Ukraine’s counteroffensive to retake Kherson, the first major city that fell to Russia, continues. Ukrainian troops attacked some command centers, while Moscow troops retaliated with ground offensives to thwart the operation.
Ukrainian troops destroyed some ammunition depots and pontoons to hinder the movement of Russian reserves, Natalia Shoemenyuk, a spokeswoman for the Ukrainian Southern Military District Command, said.
According to local media reports, gunshots were heard around the center of Kherson.
“Our success is convincing, and soon, we will be able to disclose more information,” Shoemenuc said.
Moscow has denied reports of Ukrainian military progress and said Russian troops had routed Ukrainian troops.
The Ukrainian army made little news about the counteroffensive launched in the Kherson region earlier this week.
Two lines used by the Russians to cross the river were reportedly damaged. These bridges were important for the supply of Russian troops west of the Dnieper (where the Kherson River lies).
In the first days of what the Ukrainians called a “potential turning point in the war,” both sides claimed battlefield victories.
natural gas flow to zero
At the same time, the Ukrainian General Staff said on the 2nd that Russian troops shelled dozens of towns, including Kharkiv in northern Ukraine (Ukraine’s second largest city) and the Donetsk region in the east.
Since Russia launched its military campaign against Ukraine in February, more than 7 million people have fled Ukraine, thousands more have been killed, and cities have been reduced to rubble, while Kyiv and the West accuse Russia of waging an “unprovoked war of aggression” .
Moscow called the operation a “special military operation” aimed at halting NATO’s expansion in countries surrounding Russia, as well as weeding out nationalists in Ukraine and protecting the local Russian-speaking community.
The development on the 3rd came as Moscow and Kyiv rebuked each other over the shelling around the Russian-occupied Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, where UN inspectors arrived on the 1st to help avert a nuclear disaster. , the background is that the nuclear power plant has been attacked several times.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call that Turkey could play a facilitator role on the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant.
Vladimir Rogov, a pro-Russian official in the Zaporozhye region, said that the Ukrainian army had repeatedly shelled Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, which cut the main power line to the nuclear power plant and forced the plant to Use backup power as you did last week.
Meanwhile, Russian energy giant Gazprom has delayed the resumption of gas deliveries, a move that exacerbates Europe’s difficulties stocking up on fuel for the winter when the cost of living is already soaring.
The Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which supplies natural gas to Germany and other countries on the Baltic Seabed, was scheduled to resume operation today after three days of interruptions due to maintenance, but the pipeline started operating several hours after the original time. Businesses report that their natural gas flow remains zero.
Moscow has accused Western countries of hampering the daily operation and maintenance of the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline following its February 24 military campaign against Ukraine.
“The most serious case”
A United Nations inspection team led by the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Grossi, arrived at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant despite heavy artillery fire.
“This is not the first time that the IAEA’s inspection team has entered an area of armed hostilities,” said Tariq Raouf, the former head of verification and security at the IAEA, noting that the IAEA dispatched in 2003 Inspectors traveled to Iraq and also to Georgia, the former Soviet republic during the war.
“But the Zaporozhye situation, which I think is the most serious situation the IAEA has ever sent personnel into, so this is unprecedented action.”
Grossi said after returning to territory under Ukrainian control that the plant’s physical integrity had been violated several times. A report is expected early next week, and two IAEA experts will stay at the plant for longer.
Grossi commented on his and his team’s journey across the theater to gain access to the plant, “There were times when the artillery fire was very obvious – two or three hits of heavy machine guns, artillery, mortars, and it was very overwhelming to all of us,” said Grossi. Worry.”
Which faction controls the various regions of Ukraine?
The Ukrainian army is continuing its counteroffensive in the south, while another shelling has been reported near the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant. Russian authorities claim that Ukrainian forces are threatening the plant, a charge Kyiv denies. (Al Jazeera)
“Demilitarize Nuclear Power Plants”
The Russian occupation of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant further complicates the situation. The nuclear power plant is located on the southern bank of a huge reservoir on the Dnieper River, just 10 kilometers from Ukrainian positions on the other side of the river.
Both Russia and Ukraine have accused the other of launching shelling near the facility, which is still operated by Ukrainian staff and provides more than a fifth of Ukraine’s electricity in peacetime. Ukraine also accuses Russia of using the plant to preserve its weapons, which Moscow denies. Russia has so far rejected calls from the international community to withdraw its troops from the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant and demilitarize the region.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged the IAEA team to go beyond inspections and report writing.
“Unfortunately, we have yet to hear from the International Atomic Energy Agency asking Russia to demilitarize the plant,” Zelensky said in a video.
Assault attack?
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Ukraine continued to bombard the nuclear power plant with weapons from its Western allies. He also dismissed claims by Kyiv and Western countries that Russia has deployed heavy weapons at the plant.
The head of the regional parliament, Mikre Lukashuk, said that several towns near the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant were bombarded by Russia on the 1st.
Pro-Russian official Rogov said Ukrainian troops shelled the Russian-controlled town of Ener Godar near the nuclear power plant. He again accused Ukraine of using speedboats on the river for a surprise attack on the facility. Ukrainian officials dismissed that claim, calling it a fabricated message.