The Group of Seven nations will formally coordinate assistance in repairing, restoring and protecting Ukraine’s energy and water infrastructure, following a foreign ministers meeting in Muenster, Germany. The G-7 said it would hold Russia accountable for “war crimes” against Ukrainian civilians.
(Bloomberg) — The Group of Seven nations will formally coordinate assistance in repairing, restoring and protecting Ukraine’s energy and water infrastructure, following a foreign ministers meeting in Muenster, Germany. The G-7 said it would hold Russia accountable for “war crimes” against Ukrainian civilians.
Chinese President Xi Jinping told German Chancellor Olaf Scholz he opposed the use of nuclear force in Europe, in his most direct remarks yet on the need to keep Russia’s war in Ukraine from escalating.
Power rationing has widened in the capital as Ukrainian authorities seek to relieve pressure on the power grid. Kremlin troops escalated shelling of civilian infrastructure last month as Russian forces were losing ground on the battlefield.
(See RSAN on the Bloomberg Terminal for the Russian Sanctions Dashboard.)
Key Developments
- Xi Tells Scholz China Opposes Nuclear Force in Message to Putin
- Ukraine Seeks IT Investment at Web Summit as War Rages Back Home
- US, Partners Opt to Set Fixed Crude Price For Russia Oil Cap
- EU Studies Use of Russian Central Bank Assets to Rebuild Ukraine
- How Ukrainians Are Protecting Their Centuries-Old Culture From Putin’s Invasion
On the Ground
Russian forces continue attacks near Bakhmut, Avdiyivka and Novopavlivka north-east of occupied Donetsk city, Ukraine’s General Staff said on Facebook. Ukraine downed three Shahed-136 drones over the past 24 hours, according to the statement. Russian troops tripled the number of attacks on certain areas of the front line — up to 80 per day, Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said in a telephone phone call with General Christopher Cavoli, the head of US European Command on Thursday evening. Ukrainian air defense shot down nine Shahed-136 single-attack drones overnight, defense ministry said on Telegram. This includes eight drones downed in the east,and one drone in western Ukraine.
(All times CET)
Russia Seeks Sanctions Relief for Agriculture Bank: Reuters (3:44 p.m.)
Russia wants Western countries to ease curbs on state-owned agriculture lender Rosselkhozbank and clear the way for Russian grain exports, according to a Reuters report citing people it didn’t identify.
Moscow hasn’t publicly detailed its demands beyond calling on European nations to release Russian fertilizer stuck in ports and warehouses, and allowing it to resume exports of ammonia.
Slovak Premier Seeks Export Analysis on Russia Component Report (3:08 p.m.)
Slovakia’s premier said he’d ordered the government to analyze reports that his country had exported components to Russia that could be used for military purposes after the invasion of Ukraine started.
Read more: Slovak Premier Seeks Export Analysis on Russia Component Report
G-7 Creates ‘Mechanism’ to Defend Ukraine’s Key Infrastructure (2:30 p.m.)
The Group of Seven nations has agreed to coordinate assistance in repairing, restoring and protecting Ukraine’s energy and water facilities, which have been under a month of attacks from Kremlin troops.
In the statement following their meeting in Germany, the G-7 foreign ministers said they have established a “coordination mechanism to help Ukraine repair, restore and defend its critical energy and water infrastructure.”
Strengthening Ukraine’s “civilian resilience” will be a focus of an international conference in Paris planned for Dec. 13, they said, adding that the group “will stand firmly with Ukraine for as long as it takes.”
G-7 Vows to Hold Russia Accountable for ‘War Crimes’ (2 p.m.)
The Group of Seven condemned Russia’s recent move to “terrorize” Ukraine’s civilian population with ongoing, “indiscriminate” attacks against energy and water facilities that have left much of the nation in the dark.
Those strikes “constitute war crimes, and we reiterate our determination to ensure full accountability for these and crimes against humanity,” G-7 foreign ministers said in a statement following their meeting in Muenster, Germany.
The statement also condemned “irresponsible nuclear rhetoric” by the Kremlin. “Any use of chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons by Russia would be met with severe consequences,” the G-7 said, without laying out specific steps. The group reiterated a call to Belarus “to stop enabling Russia’s war” and said the Belarusian regime risks “overwhelming additional costs.”
Ukraine in Talks to Set Up Weapon Repair Hubs Abroad (12:30 p.m.)
The hubs for advanced maintenance and repairs of western military equipment would be set up in partner countries such as Poland, Czech Republic or Slovakia, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said during a video briefing Friday.
Ukraine has enough 155-caliber munitions for artillery from western partners while supplies of munitions for Himars and other types of key weapons used to resist Russian invasion also continue, he said.
Reznikov expects an air defense network to be created in order to protect Ukrainian skies, using various systems provided by allies.
Ukraine Marks Railway Workers Day (12 p.m.)
“The Ukrainian railway has become a real road of life. And evacuation trains are a salvation for millions of Ukrainians,” President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in an Instagram post.
EU Says Iran Must Stop Drone Deliveries to Russia (9:30 a.m.)
The European Union urged Iran to stop the alleged supply of drones to Russia as a violation of UN resolutions, the bloc’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said.
“Iran denies it but Ukrainians have been providing evidence of the use of drones,” Borrell told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of Group of Seven foreign ministers in Muenster, Germany.
Xi Calls on World to Oppose Use of Nuclear Weapons (9:10 a.m.)
The international community should “oppose the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons,” Chinese President Xi Jinping said in talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz that covered the fighting in Ukraine. “Nuclear war cannot be fought,” Xi added in the meeting Friday in Beijing, according to Chinese state media.
Scholz, on Twitter, said he had asked Xi “to exert his influence on Russia.”
Kremlin officials have warned Russia could use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine, though President Vladimir Putin later denied intending to do that.
Russia Is Likely Deploying ‘Blocking Units,’ UK Says (8 a.m.)
Low morale and reluctance to fight probably mean Russian forces have started to deploy “barrier troops” or “blocking units” that threaten to shoot retreating soldiers, the UK defense ministry said in an update, without offering evidence.
“Recently, Russian generals likely wanted their commanders to use weapons against deserters, including possibly authorizing shooting to kill such defaulters after a warning had been given,” the UK said. “Generals also likely wanted to maintain defensive positions to the death.”
Kyiv Urges China to Press Russia on Infrastructure Attacks (10:04 p.m.)
Kyiv called on China to push Russia to end attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure as some of it is leased by Chinese businesses, Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said on Facebook.
Russian missiles hit Chinese-leased terminals in Ukraine’s Mykolayiv port last month causing a $26 million loss as thousands of tons of sunflower oils leaked. There are other potential targets that include a Chinese-owned terminal, the spokesman said.
Sanctioned Superyacht Seized in Spain as Owner Stops Paying Fees (8:32 p.m.)
A Spanish court moved to seize a superyacht valued at $140 million that’s linked to a senior executive at a Russian defense conglomerate, after the owner stopped paying maintenance fees in June.
The court order to seize the 85meter (279-foot) Meridian A — formerly called Valerie — was handed down by a Barcelona judge on Wednesday, according to the Spanish maritime authorities.
The vessel, linked to Rostec State Corp.’s chief executive officer, Sergey Chemezov, was immobilized in mid-March by Spanish authorities while it was at a Barcelona shipyard for repairs. The European Union considers the vessel is formally owned by the stepdaughter of Chemezov.
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