Ukraine-Russia war live: Moscow ‘buys Starlink terminals in Arab countries’ and ‘launch’ hypersonic missile

The Democratic-led Senate on Tuesday began voting on the passage of a $95 billion measure containing aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan that faces long odds in the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives.

Russia is preparing for a military confrontation with the West within the next decade and could be deterred by a counter build-up of armed forces, Estonia’s Foreign Intelligence Service said on Tuesday.

A growing number of Western officials have warned of a military threat from Russia to countries along the eastern flank of NATO, calling for Europe to get prepared by rearming.

The chief of the intelligence service said the assessment was based on Russian plans to double the number of forces stationed along its border with NATO members Finland and the Baltic States of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia.

“Russia has chosen a path which is a long-term confrontation ... and the Kremlin is probably anticipating a possible conflict with NATO within the next decade or so,” Kaupo Rosin told reporters at the release of Estonia’s national security threats report.

A military attack by Russia is “highly unlikely” in the short term, he said, partly because Russia has to keep troops in Ukraine, and would remain unlikely if Russian buildup of forces was matched in Europe.

“If we are not prepared, the likelihood (of a military Russian attack) would be much higher than without any preparation,” Rosin added.

Estonia and the other Baltic States have increased their military spending to over 2% of the value of their economies after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, and NATO allies have raised their presence in those countries.

Russia’s ability to provide ammunition to its troops is continuing to outweigh Ukraine‘s, and unless Western support is sustained or increased, Ukraine is unlikely to be able to change the situation on the battlefield, he added.

Russia warned the West on Tuesday that Moscow would be very tough if the United States and European Union seized hundreds of billions of dollars worth of Russian assets.

After President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in 2022, the United States and its allies prohibited transactions with Russia’s central bank and finance ministry, blocking around $300 billion of sovereign Russian assets in the West.

The EU on Monday adopted a law to set aside windfall profits made on frozen Russian central bank assets, it said on Monday, in a first concrete step towards the bloc’s aim of using the money to finance the reconstruction of Ukraine.

“This is theft: It’s the appropriation of something that doesn’t belong to you,” Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Sputnik radio, TASS reported.

Zakharova said the response from Moscow would be “extremely tough” as Russia felt it was essentially dealing with thieves.

“Considering that our country has qualified this as theft, the attitude will be towards thieves,” Zakharova said. “Not as political manipulators, not as overplayed technologists, but as thieves.”

Russia has said that if its property is seized then it will seize U.S., European and other assets in responses.

The Democratic-led U.S. Senate was expected to vote early on Tuesday for final passage of a $95.34 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, amid growing doubts about the legislation’s fate in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.

Soon after lawmakers swept aside the last procedural hurdle facing the legislation late on Monday, Republican opponents of the bill took to the Senate floor for an overnight marathon of speeches. Aides predicted that a vote on passage could begin before 7 a.m. EST (1200 GMT) on Tuesday.

Senate passage appears certain. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has been able to deliver the support of least 17 members of his party conference, more than enough to exceed the 100-seat chamber’s 60-vote threshold for passage.

But both houses of Congress must approve the legislation before Democratic President Joe Biden can sign it into law. And the bill faces long odds in the House, where Republican Speaker Mike Johnson faulted the measure for lacking conservative provisions to stem a record flow of migrants across the U.S.-Mexico border.

“In the absence of having received any single border policy change from the Senate, the House will have to continue to work its own will on these important matters,” Johnson said in a statement issued late on Monday.

“America deserves better than the Senate’s status quo,” said Johnson, who has suggested in the past that the House could split the legislation into separate bills.

The legislation includes $61 billion for Ukraine, $14 billion for Israel in its war against Hamas and $4.83 billion to support partners in the Indo-Pacific, including Taiwan, and deter aggression by China.

It would also provide $9.15 billion in humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza and the West Bank, Ukraine and other conflict zones around the globe.

Republicans have demanded for months that the foreign aid bill include border restrictions.

Mitt Romney has told The Independent that former President Donald Trump’s comments about how he would urge Russia to attack Nato countries who don’t spend enough on defence makes US allies wonder if they can “rely on America”.

