kyiv and ten regions of Ukraine are experiencing new power cuts, after a new wave of drone attacks launched by Russia against energy infrastructure. These attacks occurred a few hours before Vladimir Putin’s trip to Minsk. The Russian president has an appointment with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko. And one question is on everyone’s mind: does the Russian president intend to force his counterpart to participate directly in the war against Ukraine?
The scenario of Belarusian participation in the fighting in Ukraine is feared by the authorities in kyiv. They are in any case convinced that a new offensive on the Ukrainian capital will be launched from Belarusian territory in a few weeks or months.
Tactical exercises
The scenario has already happened, in February 2022, but the Belarusian troops had not then taken part in the assault on the Ukrainian capital. These concerns are reinforced by the announcement of tactical exercises by the Russian army in Belarus. Alexander Lukashenko has repeated that he does not plan to send military units to Ukraine, but statements from his defense ministry that it has completed a series of inspections of the armed forces add to the confusion. The latter broadcast images of maneuvers on which we see soldiers with tanks and practicing artillery fire in a snow-covered landscape. “ From dawn to dusk, there is not a single second of silence at Belarus’ training grounds “, still boasted the ministry in a press release.
Psychological component
After four visits by the Belarusian leader to Moscow, Sochi and Saint Petersburg, Vladimir Putin is going to Minsk for the first time in three and a half years. As several observers note, he does not need to move to force the hand of his counterpart, who is very dependent on Moscow. But this visit has, in any case, a psychological component. It increases the pressure on kyiv. In a recorded speech, Volodymyr Zelensky said his country was preparing “ to all possible defense scenarios “: “ Protection of our border, both with Russia and with Belarus, says Ukrainian President, is our permanent priority “.
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Iranian missiles hit kyiv
At the end of the night, this Monday, December 19, the characteristic noise of Shahed-136these Iranian kamikaze drones which make a crackling noise of moped, spread in the sky of the capital, causing massive fire from the anti-aircraft defense, heard in several places of the capital.
A first alert was triggered shortly before 2 a.m., a second around 5:30 a.m., it seems that the Russian army has
decided to harass the electrical infrastructure and, although several drones were shot down, explosions occurred in the relatively central districts of Solomianskyi and Shevchenkivskyi. The authorities are cautious about the targets hit, but several photos on social networks again show pylons and high-voltage lines…
This is another blow to the Ukrainian energy network, which according to several official sources has been damaged by 45%
the past two months. Emergency cuts were again introduced on Monday morning, the concern now being that we are approaching a threshold where repairs will no longer take days but weeks, says our correspondent in Ukraine, Stephane Siohan.