Ukraine news latest: Rishi Sunak meets Zelensky in Kyiv to pledge £50m in defence aid

Rishi Sunak has met with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky in his first visit to the Kyiv since he became prime minister.

The Brtish premier is set to confirm a new £50m package of air defence for the war-torn country, including 125 anti-aircraft guns and technology to counter deadly Iranian-supplied drones, such as dozens of radars and anti-drone electronic warfare capability, No 10 said.

It follows more than 1,000 new anti-air missiles announced by the defence secretary earlier this month.

Elsewhere, the head of Ukraine’s biggest private energy firm has said those who are able to should leave the country to help reduce demand on the nation’s crippled energy system.

Maxim Timchenko, chief executive of DTEK, said those who have an “alternative place” to stay should go there for “three of four months.”

His comments to the BBC came after Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s president, said that half of the country’s energy system had been destroyed by recent missile attacks by Russia.

Key Points

• Leave to help crippled energy system, residents urged

• Russia says Ukraine executed 10 Russian prisoners of war

• Kyiv could ‘shutdown’ as half of energy system damaged, Ukraine says

• Russian FSB arrested over 200 people and tortured dozens, says report backed by US government

• The workers fighting to restore Ukraine’s railways

• 10 million without power in Ukraine as Russia launches new airstrikes

• Video of Russian ‘torture chamber’ in Kherson released by Ukraine

Putin’s forces ‘dig in 60km behind Ukraine front line’ as Russia fears more losses

14:30 , Matt Mathers

Russian forces are digging new trenches some 60km back from the current front line in Ukraine, according to the Ministry of Defence (MoD), suggesting the Kremlin is bracing for further Ukrainian advances.

After retreating from Kherson – the only regional capital captured during the war so far – Russia continues to lose ground and its forces are focussing on reorganising, preparing and refitting defences across Ukraine, the MoD said in its latest intelligence update.

My colleague Shweta Sharma reports:

Putin’s forces ‘dig in 60km behind Ukraine front line’ as Russia fears more losses

Rishi Sunak meets Volodymyr Zelensky in first visit to Ukraine as PM

13:54 , Matt Mathers

Rishi Sunak has travelled to Ukraine to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky and confirm the UK’s continued support for the war-torn country.

The visit is Mr Sunak’s first to the region since he became prime minister last month.

Our Whitehall editor Kate Devlin reports:

Rishi Sunak meets Volodymyr Zelensky in first visit to Ukraine as PM

ICYMI: ‘We’re Ukraine’s second army’. The workers fighting to restore the country’s bombed-out railways

13:13 , Matt Mathers

Bel Trew reports from the recently liberated city of Kherson, where – facing a constant threat from mines and potential artillery fire – rail workers are trying to get trains running again

Read Bel’s full report here:

The Ukrainians fighting to restore the country’s bombed-out rail network

Polish villagers bury man killed in blast near Ukrainian border

12:45 , Matt Mathers

One of the men killed by a missile that hit a southeastern Polish village this week will be buried on Saturday, the first of two funerals this weekend following a blast that raised fears that the war in Ukraine could spiral into a wider conflict.

Poland and other Western states have said the missile that landed in Przewodow, a village near the border with Ukraine, was a Ukrainian air defence missile that went astray in pursuit of a Russian missile.

Kyiv cast doubt on this version and has demanded access to the site and a role in the investigation into the cause of the explosion.

For the village itself, the blast plunged residents into mourning for two of their neighbours.

"It is sad for the family and the community," said 67-year-old retired mechanic Ryszard Turczanik as he made his way towards the church. "Everybody is in deep sadness and we are going on this final road."

Ahead of the funeral, local priest Bogdan Wazny described the victims as "very kind people".

Leave to help crippled energy system, residents urged

12:21 , Matt Mathers

Ukrainians who are able to should leave the country to help reduce demand on the nation’s crippled energy system, the head of Ukraine’s biggest private energy firm has said.

Maxim Timchenko, chief executive of DTEK, said those who have an “alternative place” to stay should go there for “three of four months.”

His comments to the BBC came after Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s president, said that half of the country’s energy system had been destroyed by recent missile attacks by Russia.

Russia trying to exhaust Ukraine’s air defences, Pentagon says

12:20 , Matt Mathers

Russia’s surge in missile strikes in Ukraine are partly designed to exhaust Ukraine’s supplies of air defenses, something Moscow hopes would allow its forces to achieve dominance of the skies above the country, a senior Pentagon official said on Saturday.

