Latest news from Russia and the war in Ukraine

Kyiv’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko responded to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s criticism of the council in Kyiv for not setting up enough community hubs in which members of the public can seek warmth, charging points and water.

Taking to Telegram, Klitschko said more than 430 heating points have been installed and working in Kyiv and that the city’s administration is “preparing to quickly deploy more than 100 points in the event of an emergency.” The city provided more than 400 generators to operate these points, he said.

“I do not want, especially in the current situation, to enter into political battles. It’s ridiculous. I have something to do,” Klitschko said, adding that such a public display of disunity “looks ugly, to say the least. Both for Ukrainians and for our foreign partners.”

Zelenskyy singled out Kyiv for criticism in his video address on Sunday night, saying there had been complaints that the local government had not done a good job in setting up so-called “points of invincibility” where citizens can access basic necessities.

“I know that, unfortunately, not in all cities the local government has done a good job. In particular, there are many complaints in Kyiv. I expect better quality work from the mayor’s office,” Zelenskyy said, adding that “it is the responsibility of every local official to ensure that everything that should be there for people actually works.”

— Holly Ellyatt

Russian state gas giant Gazprom said Monday that it will not reduce gas supplies to Moldova, a former Soviet republic next to (and supplied with gas via) Ukraine, but threatened to cut supplies if Moldova failed to keep up with agreed gas payments.

“Funds for the gas deposited on the territory of Ukraine, intended for consumers in Moldova, have been received from Gazprom,” the company said on Telegram. Therefore, it said, “it was decided not to reduce the gas supply to the Sudzha GIS [a gas metering station] for transit to Moldova.”

“At the same time, we draw attention to the regular violation by the Moldovan side of contractual obligations in terms of payment for Russian gas supplies. Gazprom reserves the right to reduce or completely stop gas supplies in case of violation of their payment,” it added.

Last week, Gazprom accused Ukraine of withholding gas supplies destined for Moldova and threatened to reduce those flows, although Ukraine denied the accusation. Moldova’s energy supplies from Ukraine have been affected during the war as the country’s energy infrastructure has come under repeated attack.

Russia has repeatedly been accused of weaponizing energy supplies, although it denies it. Ukraine’s Gas Transmission System Operator said last week that, with its threats over the Moldovan supply, Gazprom was again “using gas as an instrument of political pressure.”

“It manipulates facts to justify its decision to limit further the volume of gas supplies to European countries. Gazprom deliberately interprets the introduction of European business rules of operation at interstate interconnection points as a violation of contractual obligations, obviously for political rather than commercial purposes,” Olga Bielkova, director of government and international affairs at GTSOU, said in a statement.

— Holly Ellyatt

The Pentagon is considering a Boeing proposal to supply Ukraine with cheap, small precision bombs fitted onto abundantly available rockets, allowing Kyiv to strike far behind Russian lines as the West struggles to meet demand for more arms, Reuters reported Monday.

U.S. and allied military inventories are shrinking, and Ukraine faces an increasing need for more sophisticated weapons as the war drags on.

Boeing’s proposed system, dubbed Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB), is one of about a half-dozen plans for getting new munitions into production for Ukraine and America’s Eastern European allies, industry sources said.

— Reuters

Despite its liberation by Ukrainian forces earlier in November, the city of Kherson in southern Ukraine continues to suffer daily bombardment by Russian artillery and remains vulnerable, Britain’s Ministry of Defense said Monday.

On Nov. 24, 10 people were killed in the city from shelling, and on Sunday, 54 shelling incidents were reported in the area, the U.K. said.

“The city is vulnerable because it remains in range of most of Russia’s artillery systems, now firing from the east bank of the Dnipro River, from the rear of newly consolidated defensive lines,” the U.K. said.

Much of the damage is likely being inflicted in Kherson by Russia’s use of multiple rocket launchers, principally BM-21 Grad systems.

Russian forces withdrew from the city of Kherson and part of the region on the western bank of the Dnipro river in early November, after struggling to supply their units there. Ukraine has advised citizens in the city to evacuate amid intense Russian shelling.

— Holly Ellyatt

Ukraine expects Russia to plug personnel losses and strengthen its forces by redeploying units currently stationed in Belarus, the General Staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said Monday.

“The transfer of personnel and military equipment of the enemy to equip units that have suffered losses continues. It is expected that some units of the enemy will be transferred from the territory of the Republic of Belarus after they acquire combat capabilities,” the update on Facebook said.

The General Staff said Russian forces continue to launch attacks in east Ukraine, around Bakhmut and Andriivka in Donetsk, as well as attack southern areas of the country around Zaporizhzhia.

“The threat of missile strikes by the Russian occupiers on critical infrastructure facilities throughout Ukraine remains,” the update said.

Russia and Belarus have combined some of their army units to create a regional group of troops from both countries. The deployment, based in Belarus, is ostensibly aimed at strengthening the border. Russia and Belarus claim, without evidence, that Ukraine and NATO pose a threat to them.

— Holly Ellyatt

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia is bound to launch new missile attacks against the country, which is already struggling from power and water shortages in many places as a result of Russian shelling.

“We understand that the terrorists are planning new strikes. We know this for a fact,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address on Sunday. “And as long as they have missiles, they, unfortunately, will not calm down.”

He urged defense forces and citizens to work together to withstand the expected, continued attacks, saying the coming week could well be as difficult as the previous week, when attacks on the power grid left around six million Ukrainians without electricity.

“Our defense forces are getting ready. The entire country is getting ready,” he said. “We have worked out all the scenarios, including with our partners.”

— Holly Ellyatt