Ukraine says it repelled Russian assaults in the east
It’s mid-afternoon in Kyiv. Here’s what you need to know
The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in southeastern Ukraine is at threat of running afoul of radiation and fire safety standards after subsequent Russian bombing.
Here are the latest developments:
- Zaporizhzhia Plant: After attacks on the nuclear power plant last week, the city Nikopol across the Dnipro river from the plant, was again hit by Russian rockets overnight. On Friday, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi said there was “no adequate control” over the plant, which has been operating at reduced capacity since been overtaken by Russian forces in March. According to Ukrainian nuclear power operator, Energoatom, the plant is now operating “with the risk of violating radiation and fire safety standards,” due to parts of the facility being “seriously damaged during the shelling,” which both countries are accusing the other for. Meanwhile, pro-Russian official Vladimir Rogov in the occupied Zaporizhzhia region administration, has said that the plant may be “mothballed” so “nothing happens.”
- Grain scheduled for Ethiopia: Ukraine’s Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov announced in a tweet on Thursday that a ship taking 23,000 tons of grain to Ethiopia would be arriving in Ukraine for loading on Friday. In June, the UN said war in Ukraine worsened the humanitarian crisis in the African nation, where 20 million people are suffering the from “food security crisis.”
- Corn heads to Iran and Turkey: According to Turkey’s Defense Ministry, two ships carrying corn left Ukraine on Friday carrying over 63,000 metric tons.
- Protesting Russian journalist charged: Former Russian state TV editor Marina Ovsyannikova has been placed under house arrest until October 9 pending a trial related to her anti-war protest in July, an offense punishable by up to 10 years. In March, Ovsyannikova stood behind a news anchor during a live broadcast with a sign that read: “NO WAR.”
- Ukraine fights eastern attacks: The Ukrainian military has repelled Russian assaults in the east, “pushing back” forces near the city Kramatorsk, according to its General Staff, adding that they were also successful in defending attacks towards Bakhmut and Avdiivka.
##Catch-up##
Senior pro-Russian official badly injured in Melitopol attack, claims city’s mayor
From CNN’s Tim Lister and Olga Voitovych
A leading pro-Russian official has been seriously injured in a sabotage attack in the Russian occupied city of Melitopol, the city’s mayor has claimed.
Ivan Fedorov said on his Telegram channel that “one of the heads of the election headquarters of ‘United Russia’ [Russia’s ruling party]” had been severely injured in an attack Friday morning.
Fedorov, who is not in the city, named the official as Oleg Shostak and said was head of the propaganda department.
There had been an “explosive warning from the Melitopol underground resistance movement,” Fedorov said.
“The hunt for collaborators preparing for the pseudo-referendum has begun,” he added.
CNN is unable to confirm the report.
Fedorov also claimed that the main headquarters of the ‘United Russia’ party in Melitopol had been blown up earlier this week, and that the home of a woman collaborating with the Russians in preparing for a referendum had been burned down.
On Tuesday, Fedorov said that that resistance and attacks continue in the city, with Russian troops there being reinforced.
“We are grateful to hundreds of citizens of Melitopol who inform us about activists and members of election committees every day. None of your messages go unnoticed,” Fedorov ended his message by saying.
Ukrainian nuclear operator says Zaporizhzhia plant at “risk of violating radiation” safety standards
From CNN’s Tim Lister and Olga Voitovych
The Ukrainian nuclear power operator, Energoatom, says that as of Friday, the nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia “operates with the risk of violating radiation and fire safety standards.”
Energoatom alleged the shelling of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) by Russian forces last week, and over ten “arrivals” near the plant, close to the first power unit on Thursday, “caused a serious risk to the safe operation of the plant.”
“As a result of the attack on the Zaporizhzhia NPP, the emergency protection on one of the power units was activated; one of the three operating power units is now disconnected,” Energoatom said on its Telegram channel.
