Ukraine news – live: Putin driving mobilised soldiers to death in war, says Zelensky

Vladimir Putin is driving inexperienced Russian soldiers “to their deaths” in an intense assault on Ukraine’s east, says Volodymyr Zelensky.

Without referring to his Russian counterpart by name, Mr Zelensky said overnight that “very fierce Russian attacks in the Donetsk region continue”.

“The enemy suffers serious losses there, but despite everything, despite any losses, he (Putin) continues to drive his mobilised soldiers and mercenaries to their deaths,” the Ukrainian president said in his nightly address.

Mr Zelensky also said that Moscow could be planning more attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, with millions of Ukrainians already without electricity in the war-hit country.

This comes as Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko warned residents to prepare for the worst this winter – and possible evacuation from the capital – if it becomes impossible to provide energy to the city amid Russian bombing.

Kyiv was having hourly rotating blackouts in parts of the city and the surrounding region on Sunday. Rolling blackouts were also planned in the Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Sumy, Kharkiv and Poltava regions.

Key Points

• Biden administration 'privately asks Ukraine to signal to Russia it’s open to talks’

• Russia to allow sex offenders to join army to fight in Ukraine

• US to send $400m more to Ukraine in military aid

• China sends message to Russia, says no nuclear war over Ukraine

• Vladimir Putin makes ‘very heavy hint’ of nuclear detonation - report

More than 1,500 new graves at Mariupol burial site – report

09:38 , Liam James

More than 1,500 new graves have been dug at a mass burial site near the southern Ukrainian city of Mariupol, analysis of satellite images for BBC Panorama found.

Mariupol, a Black Sea port city on the western edge of Ukraine’s Donbas region, was a major strategic target for the Russians early in the war. Thousands of civilians were killed in relentless attacks before the city finally fell to Russian forces in May.

Recent satellite images from Maxar show that three mass burial sites near Mariupol located at Staryi Krym, Manhush and Vynohradne, have been steadily growing in recent months.

The Centre for Information Resilience (CIR) analysed the images of Staryi Krym for Panorama and concluded that 1,500 new graves had been dug there since it last analysed images at the site in June.

CIR now estimates that more than 4,600 graves have been dug there since the beginning of the war, though it added that it did not know how many bodies were buried there.

Russian soldier catches and throws bomb dropped by Ukrainian drone

09:11 , Liam James

Drone footage appears shows a Russian soldier catching a dropped by a Ukrainian drone and throwing it away after catching them while he was hiding in a trench in the battlefield.

Armed drones play a vital role in the war in Ukraine, with both sides using them in large numbers to gather intelligence, correct artillery fire, and drop bombs.

More blackouts for Ukraine

08:49 , Liam James

Ukraine’s grid operator said blackouts would continue today for Kyiv and several other regions.

Rolling blackouts have been taking place for weeks in the capital after repeated Russian attacks on energy infrastructure.

Despite warnings from President Volodymyr Zelensky that more strikes were planned, the capital was relatively peaceful on Monday morning.

But Ukrenergo, the grid operator, said earlier damage to the power network required a stronger reduction in energy use than first thought.

“The country’s power grid still cannot resume full operation after the Russian terrorist attacks. In some regions, we have to introduce blackouts to avoid overloading the high-voltage infrastructure,” a spokesperson said in a statement.

Scheduled shutdowns from 6am local time to the end of the day will affect Kyiv and the regions of Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Sumy, Kharkiv and Poltava, it said in a statement.

Biden and Scholz in Ukraine call

08:29 , Liam James

US president Joe Biden and German chancellor Olaf Scholz yesterday discussed developments in Ukraine on a phone call, the White House said.

A spokesperson for the president’s office said: “The leaders agreed that Russia’s recent nuclear threats are irresponsible.

“They underscored the continued commitment of the United States and Germany to provide Ukraine with the economic, humanitarian, and security support it needs to defend against Russia’s aggression.”

The call also covered relations with China, following Mr Scholz’s trip to Beijing last week, the White House said.

