Ukraine territory under heavy attack
The Kyiv Independent on November 18 quoted local Ukrainian officials as saying that Russian attacks during the day had caused many casualties. In the northern province of Sumy, multiple overnight attacks left 11 people dead and 89 injured.
Conflict Point: US allows Ukraine to attack deep into Russian territory, conflict about to escalate?
The Ukrainian Air Force said it shot down eight of the 11 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) launched by Russia. Moscow also attacked Sumy with two Iskander-M ballistic missiles and a Kh-59 cruise missile.
In the southern city of Odessa, a ballistic missile attack killed 10 people and injured 43. Among the victims were several police officers.
Russia has not commented on the above information.
Scene of the attack in Odessa on November 18
Scene of the attack in Odessa on November 18
Russia rejects ceasefire proposal
Bloomberg News reported that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan proposed a peace plan for Ukraine at the G20 summit in Brazil. Accordingly, Ukraine would not join NATO for at least 10 years, freeze the current front line, provide weapons to Ukraine, and deploy international forces to the demilitarized buffer zone in Donbass (the eastern region of Ukraine including the two provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk).
Commenting on the report, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that freezing the fighting was “unacceptable”. “Any option that involves freezing the conflict along the front line is unacceptable for Russia. The conditions that President (Vladimir) Putin set in June remain completely relevant. That is what is needed to end military actions,” TASS quoted Mr. Peskov as saying.
President Zelensky: Mr. Trump will help end the conflict in Ukraine sooner
In June, Mr. Putin set conditions for resolving the situation in Ukraine. Accordingly, Ukraine must withdraw its troops from Donbass and abandon plans to join NATO. Moscow also demanded that the West lift all sanctions on Russia and ensure Ukraine's neutrality and nuclear non-proliferation.
Russia's announcement came as the conflict entered its 1,000th day on November 19, with Russian forces believed to control nearly a fifth of Ukraine's territory. In February, Ukraine lost the eastern town of Avdiivka. In August, it sent troops into Russia's Kursk province as Moscow's forces advanced in the east. On November 18, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that its forces had captured the village of Novooleksiivka, about 15 kilometers (9 miles) from the strategic town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on the same day that he had visited the frontline town of Pokrovsk, describing the situation there as “challenging and tense.” Video footage released showed Zelensky greeting soldiers in the town, where Russian forces were just 8km away.
Hours later, he announced he was in the city of Kupiansk in Kharkiv province, another frontline city.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visits soldiers in Pokrovsk
Parties react to information about Ukraine being attacked at long range
US media reported that the administration of President Joe Biden has allowed Ukraine to use long-range ATACMS missiles to attack Russian territory while the White House has not confirmed it.
The action is believed to be in response to information that North Korean soldiers fought alongside Russia against Ukraine, which has also not been confirmed by Russia.
Speaking about the information late on November 17, President Zelensky said that providing long-range strike capabilities to Ukraine was one of the main points of the victory plan he presented to his partners. “Today, the media has been talking a lot about the fact that we have been approved to take relevant actions. But the strikes are not carried out with words. They are not announced. The missiles will speak for themselves,” he wrote on X.
UK may lack Storm Shadow missiles to replenish Ukraine
Commenting on the information, the Kremlin spokesman called it a “reckless, dangerous decision” to change the quality and increase the level of US involvement in the conflict. Mr. Peskov repeated President Putin’s statement in September that the move meant NATO, the US and Europe were directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine because Kyiv needed the support of NATO military personnel and military infrastructure to target and launch missiles.
“It is clear that the outgoing administration in Washington intends to take steps to further fuel the fire and continue to provoke tensions around this conflict,” Peskov said.
The US’s European allies have been cautious. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Paris was open to allowing Kyiv to use French long-range missiles to strike military targets in Russia, according to AFP.
Polish President Andrzej Duda said that the above decision of the US, if correct, is "very necessary, very important and could be the decisive moment" for the conflict, according to Reuters.
The German government has again stated that it will not change its long-standing position of not providing long-range missiles to Ukraine. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that it would be extremely dangerous for a NATO member to allow Ukraine to launch the alliance's long-range missiles at Russia.
Comment (0)