"They’re really trying to overwhelm and exhaust Ukrainian air defense systems," Colin Kahl, under secretary of defense for policy, told reporters during a trip to the Middle East.

"We know what the Russian theory of victory is, and we’re committed to making sure that’s not going to work by making sure that the Ukrainians get what they need to keep their air defenses viable."

Russia expecting uncertainty in fiscals over next year, British intelligence reports says

12:00 , Shweta Sharma

British Ministry of Defence said Russia conducted its largest-ever debt issuance in a single day, raising RUB 820 (USD $13.6bn) on 16 November 2022.

“This is important for Russia as debt issuance is a key mechanism to sustain defence spending, which has increased significantly since the invasion of Ukraine,” the British MoD said on Saturday.

“Russia’s declared ‘national defence’ spending for 2023 is planned at approximately RUB 5tn ($84bn), a more than 40 per cent increase on the preliminary 2023 budget announced in 2021.”

It said the size of auction highly indicates that “the Russian Ministry of Finance perceives current conditions as relatively favourable but is anticipating an increasingly uncertain fiscal environment over the next year”.

Peace possible only after restoration of 1991 borders, Ukraine says

11:30 , Shweta Sharma

The Ukrainian president’s chief of staff said peace with Russia is only possible if it restores the 1991 borders.

“There will be peace when we destroy the Russian army in Ukraine and reach the borders of 1991”, Andriy Yermak, head of the presidential administration, wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

Ukraine held a referendum in 1991 when the Ukrainian parliament surprised the world by voting for Ukraine’s declaration of independence.

Over 400 children killed in war to date, says Ukraine’s prosecutor general

11:00 , Shweta Sharma

At least 437 Ukrainian children have been killed as a result of Russia’s invasion, Ukraine’s prosecutor general’s office said on Saturday.

More than 837 children have also been injured in a tally, that officials said was “not final” because they were still verifying information from zones of active fighting, liberated areas and territory still occupied by Russian forces.

The eastern Donetsk region was the most affected, with 423 children killed or injured, the prosecutor’s office said.

The United Nations has said at least 16,295 civilians have been killed since Russia’s invasion on 24 February, which Kyiv and Western leaders have denounced as an act of unprovoked aggression. Moscow denies targeting civilians.

Finland says Nato bid ‘Nntural’ after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

10:45 , Shweta Sharma

Finland’s foreign minister has defended its application to join Nato as he spoke at a conference in Bahrain on Saturday.

The decision to request for Nato membership is “a result of the drastic change in our security environment”, Finland’s top diplomat Pekka Haavisto told the annual Manama Dialogue conference in Bahrain.

“Applying for Nato membership was... a natural step for us to take”, he added.

Finland and Sweden scrambled to become Nato members and made a formal request in May, dropping decades of non-alignment status, after Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine.

“And what would be more dramatic for a change than the attack of your neighbour towards a country of 50 million people?” Mr Haavisto asked.

It came a day after Finland unveiled a plan to fortify its borders with Russia, including a 200km (124miles) fence.

Crowds cheer as first train from Kyiv arrives in liberated Kherson

10:10 , Shweta Sharma

Jubilant crowds in war-torn Ukraine cheered as the first train from the capital Kyiv arrived in liberated Kherson city on Saturday, for the first time in almost nine months since war broke out in the country.

The train, number 102, set out on an 11-hours journey to Kherson, carrying 200 passengers, marking the resumption of regular service between the cities, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, a senior official in the president’s office, wrote in a Telegram post.

“This is our victory train!” Mr Tymoshenko wrote. “Like this train, we will return to Kherson everything for a normal life!”

In pictures: Russia blast that killed nine

09:45 , Shweta Sharma

Pictures of the blast in Sakhalin island in eastern Russia.

Hungary will not support EU aid plan to Ukraine, Orban says

09:30 , Shweta Sharma

Hungary will not support a European Union plan to provide Ukraine with billions in budget assistance next year, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Friday, digging in on his country’s blocking of a major aid package the EU unveiled last week.

Speaking at a conference in Budapest, Orban said that while Hungary condemns Russia’s aggression and supports the Ukrainian people, he is not willing to put Ukraine’s interests before those of his own country.

The aid plan would provide 18 billion euros ($18.6 billion) to Ukraine next year in regular payments to help keep its energy and health care facilities running as well as to fund salaries and pension schemes.

