Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the establishment of more than 4,000 warming rooms for the population of the attacked country plagued by cold and darkness. “All basic services are provided there,” he said in his evening video address on Tuesday. “This includes electricity, mobile communication and the Internet, heat, water, first aid. Completely free and 24/7.”
Selenskyj called the facilities in administration buildings or schools “points of stability”. The official name on a government website also translates to “points of steadfastness.” “I am sure that if we help each other, we will get through this winter together,” he said.
EU transferred 2.5 billion euros
The EU Commission transferred 2.5 billion euros to Kyiv for urgent repairs. For the coming year, the Brussels authorities announced a further cash injection of 18 billion euros. Selenskyj called on people in the country to save energy. Russia invaded Ukraine nine months ago. Since October, Russia has been targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
Ukraine: infrastructure badly damaged
Although Russia was the last to lose on the battlefield in the Ukraine war, it was successful in causing major damage to Ukraine’s infrastructure. Power supplies, mobile radio systems and data centers were sometimes severely damaged.
“The extent of the destruction is colossal,” said Ukrenerho boss Volodymyr Kudryzkyj. Nevertheless, repairs have managed to stabilize the system since Saturday. There are now mainly scheduled and hardly any emergency shutdowns of the electricity.
Gazprom plans to further curb deliveries
In addition to electricity, Ukraine could soon be short of further gas. The Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom is threatening to cut gas supplies further, on the grounds that Ukraine is withholding gas intended for Moldova when it transits its territory. If nothing changes, the transit, from which EU countries also benefit, will be reduced by the daily amount retained from next Monday.
WHO representative on the situation in Ukraine
The World Health Organization (WHO) has registered more than 700 attacks on the country’s health infrastructure since the start of the Ukraine war. Gerald Rockenschaub, WHO Director for Health Emergencies in the European Region, was a guest at ZIB2.
Moscow reports grenades on Zaporizhia
On Tuesday, Moscow again reported grenade fire from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. Projectiles have been falling repeatedly on the site in southern Ukraine for months, fueling fears of a nuclear catastrophe. The warring parties Russia and Ukraine hold each other responsible. On Monday, inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) checked the plant for damage after the weekend’s artillery shelling and gave the all-clear for the time being.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, eight large-caliber shells were fired at an industrial part of the nuclear power plant after the IAEA inspection. However, spokesman Igor Konashenkov emphasized that the radiation was still normal. The information could not initially be verified independently. The Kremlin once again dampened the prospects of a protection zone around the nuclear power plant demanded by Ukraine and the IAEA. There is “no significant progress” on this point, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Fight in the east and south
Heavy fighting was mainly reported from eastern Ukraine. In the Donetsk region, Russian attacks are concentrated on the cities of Avdiivka and Bakhmut, according to the Ukrainian general staff. Elsewhere, the general staff spoke of an “active defense” of the Russian troops – so that’s where the Ukrainians are apparently attacking. The places Kupjansk and Lyman as well as Novopavliwka and the front in the Zaporizhia region were named. Russian troops fought back with tanks, mortars, pipe and rocket artillery, it said.
Generators for Ukraine
In Ukraine, electricity, heating and water are cut off in winter. The Red Cross has taken over 16 emergency generators in Pettenbach (Upper Austria), which are being taken to the Ukraine.
According to the official report, Russian troops in southern Ukraine are strengthening their defense lines on the southern bank of the Dnipro River. According to unofficial information, the Ukrainian artillery fired on this area in the direction of Crimea with their long-range guns.
Meanwhile, the Russian-installed government in Crimea reported Tuesday evening that two drones had landed over Sevastopol. The air defense had been deployed, said the regional governor on the Internet. Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, and Sevastopol is the home port of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
Ukrainian secret service raids monastery
Meanwhile, in the Ukrainian capital, the police and the SBU secret service searched the 1,000-year-old Kiev Cave Monastery. There is a suspicion of “subversive activities on the part of Russian special services”. The sprawling complex called Pechersk Lavra houses Christian Orthodox churches, monasteries and museums. It is also the headquarters of the Russian-backed branch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
The security service announced that systematic action would be taken against destructive activities by Russian special services in Ukraine. In this context, the monastery was also searched. The aim is to prevent the use of the cave monastery as the “center of the Russian world,” according to the SBU. The Ukrainian security service did not comment on the result of the search. The Russian Orthodox Church described the search as an “attempt at intimidation”, and criticism also came from the Kremlin.
In Moscow, the parliament, the Duma, condemned the alleged shooting of Russian soldiers when they were captured by Ukrainian forces. This is a blatant violation by Ukraine of international humanitarian law and the Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the Duma said, according to the state news agency TASS. Kyiv rejects the allegations based on videos on social networks. After joint research with experts, the “New York Times” described the videos as authentic. The exact course of the incident and its background are still unclear.