Kyiv mayor says power could be lost, make plans to evacuate

08:10 , Liam James

The mayor of Kyiv has urged residents to make evacuation plans as the capital could lose power this winter if Russia keeps striking the country’s energy infrastructure.

Residents should consider “spending some time” with friends or family outside the city, Vitali Klitschko said in a television interview, in which he accused Russian president Vladimir Putin of deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure.

“His task is for us to die, to freeze, or to make us flee our land so that he can have it. That’s what the aggressor wants to achieve,” Mr Klitschko added.

Having no electricity, water or heat in the freezing cold cannot be ruled out in the Ukrainian capital, Vitali Klitschko said.

“We are doing everything to avoid this,” he said.

“But let’s be frank, our enemies are doing everything for the city to be without heat, without electricity, without water supply, in general, so we all die. And the future of the country and the future of each of us depends on how prepared we are for different situations.”

Kyiv was having hourly rotating blackouts in parts of the city and the surrounding region on Sunday. Rolling blackouts were also planned in the Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Sumy, Kharkiv and Poltava regions, Ukraine’s state-owned energy operator Ukrenergo said.

Russia to resume strikes on power grid, says Zelensky

07:41 , Liam James

Volodymyr Zelensky warned last night of more potential Russian attacks on his country’s energy infrastructure.

The Ukrainian president, in his regular nightly address, said Russia was “concentrating forces and means for a possible repetition of mass attacks on our infrastructure. First of all, energy.”

Russia has launched a series of air strikes in recent weeks targeting energy infrastructure in Ukraine and restricting power use for large parts of the country.

More than 4.5 million consumers were already without power, Mr Zelensky said, as Ukraine’s energy operator warned that blackouts needed to be longer.

Presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said earlier on Twitter that Ukraine would “stand” despite Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure, adding that this would be done by using air defence, protecting infrastructure and optimising consumption.

The country’s projected power supply was 32 per cent below normal on Monday, Sergei Kovalenko, CEO of Yasno, a major supplier of energy to the capital, said.

Russia’s inferior air combat impacted by loss of experienced crews, says UK

06:41 , Arpan Rai

The British defence ministry has said that Russia’s dwindling air superiority has been further hit by the country’s loss of experienced crew members over the course of the war.

Citing the Ukrainian commander-in-chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, the British MoD said that Russia has lost over twice the number of aircraft in Ukraine than in the Soviet-Afghan war.

This amounts to 278 aircraft lost in Ukraine compared to 119 in Afghanistan, it said.

“Whilst we cannot independently verify these figures, Russia’s continued lack of air superiority is likely exacerbated by poor training, loss of experienced crews, and heightened risks of conducting close air support in dense air defence zones,” the ministry said.

It added: “This is unlikely to change in the next few months. Russia’s aircraft losses likely significantly outstrip their capacity to manufacture new airframes.”

The time required for the training of competent pilots further reduces Russia’s ability to regenerate combat air capability, the ministry said.

Putin ‘alarms Macron with Hiroshima nuclear remark’

05:32 , Arpan Rai

Vladimir Putin told French president Emmanuel Macron that the nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki show “you don’t need to attack major cities in order to end a war,” according to reports.

The Mail on Sunday reported a French government source as saying the Russian president referenced Hiroshima in a call with Mr Macron which left the French president “distinctly alarmed”.

The threat of a Russian atomic strike – particularly one with tactical nuclear weapons which are designed to cause devastation on the battlefield – has been speculated on at the highest level by Ukraine and its western allies.

Reports in the US media said Washington had intelligence showing that senior Russian officials had recently held conversations to discuss when and how Moscow might use a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine.

Read the full story here:

Putin ‘alarms Macron with Hiroshima nuclear remark’

One killed after Russian shelling in Sumy

05:17 , Arpan Rai

At least one person has been killed in a Russian shelling attack on Sumy oblast, officials said. The officials have accused Russia of firing more than 200 projectiles on Sunday, reported The Kyiv Independent.

