Antony Blinken is convinced of this: Russia is trying to compensate for its defeats on the battlefield in Ukraine by trying to make “freeze” its population in winter. “Some 40% of the infrastructure that provides hot water and electricity to Ukrainians is destroyed”declared the head of American diplomacy, Friday, November 4, during a press conference at the end of a meeting of the G7 in Muenster (Germany). Follow our live.
Heaters coming soon. The foreign ministers of the G7 countries have notably agreed to put in place “a coordination mechanism” to help Ukraine “repair and defend” its electricity and water supply facilities have been massively shelled in recent weeks by the Russians. It will also be a question of delivering equipment: water pumps, housing containers, toilets, beds, blankets or tents…
Half the country “has heating”. Prime Minister Denys Chmygal nevertheless wanted to be reassuring: “We prepare for all scenarios. We stockpile power generation equipment in case of emergencyhe explained. Today, almost half of the buildings in the whole of Ukraine have heating. (…) In kyiv, 78% of buildings are currently heated.”
President Zelensky open to talks? In his traditional daily speech, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned the front. “Fighting has been concentrated in Donbass this week, in Bakhmut and Soledar”he said, before repeating that the Ukrainians were “ready for peace. A just peace. We have said it many times”.