Explosions over Kyiv as Russia attacks Ukraine infrastructure

EPACopyright: EPA

Morale among the Ukrainian public and its troops “remains high”, despite this morning’s attacks, according to someone working for an organisation that provides support for Ukrainian soldiers.

Mykola Bielieskov, from Come Back Alive, and a researcher at Ukraine's National Institute for Strategic Studies, told the BBC: “The more they attack us, the more our resolve is improved… so these tactics won’t be successful.”

He says Ukrainian troops can point to some “successful strategic operations” against Russian forces, and that as winter approaches in the country – where temperatures can drop to -20C – soldiers are “on good ground” compared to their Russian counterparts.

“So morale is high and we are preparing for the winter,” he says.

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For security reasons, we rarely see the destruction of Russia’s airstrikes on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure. This, officials here say, is to avoid sharing information that could be used in future attacks, including locations hit, or potentially missed, and the extent of the damage.

But the consequences are everywhere. Rolling power cuts have been introduced in several regions. In Kyiv, streetlights have been turned off and trolleybuses replaced with conventional buses. Ukrainians, in general, are being urged to reduce, in the words of President Volodymyr Zelensky, their “extremely frugal” electricity consumption.

Today’s attacks are the latest in what has become Russia’s strategy in Ukraine: the targeting of the country’s infrastructure ahead of winter. Ukraine says this is Russia’s response to its military defeats, as the Ukrainian army takes back territory in a successful counter-offensive.

EPACopyright: EPA

Oleksii Reznikov, the Ukrainian defence minister, linked the Russian campaign to Gen Sergei Surovikin, who was appointed by President Putin as the country’s new commander in Ukraine earlier this month.

In a rare news conference last week, the minister said the Russian forces had “changed their tactics” after the arrival of Gen Surovikin, whose nickname is Gen Armageddon, and “started openly fighting with the civilian population, not with the armed forces of Ukraine”. The goal, he said, was to inflict “chaos and panic” in the population, “when it’s very cold and dark”.

President Zelensky has described this campaign as “terrorism”. Many Ukrainians, however, say they are not afraid. They are angry that civilians have, again, become the target.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Russia has accused Ukrainian troops of "reckless" attacks on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Ukraine was still trying to regain control of the plant, which Moscow seized in March. She said Ukraine had carried out attacks against the plant’s “critical infrastructure, threatening Europe with a man-made disaster and the death of thousands of civilians”.

She claimed that on Saturday, Ukrainian forces shelled "infrastructure facilities" in Enerhodar, where the plant is situated, and attempted to take control of the Kakhovka dam by landing troops on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River in order to capture the power plant.

The Ukrainian attacks were repelled by the "skilful and decisive actions" of Russian forces, Zakharova said, urging Ukraine and its “Western sponsors” to “stop the reckless and accident-threatening provocations”.

Both Ukraine and Russia accuse each other of repeatedly shelling the plant, despite global concerns that this could lead to a major radiation incident in Europe.

Moldova Ministry of InteriorCopyright: Moldova Ministry of Interior

More now on reports that a Russian missile shot down by Ukrainian air defence fell on a village in northern Moldova.

Windows in several houses in the village of Naslavcea were shattered but there were no casualties, Moldova's interior ministry said.

Moldova has now declared a representative of the Russian embassy in the capital, Chisinau, persona non grata, the Foreign Ministry said.

Persona non grata can remove diplomatic status and often results in expulsion or withdrawal of recognition of envoys.

It did not identify the person in a statement that cited security risks posed by "missile attacks on a neighbouring country" and "increasing threats to the energy security of Moldova" from Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities.

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has said that the UK will provide Ukraine with more support to repair its energy infrastructure that was damaged by Russian strikes this morning.

He follows the Czech Republic who earlier offered 20m korunas [£702,000] to purchase diesel generators.

Ukraine hoped that the Czech Republic would provide Ukraine with equipment for the energy infrastructure, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said earlier in a meeting with Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala.

The help comes after Dmytro Sakharuk, the executive director of a private Ukrainian electricity company, said Ukraine needs "hundreds of millions of dollars" worth of equipment to restore the damaged facilities.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Ukraine's grain exports fell to 4.22 million tonnes in October 2022 - that's a drop from 5.05 million tonnes compared with last October, the agriculture ministry said today.

