Ukraine’s top energy official said the Russian military may be preparing to abandon the Zaporozhye nuclear plant, which it has occupied since March.
Petro Kotin, president of the Ukrainian nuclear power operator Energoatom, told the Ukrainian TV program TSN that the Russians could transfer control of the plant to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
“It’s like they’re packing and stealing everything they can find,” Cotin said.
The area around the Zaporozhye plant, the largest in Europe, was hit by rockets for months and was offline most of the time. IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi has repeatedly warned of a nuclear holocaust in the region if hostilities do not end.
Russia’s attack last week knocked out power at all four of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, forcing operators to adopt high-risk modes.
“We must do everything we can to prevent a nuclear accident at one of these nuclear facilities, which would only add to the terrible suffering we are witnessing in Ukraine,” Grossi said.
Other developments
► Former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, who is raising funds to replace Ukrainian ambulances destroyed by Russian airstrikes, has arrived in Kyiv to survey the damage in the region. “Russia’s destructive corruption knows no bounds” Kelly tweeted.
►Vladimir Soloviev, a Russian TV personality, called for the death penalty for deserting soldiers in Ukraine. And when online commenters urged him to go to the front, he went on a national television rampage.
►Europe is united by the desire to prevent Russia from threatening its security, and an independent Ukraine is important, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said. Orban, who has rejected sanctions against Russia, said last week that he would support NATO’s proposals for Sweden and Finland next year.
►Repair crews across Ukraine are scrambling to restore heat, electricity and water services that have been severely damaged by Russian missile strikes targeting infrastructure in recent days.
Zelensky and the mayor of Kyiv clashed amid snow, cold and power outages
Much of Ukraine is experiencing snow and freezing temperatures as energy workers scramble to repair the national power system, which has been hit by repeated Russian missile and drone strikes. Ukraine’s power grid operator Ukrenergo said on Sunday that electricity producers were meeting about 80 percent of demand, up from 75 percent the previous day.
Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko on Sunday dismissed President Volodymyr Zelensky’s complaint that too many Kyiv residents remain without electricity and that there are not enough centers across the city where residents can stockpile food, water, batteries and other essentials. .
“Some political dance starts today when everyone has to work together,” Kitcho wrote on Instagram. “In Kyiv, we are doing everything we can to support the life of our capital and ensure the comfort of residents. In difficult conditions.”
The speed of war, slowed by the mud, may accelerate as the ground freezes
The pace of the war, which has been slowed by poor weather in recent days, is likely to pick up in the coming weeks as temperatures drop and the ground freezes, the Washington-based think tank said. an up-to-date assessment of the war. Although both sides are mired in mud, the Institute for War Studies said that as both sides increased movement, the drop in temperature would “accelerate the pace of the battle”.
“At that time, it is unclear whether either side is actively planning and preparing to resume major offensive or counteroffensive operations, but the climatic factors that have impeded such operations will begin to dissipate,” the assessment said.
The Russian leader acknowledged that the military needs more doctors and equipment
A prominent Russian nationalist has said that the Russian army does not have enough doctors. Leonid Slutsky, leader of the populist Liberal Democratic Party, made a rare public acknowledgment of problems within the army during a meeting with mothers of soldiers conscripted to fight in Ukraine.
“There are not enough doctors in the military units, everyone says so,” said Slutsky, chairman of the lower house of parliament’s foreign relations committee, during a meeting in St. Petersburg. “I can’t say they don’t exist at all, but they’re barely visible.”
Noting that the world is watching Russia, Slutsky stressed that “we have very difficult questions to answer when we can’t take care of our socks, shorts, doctors, intelligence, communications, and just taking care of our children.”
Olga Suyetina said her son told her the soldiers were underarmed.
“No gun sights, nothing, we have to buy them with crowdfunding,” he said. “They left Kharkov, there was zero, there was no polyethylene to cover the hole.”
Ukraine boosts business amid missile strikes
Despite Russian missile strikes, new businesses are opening up across Ukraine. According to the government, 15,000 enterprises were registered in April, and 23,000 in August. More businesses opened than closed.
On October 2, “Vivat” bookstore was opened in Kyiv, and 1200 people came. During the air raids, customers queued for up to 40 minutes to buy books. Vivat made news in April at a book launch in a Kharkiv bomb shelter.
“By opening a bookstore in Kyiv, we wanted to show that the publishing house is alive,” said Yuliya Orlova, an employee of Vivat.
The recently liberated city of Kherson came under Russian fire
Thousands of residents of the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, which celebrated its liberation a few weeks ago, are fleeing. The governor of Kherson, Yaroslav Yanushevich, said on Sunday that one person was killed and two children were wounded after the Russian army shelled the region 54 times over the past day. Janushevich, Telegram said Russia had “deliberately” targeted civilian infrastructure and civilians. In the city of Kherson, residential buildings, garages and educational institutions were affected, and eight nearby villages were affected by the fire, Yanushevich said.
“The Russians continue to use terror tactics,” the governor said.
Putin met military mothers ahead of Russian Mother’s Day
Russian President V. Putin met with mothers whose children are serving in the Russian army in Ukraine and who were killed during the war. Addressing mothers two days before Russia’s Mother’s Day, Putin said he often talks to soldiers on the front lines and is in good spirits. He also paid tribute to the fallen soldiers.
“I can’t say some official standard things about condolence,” he said to the mothers of the dead. “But I personally and the entire leadership of the country share your pain. We understand that nothing can replace the loss of a son, the loss of a child.”
Contributor: Associated Press
