WAR IN UKRAINE: September 12, 2022
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Day 201
Power blackouts have reportedly affected around nine million people in eastern regions of Ukraine, including Kharkiv and Donetsk. It comes after Ukraine said it had retaken over 3,000 sq km (1,158 sq miles) during a rapid counter-offensive in the east. Due to Ukraine news restrictions, the statistics cannot be verified independently
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that “terrorists remain terrorists” when commenting on the major blackouts. He added: "History will put everything in its place," addressing the Russians. "We will be with gas, light, water, and food... and without you."
In an interview with the Financial Times, Ukraine's Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov warned of the potential for a Russian counter-attack. "A counter-offensive liberates territory and after that you have to control it and be ready to defend it.”
As Russian forces suffer a string of stunning defeats in Ukraine, Moscow is playing up Beijing's support for its invasion ahead of a key meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week - CNN
French President Emmanuel Macron told his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to remove weapons and troops stationed next to the Zaporyzhzhia nuclear power plant amid growing international concerns about a potential catastrophe. Among European countries, France has committed among the least budgetary percentage to Ukraine.
Operations at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant have been "completely stopped" as a safety measure, Enerhoatom, the Ukrainian state agency in charge of the plant, announced. Some reports suggest the last functioning reactor is transitioning into sleep mode.
In the Black Sea, Russian forces have activated 14 warships, including 4 surface-to-surface missile carriers, equipped with 26 "Caliber" missiles, and the presence of 4 large amphibious ships, according to Ukrainska Pravda
