Ukraine Latest: NATO Says Russian Jets Flew Close To Its Ships
NATO’s Allied Maritime Command said Friday that two Russian warplanes had flown within 300 feet of its ships in the Baltic Sea.
(Bloomberg) -- NATO’s Allied Maritime Command said Friday that two Russian warplanes had flown within 300 feet of its ships in the Baltic Sea.
A Swedish investigation into ruptures at the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines found explosive residue and has concluded that the cause was “grievous sabotage.”
Despite pledges of support from Ukraine’s allies, there have been more calls for negotiation, with French President Emmanuel Macron saying he hopes Volodymyr Zelenskiy will agree to resume peace talks with Russia. But the Ukrainian leader has said only the return of territory taken by Russia would allow an end to the war, and he is seeking more anti-aircraft weapons.
Kyiv is experiencing long periods without power following multiple attacks on critical energy infrastructure across the country earlier this week. More than 1,000 missiles and drones have hit energy targets since February, the government said.
(See RSAN on the Bloomberg Terminal for the Russian Sanctions Dashboard.)
Key Developments
- Ukrainians Endure Widespread Blackouts After Russia’s Attacks
- G-7 Plans to Announce Russian Oil Price Cap Level Next Week
- Greek Crude Tanker Highlights Risk of Russia Oil-Sanctions Limbo
- Explosive Residue Confirms Nord Stream Sabotage in Swedish Probe
- Old Tankers Get a Second Life at Russian Ports as Sanctions Near
the Ground
Ukraine’s troops repelled Russian attacks in Luhansk and in Donetsk regions over the past 24 hours, Military Staff based in Kyiv says. Meanwhile, Russia continues shelling and conducting air strikes. Crucial infrastructure facilities suffered attacks in cities in the regions of Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk as well as the Mykolayiv region and Odesa. Ukraine’s air-defense forces intercepted four cruise missiles, two guided air missiles and five Iran-made single-use drones in the past 24 hours. The death toll from Thursday’s attack in Zaporizhzhia region rose to nine, the Ukrainian Emergency Service said on Telegram.
(All times CET)
NATO Says Russian Jets Flew Close to Its Ships (12:10 a.m.)
Two Russian fighter planes “made an unsafe and unprofessional approach toward” NATO Allied Maritime Command warships in the Baltic Sea on Thursday morning, the command said in a Friday press release.
“The Russian pilots failed to respond to Allied forces’ standing query communications and overflew the force at an altitude of 300 feet and a distance of 80 yards,” according to the press release.
“The interaction increased the risk of miscalculations, mistakes, and accidents,” the Allied Maritime Command said.
Ukrainian Grid Operator Resumed Power in Central and Western Regions (8:07 p.m.)
Ukraine’s Ukrenergo energy company restored the electricity supply to almost 70% of consumers in the country’s western and central regions, including Dnipro, the Ukrainian Cabinet website reported.
The regions suffered power cuts due to recent Russian shelling. Ukrenergo repair crews were working in the recently liberated Kherson region. The Cabinet said the work was slowed by “the densely mined territory.”
Russia Hit Energy Hubs with 1,000 Missiles, Drones: Shmyhal (5:20 p.m.)
More than 1,000 Russian missiles and single-attack drones hit Ukraine’s energy facilities since the war’s start, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said during a government meeting.
All of country’s heating and hydroelectric plants, as well as key power sub-stations which help to transport electricity to consumers, have been attacked, some of them as many as eight times. “If shellings continue, the number and length of power cutoffs may increase,” Shmyhal said.
EU Aims for Next Aid Payment in Early January (5:15 p.m.)
The European Union should be able to begin providing Ukraine the first portion of a new €18 billion aid package starting in January if the approval process goes smoothly, the bloc’s vice president Valdis Dombrovskis told reporters in Kyiv. He said that he hopes member states and the parliament will approve it in early December, which would allow the money to be delivered “just in time for Ukraine’s pressing financing needs at the start of next year.”
Team From Ukraine Arrives to Examine Polish Blast Site (2 p.m.)
Ukrainian experts are on the site of the deadly explosion in Poland that the US and others say was the result of a Ukrainian air-defense missile trying to intercept an incoming Russian attack. Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, said on Twitter he was grateful for Poland’s cooperation.
On Thursday, Ukraine’s president appeared to soften his insistence that it was only a Russian missile that caused the blast in Poland this week.
G-7 Ministers Call for Bolstering Internal Security (1:30 p.m.)
Group of Seven nations will continue to strengthen their internal security due to the ongoing impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine, interior ministers said in a joint statement after meeting in Wiesbaden, Germany.
The ministers also said they would continue to discuss how to help address “horrific and despicable crimes committed by Russia and its proxies in the territory of Ukraine.” G-7 justice ministers are set to meet on Nov. 28-29 to discuss how to bolster cross-border probes of such crimes.
Damage to Mariupol Reaches $14.5 Billion, Mayor Says (12:2 p.m.)
Ukrainian authorities estimate material losses to Mariupol may reach as high as $14.5 billion, Mayor Vadym Boychenko said during a press conference in Warsaw.
Russian shelling and bombing destroyed about 90% of Mariupol’s key infrastructure and half of all its apartment blocks, as well as 11 of 15 hospitals, Boychenko said. He spoke as he signed an agreement with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development on a future revival strategy for the city, which remains under Russian occupation.
Macron Says He Hopes Ukraine Will Return to Talks (12:10 p.m.)
“The Ukrainians, this is my hope, will come back to the table of negotiations with the Russians and the internal community will be around this table [...] and P5 members and the Europeans will be part of it,” the French president told the Financial Times and Nikkei.
Swedish Probe Concludes Nord Stream Ruptures ‘Sabotage’ (10:00 a.m.)
The ruptures at the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines was caused by “grievous sabotage,” according to a statement from Sweden’s security service following an investigation. Damaged sections will continue to be analyzed to see “if anyone can be made suspect and later charged,” it said.
“The analysis show residue of explosives on several of the foreign objects that were found,” prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist said in a separate statement, adding that the site in the Baltic Sea has been “thoroughly documented.”
The pipeline, which crosses the Baltic Sea to Germany from Russia, has been the focus of a probe by authorities in Sweden after two leaks were discovered in the Nordic nation’s exclusive economic area at the end of September.
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