(Kyiv) “Now is not the time for elections”: Ukrainian head of state Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday closed the door to a presidential vote in the country and tried to end a growing debate among leaders after more than ‘a year and a half of Russian invasion.
“Now is the time for defense, for battle, on which the fate of the state and the people depends, and not for farce, which only Russia expects from Ukraine. I think this is not the time for elections,” he said in his daily speech.
“We must come together, not divide ourselves, not disperse ourselves in quarrels or other priorities,” he further urged.
Yet again on Friday, his Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kouleba indicated that the Ukrainian president “pes [ait] the pros and cons” on the subject.
Because if Russia had not launched its invasion in February 2022, the legislative elections in Ukraine should have taken place in October of this year and the presidential election in March 2024.
The current situation, however, places Kyiv in a dilemma, with its Western allies, notably the United States, pressing Ukraine to organize democratic elections even though nearly 20% of its territory is occupied by Russia and millions of ‘Ukrainians are refugees abroad.
Another major obstacle: the law would have to be modified to allow the organization of ballots under martial law, currently in force.
“There is no room for conflict,” justified Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday evening, who daily advocates the “unity” of his people.
“We all understand that today, in times of war, when the challenges are numerous, it is absolutely irresponsible to introduce the subject of elections in society in a light and cheerful way,” the Ukrainian president further supported.
“Destroyed” ship
Volodymyr Zelensky’s announcement comes as Russia continues to carry out heavy daily strikes on almost the entire Ukrainian territory, which would pose a major security problem in the event of a vote.
Kyiv thus accused Moscow on Monday of having fired four missiles during the night and launched attack drones from the Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia in the south of the country.
Ukraine is particularly concerned about seeing Moscow launch systematic attacks on its energy infrastructure, like last winter, imposing heating and power cuts on millions of people.
To prepare, it has been asking its Western allies for several months to strengthen its air defenses.
On the ground, Ukraine has admitted in recent days the failure of its counter-offensive launched in June and which only made it possible to recapture a few villages, but its army is still seeking to reduce the Russian strike force.
Volodymyr Zelensky thus welcomed on Monday the “destruction” of theAskolda large Russian ship, at the Kerch shipyard in annexed Ukrainian Crimea, two days after its army said it had “successfully” carried out strikes in the area.
In a rare confirmation, Russian authorities, for their part, indicated that shots had damaged a ship and caused debris to fall onto a quay.
Blast
The Ukrainian Minister of the Interior, Igor Klymenko, also announced Monday evening the death of one of the close advisors of the commander of the Ukrainian army, killed in the explosion of a grenade that he had received as a gift. birthday from one of his men.
Major Gennady Chastyakov “returned home after work with gifts from his colleagues, which he began to show to his family,” Kymenko said on Telegram.
“He took a gift package with grenades inside and started showing one of the munitions to his son. These were grenades of the new Western model,” he continued.
“At first, his son took the ammunition in his hands and started turning the pin. The soldier then took the grenade from the child and pulled the pin, causing a tragic explosion,” the minister added.
Mr. Klymenko said five other unexploded grenades of the same type were found in the apartment. “The police found the soldier who gave the fatal gift. His office was searched and two other similar grenades were seized,” added the minister.
He announced that an investigation is underway.
Commander-in-chief Valery Zalouzhny said for his part he felt “indescribable pain” after the death of his advisor.
Russian strikes hit a museum in Odessa, eight injured
Russian strikes on Odessa, a large city in southern Ukraine, left at least eight injured and notably damaged an art museum overnight from Sunday to Monday, according to Ukrainian officials.
Des images publiées par les autorités de la ville et le musée montrent des débris et des éclats de verre sur le sol du Musée des Beaux-Arts d’Odessa, dont certaines vitres ont explosé.
Des murs sont fissurés et quelques tableaux semblent avoir été projetés au sol par la force de l’explosion.
La vice-ministre ukrainienne des Affaires étrangères, Eminé Djeppar, s’est dite « profondément indignée » par cette frappe.
