Fierce fighting continues, especially in southern Ukraine. After attacks on the Kakhovka dam, the power and water supplies to the city of Kherson are cut off. Things are similarly critical in the Ukrainian capital. There, after heavy rocket fire on the energy supply, a blackout can no longer be ruled out. Meanwhile, the EU wants to support Ukraine with a new aid package. The 256th day of the war at a glance.
Fighting continues near southern Ukrainian city of Kherson
Heavy fighting has shaken the region around the southern Ukrainian city of Cherson. According to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, a building in which around 200 Russian soldiers were staying was destroyed in the village of Kakhovka. The consequences of this attack would be "carefully concealed" by the Russian side, it said. A column of armored Russian vehicles was destroyed near Radensk. The information could not be independently verified.
Ukraine accuses Russia of destroying civilian ships
The Ukrainian army accused Russia of large-scale destruction of civilian ships moored on the banks of the Dnipro River in the southern Kherson region. A spokesman for the Ukrainian General Staff said fuel was leaking from the wrecked ships. He also accused the Russian armed forces of confiscating engines and other equipment from the ships. There was initially no comment from the Russian Ministry of Defense. Retaking Cherson would be a major defeat for Russian troops. Russian-deployed officials in the Kherson region had previously reported that Moscow was likely to withdraw its troops from the west bank of the Dnipro River.
Electricity and water supply cut off in Kherson
According to Russian sources, the Kakhovka dam in Cherson was damaged in a Ukrainian attack. However, there was no serious damage, it said. According to pro-Russian occupiers, the power and water supply in the city of Cherson failed after a Ukrainian air raid.
On Sunday morning there was an attack with "six HIMARS rockets" in the region, Russian news agencies quoted local rescue services as saying. The air defense fired five rockets, one rocket hit a lock on the Kachowka dam, it said. "Everything is under control," the Ria Novosti news agency quoted a local pro-Russian official as saying. One of the projectiles hit the dam, "but didn't cause any critical damage."
The dam of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station is located on the Dnipro River in the Kherson region, which is currently controlled by Russian troops and annexed by Moscow. The plant primarily supplies water to the Crimean Peninsula, which was annexed in 2014.
Ukraine reports artillery shelling of southern cities
According to local authorities, Russian troops shelled several cities in southern Ukraine. In Zaporizhia, one person was killed and a civil infrastructure building was destroyed, an employee of the city council said without further details. The Russian Defense Ministry said an ammunition depot belonging to the Ukrainian army was hit in Zaporizhia. Shells from barrel artillery and multiple rocket launchers fell in several places in the Dnepropetrovsk region. A nine-year-old girl was injured in the town of Myrowe, the chairman of the regional parliament, Mykola Lukaschuk, wrote on Telegram.
The places hit are on the northern bank of the Dnipro River. Russian troops have occupied the south bank and can shoot from there, for example from the protection of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.
Klitschko does not rule out a blackout in Kyiv
Meanwhile, the energy supply in the Ukrainian capital is shaking. Due to the damage to the energy system, Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko does not rule out a collapse in the electricity, heat and water supply in the Ukrainian capital. Citizens should stock up for such a case and also consider temporarily staying outside of the city. Klitschko said so on Saturday night on Ukrainian television. This is the worst possible scenario. "We're doing everything we can to make sure it doesn't come to that," he said. "But we want to be frank: our enemies are doing everything to ensure that this city is without heating, without electricity, without water supply - in general: that we all die."
About three million people are currently living in Kyiv, including 350,000 internally displaced persons from other parts of Ukraine, Klitschko said. If the district heating system collapses, the city is preparing to set up 1,000 warming rooms. The ex-boxing world champion accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of wanting to destroy the Ukrainians as a people. "Putin doesn't need us Ukrainians. He needs the area, needs a Ukraine without us." The Russian rocket attacks on Ukraine's energy supply also damaged the facilities in Kyiv. The city is trying to stabilize the grid through staggered power cuts. Whole districts have no light for hours at a time.
Selenskyj and von der Leyen are discussing new billions in aid for Kyiv
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has informed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about plans for a new aid package for Ukraine worth up to 18 billion euros. The EU Commission explained that she wants to present the package, which is to be divided into monthly tranches of 1.5 billion euros each, in Brussels next week. The advantageous loans should make a "significant contribution" to Kiev's financial needs for 2023.
The funds would also support Ukraine to implement further reforms on the way towards EU membership, it said. Selenskyj only explained on Twitter that he had spoken to von der Leyen about financial support for the current and coming year. Another topic was the importance of grain deliveries from Ukraine via the Black Sea to support global food security.
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