Smaller regions like Bilopillia, Esman, Vorozhba, Krasnopillia, Khotin, Seredyna-Buda, and Shalyhyne came under attack in which seven houses have been reported damaged due to the shelling.

A local cemetery, two cars, one cafe and power lines have also been damaged in the attack, the official said.

‘Ukraine fatigue’ on talks with Putin causing concern - report

04:53 , Arpan Rai

Officials in Kyiv and Washington have acknowledged that Volodymyr Zelensky’s refusal to engage in talks with Vladimir Putin is now causing concern in parts of Europe, Africa and Latin America as countries suffer an indirect hit from the war.

“Ukraine fatigue is a real thing for some of our partners,” an unnamed US official said, reported the Washington Post.

The Russian war on Ukraine – which has killed thousands of civilians and forced an exodus of millions of Ukrainians – has hurt markets and seen rising costs of food and fuel worldwide.

The Biden administration is said to be privately encouraging Ukraine to signal an openness to negotiate with Russia.

The US State Department has publicly defended Zelensky’s position, saying Moscow is clearly still escalating the war and shows no signs of wanting to seriously consider peace talks.

According to the report, the request by the US officials was not directed at bringing Ukraine to the negotiating table, unnamed sources told the Post.

It was instead a calculated attempt to ensure Kyiv maintains the support of other nations, it added.

Russia planning more attacks on Ukraine’s energy sites, says Zelensky

04:23 , Arpan Rai

Volodymyr Zelensky has said Russia is planning more assaults on Ukraine’s infrastructure, especially when it comes to energy production and distribution.

He added that Kyiv is preparing to respond to the anticipated attacks.

“We understand that the terrorist state is concentrating forces and means for a possible repetition of mass attacks on our infrastructure. First of all, energy. In particular, for this, Russia needs Iranian missiles,” he said in his nightly address.

More than 4.5 million Ukrainian consumers were already without power, Mr Zelensky added.

Fierce Russian attacks continue on Donetsk - Zelensky

03:30 , Arpan Rai

Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Moscow of driving its mobilised soldiers to death while warning that attacks have soared in Russia-occupied Donetsk region.

“Very fierce Russian attacks in the Donetsk region continue. The enemy suffers serious losses there, but despite everything, despite any losses, he continues to drive his mobilised soldiers and mercenaries to their deaths,” Mr Zelensky said in his nightly address.

Biden’s top aide Sullivan ‘held undisclosed talks with Russia'

03:00 , Lamiat Sabin

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has reportedly held undisclosed talks with top Russian officials in hopes of reducing the risk of the war in Ukraine spilling over or escalating into a nuclear conflict.

This is according to a report in the Wall Street Journal on Sunday.

The newspaper cited US and allied officials as saying that Mr Sullivan, president Joe Biden’s top aide on national security, held confidential conversations in recent months with Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov and Russian Security Council secretary Nikolai Patrushev, that were not disclosed publicly.

The White House declined to comment on the report, responding to questions about the story only with a statement attributed to National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson: “People claim a lot of things.”

The Wall Street Journal said the officials did not provide the dates or the number of calls.

Zelenksy: ‘Iran’s supply of weapons to Russia prolongs war’

02:00 , Lamiat Sabin

Volodymyr Zelensky said that Iran, which supplies Russia with weapons, should be held jointly responsible for the consequences of the war in Ukraine.

He suggested that Iran supplying weapons has prolonged the conflict.

In his nightly address, the Ukranian president said – after he discussed increasing pressure on the Iranian regime with the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday – that Iran’s “complicity in Russian terror must be punished.”

He continued: “The whole world will know that the Iranian regime is helping Russia to continue this war.

“And therefore to prolong the effect of those threats to the world that provoked precisely by the Russian war.

“If it were not for the Iranian supply of weapons to the aggressor, we would be closer to peace by now, which means closer to a complete solution to the food crisis, closer to a solution to the cost of living crisis, to stabilization in the energy market, to reliable security against radiation blackmail, which Russia does not abandon.

“Therefore, absolutely everyone who helps Russia to continue this war must be responsible for the consequences of this war along with it.”