Read full report here:

Hungary will not support EU aid plan to Ukraine, Orban says

Blast in apartment building kills nine in Russia

09:01 , Shweta Sharma

At least nine people, including four children, were dead following a blast in an apartment building on the island of Sakhalin in far eastern Russia, local authorities said.

A section of the five-storey building in Tymovskoye collapsed after a gas cylinder exploded.

The incident took place around 5.30am Moscow time today.

Rescue teams are searching for more victims under the rubble, Sakhalin governor Valery Limarenko wrote on Telegram.

Some of the 33 people known to have lived in the building remained unaccounted for, he said.

According to Mr Limarenko, residents affected by the explosion have been offered temporary shelter and families who have lost their homes will be paid 500,000 roubles (£6,908).

Nord Stream blast was sabotage with remains of explosives found, Sweden says

09:00 , Shweta Sharma

Explosions that damaged Nord Stream natural gas pipelines were a result of sabotage, investigators in Sweden have said.

Remains of explosives were found on objects recovered from the site which confirm the blasts were deliberate, a prosecutor said on Friday morning.

Swedish and Danish authorities are investigating four holes in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which link Russia and Germany via the Baltic Sea and have become a flashpoint in the Ukraine crisis.

Read our report.

Nord Stream blast was sabotage with remains of explosives found, Sweden says

Pictures: Blanket of snow covers Ukrainian cities

08:45 , Shweta Sharma

Ukraine received its first snowfall as the temperature plummeted to zero degrees in Kyiv, adding woes to millions of Ukrainians facing power outages.

Millions of homes in Ukrainian cities are without power after Russian strikes targeted energy infrastructure.

Australian billionaire launches $25bn fund to rebuild Ukraine

08:15 , Shweta Sharma

Australian mining billionaire, Andrew Forrest has launched an investment fund to raise at least $25bn (£21bn) to help in the reconstruction of war-torn Ukraine.

Starting the fund, Mr Forrest and his wife promised $500m to the fund which is expected to inflate to $100bn.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the efforts.

“We will take advantage of the fact that what the Russians have destroyed can readily be replaced with the latest, most modern green and digital infrastructure,” Mr Zelensky said.

Mr Forrest said the initiative would help realise “a golden vision” for post-war Ukraine as “the fastest-growth economy in Europe, if not the world”.

Most Apec leaders condemn Russia’s war in Ukraine

07:40 , Shweta Sharma

The war in Ukraine dominated talks held by the leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.

The leaders vowed to uphold and strengthen a rules-based multilateral trading system while most of them condemned Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The APEC leaders deplored Russia’s aggression and demanded its complete and unconditional withdrawal from Ukraine, referring to the UN resolutions.

“This year, we have also witnessed the war in Ukraine further adversely impact the global economy,” the declaration said.

“Most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine and stressed it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating existing fragilities in the global economy.

“There were other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions. Recognising that APEC is not the forum to resolve security issues, we acknowledge that security issues can have significant consequences for the global economy.”

Russia says Ukraine executed 10 Russian prisoners of war

07:00 , Shweta Sharma

Russia’s defence ministry said Ukraine executed more than 10 Russian prisoners of war following the emergence of a video purporting to be from the frontline.

“This brutal murder of Russian servicemen is neither the first nor the only war crime,” a spokesperson for Russia’s ministry of defence said.

“This is common practice in the Armed Forces of Ukraine that is actively supported by the Kyiv regime and blatantly ignored by its western patrons.”

The footage, purportedly, showed Russian soldiers appearing from an outbuilding with their hands raised over their heads before they were asked to lie facedown.

The video shows a man wearing black then turn his gun towards what appears to be a Ukrainian soldier as he emerges from the outhouse.

There were at least 12 dead bodies and the footage, which appeared to be taken by a Ukrainian soldier, suggested all the soldiers of enemy forces were killed.

Russian defence ministry claimed that footage showed “the deliberate and methodical murder of more than 10 immobilised Russian servicemen by degenerate Ukrainian soldiers”.

There was no immediate comment from Ukraine, which has vowed to investigate any alleged abuses by its forces.

Russian bombing raids have overwhelmingly targeted civilian areas, report finds

06:30 , Shweta Sharma

Russia’s bombing raids across two conflicts in the past decade have overwhelmingly targeted built-up civilian areas, new analysis shows, with the vast majority of victims being classed as non-combatants.