« La destruction délibérée de sites culturels est un crime contre le patrimoine ukrainien », a-t-elle dénoncé, demandant « une réponse internationale forte et une action immédiate de l’UNESCO ».
Peu après, l’UNESCO a dit « condamner fermement » l’attaque, rappelant que « les sites culturels doivent être protégés ».
La directrice par intérim du musée, Kateryna Koulaï, a pour sa part indiqué à l’AFP qu’une évaluation « des dégâts [potentiels] invisible to the naked eye” was in progress.
Most of the works on display had been “evacuated,” said Oleg Kiper, an official with the regional authorities.
“The drawings and paintings in the current exhibitions were not damaged,” he said on Telegram.
The Odessa Museum of Fine Arts, an elegant pink building, was opened at the end of the 19th centurye century, according to its website.
PHOTO OLEKSANDR GIMANOV, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
View of the front of the Odessa Museum of Fine Arts,
19 soldiers killed
Kyiv accused Moscow of firing four missiles and launching attack drones from Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories.
In the Odessa region, eight people were injured, Ukrainian Interior Minister Igor Klimenko announced.
The strikes also hit around twenty buildings and infrastructure, the nature of which was not specified.
Ukraine also fears seeing Moscow launch systematic attacks on its energy infrastructure, like last winter, imposing heating and power cuts on millions of people.
The head of the administration of the Ukrainian presidency Andriï Iermak recalled on Monday that the winter would be “very difficult”. “Russia is preparing, so we must prepare too,” he said.
Kyiv has called on its Western allies to strengthen its air defenses to ward off a feared intensification of Russian strikes during the winter.
In the Kherson region, also located in the South, buildings were hit by a missile, according to Oleksandr Prokudin, the governor.
One of these buildings “was hit for the third time by the enemy,” he said, adding that the strike had injured a resident.
The Ukrainian Air Force, for its part, affirmed that “fifteen [drones] Shahed and a Kh-59 guided aerial missile [avaient] been slaughtered.”
Finally, Ukraine confirmed that a Russian missile caused the death of 19 of its soldiers on Friday.
According to local media, the soldiers were gathered for a decoration ceremony near the front line in the Zaporizhia region.
The Ukrainian army confirmed that soldiers had died, without specifying their number so far.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Sunday that an investigation would be carried out into the circumstances of this “tragedy which could have been avoided”, according to him.
Legal proceedings have been initiated for “negligent attitude of a serving military official”, the Ukrainian security services announced on Monday.
Furthermore, in the south of Russia, two Ukrainian drones were shot down in the Voronezh region without causing any casualties or damage, according to regional governor Alexander Gusev.
The Russians try to retake the village of Robotyné
The Ukrainian army said on Monday that Russian forces were trying to retake Robotyne, a southern village whose liberation at the end of August had given Ukraine a glimpse of a breakthrough in its counter-offensive, a hope which did not come to fruition.
In the South, “the enemy tried to regain its positions near Robotyne, without success,” announced Andriï Kovalyov, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian army.
In the east of the country, Moscow’s troops also “continue” to attack Avdiivka, an industrial city that they have been trying to surround for several weeks, he added.
The Ukrainian army has been carrying out a very difficult counter-offensive in the East and South since June, without succeeding in breaking through the Russian lines. And in recent weeks, it is the Russians who are on the attack again, carrying out assaults in several areas.
De facto, the front has not seen any significant development since around a year ago and the recapture of the city of Kherson by the Ukrainian army.
The blockage is such that the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, Valery Zaluzhny, recently estimated that the war was “at an impasse”. Remarks of rare frankness, but firmly rejected by the Kremlin as well as by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Summarizing last week’s fighting, Andriï Kovalyov only mentioned one area where Ukrainian forces are on the offensive: Bakhmout (East), a town whose name now evokes the bloodiest battle of the war.
But even there, they also repelled “60 attempts” by the Russians to regain ground around Andriïvka and Klichtchiïvka, he said.