Russian military archpriest Mikhail Vasiliev dies in Ukraine

01:00 , Lamiat Sabin

A Russian priest, who said women would find it easier to send their sons to war if they had more children, has died in Ukraine.

Mikhail Vasiliev died on Sunday (6 November) “in the area of ​​the special military operation in Ukraine while carrying out pastoral duties,” the official website of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) says.

He reportedly died of shrapnel wounds caused by a HIMARS explosion just metres away from him.

The ROC said Mr Vasiliev had travelled for participation in “peacekeeping operations” in Kosovo, Bosnia, Abkhazia, Kyrgyzstan, the North Caucasus and Syria.

He was the military archpriest of the church of St. Barbara the Great Martyr and the Venerable Ilya Muromets in Vlasikha, in the Moscow region.

In October, Mr Vasiliev told the Spas (Saviour) TV channel that if women in Russia had more children, it would be easier for them to send their sons to war.

The presenter had told him about a woman who hid her son in the Canary Islands to avoid conscription.

He said: “The Lord has allowed each lady to give birth to many children. And if a lady, fulfilling this commandment to ‘be fruitful and multiply’, refused to use artificial pregnancy termination methods, in the widest sense, then obviously she would have more than one child.

“And therefore, she would not find it so painful and terrifying to part with her child, even for a while. The devil is not so terrible as he is painted. Whom God helps, nobody can harm.”

Ukraine 'to see drop in power by almost a third’

00:01 , Lamiat Sabin

Ukraine faces a 32 per cent deficit in projected power supply, according to an energy CEO.

Sergei Kovalenko, CEO of YASNO, a major supplier of energy to Kyiv, said on his Facebook page: “This is a lot, and it’s force majeure.”

It comes as Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko warned residents to prepare for the worst this winter – and possible evacuation from the capital – if Russia keeps launching attacks on Ukraine’s energy network.

Rolling blackouts have taken place in Kyiv, Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Sumy, Kharkiv and Poltava regions, Ukraine’s state-owned energy operator Ukrenergo said.

Around 4.5 million people are without electricity, Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly video address to the nation on Sunday.

'906 people allowed to flee occupied areas of Ukraine in a week’

Sunday 6 November 2022 22:43 , Lamiat Sabin

Russian troops have allowed only 906 people in one week to leave the temporarily occupied territories of Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Luhansk and Donetsk.

This is according to the mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov, who made the claim on Telegram today.

He wrote: “Every day, residents of the captured territories of Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts try to escape the occupation to the territory controlled by Ukraine.

“In one week, the Rashists (Russian fascists) released a total of 906 people from the occupied parts of four regions to Zaporizhzhia. Thousands more are waiting for their turn.”

ICYMI: China says nukes must not be used against Ukraine

Sunday 6 November 2022 22:00 , Lamiat Sabin

In case you missed it...

Chinese president Xi Jinping has warned against using nuclear weapons over Ukraine, in what is considered to be China’s first clear message to Russia (Maroosha Muzaffar writes).

“The international community should … jointly oppose the use or threats to use nuclear weapons, advocate that nuclear weapons must not be used and nuclear wars must not be fought, in order to prevent a nuclear crisis in Eurasia,” Mr Xi said during a meeting with German chancellor Olaf Scholz in Beijing.

Mr Xi told Mr Scholz that he opposed the use of nuclear force in Europe without naming Russia, in his most direct remarks so far on the escalating crisis.

During their first in-person meeting, Mr Xi called on the international community to “reject the threat of nuclear weapons” and advocate against nuclear war to prevent a “crisis on the Eurasian continent”.

Nuclear weapons must not be used over Ukraine, Chinese president says

Kyiv warned to expect worst this winter amid power cuts

Sunday 6 November 2022 21:30 , Lamiat Sabin

The mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, is warning residents to prepare for the worst this winter if Russia keeps launching attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

“We are doing everything to avoid this,” he said, “but let’s be frank, our enemies are doing everything for the city to be without heat, without electricity, without water supply, in general, so we all die.