While the plant is under Russian control, most of the technicians are still Ukrainian. The Russian side has claimed that it is the Ukrainians who are shelling the territory of the power plant.
Energoatom said the nitrogen-oxygen station, the domestic sewage pumping station, and the combined auxiliary building were seriously damaged during the shelling, as well as “three radiation monitoring sensors around the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel site of the ZNPP.”
The operator added that the fire department located outside the ZNPP is intended for “protection from fires and their extinguishing in case of emergency situations at the station, was also fired upon.”
CNN is unable to confirm the details provided by Energoatom, but the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, said on Thursday that some parts of the plant were inoperable.
Energoatom reported that “the Ukrainian staff of the station continues to work and make every effort to ensure nuclear and radiation safety, as well as eliminate the consequences of damage.”
“Currently, the Zaporizhzhia NPP continues to operate and produce electricity for the needs of the domestic power system.”
Zaporizhzhia plant may be “mothballed”, says pro-Russian official in Ukraine
From CNN’s Tim Lister, Anna Chernova and Olga Voitovych
A local pro-Russian official in occupied Ukraine has suggested the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant may be “mothballed.”
Vladimir Rogov, an official with the Russian-backed Zaporizhzhia region administration, did not specify what that would entail on Friday.
“The load on the nuclear power plant is minimal, the output is minimal, there is a way of preserving what is, so that nothing happens,” Rogov said in an interview with Rossiya 24 channel.
“Soon (the Ukrainian authorities) will not receive anything, because, of course, we will save the nuclear power plant, mothball it, bring the [electricity] loads that we have to the liberated territories.”
Russian officials have previously suggested that the power produced at Zaporizhzhia — the largest nuclear power plant in Europe with six reactors — will be diverted away from the Ukrainian grid to Crimea.
CNN has reached out to Russia’s state nuclear operator Rosatom for comment.
A recent rise in shelling around the plant has led to the damage of its facilities and communications, with both sides blaming each other.
Rogov added that there had been “constant damage to the power [transmission] line of 750 kilovolts.”
Earlier Friday, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi accused Russian forces of shelling the plant’s power unit.
Russian journalist who protested Ukraine war live on TV placed under house arrest
From CNN’s Anna Chernova
A Moscow court has placed former Russian state TV editor Marina Ovsyannikova under house arrest for two months pending a trial related to her anti-war protest in July, the press service of the court said in a statement Thursday.
According to the statement, Ovsyannikova has been charged with spreading fake news about the Russian military and has been placed under house arrest until October 9.
The offense is punishable by up to 10 years in prison by the Russian law.
Ovsyannikova, who previously worked as an editor for Russian state TV Channel One, took a dramatic stand against Russia’s war in Ukraine during a live broadcast in March when she broke into the studio and appeared behind a news anchor with a sign that said: “NO WAR.”
She previously told CNN she had already received three fines for a total sum of 120,000 rubles (about $1,970) for her anti-war statements, including for allegedly “discrediting” the army in her Facebook post she published on Russia Day.
“No adequate control” over operations at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Ukraine says
From CNN’s Tim Lister and Olga Voitovych
There is “no adequate control” over operations at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi said Friday.
The plant has been held by Russian forces since its capture in March but has continued operating at reduced capacity, largely by Ukrainian civilian technicians.
A recent uptick in artillery and mortar fire to the plant’s surrounding area led the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to state that the “alarming” situation had reached a “grave hour” on Thursday.
Repeating that the Ukrainian government has already appealed to the IAEA to ensure proper control over the plant, Monastyrskyi said that his ministry “is preparing for any scenario.”
“There is no adequate control over the operations at Zaporizhzhia NPP,” Monastyrskyi said in a Facebook post. “Now, it is actually not just in the hands of the enemy, but also in the hands of untrained specialists who can really allow a tragedy.”
“Those Ukrainian specialists who remained there are partially not allowed to the areas where they should be. As is known, military equipment of the Russian Federation is located on the territory of the station now. All this is assessed as the highest level of threat,” he added.
