November 4, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

Russian forces have stepped up attacks in the east of Ukraine using multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS), especially in the Donetsk region, according to the Ukrainian military.

On Thursday, Lt. Gen. Valerii Zaluzhnyi, commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces, told NATO Gen. Christopher Cavoli, the alliance's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, that "the enemy tripled the intensity of hostilities on certain areas of the front" with up to 80 daily attacks.

But Zaluzhnyi said Ukrainian troops were holding their defensive lines.

He also said he and Cavoli had "discussed the problem of Russian missile attacks and the employment of attack drones."

Artillery fire: The General Staff said recently liberated parts of the Kharkiv and Luhansk regions had come under artillery and mortar fire, and the front lines around the city of Bakhmut in Donetsk had also been active.

There had also been artillery and mortar fire against more than 25 settlements along the front lines in the south, the General Staff said. 

It said the Ukrainian air force had been active Thursday and had "inflicted 21 strikes against the enemy."

"Up to 20 areas of concentration of troops and equipment were hit," the General Staff said.

Alleged looting: The General Staff added there was "an increased movement of trucks and cars with looted property on the roads of Kherson region." It said "significant robberies" are taking place in Beryslav and nearby settlements," including from power grid maintenance enterprises.  

About 4.5 million Ukrainian consumers were dealing with power outages as of Thursday evening, according to President Volodymr Zelensky.

Households across the country have been temporarily disconnected from energy supply under an emergency schedule aimed at stabilizing the nation's fragile electric grid. Russia has been bombing and destroying civilian infrastructure, ushering in fears of a cold, dark winter.

Most people are affected in the capital, Kyiv, and nine other regions: Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kirovohrad, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Khmelnytskyi and Cherkasy. Power outages are also possible in other areas.

Some background: Kyiv's Western allies have condemned Russia's focus on dismantling Ukrainian energy infrastructure ahead of winter.

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Thursday that G7 countries have a "moral duty" to help Ukraine, as Putin counts on the winter to help his forces batter Ukraine.

International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors have completed verification activities at three locations in Ukraine at the request of the Ukrainian government, and they have not found any indications of undeclared nuclear activities and materials, according to a statement by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi Thursday.

Ukraine requested the inspection after Russia made allegations about activities related to the possible production of “dirty bombs” in three locations: the Institute for Nuclear Research in Kyiv, Eastern Mining and Processing Plant in Zhovti Vody, and Production Association Pivdennyi Machine-Building Plant in Dnipro, according to the IAEA, the UN's nuclear watchdog.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called Russia "the world's top liar" after the IAEA's announcement.

"IAEA has checked 3 Ukrainian facilities in focus of Russian disinfo and found no evidence of any ‘dirty bombs’. I thank @rafaelmgrossi for IAEA’s excellent and prompt cooperation which helped counter Russian falsehoods. Russia has confirmed its status of the world’s top liar," Kuleba tweeted Thursday.

Some background: Russia had accused Ukraine of planning to use a so-called dirty bomb — a weapon that combines conventional explosives like dynamite and radioactive material like uranium — an allegation dismissed by Kyiv and its Western allies as a false-flag operation that Moscow could use as a pretext to escalate the Kremlin’s war.

Officials from the US Embassy in Moscow met with detained American Brittney Griner on Thursday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.

State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a tweet Thursday that embassy officials “saw firsthand her tenacity and perseverance despite her present circumstances.”

Read more here.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres welcomed the revival of the Black Sea grain corridor this week, saying the ships departing Ukrainian ports provide “hopeful news in a world churning in turmoil.”

Seven vessels carrying food left Ukraine's ports Thursday after Russia agreed to rejoin the Black Sea grain deal. Shipments of grain from Ukraine had been in jeopardy after Russia suspended its participation in the initiative last weekend. It resumed its role on Wednesday.

Guterres said the initiative has reached a new milestone with 10 million metric tons of grain and other food products being shipped through the Black Sea corridor in three months.

“Despite all the obstacles we have seen, the beacon of hope in the Black Sea is still shining and the initiative is working,” he said. “It is our collective responsibility to keep it working smoothly.”

More background: In July, following months of negotiations, ministers from both Ukraine and Russia signed the grain deal brokered by the UN and Turkey. Russia pledged to unblock ports on the Black Sea to allow the safe passage of grain and oilseeds — some of Ukraine’s most important exports. The shipments are viewed as critical to addressing the global food shortage.

The UN chief said Thursday that he is grateful for Turkey's diplomatic efforts in establishing and helping reopen the vital food supply line.