(Moscow) “Necessary and inevitable”: this is how Vladimir Putin justified Friday the bombardments which ravaged, just at the arrival of winter, the Ukrainian energy infrastructure, leaving millions of civilians in the dark and cold.
During their first telephone conversation since mid-September and despite a series of scathing military setbacks, the Russian president meant to stay straight in his boots to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
“It has been pointed out that the Russian armed forces have long avoided high-precision missile strikes on certain targets in Ukraine, but such measures have become necessary and inevitable in the face of provocative attacks from Kyiv,” the Kremlin said in a statement. , summarizing the words of Vladimir Putin.
According to the Russian president, Kyiv is responsible for the explosions which partly destroyed the Crimean bridge and other Russian installations, and therefore Moscow is within its rights by bombing Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, even if it means leaving it in the cold and black the civilian population.
Inspiration, light and love
The latest wave of Russian missile and drone strikes was on November 23. It plunged millions of Ukrainians into darkness and deprived them of running water, sometimes for days.
In a report drawn up on Thursday, a week after the attacks, the Ukrainian private operator DTEK had estimated that Russia had “destroyed 40% of the Ukrainian energy system”.
The majority of Ukrainian homes only have a few hours of electricity per day.
In Kyiv, however, people try to live with a hint of normality, like during this classical music concert where 600 artificial LED candles light up the stage.
“We thought it was a good idea to save energy,” Irina Mikolaenko, an organizer of the concert, told AFP.
“We want to bring inspiration, light and love to people who find themselves in a situation […] difficult and tell people that we are not defeated,” she adds.
Ukrainian officials said on Monday they expected a new wave of Russian bombardments soon.
On the merits, Messrs. Scholz and Putin could therefore only note their disagreement.
PHOTO TOBIAS SCHWARZ, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
Olaf Scholz
During the hour-long telephone conversation between the two leaders, Mr. Scholz “insisted with the Russian president that a diplomatic solution be found as soon as possible, which implies the withdrawal of Russian troops”, indicated the German Chancellery.
According to the Kremlin press release, Vladimir Putin, on the contrary, pointed to the “destructive” position of the West, whose political, financial and military support from the West encourages, according to him, Kyiv to reject “the idea of any negotiation”.
Vladimir Putin called on Mr. Scholz “to review his approach”.
Oil ceiling?
A little earlier, the Kremlin had already brushed aside the conditions mentioned the day before by US President Joe Biden who said he was “ready” to discuss whether the Russian president was looking for “a way to end the war” and withdraw his troops. .
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia “obviously” rejects the idea. “The military operation continues,” he insisted.
The Russian president decreed the annexation at the end of September of four regions of Ukraine, although he does not control them, in addition to the Crimea annexed in 2014.
Kyiv for its part rejects any negotiation with Putin, without respect for its territorial integrity, Crimea included.
Militarily, the Russian army suffered several defeats, having been forced to withdraw from the north of the country in April, then from part of the northeast in September and finally from part of the south in November.
Since October, the Russian forces have therefore taken the tactic of bombing installations supplying electricity and heat to the country, even as winter is settling in Ukraine.
To increase the pressure on Russia, already the target of a multitude of sanctions, the West is trying to agree on a mechanism to cap Russian oil prices.
For the Americans, like the Europeans, it is a matter of trying to deprive Moscow of the windfall it uses to finance its military offensive.
An agreement was almost tied up Thursday evening by the ambassadors of the EU countries in Brussels, but it is still awaiting the green light from Poland, which considers the instrument too limited.
While the sanctions adopted since February have largely isolated Russia, its economy has so far held up well, largely thanks to hydrocarbon revenues.