- Matt Murphy
- BBC reporter
image source,Getty Images
Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with senior military officials on the same day that the Russian army launched a new round of missile attacks on infrastructure in Ukraine.
Putin spent most of Friday (December 16) at the headquarters of the “Special Military Operations” to discuss Russia’s next steps.
Meanwhile, some Ukrainian military officials have claimed that Russia is planning a new offensive, possibly early next year.
A Russian attack on Ukraine’s power grid has left millions without power in the dark.
Footage broadcast on Russian state television showed Putin accompanied by Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the chief of the armed forces, Valery Gerasimov.
“We will listen to the instructions of the army commander in every operation, and I also want to hear your proposals for our short-term and medium-term operations,” Moscow’s top leader told the military officers at the meeting on Friday .
General Gerasimov was present, putting an end to rumors of his dismissal. The 67-year-old has come under fire from hawkish critics for being too cautious.
Air Force Commander Sergei Surovikin was named in October to lead Russia’s Ukraine operations. State media photos showed him also at the meeting.
Ukrainian forces have made a series of major advances in recent months, including retaking Kherson – the only major city so far lost to Russian forces.
The fall of Moscow’s armed forces in eastern Ukraine at the beginning of this year also caused the top Russian military officials to receive continuous criticism from pro-Kremlin media figures.
image source,EPA
Earlier, it was reported that the commander of the armed forces, Gerasimov (right), was fired.
After the meeting, Ukrainian army commander Gen Valerii Zaluzhnyi claimed that Moscow could seek to launch a new offensive in early 2023. He warned that Russia was mobilizing about 200,000 troops to prepare for an attack.
“I have no doubt that they will try to attack Kyiv again,” he said, “I know how many combat units I have now, how many combat units I will build by the end of the year – and, most importantly, don’t start now with Use them any way, no matter how difficult it is.”
He also said the offensive would likely start “in the direction of Kyiv”, perhaps from Belarus.
In February, Russian troops crossed the border from Belarus to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
While Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has repeatedly denied that his troops would join the attack, thousands of Russian soldiers are currently taking part in what Moscow’s defense ministry calls “intensive combat training” in the country.
Putin will meet the Belarusian president in Minsk on Monday.
But analysts questioned Russia’s ability to launch a new attack on the Ukrainian capital, while White House spokesman John Kirby said U.S. intelligence officials “see no indication of an imminent move against Kyiv” .
The latest round of bombings in Ukraine
- On Friday (December 16), the Russian army carried out a large-scale bombing of Ukraine, launching 76 missiles and multiple drone attacks; local officials said at least 9 power plants were attacked
- Ukrainian engineers are still working to repair power facilities as temperatures drop below freezing in many parts of the country
- Parts of the capital Kyiv remained without power and heat on Saturday, but water supply has now been fully restored
- Ukrainian authorities confirm bombing of a house in the city of Kryvyi Rih kills 4, also in Kherson
- General Zaluzhny says Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 60 of 76 Russian missiles
- Kyiv said 40 missiles were launched against the capital, the largest attack since the Russian invasion on February 24.
Top U.S. defense officials told Reuters that Russia is running out of supplies and is therefore forced to use some decades-old munitions with a high rate of errors.
They also said that “Russia’s current rate of consumption of ammunition and artillery” could see them exhaust their reliable stockpile of weapons by early 2023.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that nearly 6 million people had been restored to power after the latest round of Russian attacks on Ukraine’s power grid.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the city’s subway system had restarted and water supply had been restored.
He also posted a photo of a large Christmas tree on the social media Telegram. He said the tree had been adapted to use energy-saving bulbs powered by generators to accommodate power constraints in wartime winters.
Power has now been restored in Kharkiv, the second-largest city, after a wave of attacks on power plants across the country knocked out power for hours on Friday, authorities said.
Russia has launched more than 1,000 missiles and Iranian-made drones since attacks on power facilities began on October 10. Leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, have said the attack was large enough to constitute a war crime.
The British Ministry of Defense said that there has been an “increasing” trend in recent Russian long-range attacks against important facilities in Ukraine.