The study of Russian airstrikes, missile and artillery bombardments covered both the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine since 2012, and reveals the Kremlin’s “blatant disregard for civilian protection“, according to the London-based research charity Action on Armed Violence (AOAV).

Read Shweta Sharma’s exclusive report.

Russian bombing raids have overwhelmingly targeted civilian areas, report finds

Russian forces fire 69 projectiles at Sumy Oblast, governor says

06:00 , Shweta Sharma

Russian forces fired 69 missiles in Sumy Oblast yesterday, its governor Dmytro Zhyvytskyi said.

Russia targeted commercial buildings and a car was damaged in the Shalyhyne community, but there were no casualties, the governor said.

The areas that came under attack were Seredyna-Buda, Bilopillia, and Shalyhyne communities.

How a missile crisis in Poland almost dragged Nato into Russia’s war with Ukraine

05:30 , Shweta Sharma

A wayward rocket crossed the border between Ukraine and Poland at approximately 3.40pm on Tuesday, striking a grain silo in a Polish village and killing two people.

The incident in Przewodow, Lublin, marked the first time since the Russian invasion began in late February that citizens of a Nato member state had been caught up in the bloodshed.

Ukraine itself is not yet a member of the military alliance but Poland is and - given that all 30 members are bound by the North Atlantic Treaty’s terms to come to the defence of any one of its allies under attack from a foreign power - the episode threatened to mark a serious escalation of the war.

Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed and, following a swift investigation by Polish intelligence officials, it became clear that, for once, Kremlin denials of responsibility were likely to be accurate.

Read Joe Sommerlad’s detailed report.

How a missile crisis in Poland almost dragged Nato into Russia’s war with Ukraine

‘We’re Ukraine’s second army’: The workers fighting to restore the country’s bombed-out railways

05:00 , Shweta Sharma

In most European countries, a wave of bad weather is enough to bring train schedules to a grinding halt. In the UK, leaves on the line cause chaos.

In Ukraine, where missiles, artillery fire and mines are everyday occurrences, railway staff simply carry on fixing the track and getting the trains running again. Even under shelling.

And this is the message that Ukraine’s railway chief, Oleksandr Kamyshin, is trying to deliver, as he stands in the newly reopened train station in Kherson, a frontline city liberated from Russian soldiers only a few days ago and still under fire.

Read Bel Trew’s dispatch from Kherson.

The Ukrainians fighting to restore the country’s bombed-out rail network

Ukraine has received over $23bn in financial aid since war began

04:30 , Shweta Sharma

Ukrainian prime minister Denys Shmyhal said Ukraine has received $23bn in financial aid since the Russian forces launched the invasion on 24 February.

“Ukraine feels the reliable support of the world in its struggle for freedom and independence,” Mr Shmyhal said yesterday.

Putin’s forces ‘dig in 60km behind Ukraine front line’ as Russia fears more losses

03:58 , Shweta Sharma

Russian forces are digging new trenches some 60km back from the current front line in Ukraine, according to Britain’s Ministry of Defence (MoD), suggesting the Kremlin is bracing for further Ukrainian advances.

After retreating from Kherson – the only regional capital captured during the war so far – Russia continues to lose ground and its forces are focussing on reorganising, preparing and refitting defences across Ukraine, the MoD said in its latest intelligence update.

Vladimir Putin’s forces have constructed “new trench systems” near the border of Crimea, as well as near the Siversky-Donets River between Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts, it said.

Read my latest report.

Putin’s forces ‘dig in 60km behind Ukraine front line’ as Russia fears more losses

Kyiv could ‘shutdown’ as half of energy system damaged, Ukraine says

03:20 , Shweta Sharma

A fresh wave of Russian missile strikes has crippled almost half of Ukraine’s energy system and capital Kyiv could face a “complete shutdown” of the power grid as a snow blanket covers the city, authorities said.

The UN has warned that Ukraine’s electricity and water shortages threaten a humanitarian disaster this winter.

“Unfortunately, Russia continues to carry out missile strikes on Ukraine’s civilian and critical infrastructure. Almost half of our energy system is disabled,” prime minister Denys Shmyhal said.

He was speaking at a joint news conference with the vice-president of the European Commission, Valdis Dombrovskis, who offered Ukraine “unwavering support”.

Millions in Ukrainian cities are without heat and the temperature plummeted after some of the heaviest bombardment of Ukrainian civilian infrastructure in nine months of war.

