 64 new F-35s from Lockheed Martin to replace aging F/A-18 Hornets.
NATO provides funding through its investment program when a project is deemed to generate capabilities for the entire defense alliance and exceed national needs. According to Warsta, access to NATO co-financing was not guaranteed when construction began.
“This is an educated expert assessment. But the sum could be larger or smaller,” Warsta said.
Special adviser Arjo Kaarre from the Ministry of Defence noted that determining which aspects of fighter base equipment exceed Finland’s needs is not straightforward.
“It’s a matter of negotiation and partly interpretative,” Kaarre said.
Each NATO country’s payment share is determined in the same proportion as membership fees. Kaarre indicated the first funding decisions will likely be made next year.
Finland has not previously received NATO co-financing for its construction projects.
The first F-35 fighters will arrive at the Lapland Squadron in Rovaniemi in late 2026. Construction work continues at the site.
Cost estimates for the Rovaniemi base have increased from 150 million to 200 million euros (from $174 mn to $232 mn), though Warsta said they remain within agreed frameworks.
“In addition to rising construction costs, the equipment manufacturer (Lockheed Martin) has also set additional requirements for the work,” Warsta explained.
Both Lockheed Martin and the US administration have imposed strict security requirements and regularly inspect compliance.
Construction at Rovaniemi includes underground spaces for fighters and information systems, a 3,000 square meter storage facility for spare parts, maintenance facilities, and training facilities with simulators.
The airfield will see increased use as training activities with NATO allies intensify. In real situations, allied fighters could also rely on Finnish bases.
Warsaw acknowledged that two drones entered Polish airspace overnight on 2–3 September but were not intercepted or shot down, Reuters reported on 4 September. Polish military officials say the aerial objects posed no threat and exited the country without causing damage, even as Russia launched a major drone and missile assault across Ukraine the same night.
Russia conducts daily drone and missile strikes targeting Ukrainian civilians. Occasionally, its explosive drones leave Ukrainian airspace and cross into neighboring countries. Only Belarus—Moscow’s ally—has so far attempted to shoot them down. In every other documented case, including those involving Moldova, Romania, Poland, and Lithuania, no drones have been intercepted.
This occurred during Moscow’s daily air attack on Ukraine, as Russia launched more than 500 drones and dozens of missiles on Ukraine overnight. According to the reports, 14 locations across the country were hit, including critical energy and transport infrastructure. Four Ukrainian railway workers were injured in the attacks.
According to Reuters, General Maciej Klisz, Operational Commander of the Polish Armed Forces, confirmed at a news conference that “we had two airspace violations.” He claimed that “these two violations were under the full control of national forces and units assigned to the state defense system.”
General Wiesław Kukula, Chief of the General Staff, stated that the drones “left Polish airspace without causing any damage,” which means that Poland once again allowed the Russian drones to use its airspace than safely return to Ukraine to attack residential areas.
The Polish army did not disclose the drones’ point of entry or flight path, and no effort was made to shoot them down.
The incursion occurred overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday — 2 and 3 September — triggering a National Security Council meeting in Warsaw.
The lack of any military response highlights Poland’s continued restraint, even after repeated airspace violations. Poland, a NATO member state and a vocal supporter of Ukraine in its defense against Russia, has yet to shoot down any drones entering its territory since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022.
The army has remained on high alert since a stray Ukrainian missile struck a village in southern Poland in 2022, killing two people. Yet, despite increased vigilance, no interception measures were taken during this latest event.
In August, a drone crashed into a cornfield in eastern Poland. A prosecutor later said the drone likely entered Polish territory from the direction of Belarus, a close Russian ally. Ukrainian sources noted that the drone remained 2.5 hours in the Polish airspace and was never intercepted.
Warnings about drones heading toward Poland were posted on 3 September by several Ukraine-linked Telegram channels tied to air defense monitoring.
At 3:36 a.m., Ukrainian Telegram channel Nikolaevsky Vanyok, affiliated with air defense forces, wrote:
“1 [Shahed drone is] south of Sambir, course to Poland.”
Almost simultaneously, at 3:35 a.m., the airspace monitoring Telegram channel Zakhid Holovne reported:
“
One more Shahed toward Kolomyia and one drone through Sambir to Poland.”
Four minutes later, at 3:39 a.m., the same channel posted in Polish:
“
03:39 Air alert in the Republic of Poland.”
The employment gap between men and women in the Czech Republic has narrowed to a record low, with experts attributing the shift primarily to Ukrainian refugee women entering the workforce, Novinky reported on 4 September.