This month's volume included 1.9 million tonnes of wheat, almost 2 million tonnes of corn and 313,000 tonnes of barley.

It said Ukraine exported a total of 12.9 million tonnes of grain so far in the July 2022 - June 2023 seaon.

This compares with 19.4 million tonnes in the same period of 2021-2022.

More now on Russia pulling out of the deal that allows Ukraine to export grain from its Black Sea ports.

Russia suspended participation in the deal for an "indefinite term" on Saturday after what it said was a major Ukrainian drone attack on its Black Sea fleet in Crimea.

Global prices for wheat have increased by 5% following Russia’s suspension of the deal, says Oleg Nikolenko, spokesman for Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"Don’t let Russia starve the world," he says.

Russia’s defence minister Sergei Shoigu has spoken by phone with his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar about Moscow’s decision to pull out of a deal to protect Black Sea grain exports.

A statement by Russia's defence ministry gave few details about the talks, except that the pair discussed Moscow's decision to suspend the deal.

Akar had earlier said he would try to ensure that the grain initiative, which Turkey was influential in brokering, would continue.

The United Nations aid chief Martin Griffith says both Ukraine and Russia are committed not to attack ships laden with grain from Ukrainian ports, and that the commitments both sides made regarding the deal were still in force.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko has accused Russia of genocide and wanting to "freeze people this winter".

He was speaking after Russia launched a wave of missile attacks across the country including in the capital, where two explosions were heard.

In his latest Telegram post he says: "270,000 apartments in the capital are without electricity. And 40% of the capital's consumers are without water."

"Right now this war has directly impacted civilian population. They want to make the people without heating, without water, without electricity in the winter," he told Reuters earlier.

"They want to (see) the whole population freezing during the winter in our hometown.

"This is genocide, there's no other words."

The UN Genocide Convention defines genocide as committing any of the following "with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group".

There is no legal consensus on whether Russia is committing genocide in Ukraine.

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Moldova has "strongly condemned" Moscow's strikes on Ukrainian cities after a Russian missile shot down by Ukrainian air defence fell on a village in northern Moldova.

Windows in several houses in the village of Naslavcea were shattered but there were no casualties, Moldova's interior ministry said.

"These attacks, which further escalate the security situation, are a flagrant violation of the international humanitarian law which prohibits attacks on civilians and their infrastructure," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

"The attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure cause enormous economic and social damage to the entire European continent, including citizens of Moldova, who feel impact of the war [raging] in our neighbourhood," it added.

As we've been reporting, Ukraine says Russia has launched a wave of missile attacks across the country including in the capital, Kyiv, where explosions have been heard.

Officials in the capital say Ukraine's air defence systems prevented the missiles hitting the city itself, but the strikes affected power and water supply.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Russia says that it is “risky” for Ukraine to continue trying to export grain through the Black Sea.

Following Ukraine’s air and sea drone attack on Sevastopol on Saturday, Moscow said it could no longer guarantee the safety of cargo ships participating in the Black Sea initiative.

The Kremlin wants the world to think the grain deal is hanging by a thread, and it wants captains of participating vessels to think twice before embarking on a potentially risky voyage.

But in their own ways, Ukraine and the UN are calling Moscow’s bluff by continuing to send ships through the humanitarian Black Sea corridor.

They know that the only way the Russian navy “guarantees the safety” of vessels using that route is by staying out of the way.

If Moscow wants to demonstrate how “risky” the process has now become, it will need to take aggressive action.

Russia’s options are limited. Taking overt steps to impede or threaten international shipping would send a pretty wretched message to countries which badly need access to Ukrainian grain, fuelling Kyiv’s message that Moscow has weaponised food.

Not only that, but Ukraine’s demonstrated ability to attack Russia’s Black Sea fleet, coupled with constant Western surveillance from the air, have made Moscow very wary about conducting operations in waters it used to patrol with impunity.

The EU is urging Russia to reverse its decision to pull out of the Black Sea grain deal.

“Russia must go back to the agreement to allow maritime corridors for food to reach the world,” said a European Commission spokeswoman.

Russia’s decision “puts at risk the main export route of much needed grains and fertilisers to address the global food crisis caused by its war against Ukraine", she added.