“And the future of the country and the future of each of us depends on how prepared we are for different situations.”

Around 4.5 million people are without electricity, Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly video address to the nation on Sunday.

The Ukrainian president said: “We must get through this winter and be even stronger in the spring than now.”

Russia has focused on striking Ukraine’s energy infrastructure over the last month, causing power cuts.

Kyiv was having hourly rotating blackouts in parts of the city and the surrounding region on Sunday.

Rolling blackouts were also planned in the Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Sumy, Kharkiv and Poltava regions, Ukraine’s state-owned energy operator Ukrenergo said.

Russian troops ‘suffering serious losses’ in Donetsk - Zelensky

Sunday 6 November 2022 21:00 , Lamiat Sabin

Russia is suffering heavy losses in continuing its “fierce” attacks in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Vladimir Putin’s troops are preparing new assaults on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, Mr Zelensky also said during his nightly address to Ukrainians.

“Very fierce Russian attacks on Donetsk region are continuing. The enemy is suffering serious losses there,” he said.

Mr Zelensky said he believed Russia was “concentrating forces and means for a possible repetition of mass attacks on our infrastructure, energy in the first instance”.

Kyiv blackouts ‘controlled’ after ‘attacks on energy facilities'

Sunday 6 November 2022 20:30 , Lamiat Sabin

Kyiv is suffering difficulties with its electricity supply but blackouts have been controlled, according to a senior official.

Kyrylо Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, has written on Telegram: “The situation as regards electricity supply to consumers in the capital is difficult today.

“Apparently, every resident of Kyiv is feeling it now. But most importantly, temporary blackouts help energy companies stabilise the power grid. Preventing a mass blackout.

“The important thing is that the temporary blackouts now are controlled.

“Our rage at such moments and helplessness is what the enemy wanted to achieve by attacking energy facilities. That’s why we work, don’t panic. Everything will be fine!”

It comes after Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko had called on Kyiv residents to stock up on essentials and to consider temporarily moving out of the capital. But today he assured them that there was no reason to panic.

Watch: Russian soldier catches and throws Ukraine bomb

Sunday 6 November 2022 20:00 , Lamiat Sabin

Footage shows a Russian soldier managing to throw away a bomb dropped by a Ukrainian drone before it exploded.

Putin makes ‘very heavy hint’ of nuclear detonation - report

Sunday 6 November 2022 19:24 , Lamiat Sabin

Vladimir Putin reportedly told his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron that the US’s nuclear attacks on Japan show “you don’t need to attack major cities in order to end a war”.

The threat of a Russian atomic strike – particularly one with tactical nuclear weapons which are designed to cause devastation on the battlefield – has been speculated on at the highest level by Ukraine and its Western allies.

The Russian president referenced Hiroshima in a call with Mr Macron which left the French president “distinctly alarmed,” The Mail on Sunday reported citing a French government source.

“It sounded like a very heavy hint that Putin might detonate a tactical nuclear weapon in the east of Ukraine, while leaving Kyiv intact,” the source said. “That appeared to be the thrust of his remarks.”

You can read the full story by Liam James here

Putin ‘alarms Macron with Hiroshima nuclear remark’

Ukraine will ‘protect against Russia’s energy genocide’

Sunday 6 November 2022 18:30 , Lamiat Sabin

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, said Ukraine will resist attempts by Russia to commit “energy genocide”.

He tweeted: “Let’s be honest: RF tries to commit ‘energy genocide’, but Kyiv and Ukraine will stand.

“Simple protection plan: air defense, infrastructure facilities protection, consumption optimization. State effectively copes with these challenges. We work on solution together with partners”.

Kherson without water or power after ‘sabotage,’ Russia says

Sunday 6 November 2022 18:00 , Lamiat Sabin

The Russian-installed administration in the Kherson region of southern Ukraine said that a number of settlements, including Kherson city, had been left without water and electricity after an act of “sabotage”.

In a statement on Telegram, the Kremlin-backed administration said that supplies were “temporarily absent” after what it said was a “terrorist attack” by Ukraine that damaged three power lines in the region.

