Ukraine's president again chose sharp and at the same time somewhat bleak words when he accused Russia of the recent escalated attacks. Zelenskyj accused the Kremlin of spreading chaos through the extensive drone attacks against localities near the eastern border, focusing on necessary infrastructure as winter approaches.
Russia's goal is to create chaos and put psychological pressure on the population through raids on energy facilities and railways, Zelenskyj said in a meeting with journalists on Thursday where, among other things, AFP's reporter participated.
Traveling to the USA
Information from the press meeting took place earlier and was initially subject to embargo.
Zelenskyj also said that Ukraine's prime minister and additional advisors are going to the USA for talks with representatives of the country's leadership next week. The issues to be addressed concern air defense, the energy sector, sanctions, and possible negotiations with the Kremlin.
The statements came on the same day that Ukrainian authorities in several regions near the front lines and at the eastern border urged residents to take safety measures.
Elderly and families with children
The Russian drone attacks around Kramatorsk have become so extensive that families with children must leave the city:
"Due to a worsening security situation in parts of the Kramatorsk area, mandatory evacuation of families with children has been announced", the city's governing body wrote on social media on Thursday.
Kramatorsk had a population of around 150,000 before the war. It is one of the larger cities in Donetsk, a province that Russia claims to have annexed but not entirely conquered.
Residents in Slovjansk in the eastern part of the country are also being urged to leave their homes due to an escalation in the Russian attacks on energy facilities.
"I am turning to the residents of the city today, especially the elderly and families with children – it is time to evacuate, at least during the period when we need heating", the mayor Vadym Ljakhd wrote on social media.
