An apartment building damaged by a Russian drone strike on Mykolaiv in southern Ukraine, November 11, 2024

Sunday’s Coverage: “Signs of Escalation” in Russia’s Offensive in East

Map: Institute for the Study of War

UPDATE 1431 GMT:

At least 11 civilians, including a 10-year-old girl and a 11-year-old boy, have been injured by a Russian missile strike on a high-rise residential building in Kryvyi Rih in south-central Ukraine.

Dnipropetrosk Governor Serhiy Lisak said there may still be people under the rubble.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, a native of Kryvyi Rih, posted:

Every day, every night, Russia unleashes the same terror. More and more civilian objects are being targeted. Russia only wants to continue the war, and each of its strikes negates any claims of diplomacy from Russia.

Ukraine needs weapons to defend itself against Russian terror and stronger global support to make diplomacy real and effective.

UPDATE 0940 GMT:

The Kremlin has denies that Vladimir Putin spoke with Donald Trump last Thursday after the US Presidential election.

Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said:

There was no conversation. This is the most obvious example of the quality of the information that is now published sometimes even in fairly respected publications. This is completely untrue. This is pure fiction, this is simply false information.

Immediately after last Tuesday’s US election, Peskov said Putin had no plans to call the incoming President of “an unfriendly country that is directly and indirectly involved in a war against our state”.

But on Thursday, Putin publicly congratulated Trump on his victory, praising the “manly” response to July’s assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. He said he was “ready” to speak with Trump, including on Ukraine, to “restore [US] relations with Russia”.

UPDATE 0544 GMT:

The camp of Donald Trump has put out conflicting messages amid its threat to cut US aid to Ukraine.

Staff told The Washington Post that Trump, speaking on the phone with Vladimir Putin on Thursday, asked the Russian not to escalate the war in Ukraine.

Trump reminded Putin of “Washington’s sizeable military presence in Europe”, they declared, as he expressed interest in follow-up conversations on “the resolution of Ukraine’s war soon”.

A “former US official who was familiar with the call” said Trump likely does not want to begin his second Presidential term with an escalation in the Ukraine war, “giving him incentive to want to keep the war from worsening”.

The sources said Trump’s calls with world leaders, including Putin, are not being conducted with the support of the State Department and US Government interpreters.

But Donald Trump Jr. had a far different message, posting on Instagram to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, “You’re 38 days from losing your allowance.”

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry disputed the claim from Trump staff in the Washington Post article that Kyiv was informed of the call with Putin. let alone that it did not object to the conversation taking place.

“Reports that the Ukrainian side was informed in advance of the alleged call are false. Subsequently, Ukraine could not have endorsed or opposed the call,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi said.

US President Joe Biden invited Trump to the White House on Wednesday. National security advisor Jake Sullivan said discussions will include Russia’s 32 1/2-month invasion of Ukraine.

President Biden will have the opportunity over the next 70 days to make the case to the Congress and to the incoming administration that the United States should not walk away from Ukraine, that walking away from Ukraine means more instability in Europe.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine has implemented emergency blackouts across the country amid the threat of Russian missile attacks against critical energy infrastructure.

The Air Force issued a nationwide air alert after Russia launched Tu-95MS strategic bombers and MiG-31K jets, which can fire hypersonic Kinzhal ballistic missiles.

Blackouts are reported in cities such as Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Cherkasy, Sumy, Zhytomyr, Kirovohrad, and Kharkiv. Blasts from air defenses have been heard in the capital.

Earlier Russian strikes killed at least six people in southern Ukraine. Five were slain by a drone assault on Mykolaiv city.

The sixth fatality was from Russia’s FAB-500 bombs on Zaporizhzhia city. At least 21 civilians were wounded, including boys aged 4, 16, and 17 and girls aged 15 and 17.

Eight people were hospitalized, including the 4-year-old boy.

A two-story residential building, a dormitory, and a car dealership were damaged.