Reuters news agency said it was unable to immediately verify battlefield accounts from either side.

Russian state-owned news agency TASS quoted Kherson’s Moscow-appointed governor Vladimir Saldo as saying that the city planned to have its power supply restored by the end of the day.

Kherson is the only regional capital in Ukraine that Russians have captured since the invasion started on 24 February.

Russian officials have in recent weeks repeatedly warned civilians to leave Kherson, amid what they say are preparations for a Ukrainian offensive against the city.

Child, 9, wounded in Russian attack in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast

Sunday 6 November 2022 17:20 , Liam James

A nine-year-old child was injured in Russia’s shelling of Nikopol district, in the Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukrainian reports said.

Valentyn Reznichenko, head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Military Administration, wrote on Telegram yesterday: “In the evening, the Russians once again shelled Nikopol district.

“They fired heavy artillery at the Myrove community. They injured a 9-year-old girl.”

Ukrinform reported that “the enemy shell hit a residential building”.

In the dugout: Ukrainian soldiers go underground in Kherson

Sunday 6 November 2022 16:50 , Liam James

Pictures have come through of Ukrainian soldiers in underground bunkers dug near Kherson as the battle for the city appears close to a head.

Zelensky and EU chief discuss Iran sanctions and aid

Sunday 6 November 2022 15:52 , Liam James

Ukraine‘s president Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen today to discuss macro-financial aid for Ukraine and further sanctions on Iran, Mr Zelensky said.

“Noted the importance of continuing the grain initiative for world food security. Discussed increasing sanctions and opposing actions of Iran, which supports aggression,” Mr Zelensky wrote on Twitter.

Iran yesterday admitted supplying Russia with drones which it has used to fire on Ukraine but Mr Zelensky said he still thought leaders in Tehran were downplaying their cooperation with the Kremlin.

Macro-financial aid (MFA) is a form of EU aid for countries struggling economically. Ukraine was given hundreds of millions in MFA to help it recover from the pandemic, for instance.

Kherson city loses water and power, Russia says

Sunday 6 November 2022 15:00 , Liam James

The Russian-installed administration in Ukraine’s Kherson region said that a number of settlements, including Kherson city had lost water and power supplies after what it said was an act of “sabotage”.

In a statement on Telegram, the Russian-installed Kherson administration said that electricity and water supplies were “temporarily absent” after what it said was a “terrorist attack” damaged three power lines in the region.

It said that the attack had been organised by Ukraine, though it provided no evidence. Reuters was unable to immediately verify battlefield accounts from either side.

Russian state-owned news agency Tass cited emergency services in the region as saying that ten settlements, including Kherson city, which had a pre-war population of 280,000, had been left without electricity.

Biden administration privately asks Ukraine to signal Russia it’s open to talks, report says

Sunday 6 November 2022 14:30 , Liam James

The US is privately encouraging Ukraine’s leaders to signal an openness to negotiate with Russia and drop their public refusal to engage in peace talks unless president Vladimir Putin is removed from power, the Washington Post reported.

The Post quoted unnamed people familiar with the discussions as saying that the request by the US officials was not aimed at pushing Ukraine to the negotiating table, but a calculated attempt to ensure Kyiv maintains the support of other nations facing constituencies wary of fuelling a war for many years to come.

It also reported that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s ban on talks with him had generated concern in parts of Europe, Africa and Latin America, where the war’s effects on costs of food and fuel are felt most sharply.

The US State Department declined to comment when asked about the report.

Migrant border crossings rise at Poland-Belarus border

Sunday 6 November 2022 14:00 , AP

The Polish border service on Friday reported an increase in the number of Middle Eastern migrants trying to illegally cross into the European Union at the border of Belarus and Poland.

In the past 24 hours, border agents detained 117 migrants from Syria, Yemen, Egypt, Iraq, Cameroon, Morocco and Sri Lanka, with 65 others detained the previous day. Belarusian border officials declined to comment.

