Loud explosions were heard across the Ukrainian capital in the early hours of the morning as residents prepared to go to work. Many received text messages from emergency services about the threat of a missile attack and air raid sirens wailed for three hours straight. The attacks came shortly before Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala and several top members of his government, including the foreign, defense and interior ministers, arrived in Kyiv in the latest show of support for Ukraine by European leaders. Large areas of the capital were without power and about 80 percent were left without water as a result, Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko said. In a separate post on Telegram, Klitschko said water supply to some parts of Kyiv would be restored in “three to four hours” and electricity had already been restored in one of the city’s districts. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said there was no justification for Russia’s firing of missiles intended to cause so much suffering to civilians. “Don’t justify these attacks by calling them ‘response’. Russia is doing this because it still has the missiles and the will to kill Ukrainians,” he tweeted. Day 68:52 How a multibillion-dollar campaign to arm Ukraine can funnel weapons into the wrong hands Since Russia invaded Ukraine, the United States has transferred more than $17 billion in military aid to Ukraine, one of the largest and fastest arms transfers ever. That helped turn the tide of the war in Ukraine’s favor, but arms control experts like Elias Yousif say it could also end up fueling the illegal arms trade and funneling weapons around the world.
“Really scared,” says the resident
There was a heavy military presence north of Kiev. Smoke was rising from the left bank of the Dnipro River, either from a missile attack or from where it was shot down by Ukrainian forces. A local resident said he heard four loud explosions that shook the area. “At first I thought I heard a jet going by, but then I realized it was a missile,” said Serhii, who declined to give his full name. “The explosions were so powerful! I consider myself experienced and prepared for attacks like this. But they were very close and powerful. I was scared, really scared.” Russian tanks damaged in recent battles are seen near the recently recaptured village of Kamianka in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region on Sunday. (Efrem Lukatsky/The Associated Press) In the remote area, authorities warned people to be prepared for a major power outage due to the emergency cuts. Kyiv Region Governor Oleksii Kuleba also said one person was injured and several houses were damaged as a result of the morning attack. In the eastern city of Kharkiv, two strikes hit critical infrastructure, authorities said, and the metro stopped operating. Officials also warned of possible power outages in the city of Zaporizhzhia as a result of the strikes there. The Lviv region in western Ukraine was also targeted, but the missiles were shot down, Lviv Governor Maxim Kozytsky said. Major infrastructure was also hit in the Cherkasy region southeast of Kyiv, and explosions were reported in other parts of Ukraine. In the Kirovohrad region of central Ukraine, the energy facility was hit, according to local authorities. In Vinnytsia, a downed rocket hit civilian buildings, causing damage but no casualties, according to regional governor Serhii Borzov. Front Burner28:18 Lessons from the Cuban Missile Crisis Sixty years ago, the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the world as close as it has ever been to full-scale nuclear war. The story often told about those 13 days is one that the Americans might have triumphed over the USSR — but that didn’t actually happen. The true story of this crisis is actually about a relationship between two men who decided to secretly work together to prevent a global catastrophe. While we’re certainly not in the midst of another Cuban missile crisis today, experts believe this is the closest the US and Russia have come to a nuclear conflict since then. Today, then, we will tell the story of those 13 days in 1962 and see if they can teach lessons for today. Our guest is Andrew Cohen, professor at Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication and author of several books, including Two Days in June: John F. Kennedy and the 48 Hours That Made History. Some sections of Ukrainian railways were also cut off, Ukrainian Railways said. The attack comes two days after Russia accused Ukraine of a drone strike against the Russian Black Sea fleet off the coast of the annexed Crimean peninsula. Ukraine denied the attack, saying Russia mishandled its own weapons, but Moscow still announced it was suspending its participation in a UN-brokered deal to allow safe passage of ships carrying grain from Ukraine.
The shot down missile lands in Moldova
Commenting on Monday’s attacks, the head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said Russian forces “continue to fight with civilian areas.” “We will persevere and generations of Russians will pay a high price for their shame,” Yermak said. WATCHES | US Secretary of State Blinken in conversation with CBC’s Power & Politics:
Exclusive: US Secretary of State on Russia and Iran Threats
“What I’m hearing – my consultations with Congress, Republicans and Democrats – is that support is strong,” said US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, expressing doubts that a Republican-controlled Congress would jeopardize the US support for Ukraine. It is the second time this month that Russia has launched a massive barrage of attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure. On October 10, a similar attack rocked the war-torn country after an explosion on the Kerch bridge linking annexed Crimea with mainland Russia — an incident Moscow blamed on Kyiv. This time, however, Ukrainian forces say they managed to intercept most of the missiles fired by Russia. Ukraine’s Air Force said more than 50 X-101/X-555 cruise missiles were fired by strategic air force aircraft carrying missiles from the northern Caspian Sea and the area around the Russian city of Volgodonsk in the Rostov region. A total of 44 of them were shot down. The Russian military has yet to comment on the attack. Meanwhile, a Russian missile landed in the Moldovan village of Naslavcea on Monday morning after being shot down by air defenses in Ukraine. Naslavcea is located on the border with Ukraine in the north of Moldova. No one was injured, but the windows of several houses were shattered when the fuselage landed on the northern edge of the village, Moldova’s interior ministry said in a statement.