Both sides have blamed each other for putting the plant at risk, with Monastyrskyi accusing Russian forces of shelling the plant’s power unit.
“It’s hard to even imagine the scale of the tragedy that could happen if the Russians continue to stay there,” he said.
Zelensky warns officials not to reveal military tactics against Russia
From CNN’s Tim Lister and Gul Tuysuz
President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned Ukrainian officials to stop talking about the military campaign against Russia, saying that war was “definitely not the time for vanity and loud statements.”
In a video message on Thursday, Zelensky sternly addressed military commanders and state officials.
“The less concrete details you give about our defense plans, the better it will be for the implementation of those defense plans,” Zelensky.
“You should feel your responsibility for every word you say about what our state prepares for in defense or counteroffensives.”
“The general rule is simple: war is definitely not the time for vanity and loud statements.”
Zelensky’s remarks come after a senior Ukrainian commander spoke at length about plans to liberate the southern city of Kherson from Russian forces by the end of the year.
In an interview, Major General Dmytro Marchenko spoke about Ukrainian operations to disable bridges across the River Dnipro used by Russian forces to resupply their units in Kherson. “I want to convey to the people of Kherson … it will not be as long as everyone expects. It will be fast,” Marchenko said.
Zelensky did not mention Marchenko by name in his video address but Ukrainian defence officials said that investigations into “a high-ranking military officer” were underway.
Shelling hits city across river from Russian-occupied nuclear power plant, Ukraine says
From CNN’s Tim Lister and Olga Voitovych
The city of Nikopol in southeastern Ukraine, located across the Dnipro river from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, came under attack again by Russian rockets overnight, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Valentyn Reznichenko, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, said the Russian army hit two districts of the city with Grad rockets and artillery, while up to 40 rockets landed in nearby Marganets, injuring three people.
The Nikopol area has been hit almost every night by Russian rockets and artillery based close to the nuclear power plant, Ukrainian officials say.
Some context: The Zaporizhzhia plant, the largest of its kind in Europe, has continued operating at reduced capacity since Russian forces captured it early in March. The head of the UN nuclear watchdog on Thursday warned that parts of the plant had been knocked out due to recent attacks, risking an “unacceptable” potential radiation leak.
“Any military action jeopardizing nuclear safety, nuclear security, must stop immediately,” said International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi. “These military actions near to such a large nuclear facility could lead to very serious consequences.”
Russia and Ukraine have so far been unwilling to agree to an IAEA inspection of the plant and have accused each other of shelling the facility — action the IAEA has said breaches “indispensable nuclear safety and security pillars.”
2 more grain ships have departed from Ukraine, Turkey says
From CNN’s Alex Stambaugh and Josh Pennington
Two more cargo ships carrying more than 63,000 metric tons of grain departed from Ukraine on Friday, according to Turkey’s Defense Ministry
The Marshall Islands-flagged Star Laura, carrying 60,150 metric tons of corn, left the Ukrainian port of Yuzhne for Iran, the ministry said. It added that another vessel, the Belize-flagged Sormovskiy 121, with 3,050 metric tons of corn aboard, departed from Chornomorsk port for Tekirdag in Turkey.
Two more arrivals: In a statement, the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) that oversees Ukrainian grain exports said it had authorized two cargo ships to travel to the port of Odesa, pending inspections on Friday. The JCC was one of the key creations of the grain deal agreed last month between Russia and Ukraine under the auspices of the UN and Turkey.
Grain for Ethiopia: Ukraine’s Minister of Infrastructure tweeted Thursday that the country was awaiting the arrival of the cargo ship Brave Commander to load more than 23,000 metric tons of grain for export to Ethiopia. The UN says the “ripple effect” of the war in Ukraine threatens to worsen a food crisis sparked by conflict and drought in the East African country.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/russia-ukraine-war-news-08-12-22/index.html