“We are preparing for different scenarios, including a complete shutdown,” Mykola Povoroznyk, deputy head of the Kyiv city administration, said in televised comments.

Friday 18 November 2022 23:11 , Holly Bancroft

Thanks for following along with the coverage this evening. We will be pausing the blog now but here is the latest despatch from Bel Trew in the Kherson region:

The Ukrainians fighting to restore the country’s bombed-out rail network

Almost half of Ukraine’s energy system cripples, says prime minsiter

Friday 18 November 2022 22:54 , Holly Bancroft

Russian missile strikes have crippled almost half of Ukraine’s energy system, Ukraine’s prime minister has said.

One Kyiv official warned that the capital could face a “complete shutdown” of its power grid, The BBC reported.

Prime minister Denys Shmyhal said on Friday: “Unfortunately Russia contines to carry out missile strikes on Ukraine’s civilian and critical infrastructure. Almost half of our energy system is disabled.”

Ukraine’s national grid operator Ukrenergo posted on Telegram: “The aggressor country has officially recognised that its goal is to destroy our energy infrastructure and leave Ukrainians without electricity and heat.”

Watch: Moment huge explosion rocks Dnipro

Friday 18 November 2022 21:00 , Jane Dalton

Moment huge explosion rocks Dnipro amid Russian missile attack

Poland denies visas to Russian delegation

Friday 18 November 2022 20:32 , Jane Dalton

Poland will not grant a Russian delegation visas to attend an Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) meeting in Lodz on December 1-2, a foreign ministry spokesman has said.

“We are not giving them visas,” Lukasz Jasina said.

Meanwhile, European Union trade commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis offered Ukraine the 27-nation bloc’s “unwavering support” and condemned Russia’s “brutal war” on its neighbour during a visit to Kyiv.

But Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said his country will not support a European Union plan to provide Ukraine with billions in budget assistance next year, digging in on his country’s blocking of a major aid package the EU unveiled last week.

Watch: Ukrainian soldier plays haunting music inside ruins of bombed-out building

Friday 18 November 2022 20:00 , Jane Dalton

Ukrainian soldier plays haunting music from ruins of destroyed building

Ukrainian troops killed 10 Russian PoWs, claims Moscow

Friday 18 November 2022 19:30 , Jane Dalton

Russia says Ukrainian soldiers have executed more than 10 prisoners of war, accusing Kyiv of carrying out war crimes and the West of ignoring them, Reuters reports.

The Russian defence ministry cited a video circulating on Russian social media which it said showed the execution of Russian PoWs. Reuters was unable to immediately verify either the video or the defence ministry’s assertions.

“This brutal murder of Russian servicemen is neither the first, nor the only war crime,” the ministry said.

“This is common practice in the Armed Forces of Ukraine that is actively supported by the Kyiv regime and blatantly ignored by its Western patrons.”

There was no immediate response from Kyiv, which has said previously it would investigate any alleged abuses by its armed forces. Ukraine has repeatedly accused Russia of war crimes, which Moscow has denied.

The video shows what appear to be Russian soldiers lying down on the ground in Makiivka, in the Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine, after surrendering to armed men with yellow bands on their arms.

Then automatic gunfire rings out and the video shows around 12 bodies. It was unclear when the video was filmed or who filmed it.

The Russian defence ministry said the video showed “the deliberate and methodical murder of more than 10 immobilised Russian serviceman by degenerate Ukrainian soldiers”.

Hundreds in Kherson arrested and dozens tortured, says report

Friday 18 November 2022 18:53 , Jane Dalton

Hundreds of people were detained or went missing in the Kherson region while it was under Russian control this year, and dozens may have been tortured, Yale University researchers have concluded. .

“Russia must halt these operations and withdraw its forces to end a needless war that it cannot and will not win, no matter how despicable and desperate its tactics,” the US State Department said in a statement on the report.

The report, seen by Reuters, documents detentions and disappearances of 226 people in Kherson between March and October, a quarter of whom were allegedly tortured and five of whom died in custody or shortly after.

Nathaniel Raymond, executive director of the Humanitarian Research Lab at the Yale School of Public Health which produced the report, said it corroborated warnings before the conflict of Russian use of “capture and kill” lists against civilians.

The report said most of the 226 were detained by Russia’s military or FSB, the domestic Russian security service, and it cited multiple sources who said they had lists of names of targeted individuals.

At least 55 of the reported detentions or disappearances include allegations of treatment that could constitute torture under international law, including beating, mock executions and Russian roulette, electric shocks and torture of relatives.

