News from the Associated Financial Press on November 28 (edited by Niu Zhanlin)Eight months on, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has intensified. Since this period of time, Russia has carried out large-scale attacks on key infrastructure in Ukraine. Due to water and power cuts, Ukraine will face its worst winter since World War II.
Rachel Harvey, director of the non-profit Shoebox Ukraine project, said: “The cold weather has become the biggest worry for Ukrainians. When winter comes, there is no heating, no electricity, no water, and the situation is too bad.”
Local residents are preparing for the winter. Many people choose to replace glass windows with transparent plastic sheets and sealing foam. Fuel storage is a top priority, and Ukraine has decided to ban firewood exports.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmygal recently stated that the Ukrainian government has decided to ban the export of firewood, which is of strategic significance to Ukraine. This will help Ukraine build up stocks, as firewood has become the main resource for heating many communities.
Shmygal said firewood is also the main fuel for Ukrainian troops on the front lines, and Russia’s attack on Ukraine’s entire power system has increased the importance of firewood.
Water and power outages become the norm
Since Russia stepped up its air strikes, water and power cuts across Ukraine have become the norm. Ukrainian energy company DTEK “Kyiv Regional Grid” branch said that Kyiv continued to experience frequent emergency power outages on Monday.
The company’s official website said: “Kyiv still has frequent emergency power outages. The previously established power outage schedule has not come into effect. DTEK’s engineers and experts from Ukrainian energy companies, other emergency departments and government agencies will make every effort to stabilize the situation as soon as possible.”
Local residents said in interviews that some areas of Ukraine have only a few hours of power supply every day, while some areas have completely lost power.
A Ukrainian government official said Russia had damaged more than 700 pieces of critical infrastructure in Ukraine. “So far, more than 700 critical infrastructure such as airports, bridges, oil depots, power substations have been attacked, and this attack shows no sign of stopping.”
Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, Ukraine, said that more than 430 heating points in the city are operating normally, and another 100 heating points will be activated if necessary.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently announced that if Kyiv and other cities suffer from power outages for a long period of time, it will be difficult to ensure the efficient operation of basic service stations. He also said that the people who complained the most were the people in Kyiv, and almost only the heating points established by the emergency department and the train station were able to operate normally.
Zelensky said that heating points set up in state capitals, primary and secondary schools and emergency department buildings should provide services free of charge and around the clock. And it can provide information on nearby gas stations, banks, pharmacies and shops. Heating points must provide drinking water, lighting, mobile communication and Internet.