WAR IN UKRAINE: February 11, 2023
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Day 352
Friday morning across Ukraine commences with air raid sirens blaring ahead of a barrage of Russian cruise missile which targeted Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia, Lviv, Ivano Frankivsk, Khmelnytsky, Kryvij Rikh, Kharkiv, Odesa and other cities. A wave of drones were also deployed. Later, the Ukrainian Air Force said it managed to shoot down 61 of 71 missiles and five drones. Officials also said around 35 S-300 missiles were aimed at Zaporizhzhia and the Kharkiv region. The attack on Zaporizhzhia was described by the Ukrainian prime minister as "one of the largest air attacks" to hit the city since the war began.
In the Odesa region, air defense units shot down four Iranian Shahed-136 drones "that were trying to hit energy infrastructure facilities," according to Maksym Marchenko, head of the regional military administration. "I am grateful to the air defense units that are always on guard over our skies and have once again demonstrated their professionalism," Marchenko said in a Telegram post.
In the attacks Friday, "Ukraine has temporarily lost 44% of its nuclear generation, 75% of its thermal power plant capacity and 33% of its combined heat and power plants," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said, adding that repairs are underway, and there are enough energy resources and generators for Ukraine to make it through the winter.
After Friday’s nationwide attack, the Ukrainian Air Force claimed that two missiles transited Moldovan and Romanian airspace before re-entering Ukraine. In response, Moldova summoned the Russian ambassador while Romania - a NATO country hosting U.S. and other troops from the bloc - denied the violation of their airspace.
Drone and missile attacks continued late into Friday and early into Saturday in Kyiv, Odesa and Kherson regions - Ukrainian media.
US President Joe Biden will visit Poland this monthto mark the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine - CNN
Russian President Vladimir Putin will deliver an address to the Federal Assembly on February 21, three days before the one-year anniversary of his invasion of Ukraine - CNN
Required reading…
CNN Opinion: How the war in Ukraine obscured an uncomfortable truth
What a difference a year — and a war — makes.
Around this time last year — with Russia on the brink of launching its full-scale invasion — Ukrainians’ confidence in their president to handle the military threat massing on their doorstep was low.
Former comedian Volodymyr Zelensky’s popularity ratings were tanking as he battled allegations of unmet campaign promises to tackle endemic corruption.
At the time, one of the major complaints against Zelensky was that he’d let pledges to reform the judicial system slide — a delay that threatened to derail Ukraine’s aspirations of joining the European Union.
Read my full CNN Opinion OpEd here