This week, Russian drone strikes have become an almost nightly occurrence across the country. On Sunday, Russia targeted energy facilities in Ukraine’s seven regions. Russian drones fell into NATO members Romania and Latvia. A Russian attack drone flew close to a nuclear power plant in Khmelnytskyi region during an overnight drone strike on Thursday. The strike left at least 14 people injured in the city of Konotop, in Sumy region, cutting power and water to most of the city.
Russia will likely use Iranian missiles on Ukraine within weeks, U.S. Secretary of State Blinken said, confirming that Russia had received shipments of Iranian-made ballistic missiles. Ukraine could be facing its toughest winter since the invasion, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said at a news conference Tuesday, detailing the country’s preparations for possible power cuts and Russia’s attacks on energy infrastructure.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and British Foreign Secretary David Lammy arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday as Ukraine expects permission for long-range strikes against Russia to be granted. Russian forces have launched a concerted push against Ukrainian troops in Russia’s Kursk region. Russian shelling on Thursday killed three Red Cross workers and wounded two others in a village in Donetsk region.
Permission for long-range strikes inside Russia: UK has made a decision, U.S. still thinking
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said “long-range fires” were part of his discussion with Ukrainian President Zelenskyi on his visit to Kyiv. “I’m going to take that discussion back to Washington to brief the President [Biden] on what I heard,” Blinken said at a news conference on Wednesday. He then left for Poland. The security of NATO’s eastern flank and prospects of more intense energy cooperation with Poland will feature in the discussions, The New Voice of Ukraine said.
British government sources indicated that a decision had already been made to allow Ukraine to use Storm Shadow cruise missiles on targets inside Russia, although it is not expected to be publicly announced on Friday when Starmer meets Biden in Washington DC, The Guardian said. The decision is understood to have already been made in private.
