August 31, 2026
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Musk remains opposed to letting Ukraine use Starlink for strikes on Russia despite talks with Fedorov, sources say
Elon Musk has engaged in talks with former Ukrainian Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov about allowing Starlink to be used to control drone strikes on Russian territory, but remains opposed after what one source described as "extremely unsuccessful" negotiations. According to sources cited by Kyiv Independent, Musk does not believe that granting such permission would help end the war and wants a deal rather than escalation. The Financial Times, citing Fedorov's account, earlier reported Musk was willing to allow strikes conditional on White House approval — a version of events that, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky, prompted Donald Trump to accuse him of "deceiving" him.
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Fire breaks out at Polish drone plant supplying Ukrainian military; arson investigated
A fire broke out at the WB Electronics plant in Skarżysko-Kamienna, Poland, on the night of August 31. Polish authorities, including the Internal Security Agency, are investigating the possibility of arson or sabotage. No casualties were reported.
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Finland court cuts Rusich co-founder Torden's war crimes sentence from life to 12.5 years
Finland's Helsinki Court of Appeal reduced the sentence of Voislav Torden (Yan Petrovsky), co-founder of the Russian neo-Nazi Rusich group, from life imprisonment to 12.5 years for war crimes committed in Ukraine in 2014. The court dismissed several charges, including command responsibility and the personal-killing charge, while confirming other war crimes including firing on Ukrainian soldiers and distributing photographs of a burned Ukrainian soldier's body.