EU brings good news to Ukraine

At a press conference on September 19, Ms. von der Leyen announced an aid package of 160 million euros ($178 million) to help Ukraine prepare for winter. Of this, 60 million euros will be for humanitarian aid, including providing shelter and heating systems, and 100 million euros will be used to restore energy infrastructure. The EU also aims to restore 2.5 gigawatts of electricity capacity to Ukraine and increase exports to provide Ukraine with 2 gigawatts of electricity. A power plant being dismantled in Lithuania will also be rebuilt in Ukraine.

Russia advances in Donetsk despite Ukraine's operation in Kursk

According to Reuters, Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure have paralyzed 9 gigawatts of Ukraine’s power generation capacity, including 80 percent of the country’s thermal power generation and a third of its hydroelectric power generation. Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said 10 regions were forced to cut off power at times due to Moscow’s airstrikes and technical problems.

Ms. Ursula von der Leyen (front, 2nd from left) arrived in Kyiv on September 20.

PHOTO: Ms. Leyen's X-account

Russia and Ukraine have recently launched attacks on each other’s energy facilities. On September 19, Ukrainian officials reported that the Russian military had carried out airstrikes on energy facilities in Sumy City (Sumy Oblast, northeastern Ukraine). Kyiv said Moscow had launched several attacks on the energy system in Sumy Oblast this week, causing power outages in some areas and forcing the government to use backup power systems.

Sumy is a region adjacent to Russia's Kursk region, where the Ukrainian army has been conducting an incursion since early August and has been engaged in intense fighting with Russia. TASS news agency reported yesterday that units of the Akhmat special forces of Russia's Chechnya destroyed a Ukrainian armored personnel carrier and an ammunition depot in Kursk. Earlier, the Akhmat commander announced on September 19 that he had regained control of two villages in Kursk. Ukraine has not commented on this information.

The Ukrainian Air Force said yesterday that its air defense systems were active in several areas and intercepted 61 of 70 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and shot down one of four Russian missiles overnight. There has been no response from Moscow to the statement.

US wants to discuss strategy with Ukraine

Kyiv has recently lobbied its Western allies and partners to lift restrictions on the use of long-range weapons against Russian soil. Russian officials have stressed that they will take appropriate countermeasures if the West facilitates Ukraine's attacks deep into Russian territory. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said yesterday that the West should stop supplying weapons to Ukraine if it is serious about finding a solution to end the conflict. In a related development, the White House said that US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on September 26.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/eu-mang-tin-vui-den-cho-ukraine-18524092022540462.htm