Crimea

The Iranians reportedly went to Ukraine to aid Russia’s war effort and help with technical issues relating to the drones. They help the Russians learn to fly the drones.

Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian president's staff, said the attacks were carried out with so-called suicide drones.

Ukraine has not officially confirmed its involvement in the blast that destroyed a section of the bridge to Russian annexed Crimea , but some Ukrainian officials have celebrated the damage.

An adviser to Ukraine's President Zelensky, Mykhailo Podolyak, called the explosion a "beginning" - but did not directly claim Ukrainian responsibility.

Videos and images showing a massive black cloud of smoke billowing into the sky as a backdrop to a Crimean beach spread quickly on social media.

Moscow, Putin stressed, will defend its new territories "with all available forces and means," and that the West has no moral right to challenge the results of the referenda.

Wednesday, August 24 marked both the 31st anniversary of Ukraine's independence from the Soviet Union and six months since Russia's invasion. Here is where things stand.

Russia shows no sign of abandoning Crimea, home to its Black Sea fleet, and has used the peninsula as a platform to launch missile strikes on Ukrainian targets.

Zelensky said Ukrainians must not allow Moscow to "spread despondency and fear" among them as they mark the 31st anniversary of independence from Soviet rule.

Sergei Aksyonov, an official in Russia's FSB security servcice, said the suspects were members of the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir, which is banned in Russia.