Several people reported being tortured for information about the position of Ukraine‘s military units. Others said they were asked about the leadership of protest movements or opposition groups or tortured into confessing a crime, the report said.

Sixty government officials were among those detained or who disappeared, the report said, as well as 32 people who identified as Crimean Tatar, the Muslim Turkic group indigenous to the Black Sea peninsula.

The workers fighting to restore Ukraine’s railways

Friday 18 November 2022 16:23 , Bel Trew

In most European countries, a wave of bad weather is enough to bring train schedules to a grinding halt. In the UK, leaves on the line cause chaos.

In Ukraine, where missiles, artillery fire and mines are everyday occurrences, railway staff simply carry on fixing the track and getting the trains running again. Even under shelling.

And this is the message that Ukrainian’s railway chief Alexander Kamyshin is trying to deliver, as he stands in the newly reopened train station in Kherson, a frontline city only liberated from Russian soldiers a few days ago and still under fire.

Read more below:

The Ukrainians fighting to restore the country’s bombed-out rail network

Putin floats idea of Turkish ‘gas hub'

Friday 18 November 2022 15:00 , Jane Dalton

Russian president Vladimir Putin discussed the idea of creating a Turkish “gas hub” with Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan during a phone call, the Kremlin says.

Mr Putin first proposed creating a gas base in Turkey in October as a means to redirect supplies from the damaged Nord Stream pipelines and export them on to the European market, an idea that Mr Erdogan has supported.

The Kremlin said the two sides also discussed the agreed extension of the Black Sea grain deal, an agreement that Turkey helped broker to ensure the safe passage of grain exports from blockaded Ukrainian ports.

“Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan emphasised the importance of a comprehensive and complete implementation of this ‘package’ agreement,” the Kremlin said.

Our experts analysing Poland missile site, says Ukrainian minister

Friday 18 November 2022 14:30 , Jane Dalton

Ukrainian experts are working at the site in the border area of southeastern Poland where a missile killed two people, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says.

He wrote on Twitter that Ukraine would continue “open and constructive” cooperation with Poland over Tuesday’s incident, in which two people were killed.

Warsaw and its Western allies say evidence from the scene points to the explosion being caused by a Ukrainian air defence missile that went astray in pursuit of a Russian missile. Kyiv denies this, saying it has evidence of a “Russian trace” in the blast.

“Ukrainian experts are already working at the site of the tragedy in Przewodów caused by Russian missile terror against Ukraine,” Mr Kuleba wrote.

Power cuts set to grow longer, operator warns

Friday 18 November 2022 13:59 , Jane Dalton

Electricity grid chiefs are warning of even longer power cuts after Russian forces renewed artillery and missile attacks on the energy network.

Grid operator Ukrenergo said outages could last for several hours.“You always need to prepare for the worst - we understand that the enemy wants to destroy our power system in general, to cause long outages,” Ukrenergo’s chief executive Volodymyr Kudrytskyi told Ukrainian state television.

“We need to prepare for possible long outages, but at the moment we are introducing schedules that are planned and will do everything to ensure that the outages are not very long.”The power situation at critical facilities such as hospitals and schools has been stabilised, he said.Overnight shelling and missile strikes in Kharkiv’s critical infrastructure damaged equipment, governor Oleh Syniehubov said.

Moscow’s attacks on Ukraine‘s energy and power facilities in the past weeks have left millions without heating and electricity, fuelling fears of what the dead of winter will bring.

On Tuesday, Russia unleashed a nationwide barrage of more than 100 missiles and drones that knocked out power to 10 million people.The attacks have also affected neighboring countries such as Moldova, where a half-dozen cities experienced temporary blackouts.

Ukraine strikes aimed at military and energy infrastructure. Russia says

Friday 18 November 2022 13:16 , Zoe Tidman

Russia’s defence ministry says its strikes in Ukraine today were aimed at military and energy infrastructure, according to Russian news agencies.

It also said missile manufacturing facilities had been hit.

Reuters

EU trade commissioner in Ukraine

Friday 18 November 2022 12:45 , Zoe Tidman

European Union trade commissioner is visiting Kyiv for talks with Ukraine’s president on EU support for the country:

No talk of US and Russia president summit, Kremlin says

Friday 18 November 2022 12:14 , Zoe Tidman

There is no talk of a summit between President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Reuters

Putin and Erdogan have phone call

Friday 18 November 2022 11:46 , Zoe Tidman

Vladimir Putin has held a phone call with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, the Kremlin.

Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that an announcement would be published shortly, without providing details.

The Turksih presidency said Mr Erdogan repeated diplomatic efforts to end the Ukraine war must be revived.

Reuters

Russian activist dedicates award to anti-war protesters

Friday 18 November 2022 11:20 , Zoe Tidman

An imprisoned Russian opposition activist who was honored by a human rights advocacy group dedicated his award to the thousands of people arrested or detained in Russia for protesting Vladimir Putin‘s war in Ukraine.

UN Watch has given Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was jailed in April, its highest human rights award.

His wife accepted the award and read a letter from her husband that hailed the journalists, lawyers, artists, priests, politicians, military officers and others “who have refused to say silent in front of this atrocity, even at the cost of personal freedom”.

Full story:

Imprisoned Russian activist honored with human rights award

Images from Kherson

Friday 18 November 2022 10:54 , Zoe Tidman

Here are some images from the southern city of Kherson since Russian troops’ retreat:

Putin to attend Armenia summit

Friday 18 November 2022 10:14 , Zoe Tidman

Vladimir Putin will visit a summit of the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation next week in Armenia, the Kremlin has said.

Russia ready for high-level talks with US, foreign minister says

Friday 18 November 2022 09:54 , Zoe Tidman

Russia is ready for high-level meetings with the US regarding strategic stability if Washington is ready, its deputy foreign minister has been quoted as saying by state media.

Sergei Ryabkov said Russia was not ruling out new contracts with the US after upcoming talks in Cairo on the New START nuclear arms treaty.

Reuters

More than 83,400 Russian soldiers killed, Ukraine claims

Friday 18 November 2022 09:44 , Zoe Tidman

Ukraine’s army claims more than 83,400 Russian troops have been killed in the war so far.

It gives a daily tally on this. Here is the one from this morning:

Why did Russia invade Ukraine and what could happen next?

Friday 18 November 2022 09:20 , Arpan Rai

Russia’s “special military operation” has now been raging for nine months, the conflict continuing to record devastating casualties and force the mass displacement of millions of Ukrainians.

Vladimir Putin began the war by claiming Ukraine needed to be “demilitarised and de-Nazified”, an entirely baseless pretext on which to launch a landgrab against a sovereign neighbour state that happens to have a Jewish president.

Ukraine has fought back courageously ever since and continued to defy the odds by defending itself against Russian onslaughts with the help of Western military aid.

Read more about the war here:

Why did Russia invade Ukraine and what could happen next?

Russian attacks kill one in Donetsk

Friday 18 November 2022 08:59 , Arpan Rai

At least one person was killed and eight others have been injured in twin attacks in Ukraine’s Donetsk and Kharkiv oblasts respectively, officials said.

The regional governor of Donetsk oblast said today that the Russian attacks in the past 24 hours killed one civilian in Bakhmut and wounded four in Chasiv Yar, reported The Kyiv Independent.

Traces of explosives found at Nord Stream pipelines - Sweden

Friday 18 November 2022 08:41 , Zoe Tidman

Traces of explosives have been found at the site of the damaged Nord Stream pipelines, confirming that sabotage had taken place, a Swedish prosecutor said today.

This comes after a preliminary investigation by Danish investigators found that the damage to the Nord Stream gas pipelines were caused by “powerful explosions”.

Swedish and Danish authorities have been investigating four leaks in the pipelines which have become a flashpoint in the Ukraine crisis.

Read the full story here:

Nord Stream blast was sabotage with remains of explosives found, Sweden says

Where’s Putin? Russian president missing from room when Kherson exit announced

Friday 18 November 2022 08:31 , Arpan Rai

Vladimir Putin was reportedly absent from the room when his top military officials announced on television that Russia was withdrawing from the city of Kherson in southern Ukraine.

Only defence minister Sergei Shoigu and general Sergei Surovikin, Russia’s chief commander in Ukraine, stiffly recited the reasons for the retreat in front of the cameras on 9 November. Mr Putin was touring a neurological hospital in Moscow, watching a doctor perform brain surgery.

Read the full story here:

Where's Putin? Leader leaves bad news on Ukraine to others

Vatican ready to mediate Ukraine war, says Pope

Friday 18 November 2022 07:09 , Arpan Rai

The Vatican is yet again ready to do anything possible to mediate and put an end to the war in Ukraine, Pope Francis said in an interview with Italian daily La Stampa.

