Ukraine woke up to the sound of anti-missile warnings. Monday, October 31, the country suffered a large number of bombings targeting vital infrastructure, which deprived a hundred cities of water and electricity. The Ukrainian army mentioned “more than 50 cruise missiles” launched on the country. “Some of the missiles were shot down by anti-aircraft defense, while others hit their target,” President Zelensky’s cabinet said. Franceinfo returns to the highlights of Monday, October 31 on the front of the war in Ukraine.
80% of kyiv residents deprived of water
Monday during the day, “80% of consumers in the capital [restaient] without water supply” and “350,000 homes were left without electricity”, said the mayor of the capital, Vitali Klitschko. Throughout the territory, “hundreds of localities” Ukrainians were deprived of electricity, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Chmygal reported. “Russian terrorists have once again massively attacked Ukraine. Their targets are not military installations, but critical civilian infrastructure”accused Denys Chmygal. “Missiles and drones hit ten regions, damaging 18 facilities, most of them related [au système] energy”he added.
IAEA inspectors investigate ‘dirty bomb’ charges
At the express request of kyiv, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced on Monday, October 31 the start of a series of inspections in Ukraine to dispel the doubt on the accusations of “dirty bomb” formulated by Russia . This investigation concerns for the moment two sites explained the IAEA, without specifying the nature of these places.
Russia demands guarantees over grain exports
Moscow wants “additional commitments” demonstrating that Ukraine will not use the grain export corridor for military purposes, after a maritime drone attack on its fleet in Crimea on October 29. Without this, “there can be no question of guaranteeing the safety of anything in this area”the Russian Defense Ministry said on Telegram on Monday.
Two freighters loaded with grain left Ukrainian ports
Despite Russia’s withdrawal from the Ukrainian grain agreement, two ships returned to the humanitarian maritime corridor on Monday bound for Turkey, according to the specialized site Marine traffic. On Twitter, the United Nations coordinator for the Ukrainian Grains Initiative, Amir Abdulla, warned that“No civilian freighter should become a military target, nor be held hostage. Food must pass.” For his part, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, one of the guarantors of the agreement, assures that he will continue to defend it “despite Russian hesitation”.
The US Secretary of State and his Chinese counterpart met
Antony Blinken and Wang Yi discussed Sunday during a call the rivalry between their two countries and the war in Ukraine. “The Secretary of State discussed the need to keep lines of communication open and responsibly manage relationships” between the United States and China, said the spokesman of the American diplomacy, Ned Price.