Last week, the Polish border service released a 26 October video that appears to show Belarusian border guards near the border with Poland, leading a group of migrants and trying to hide their faces from the camera.

It said Belarusian border guards help migrants cross the border to Poland, with most migrants now traveling first to Russia and then taking organized transport to Belarus.

Global statesmen: Only diplomacy can end Ukraine war

Sunday 6 November 2022 13:30 , AP

Only dialogue and diplomacy can end the devastating war in Ukraine, with total victory on the battlefield impossible for either warring party, members of a group of prominent former world leaders founded by Nelson Mandela said on Friday.

The group, known as The Elders, delivered that message to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, telling him on a visit to Kyiv this summer that he must start considering a way out of the conflict, said group chairwoman Mary Robinson, former Irish president.

“We need to encourage more thinking about how it will end in order to get the idea that this needs to end, as opposed to increasing the military arsenal on both sides and the devastation to the population in Ukraine,” said Robinson, who also served as UN high commissioner for human rights.

Blackouts not enough, says Ukraine energy operator

Sunday 6 November 2022 12:55 , Liam James

The operator of Ukraine‘s grid, targeted by Russian air strikes in recent weeks, said it would step up rolling blackouts in Kyiv and seven Ukrainian regions in response to what it said was increased electricity consumption.

Large parts of Ukraine have been having their power switched off for several hours a day since Russia launched an air campaign against energy infrastructure across the country.

Ukrenergo said the scheduled blackouts were not enough and said power may now be switched off for longer periods on short notice.

Russian shelling of Donetsk intensifying, says Ukraine

Sunday 6 November 2022 12:15 , Liam James

Russian forces are stepping up their strikes in a fiercely contested region of eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian authorities said.

The action is worsening the already tough conditions for residents and the defending army following Moscow’s illegal annexation and declaration of martial law in Donetsk province, they said.

The attacks have almost completely destroyed the power plants that serve the city of Bakhmut and the nearby town of Soledar, said Pavlo Kyrylenko, the region’s Ukrainian governor.

Shelling killed one civilian and wounded three, Mr Kyrylenko said late on Saturday.

“The destruction is daily, if not hourly,” Mr Kyrylenko said in a state television interview.

Russia is pushing to take hold of the Donetsk region, with recent fighting focusing on the city of Bakhmut.

Ukraine dam ‘damaged in bombing’, Russia claims

Sunday 6 November 2022 11:45 , Liam James

Ukraine‘s Russian-held Nova Kakhovka dam was damaged in shelling by Ukrainian forces, Russian news agencies reported today, citing emergency services.

Russian state-owned news agency Tass quoted a representative of the emergency services as saying that a rocket launched by a US-made Himars missile system had hit the dam’s lock and caused damaged. The official quoted said it was an “attempt to create the conditions for a humanitarian catastrophe” by breaching the dam.

The reports provided no evidence to support the allegation, which could not be immediately verified by The Independent.

The vast Nova Kakhovka dam, which blocks the Dnipro river upstream of Kherson where Ukrainian forces have been making advances, has taken on vital strategic significance in recent weeks.

Both Russia and Ukraine have since October repeatedly accused each of planning to breach the dam using explosives, in a move that would flood much of the area downstream in what would likely cause major destruction around Kherson city.

Georgia’s economy booming due to Russian influx

Sunday 6 November 2022 10:30 , Liam James

Georgia is on course to become one of the world’s fastest-growing economies this year following a dramatic influx of more than 100,000 Russians since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Men fled to Georgia in droves after Vladimir Putin ordered a partial mobilisation of military reserves.

A line of private vehicles leaving Russia in the days after the order stretched more than 10 miles.

Over 700 dolphins may have died in the Black Sea since Russia’s Ukraine invasion, report says

Sunday 6 November 2022 10:00 , Liam James

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has put the entire Black Sea basin under a “huge threat,” according to a report that said more than 700 dolphins and porpoises have died in the region since the conflict began (Vishwam Sankaran writes).

