Russia suspends partial mobilization of citizens for its war in Ukraine

Russia’s “partial mobilization” of citizens to fight in its war against Ukraine has been completed, President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.

Asked during a news conference if he would sign a decree ending the conscription drive he announced on September 21, Putin replied he would consult with lawyers over the next steps.

“Frankly speaking, I didn’t even think about it. I will discuss with lawyers whether it is necessary to announce by decree that it has been completed,” he said at the event in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. “But it’s completed. The line has been drawn.”

The Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement Monday that all mobilization activities, including the delivery of summons, was complete.

Citing the ministry, Putin said 41,000 of those recruited were currently in combat formations of the Russian Armed Forces. 

“That is, almost 260,000 people are not participating in any hostilities but are being trained,” Putin said.

Some context: Moscow’s conscription drive has been beset by errors, caused angry protests and prompted a mass exodus since it was announced in September.

Protests have erupted in ethnic minority regions, and some military enlistment offices have been set on fire. The original announcement also sparked rare anti-war demonstrations across Russia.

The country was forced to heighten security measures at military registration and enlistment offices “due to increasing attacks” on those facilities, a senior Russian official said in a previous CNN report.

Countless Russians have fled the country as a result of the partial mobilization. More than 200,000 people traveled from Russia into Georgia, Kazakhstan and the European Union in just the first week, collective data from those regions showed.

Water and power has been fully restored in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, the city’s mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram Tuesday morning. 

The mayor said crews worked for almost 24 hours to restore the water and electricity supply to residents of the city after Russia launched a fresh barrage of missile strikes on key infrastructure facilities in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities Monday.

While electricity has been restored, Klitschko warned that power cuts would still be necessary given the “significant” impact of Russia’s recent attacks on critical infrastructure.

Billionaire entrepreneur Oleg Tinkov said Monday he was renouncing his Russian citizenship due to the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine.

The post has since been taken down, but photos of it have circulated on social media and been reported by Russian state media. It included a photo showing a certificate of his renunciation of Russian citizenship, dated October 26.

Some background: Tinkov is the founder of TSC group, the parent company of Tinkoff Bank. He recently sold his 35% stake in TSC to a firm controlled by Russian billionaire Vladimir Potanin, Reuters reported in April, citing the company. 

Tinkov was among 65 individuals and entities sanctioned by the United Kingdom on March 24 for “supporting Russia’s illegal invasion.”

He has repeatedly condemned what he has described as Russia’s “insane war” against Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Çavuşoğlu about conditions for resuming its participation in a critical grain deal, Russian state news agency TASS reported late Monday, citing Russia’s Foreign Ministry. 

According to TASS, Lavrov told his Turkish counterpart that the resumption of ships carrying grain through the grain-export corridor will only be possible with “necessary guarantees” from Kyiv.

Lavrov told Çavuşoğlu that Kyiv must guarantee it won’t use the humanitarian corridor and Ukrainian ports for actions against Russia, state media reported. 

Some background: Russia announced Saturday it would suspend its participation in the United Nations-brokered grain export deal with Ukraine after alleging drone attacks on the Crimean city of Sevastopol.

The Black Sea grain deal between Russia and Ukraine was brokered in July by the UN and Turkey. Erdoğan has said Ankara is determined to try and keep the Black Sea grain initiative alive despite Moscow’s withdrawal. 

Despite Russia’s withdrawal, 12 vessels carrying grain and other agricultural products left Ukraine’s Black Sea ports on Monday, Oleksandr Kubrakov, the Minister of Infrastructure announced on Twitter.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that repair work continues after Russian missile strikes on Ukraine’s power infrastructure — and that a majority of the missiles fired had been brought down by air defenses.

“At this time, restoration works are still ongoing in the regions where Russian missiles hit today. We are doing everything possible to restore energy and water supply,” Zelensky said in his daily video message Monday.

“If someone in the Kremlin has listened to their crazy propagandists and decided that the darkness in Ukraine will help pressure Ukrainians, then let them not be surprised with their losses when they see how Ukrainians are conducting ‘negotiations’ in the dark.”

Zelensky repeated the military’s statement that of the 55 cruise missiles fired, 45 were shot down. 

“For every 10 hits, the terrorists have to expend at least four times more missiles,” Zelensky said. “Russia’s performance on drones is even worse, including those supplied by their Iranian allies.

“The wreckage of a Russian missile that fell on the territory of Moldova only reminds us how important it is to defend ourselves together against this evil,” Zelensky added.

Some context: Several houses were damaged Monday in the Moldovan village of Naslavcea — on the border with Ukraine — after a missile shot down by Ukrainian forces hit the northern part of the village, according to the Interior Ministry of Moldova.

Experts from the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog have started their inspection at two locations that Russia said Ukraine was using to develop “dirty bombs,” a statement from the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Monday. 

Russia has repeatedly claimed that Ukraine is conspiring to use a “dirty bomb” — a device that contains nuclear materials along with traditional explosives — in what Moscow says would be a false flag operation to blame Russia. 

The claims have been rejected by Ukraine as well as its Western allies, including the US and the UK.  

The inspections are being carried out after a written request from Ukraine following Moscow’s claims, the statement said, adding that the agency’s chief Rafael Grossi would provide his “initial conclusions” later this week. 

Russia has announced a stop to its “partial mobilization” of citizens to fight in the country’s war on Ukraine.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement Monday that all partial mobilization activities, including summons deliveries, have been suspended.

Military units will only be accepting volunteers and contractors from now on, the statement continued.

Commenting on behalf of the Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the ministry said the commanders of military districts and the Northern Fleet were sent orders to submit reports on the completion of partial mobilization activities by November 1.

The ministry’s announcement does not constitute an official end to the country’s partial mobilization, however. This can only be done with an official decree from Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Read more here.

Russia launched a barrage of missile strikes at Ukrainian cities on Monday as it ramped up its attacks on infrastructure facilities across the country.

Explosions and air raid sirens were heard in Kyiv early on Monday and 80% of residents were left without water — with many losing electricity, too — following power outages caused by Russian strikes, the capital’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said on Telegram.

One of the strikes hit an energy facility that powered 350,000 apartments in the capital, Klitschko said, adding that emergency services were attempting to restore power and “stabilize the situation as soon as possible.”

Attacks on critical infrastructure in the central regions of Cherkasy and Kirovohrad, the northeastern region of Kharkiv, and the southeastern region of Zaphorizhzhia were also reported.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that the onslaught was “partly” a response to an attack on Russia’s fleet in the Crimean city of Sevastopol on Saturday, which he blamed on Kyiv. Russia illegally annexed the Ukrainian peninsula in 2014 and has controlled the territory since then.

Putin also warned that the strikes are “not all we could do.”

Read more here.