The Independent World
· collected 2026-08-19 · by Arpan Rai and Maira Butt
People in Russia are withdrawing billions from the nation’s banks over fears that the Kremlin could begin to seize money to finance the war with Ukraine, a report says.
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report → withdraw → Ukraine
According to The Washington Post, the country is seeing a record cash outflow amid intensifying drone strikes from Ukraine.
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country → accord → Ukraine
Nearly 286.4bn rubles (worth $3.4bn) was withdrawn in the first two weeks of August, according to data from the Russian Central Bank, reported in The Post.
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rubles → withdraw → Post
That follows $7.3bn withdrawn last month and more than $4.5bn in June.
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That → follow → June
Alexandra Prokopenko, a former adviser to the Russian Central Bank, said the withdrawals illustrated a level of fear among the Russian public.
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withdrawals → say → public
“It means people have no trust in the Russian banking system or in the Russian financial system,” Prokopenko said.
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Prokopenko → mean → system
“This is all a consequence of the fear that the government will do something with the banking system, that it could nationalise deposits.”
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it → do → deposits
Russia's Lavrov says Britain risks being seen as party to Ukraine war
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia had the right to regard the direct involvement of Britain in strikes on Russian territory as participation in the war in Ukraine.
His comments came after the Times newspaper reported on Saturday that British-made drones had been used for long-range strikes against Russia for the first time.
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drones → say → time
Following the report, Russia's embassy in London warned Britain of unspecified "consequences" for supplying drones to Kyiv.
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embassy → follow → Kyiv
PM Andy Burnham said on Tuesday that Britain would support Ukraine "100%" in its fight against Russia and stand by Kyiv "in its hour of need".
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Britain → say → need
Moscow has previously accused British specialists of involvement in attacks on Russian territory, saying Britain's role would be taken "into account" in its response.
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role → accuse → response
EU welcomes decision by eight countries to back restrictive measures against Belarus
The European Union has welcomed the decision by Albania, Bosnia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway and Ukraine to align with its restrictive measures against Belarus, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in a statement on Tuesday.
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Kallas → welcome → Tuesday
In July, the EU Council decided to impose restrictive measures against the country "in view of the involvement of Belarus in the Russian aggression against Ukraine".
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Council → decide → Ukraine
Drone causes fire in industrial area in Russia's Ufa, official says
Authorities were trying to put out a small fire after a drone fell in an industrial area in the city of Ufa in the Russian republic of Bashkortostan, the republic's head Radiy Khabirov said on the messaging app Telegram.
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head → cause → app
Khabirov added that one of the drones hit an apartment building and a few cars in Ufa, an oil refining hub, leaving one person injured.
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one → add → person
Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies launch probe ahead of key defence minister vote
Anti-corruption agencies in Ukraine have launched a special operation against lawmakers and presidential advisers on Wednesday, hours before a key vote in parliament for a new defence minister.
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agencies → launch → minister
The NABU and SAPO agencies released no further details, but the probe poses a fresh headache for Volodymyr Zelensky after ousted defence chief Mykhailo Fedorov called for wartime elections in a bombshell statement late on Tuesday.
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Fedorov → release → Tuesday
Lawmakers were expected to vote on Wednesday on the appointment of Yevhenii Khmara, a former top special forces operative, as Ukraine's new defence minister after weeks of political turmoil over Fedorov's ouster.
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Lawmakers → expect → ouster
The Independent View: Britain must meet Putin’s war of words with action
It was predictable that Russia would respond in its usual menacing fashion to the explosive arrival of British-made drones on its territory.
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Russia → meet → territory
These medium-range unmanned aerial vehicles, as they’re known in military circles, have participated in a recent Ukrainian campaign that has caused an estimated total of £35bn in economic damage to the Russian Federation.
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that → know → Federation
Resentment at this intervention is palpable in the statement issued by the Russian embassy in London.
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Resentment → issue → London
It accused Britain, absurdly, of being “an accomplice and co-perpetrator of the bloody crimes and terrorist attacks committed by Ukrainian neo-Nazis”.
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It → accuse → Nazis
It was more accurate in identifying this intensification of British and Ukrainian cooperation – very much a mutually advantageous process – as an “escalation”.
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It → identify → escalation
What it omitted was who it was that launched the illegal and, it turns out, doomed invasion of Ukraine more than four years ago.
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it → omit → Ukraine
Ukraine anti-graft agencies investigate group involving presidential officials
Ukraine's anti-graft agencies have said they were carrying out an operation to uncover a “criminal organisation” which was run by current and former lawmakers, and involving high officials from the presidential office.
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which → investigate → office
The agencies did not give the details of the investigation, but said more information would come soon.
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information → give → investigation
Russian drone attack on Ukraine's Kherson bus kills four, governor says
A Russian drone attack on a bus in Ukraine's southern city of Kherson killed four people on Wednesday morning, the regional governor said.
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governor → kill → morning
A further four women were wounded in the attack and have been taken to hospital, Oleksandr Prokudin said on the Telegram messaging app.
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Prokudin → wound → app
He posted blurred photos of a yellow bus with bloodied steps and shattered windows.
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He → post → steps
Russia says it hits military cargo vessel in Black Sea
Russian forces have struck a cargo vessel in the Black Sea near the Ukrainian port of Odesa, Russian news agency Interfax reported this morning.
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Interfax → say → Odesa
Russia's defence ministry claimed the vessel was carrying military cargo.
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vessel → claim → cargo
Moscow warehouse burns as Ukraine drone crews prepare to strike again
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crews → burn → ?
A massive retail logistics centre on the outskirts of Moscow remained in flames on Sunday morning following an overnight strike by waves of Ukrainian drones, sending thick dark smoke into the sky.
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centre → remain → sky
Hundreds of miles from the scene, Ukrainian drone operators had barely paused after their night operations before preparing for another attack.
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operators → pause → attack
In a sunflower field in southern Ukraine, a small unit of troops gathered around 20 small, plane-like drones packed with explosives, swiftly launching them towards targets in Russia.
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unit → gather → Russia
The operation by Ukraine’s 413th "Raid" Unmanned Systems Regiment was witnessed by journalists, offering a rare look into a rapidly expanding element of Kyiv’s military capabilities.
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operation → witness → capabilities
