OVERALL ROUNDUP 2: Massive attacks on Kherson in southern Ukraine – power in Kyiv

(new: New casualty figures added to 1st paragraph. Kyiv reports seven civilians killed, Russian-backed separatists three civilians killed. 2nd paragraph adjusted.)

Kyiv/MOSKAU (dpa-AFX) – According to the Ukrainian authorities, Russia has massively shelled the city of Cherson, which was recently recaptured by Ukrainian troops, and the surrounding area. Residential buildings were also hit by grenades in more than 50 attacks, military governor Yaroslav Yanushevich reported on Sunday in the Telegram news channel. Accordingly, there was at least one dead and two injured. According to the Presidential Office in Kyiv, a total of seven civilians were killed by Russian attacks within 24 hours in various Ukrainian regions. Russian-backed separatists in Donetsk reported three civilians killed on Sunday. The information could not initially be verified independently.

Under pressure from Ukrainian attacks, Russian troops evacuated Cherson after more than eight months of occupation in mid-November. The situation in the city, which once had around 300,000 inhabitants, is also critical because of the destruction of the power lines and infrastructure. Meanwhile, the authorities in the capital Kyiv are reporting good news: the military administration announced that the supply of electricity, water, heat and the mobile network in the three-million metropolis had been almost completely restored.

The capital was without power for four days due to Russian attacks on energy infrastructure. President Volodymyr Zelenskyj had criticized Kiev’s mayor Vitali Klitschko in an unusually open way. The former world boxing champion then warned of political disputes. The “Bild am Sonntag” said Klitschko: “The key to Ukraine’s success after Russia’s attack on our country is cohesion, both nationally and internationally.”

Russia with heavy losses in Donetsk region

According to British intelligence services, Russia has suffered many casualties in the hard-fought Donetsk region. There was intense fighting around the towns of Pavliwka and Wuhledar in the south of the region, with heavy casualties for Russian marines, a British Defense Ministry report said. London also sees the fighting as a sign that Russia sees the region as a possible starting point for a northbound offensive.

Estonia: Russia will learn militarily

Despite losses, the Estonian government does not see neighboring Russia as significantly weakened. “We have to be honest and clear: the Russian Navy and the Russian Air Force are more or less as big as they were before the war,” Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur told the German Press Agency. Although the land forces had clearly lost strength, “sooner rather than later” they would have reached or even exceeded the size before the start of the war on February 24th.

He also expects that Russia will learn from the course of the war. “This means that in the coming years they will invest more in the skills that they believe have been successful in Ukraine. We have no reason to believe that the threat from Russia is any less, or the threat to NATO is reduced.” Pevkur also warned of “war fatigue” in the West and called for more to be done for Ukraine. They especially need anti-aircraft systems, heavy artillery and ammunition.

Russia is in no hurry, Pevkur said. He assumes that Russia “is mentally ready for a long war.” However, in view of the heavy losses in the land forces – possibly now 50 percent – the leadership in Moscow wants “a kind of break” to gather strength again. Only in the spring of next year will it be possible to see better how long the war could last. Pevkur: “Will it be years? Hard to say.”

Kremlin accuses European Parliament of hating Russia

In response to the condemnation of Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, the Kremlin accused the European Parliament of “unbridled Russophobia and hatred of Russia”. There is a “huge lack of professionalism” in the EU Parliament, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Russian state television, according to the Itar-Tass agency. The European Parliament passed a resolution on Wednesday calling Russia a “state using terrorist means”.

Weber: More solidarity from the EU for Ukrainian refugees

The leader of the European People’s Party, Manfred Weber, called for more European solidarity in housing Ukrainian refugees. “If more Ukrainians are forced to flee by Russian bombardments and attacks over the winter, then Western Europe will have to take more responsibility,” Weber told “Bild am Sonntag”./dot/DP/men

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