Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Berlin, October 11, 2024

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Friday’s Coverage: Zelenskiy Takes His Victory Plan Around Europe

Map: Institute for the Study of War

UPDATE 1317 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has commented further on his four-country tour of Europe:

UPDATE 1102 GMT:

At least three civilians have been killed and 14 wounded by Russian attacks across eastern and southern Ukraine in the past 24 hours.

Three people were slain in the Donetsk region, two near the recently-occupied town of Vuhledar and one close to the ongoing battle around Chasiv Yar. Eight civilians were injured.

Three people, including a young gir, were injured by 425 attacks across 11 communities in the Zaporizhzhia region in southern Ukraine.

In the neighboring Kherson region, three people were injured as houses, infrastructure, and businesses were damaged.

UPDATE 1039 GMT:

Ukraine has hit another Russian fuel depot, setting it on fire.

The Ukrainian military said the depot is near the town of Rovenky in the occupied Luhansk region in the east of the country. Damage is being assessed.

A fire was finally extinguished after four days in the Feodosia refinery, Russia’s largest in occupied Crimea. The site was hit on October 7, and there were further explosions on Thursday.

UPDATE 0643 GMT:

Ukrainian journalists have called on international organizations to take urgent action after the “murder” of their colleague Viktoria Roshchyna in Russian captivity.

The death of Roshchyna, 27, was confirmed on Thursday. Ukrainian officials said the circumstances are still under investigation; however, the Media Initiative for Human Rights noted that she was held in detention centers where torture is used.

Roshchyna disappeared in August 2023 while reporting in Russian-occupied territory, with Moscow admitting her detention the following year.

The Ukrainian journalists posted:

Knowing that Viktoria Roshchyna had been in captivity for over a year and that she was physically healthy before her imprisonment by Russian forces, we have every reason to believe that her death was either the result of intentional murder or a consequence of the cruel treatment and violence she suffered while in Russian captivity.

International institutions mandated to protect human rights must act decisively and immediately. We call on international organizations to take urgent action to verify the condition and protect the rights of 29 civilian Ukrainian journalists currently held in Russian captivity.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has concluded a four-country tour of Europe with an appeal for support to end Russia’s 31 1/2-month invasion.

In his nightly address to the nation, Zelenskiy spoke of the presentation of Ukraine’s Victory Plan to the leaders of Germany, France, Italy, and the UK as well as NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte with “all aspects of our strategy for bringing peace closer — geopolitical, military, and economic”.

We must act together — everyone who has the necessary strength and influence — to guarantee a reliable peace, to compel Russia to peace. But we must act now, in the coming months. We need to strengthen our soldiers on the frontlines and bolster our shared positions.

Now, at the team level, we will work with our European partners to fill each step of our plan to the fullest. This will lead us to an effective second Peace Summit, so that the war ends. And that it was just and fair end to this war.

Zelenskiy has said that details of the Victory Plan will be provided at the Peace Summit next month. Aspects include military support, negotiations with Russia to ensure Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity, reconstruction, and economic and financial security.

In Berlin on Friday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke of current and future military assistance. He said Germany had delivered a €600 million ($660 million) package with a fifth IRIS-T air defense system, armored vehicles, tanks, howitzers, ammunition, and drones.

“By the end of the year, with the support of partners — Belgium, Denmark, Norway — we will deliver another package worth €1.4 billion ($1.5 billion) to Ukraine,” Scholz said. It will include IRIS-T, Skynex, and Gepard anti-aircraft weaponry, as well as artillery, armored vehicles, drones, radars, and ammunition.”

Thanking Scholz for the aid, Zelenskiy said it was “very important for us that this assistance does not decrease next year”. He said he had presented Scholz with the Victory Plan so the invasion will end “no later than next year, 2025”.

Zelenskiy also visited the Vatican, where he asked Pope Francis for help in securing the release of Ukrainians held captive by Russia.

The President invited the Vatican to take part in a conference on prisoners of war, to be held in Canada later this month: “We are counting on the Holy See’s assistance in helping to bring back Ukrainians who have been taken captive by Russia.”

Discussion with the Vatican’s chief diplomat, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, were “dedicated to the state of the war…as well as the ways in which it could be brought to an end”.