Separately the Commission said work will continue to improve its so-called “solidarity lanes”, which facilitate exports from Ukraine to the EU via rail, road and river routes.

Since May, more than 14 million tonnes of agricultural products have been exported using these lanes - according to the Commission.

Over the same period, around 15 million tonnes of non-agricultural products, such as steel, were exported via these routes.

Dmytro Sakharuk, the executive director of a private Ukrainian electricity company, has said Ukraine needs "hundreds of millions of dollars" worth of equipment to restore the energy infrastructure facilities damaged by recent Russian strikes.

"Unfortunately, we have already used up the stock of equipment that we had in our warehouses after the first two waves of attacks that have been taking place since 10 October... Now we are working on how to buy it or get it from our partners, if they have the opportunity to transfer it for free," Sakharuk said, adding that for some consumers, the rolling blackouts may last more than six hours.

BBCCopyright: BBC

It’s interesting how confidence varies between cities. In Dnipro, where there’s a later curfew at midnight, people excitedly headed out in Halloween outfits over the weekend. An almost “Friday feeling” which so many Ukrainians are denied. This morning explosions were reported in the city.

I was last here in Zaporizhzhia a month ago. Despite being 30 miles from the front line, it was still a city stubbornly surviving, even enjoying itself. After several massive strikes over the past few weeks, it feels less full and more nervous.

“Many people started leaving and started being afraid,” says Pavlo, who saw this morning’s missile hit the area around the hydroelectric power plant. He’s helping a friend clear up their shattered windows.

“I expected it for a long time and expect there will be more. It creates pressure.”

We meet Anatoliy, a street cleaner who also saw the missile. “It felt like a grim reaper walked past you,” he tells us.

“Not for you, but for someone else”.

For Russia, fear and pressure are exactly what they want to exert with these almost routine attacks on Ukraine’s infrastructure.

A new, depressing fear of Mondays.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Just joining us or need a re-cap? Here's a round-up of the latest developments in the Ukraine war:

• Ukraine says Russia launched a wave of missile attacks across the country including over the capital, Kyiv, where two explosions were heard
• Ukrainian air defences managed to shoot down 44 out of the 50 cruise missiles, according to the Ukrainian Air Force
• Eighty percent of Kyiv has been left without water supply after Russian missiles damaged critical infrastructure this morning, the region's mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said
• In the north-eastern city of Kharkiv, critical infrastructure facilities were hit, local authorities said
• Missile strikes were also reported in the central Vinnytsia region, as well as Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia in the south-east, and Lviv in western Ukraine
• At least 13 people were injured in the attacks, Ukraine's national police chief Ihor Klymenko said
• A Russian missile shot down by Ukrainian air defence fell on a village in northern Moldova near its border with Ukraine, according to the Moldovan government
• Ukraine said 12 cargo ships carrying key grain exports had left ports in the country under the UN grain deal on Monday
• It comes after Russia suspended participation in the deal for an "indefinite term" on Saturday after what it said was a major Ukrainian drone attack on its Black Sea fleet in Crimea

The Russian Ministry of Defence said its goals have been reached with drone attacks, according to a post on Telegram.

They said the Armed Forces had continued launching strikes with long-range, high-precision air and sea-based weapons.

"The goals of the attacks have been reached. All the assigned targets have been neutralised," it said.

They were targeting the military control and energy systems of Ukraine.

People in Kyiv have been speaking to the AFP news agency about the latest strikes targeting the capital.

"We heard a specific whistle. After that, something flew over and we heard the sound of the explosion," Victoria Popova said.

"This morning we woke up after powerful explosions - I heard from 8 to 10 explosions," Mila Ryabova said.

"We didn't discuss it this morning, but we are worrying and talking about an opportunities to move abroad because there is a cold winter ahead. We may not have electricity, heat supply. It can be hard to handle, especially with small children."

Parts of Russian missiles that were downed by Ukrainian air forces are now being found in several districts of the Kyiv region, Kyiv Region Police have said.

Police said Ukrainian air defence forces shot down "at least 10 enemy missiles".

They said two people have been injured in the region as a result of the strikes and damage was done to two private buildings, as well as critical infrastructure facilities.

Kyiv Region PoliceCopyright: Kyiv Region Police

Kyiv Region PoliceCopyright: Kyiv Region Police

Kyiv Region PoliceCopyright: Kyiv Region Police