Czech Statistical Office data shows that as of June 2025, employment among men stood at 80.2%, while women’s employment reached 71.2% – a difference of nine percentage points.
This marks a dramatic change from July 2023, when women’s employment was 68.2% compared to men’s 81.5%, representing a gap of over 13 percentage points.
“We are seeing things that have never happened historically,” Dalibor Holý, director of the labor market statistics and equal opportunities department at the Czech Statistical Office, told Novinky.
The statistics reveal the scale of Ukrainian women’s integration into the Czech labor market. In June 2025, nearly 166,000 refugees were legally employed in the country, with 101,000 of them women. According to Jakub Augusta, spokesman for the Czech Ministry of Labor, “this is the highest number since the beginning of the war.”
Holý explained that Ukrainian refugee women “have a very high employment rate, which contributes to the growth of women’s employment.”
Beyond refugee integration, experts point to broader economic factors driving the employment shift. The rising cost of living has pushed more women into the workforce, while traditional male-dominated industries have shed jobs. Manufacturing, historically employing more men, has contracted, while the service sector – where women are more represented – has remained stable.
The employment pattern also reflects changes in work arrangements. Experts suggest that support for part-time employment, which women use more frequently than men, has contributed to the narrowing gap.
The Czech Republic has taken other steps toward gender equality in recent months. The country recently allowed women to use the masculine form of their surnames in official documents.
However, Czech intelligence services have warned of potential challenges ahead. They cautioned about a scenario where thousands of Ukrainian war veterans might travel to the Czech Republic to reunite with their families after the war ends, though the implications for the labor market remain unclear.
The employment figures represent a significant shift in Czech demographics and labor patterns, with Ukrainian refugee women emerging as a key factor in reshaping the country’s workforce composition.
As of 2025, there are over 581,000 Ukrainians legally residing in the Czech Republic. They constitute around 53% of the total foreign population in the country. The number of foreigners living long-term in the Czech Republic has reached over 1.09 million by mid-2025. Ukrainians form the largest group among them.
Leaders from more than 30 countries gathered on Thursday in a hybrid session of the Coalition of the Willing to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine.
Twenty-six countries pledged support for a peacekeeping force in the event of a ceasefire in Ukraine. They also committed to bolstering Ukraine’s long-term security, strengthening its military, and coordinating international efforts to deter further Russian aggression.
“We have today 26 countries who have formally committed […] to deploy as a ‘reassurance force’ troops in Ukraine, or be present on the ground, in the sea, or in the air,” French president Emmanuel Macron told reporters after the summit.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said following the meeting that “a strong Ukrainian army is and will remain the central element of security guarantees.”
Representatives from Europe, Canada, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand took part in the session.
The talks covered support across land, sea, air, and cyberspace, as well as the mechanisms needed to coordinate these contributions effectively.
Zelenskyy highlighted the role of financial assistance, weapons supplies, and domestic production as essential components of Ukraine’s defense.
He confirmed that new sanctions are being planned, including secondary measures and special trade tariffs, to further pressure Russia and its economy.
Zelenskyy said that the Coalition shares the view that Russia is “doing everything possible to drag out the negotiation process and continue the war.”
The Coalition of the Willing, formed in 2023, brings together countries committed to providing Ukraine with security and defense support beyond standard NATO and EU frameworks.
The group coordinates financial aid, military equipment, training, and strategic planning to strengthen Ukraine’s resilience and capacity to respond to Russian aggression.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Thursday that members of the “Coalition of the Willing” have pledged to supply Ukraine with long-range missiles, as part of efforts to strengthen Kyiv’s defense capabilities.
The delivery of long-range missiles will enable strikes on military targets deeper inside Russian and Russian-held territory supporting both defensive and counteroffensive operations.
Ukraine has long requested additional long-range weaponry, but Western partners have been cautious due to concerns about escalating the conflict. Such weapons allow Ukraine to effectively disrupt supply lines that sustain Moscow’s war effort far from the front lines.
Speaking to a virtual session of the Coalition of the Willing from Glasgow, the Prime Minister said that Russian President Vladimir Putin could not be trusted, citing ongoing attacks on Ukraine and delays in peace talks.
The Prime Minister also thanked military planners and chiefs of defense of Coalition countries for their work to ensure forces could be deployed if a ceasefire is reached.
He described the coalition’s support for Ukraine as “unbreakable” and that they had US President Trump’s backing.
He added that they now need “to go even further to apply pressure on Putin to secure a cessation of hostilities.”
© Associated Press/Evgeniy Maloletka
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