Zelenskiy tells Ukrainians to prepare for Russian winter onslaught
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[November 13, 2023]
(Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned
Ukrainians on Sunday to prepare for new waves of Russian attacks on
infrastructure as winter approached and said troops were anticipating an
onslaught in the eastern theatre of the war.
A military spokesman said Russian attacks on the shattered eastern town
of Avdiivka had eased in the past day, but were likely to intensify in
the coming days.
And Ukrainian military intelligence said an explosion killed at least
three Russian servicemen in the Russian-occupied southern town of
Melitopol, which it described as an "act of revenge" by resistance
groups.
Zelenskiy issued his warning during his nightly video address a day
after Russian forces carried out their first missile attack on the
capital, Kyiv in some seven weeks.
"We are almost half way through November and must be prepared for the
fact that the enemy may increase the number of drone or missile strikes
on our infrastructure," Zelenskiy said. "Russia is preparing for
Ukraine. And here, in Ukraine, all attention should be focused on
defense, on responding to terrorists on everything that Ukraine can do
to get through the winter and improve our soldiers' capabilities."
Last winter about 10 months into Russia's invasion of neighbor Ukraine,
Russia made waves of attacks on power stations and other plants inked to
the energy network, prompting rolling blackouts in widely separated
regions.
Energy Minister German Galushchenko said on Saturday that Ukraine would
have enough energy resources to get through the winter, but added: "The
question is how much future attacks can affect supplies."
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Ukrainian officials last Wednesday said Russia had struck Ukrainian
infrastructure 60 times in recent weeks, an indication that a campaign
of attacks may already be under way.
In his remarks, Zelenskiy hailed the "heroic" efforts of troops
defending Avdiivka, under pressure from attempted Russian advances since
mid-October. Pictures show buildings in the town reduced to shells.
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![](../images/111323PIX/news_t8.jpg)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visits an artillery training
centre, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, at an undisclosed location
in Ukraine November 3, 2023. Ukrainian Presidential Press
Service/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
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Military spokesman Oleksandr Shtupun said the number of infantry
attacks in the past 24 hours was half of levels earlier in the week,
but air strikes were on the rise.
"The enemy suffered significant losses the day before yesterday and
has to regroup," Shtupun told national television.
The head of Ukraine's ground forces, General Oleksandr Syrskyi, said
on Telegram that Moscow's forces were "more active in the Bakhmut
sector and trying to recover lost positions".
Bakhmut, north of the city of Donetsk, was captured by Russian
forces in May after months of heavy combat, but Ukrainian troops
have since retaken nearby villages.
Russian accounts of the fighting on Sunday said its forces had
repelled five Ukrainian attacks near Bakhmut.
Reuters could not verify accounts from either side.
In Melitopol, a hub for Russian occupation forces, the blast killed
three men during a meeting at a post office used as a military
headquarters, Ukraine's military intelligence directorate said. The
dead were officers of Russia's National Guard or FSB intelligence
service, the directorate said in a statement.
There was no comment from Russian officials.
Ukraine's military has been increasingly active in attacking
Russian-held areas, but does not always acknowledge the strikes.
(Reporting by Ron Popeski and Maria Starkova; editing by Grant
McCool)
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