Mr Romney’s comments come after Mr Trump’s rally in Conway, South Carolina on Sunday, where he said: “If we don’t pay and we’re attacked by Russia, will you protect us?” Mr Trump said, claiming to remember a Nato member state leader asking him during his presidency. He then claimed to have responded: “No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want.”

Mr Romney, now a Utah Senator after being the 2012 Republican presidential nominee and serving as the governor of Massachusetts, told The Independent on Monday: “He says outrageous things to get people riled up. It works at the rallies. Unfortunately, it also has an impact around the world where our friends wonder whether they can rely on America.”

This comes after reports regarding Mr Trump telling top European Union officials that the US would never help Europe if it was attacked.

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Russian forces are buying Starlink satellite internet terminals in “Arab countries” for use on the battlefield, Ukraine‘s military spy agency said on Tuesday.

The Elon Musk-owned service has been vital to Kyiv’s battlefield communications, but Ukrainian officials have said Russian forces are also increasingly relying on it during their nearly two-year-old invasion.

The defence ministry’s Main Directorate of Intelligence (GUR) released what it said was an audio intercept of two Russian soldiers discussing buying units from Arab providers for around 200,000 roubles ($2,200) each.

“The aggressor state Russia is purchasing communications equipment, including Starlink satellite Internet terminals, for use in the war in Arab countries,” the ministry said on Telegram.

On Monday, GUR spokesman Andriy Yusov told Reuters that Russian forces were purchasing the terminals through unspecified third countries.

Starlink has said it does not do business with Russia or operate on Russian territory. The Kremlin said the terminals were neither certified for use in, nor officially supplied to, Russia, and therefore could not be used.

Russia allegedly targeted Ukraine with the powerful hypersonic Zircon missile, believed to be for the first time in the nearly two-year-long war, the head of a Kyiv research institute said on Monday.

Oleksandr Ruvin, director of the Kyiv Scientific-Research Institute for Forensic Examinations, confirmed the use of the missiles after his institute completed a preliminary analysis of the weapon fragments from the Russian attack on 7 February.

Russia unleashed a barrage of missiles on Ukrainian cities last week, killing five and injuring 50 others.

The Zircon missile is a thermonuclear-capable projectile with a range of 1,000km (625 miles) and travels at nine times the speed of sound, details from its developer state Russia show.

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Russia attacked the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro with missiles and drones on Tuesday, damaging a power plant and cutting off water supplies to some residents, Ukrainian officials and media said.

The city of just under one million people came under attack from a missile and four groups of drones approaching from the south, east and north, Ukraine‘s Air Force said on the Telegram messaging app.

It reported shooting down 16 out of 23 drones launched by Russia.

Ukraine‘s largest private energy provider, DTEK, said a thermal power plant was significantly damaged. There were no casualties, it added.

The company did not say where the power plant was located, but Dnipro’s water utility company said on Telegram that “due to power outages” water supply had been partially suspended and Ukrainian media outlets said a power plant in Dnipro was hit.

Regional governor Serhiy Lysak said on Tuesday morning that energy infrastructure had been hit, but gave no further details. He said 10 drones were destroyed over the city and that workers had restored power to all affected homes.

Reuters was not able to independently verify the reports. There was no immediate response from Russia’s defence ministry to a request for comment.

Both Russia and Ukraine have increased their air attacks away from the frontline in recent months, targeting each other’s critical energy, military and transport infrastructure.

A preliminary analysis concluded that Russia hit Kyiv last week with the hypersonic Zircon missile, its first use in the nearly two-year-old war, the head of a Kyiv research institute said on Monday, presenting a new challenge to Ukraine’s air defences.

Oleksandr Ruvin, director of the Kyiv Scientific-Research Institute for Forensic Examinations, said on his Telegram channel that his institute completed a preliminary analysis of missile fragments from a Russian attack on Feb. 7.

He included a video of alleged missile wreckage showing specific markings. “In this case, we see elements that are characteristic of the 3M22 Zircon missile. Parts and fragments of the engine and steering mechanisms have specific markings,” he wrote.