‘Sabotage’ leaves Kherson city and some settlements without power and water

The Russian-installed administration in Ukraine’s Kherson region said on Sunday 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.

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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, the only regional capital that Russia has captured since ordering tens of thousands of troops to invade Ukraine on February 24th.

Elsewhere, the Washington Post reported the United States is privately encouraging Ukraine to signal an openness to negotiate with Russia.

The newspaper cited unnamed sources as saying the request by 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.

However, the US State Department said Moscow was escalating the war and did not seriously wish to engage in peace talks.

US and Ukrainian officials acknowledged that Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s ban on talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin 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 Post said.

“Ukraine fatigue is a real thing for some of our partners,” it quoted an unnamed US official as saying.

Mr Zelenskiy signed a decree on October 4th formally declaring the prospect of any Ukrainian talks with Mr Putin “impossible” but leaving the door open to talks with Russia.

A State Department spokesperson responded: “We’ve said it before and will say it again: Actions speak louder than words. If Russia is ready for negotiation, it should stop its bombs and missiles and withdraw its forces from Ukraine.

“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.”

The spokesperson also noted remarks by Mr Zelenskiy on Friday, in which he said: “We are ready for peace, for a fair and just peace, the formula of which we have voiced many times.”

In his nightly address to the Ukrainian people on Friday, Mr Zelenskiy added: “The world knows our position. This is respect for the UN Charter, respect for our territorial integrity, respect for our people.”

US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said during a visit to Kyiv on Friday that Washington’s support for Ukraine would remain “unwavering and unflinching” after Tuesday’s midterm congressional elections.

Russia appointed a new acting commander of the Central Military District on November 3rd, the UK’s Ministry of Defence has said.

Maj Gen Alexander Linkov replaces Col Gen Alexander Lapin who was purportedly removed from office at the end of October 2022.

The UK ministry said: “If confirmed, this follows a series of dismissals of senior Russian military commanders since the onset of the invasion in February 2022. The Commanders of the Eastern, Southern, and Western Military Districts were replaced earlier this year. Lapin has been widely criticised for poor performance on the battlefield in Ukraine by both Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin.” – Agencies