The report, published recently by Accobams – or the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea, and Contiguous Atlantic Area – warns that military activity in the area affects marine life forms in the region, including cetaceans such as dolphins and porpoises.

It said over 700 deaths, primarily in dolphins and harbour porpoises, have been recorded on the coasts of countries bordering the Black Sea, including Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey and Ukraine.

An earlier report by Ivan Rusev, research director at Ukraine’s Tuzla Estuaries National Nature Park, had also warned that the marine mammals were washing up on the coastline of the Black Sea.

Experts believe some of these increased dolphin strandings are a direct consequence of the loud noises caused by warfare.

Over 700 dolphins may have died in the Black Sea since Putin’s Ukraine invasion

White House ‘no comment’ on Russia talk plans

Sunday 6 November 2022 09:30 , Liam James

The White House National Security Council had no immediate comment on the accuracy of a report that Washington officials were pushing for negotiations with Russia.

The Washington Post reported that President Joe Biden’s administration was privately encouraging Ukraine’s leaders to signal an openness to negotiate with Russia and drop their public refusal to engage in peace talks unless President Vladimir Putin is removed from power.

Asked about the report a State Department spokesperson said: “The Kremlin continues to escalate this war. The Kremlin has demonstrated its unwillingness to seriously engage in negotiations since even before it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.”

Nuclear weapons must not be used over Ukraine, China’s president says in clear response to Russia

Sunday 6 November 2022 09:00 , Liam James

Chinese president Xi Jinping on Friday warned against using nuclear weapons over Ukraine, in a first clear message to Russia (Maroosha Muzaffar writes).

“The international community should … jointly oppose the use or threats to use nuclear weapons, advocate that nuclear weapons must not be used and nuclear wars must not be fought, in order to prevent a nuclear crisis in Eurasia,” Mr Xi said during a meeting with German chancellor Olaf Scholz in Beijing.

President Xi told Chancellor Scholz that he opposed the use of nuclear force in Europe without naming Russia, in his most direct remarks so far on the escalating crisis.

During their first in-person meeting, Mr Xi called on the international community to “reject the threat of nuclear weapons” and advocate against nuclear war to prevent a “crisis on the Eurasian continent”.

Nuclear weapons must not be used over Ukraine, Chinese president says

Putin in ‘Hiroshima nuclear threat'

Sunday 6 November 2022 08:30 , Liam James

Vladimir Putin reportedly said the nuclear attacks on Hiroshima show “you don’t need to attack major cities in order to end a war” in a conversation with French president Emmanuel Macron.

Ukraine’s Western allies have accused Russia of threatening to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Moscow denies doing so and has repeatedly accused Kyiv of planning to use a radioactive “dirty bomb” without offering evidence.

The Mail on Sunday reported a French government source as saying Mr Macron’s call with the Russian president left him “distinctly alarmed. It sounded like a very heavy hint that Putin might detonate a tactical nuclear weapon in the east of Ukraine, while leaving Kyiv intact. That appeared to be the thrust of his remarks.”

A source was quoted: “The two presidents have undoubtedly discussed the risk of nuclear weapons use. Putin wants to get the message across that all options are on the table, in line with Russian doctrine relating to nuclear weapons.”

Power blackouts across Ukraine amid Russian shelling

Sunday 6 November 2022 08:00 , Liam James

Ukraine’s state electricity operator on Saturday announced regular scheduled blackouts in Kyiv and seven other regions of the country in the aftermath of Russia’s devastating strikes on energy infrastructure.

The move comes as Russian forces continue to pound Ukrainian cities and villages with missiles and drones, inflicting damage on power plants, water supplies and other civilian targets, in a grinding war that is nearing its nine-month mark.

Russia has denied that the drones it has used in Ukraine came from Iran, but the Islamic Republic’s foreign minister on Saturday for the first time acknowledged supplying Moscow with “a limited number” of drones before the invasion. Hossein Amirabdollahian claimed, however, that Tehran didn’t know if its drones were used against Ukraine and stated Iran’s commitment to stopping the conflict.

Power blackouts across Ukraine amid Russian shelling