He also called on everyone not to give up, on being asked whether he believed reconciliation between Moscow and Kyiv was possible.

“But everyone must commit to demilitarising hearts, starting with their own, and then defusing, disarming violence. We must all be pacifists. Wanting peace, not just a truce that may only serve to rearm. Real peace, which is the fruit of dialogue,” the pontiff told the paper.

Russia refitting troops, preparing defences to stop more Ukrainian breakthroughs - MoD

Friday 18 November 2022 06:53 , Arpan Rai

After losing Kherson, Russia’s forces are reorganising and preparing defences in the event of more major Ukrainian breakthroughs, the British defence ministry said today.

“Following the withdrawal of its forces from west of the Dnipro River, Russian forces continue to prioritise refitting, reorganisation and the preparation of defences across most sectors in Ukraine,” the ministry said today.

It added that these Russian units have constructed new trench systems near the border of Crimea, as well as near the Siversky-Donetsk River between Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.

“Some of these locations are up to 60km behind the current front line, suggesting that Russian planners are making preparations in case of further major Ukrainian breakthroughs,” the British MoD said.

Now it is likely that Russia will attempt to eventually redeploy some of the forces recovered from Kherson to reinforce and expand its offensive operations near the town of Bakhmut in Donetsk oblast, the update said.

Grim scenes show Ukraine reclaiming Kherson

Friday 18 November 2022 06:48 , Arpan Rai

Ukrainian forces are slowly reviving Kherson city after taking control of it last week, as well as swathes of its surrounding region. In a major setback for Moscow, Russia pulled its forces back to the other side of the Dnipro river.

Kherson was the only regional capital to be captured by Russia following its invasion on 24 February.

10 million without power in Ukraine as Russia launches new airstrikes

Friday 18 November 2022 05:50 , Arpan Rai

Ten million people are without power in Ukraine after Russian airstrikes inflicted more damage on Thursday with the latest barrage smashing into energy infrastructure, apartment buildings and an industrial site.

In his nightly video address, Volodymyr Zelensky said the widespread outages were affecting people in the Kyiv, Odesa, Sumy and Vinnytsia regions.

At least four people were killed and more than a dozen wounded in drone and missile strikes around the country, authorities said.

Read the full story here:

10 million without power in Ukraine as Russia launches new airstrikes

Two fighter jets escort Qatar-bound Poland football team close to Ukraine border

Friday 18 November 2022 05:15 , Arpan Rai

The Poland football team were escorted to the southern border by two fighter jets on Thursday, as they flew to Qatar for the World Cup.

Extra care was taken and two F16 planes can be seen flying alongside the squad, given the nation shares a border with war-torn Ukraine.

The footage was posted by the official Twitter account of the Polish team and has already been viewed over 1.6 million times.

Poland begin their World Cup campaign against Mexico on Tuesday 22 November.

Watch the video here:

Two fighter jets escort Qatar-bound Poland football team close to Ukraine border

Heavy fighting continues in Ukraine’s east

Friday 18 November 2022 04:54 , Arpan Rai

Intense fighting and Russian missile attacks continue to rain on Ukrainian positions in several regions with no visible let up in heavy fighting in Donetsk in the east, the Ukrainian military said last night as Moscow’s occupying forces appeared more active.

Elsewhere, Russian attacks struck gas production facilities and a major missile factory in new missile strikes on critical infrastructure in the country, Ukrainian officials said.

Video of Russian ‘torture chamber’ in Kherson released by Ukraine

Friday 18 November 2022 04:40 , Arpan Rai

A top Ukrainian human rights official shared a video of a room allegedly used by Russian forces for torturing people in Kherson region, stating that the place could keep 25 people at a time who were not allowed to use the toilet.

The Ukrainian parliament’s human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets showed a series of bare underground rooms with grimy walls and floors that he said were used for detentions, interrogations and torture.

Russian forces used electric shocks to secure confessions, the top official said.

“They asked the questions they wanted and obtained the answers they wanted,” a man who said he had been kept in one of the rooms for 24 days said.

The man said he was tied to a chair and subjected to recurring electric shocks “until losing consciousness” and, after a break, the process resumed.

“One after the other. They prepared a bunch of questions and wrote down everything they wanted,” he said in the video.

Friday 18 November 2022 03:30 , Arpan Rai

Good morning, welcome to our coverage of the Ukraine war on Friday, 18 November.