Russia’s war on Ukraine latest news: Ukraine gradually restores power

(C) Reuters. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news conference with Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala (not seen), as Russia’s attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 31, 2022. REUTERS/Viacheslav Ratynskyi

(Reuters) – Ukrainian authorities are gradually restoring power, aided by the reconnection of the country’s four nuclear plants, but millions of people are still without heat or electricity after the most devastating Russian air strikes of the war.

CONFLICT

* NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the Western military alliance would not back down on its support for Kyiv.

* NATO forces took part in drills in northern Poland’s Suwalki Gap, a strip of land between Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, and of crucial significance to the security of the alliance’s eastern flank.

* Germany said it was discussing with allies Poland’s request that German Patriot air defence units be sent to Ukraine, after NATO’s chief suggested the military alliance might not oppose such a move.

* The war’s first winter will now test whether Ukraine can press on with its campaign to recapture territory, or whether Russia’s commanders can halt Kyiv’s momentum.

* In a rare public spat involving Ukrainian leaders, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy criticised the mayor of Kyiv for doing what he said was a poor job setting up emergency shelters to help those without power and heat after Russian attacks.

* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy criticised Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko for doing what he said was a poor job setting up emergency shelters to help those without power and heat after Russian attacks, a rare public spat among the country’s leaders.

ECONOMY/AID

* Ukraine’s Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko has said more Western support is needed to help it meet growing reconstruction costs following the escalation of Russian missile attacks.

OIL

* A meeting of European Union government representatives, scheduled for Friday evening to discuss a Group of Seven proposal to cap Russian seaborne oil prices, was cancelled, diplomats said. EU governments were split on the level at which to cap Russian oil prices to curb Moscow’s ability to pay for its war in Ukraine without causing a global oil supply shock.

QUOTE:

“There is no split, there is no schism among Europeans and we have to preserve this. This is our mission number one this year,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.