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Ukrainian president says his country’s battlefield position is the strongest it has been in some time
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Volodymyr Zelensky says Ukraine‘s battlefield position is the strongest it has been in some time, after his forces recaptured territory through a series of offensives.
Zelensky revealed details of the previously secret Operation Veles, where Ukrainian troops used underground gas pipelines to outflank Russian positions near Kupiansk in the northeast.
He also referred to an air assault operation in eastern Ukraine and Operation Vivaldi further north, aimed at preventing Russian advances in key areas.
His remarks came as Finland‘s president and the Norwegian prime minister held a rare direct phone call with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Finnish president Alexander Stubb and Norway‘s Jonas Gahr Stoere spoke to Putin for around 90 minutes on Tuesday before holding a separate conversation with Zelensky.
While Kyiv says it was involved in planning for the phone call, it has drawn criticism from other European leaders, many of whom are opposed to direct engagement with the Russian leader.
The Kremlin showed no indication of any softening in its position during the call, insisting that any lasting peace must “unconditionally” take Russia‘s interests into account.
Russia has launched over 100 ballistic missiles at Kyiv and the surrounding region in two weeks, president Volodymyr Zelensky said.
“In two weeks, more than 100 ballistic missiles have been launched against Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast. We are doing everything possible to protect our energy sector, to protect our infrastructure and our logistics. The task is extremely difficult,” Zelensky said.
Kyiv, a city of three million people, has faced relentless attacks by Russian ballistic missiles in recent months.
“Unfortunately, there are significant restrictions on supplies, with air defence packages being delayed. I want to thank all our partners who provide their support on time,” he added.
It comes a day after Russian ballistic missiles targeted Kyiv in a deadly attack on a university campus, a major bridge, an administrative building, and medical facilities. The attack killed one person and injured 15.
There have been no breaches of the US-brokered local ceasefire around the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky in southern Ukraine in its first 30 hours, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on Wednesday.
A ceasefire has been agreed until 1 November to allow residents of the frontline town, who had been unable to leave as conditions had become near-uninhabitable, to evacuate.
European leaders have responded with fury after the leaders of Norway and Finland broke convention to speak directly to Vladimir Putin on Tuesday.
Finnish president Alexander Stubb and Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Stoere held “frank and substantive” talks with the Russian president in a bid to influence the Kremlin’s position as the conflict in Ukraine rages on.
But the move attracted criticism from their Nordic counterparts, including Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen as they urged Europe’s leaders to “stick together” on Ukraine.
Fires have been reported in the Russian city of Lipetsk after it was rocked by explosions on Tuesday night, according to a report.
Ukrainian monitoring channel Exilenova Plus reported that a fire broke out in the area of the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant after air defence systems were engaged.
Ukraine has sanctioned the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant, while Canada and Australia have also sanctioned Russian oligarch Vladimir Lisin, who owns the site.
According to previous investigative reports, the plant supplies Russian companies that produce air defence systems, drones, missiles, and other weapons.
Donald Trump has said he hopes to meet Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin very soon.
Speaking to reporters, he said they have made a “lot of progress on Ukraine” peace proposals and “there’ll be a meeting set up very soon”.
Zelensky earlier suggested that technical talks between the three countries’ negotiating teams must be held before any trilateral meeting at a leadership level.
Falling debris from Ukraine’s drones has damaged industrial infrastructure in Novomoskovsk in Russia’s Tula region along with apartment buildings and private homes, regional governor Dmitry Milyayev said on Telegram.
Novomoskovsk, some 200km (125 miles) south of Moscow, is a major chemical production hub.
Officials from laboratories and from the public health safety watchdog were dispatched to the city, Milyayev said, without providing further details.
A Russian drone strike has injured five people in Ukraine’s second biggest city of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s emergency service said on Telegram, adding that a major fire sparked by the attack was extinguished.
Those injured included a 4-year-old child.
France has temporarily relocated a maritime patrol aircraft to Romania to help identify navigation dangers and bolster the protection of critical energy infrastructure in the Black Sea, Romania’s defence ministry said on Tuesday.
At least eight cargo ships have been hit near the coast of Nato members Romania and Bulgaria in the past three weeks, with some 34 sailors reported dead or missing.
Romanian F-16 fighter jet pilots shot down two of the latest generation of Russian drones over Romanian territorial waters earlier this month, and Nato said it will send more maritime patrol aircraft, radar systems and drones to the Black Sea.
France relocated its Atlantique 2 maritime patrol aircraft to the Mihail Kogalniceanu air base in Romania on 18 October. It will conduct surveillance missions over the western part of the Black Sea until 6 November.
The purpose is “to identify dangers to navigation and increase the ability to protect critical infrastructure in Romania’s exclusive economic zone”, the ministry said
Romania’s defence ministry said the response from Nato and the French Navy added to measures enforced by Romanian naval forces including increased maritime patrol missions with ships, helicopters and drones.
Romanian naval forces are also continuously updating navigators about dangers and recommended routes, the ministry said.
The leaders of Finland and Norway have held rare direct calls with Russian president Vladimir Putin, urging him to end the war in Ukraine as diplomatic efforts gain momentum ahead of fresh peace negotiations.
Finnish president Alexander Stubb and Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Stoere spoke to Putin for around 90 minutes on Tuesday before holding a separate conversation with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.
The call marked a significant departure from the approach taken by most Western European leaders, who have largely avoided direct contact with the Kremlin since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“The discussion (with Putin) was frank and substantive. We are neighbouring countries to Russia. The outcome of this war will have a direct impact on our and the broader European security. Ending the war requires direct discussions,” Stubb said.
Stoere said he and Stubb had “stressed the importance of de-escalation.” Both voiced strong support for Ukraine.
The two leaders said the initiative was linked to planned peace talks between Russian, Ukrainian and US officials in Abu Dhabi next month.
However, the Kremlin showed no indication of softening its demands, insisting that any lasting peace must fully take Russia’s interests into account.
The diplomatic outreach also exposed divisions among European leaders, with Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen warning against countries acting alone and Sweden’s Ulf Kristersson expressing little hope of a breakthrough.
Ukraine welcomed the initiative, saying the talks had been coordinated with Kyiv.
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