According to Russia, it has gone on the offensive in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions of eastern Ukraine. “In the Donetsk area, the Russian units continued their attacks and drove the enemy from their fortified positions,” army spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on Saturday. The port city of Odessa was without power after nighttime drone strikes. The occupation administration in Kherson apparently began to accept Ukrainian currency.
Reports have been circulating for weeks that the Ukrainian army is on the defensive in the Donetsk region, trying to hold its defensive lines in front of the industrial city of Donetsk and east of the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk conurbation. Fighting especially takes place around the town of Bachmut, with heavy losses on both sides.
No power supply in Odessa
Further north, on the other hand, the Ukrainians still have the initiative after Russian troops were driven out of the Kharkov region. Here both sides report mutual attacks on the opposing positions. Observers also reported that Russian troops have built fortifications in the 60-kilometer area up to the Russian state border.
In the southern Ukrainian port city of Odessa, Russian attacks with “kamikaze drones” caused massive power outages. Aside from facilities such as hospitals and maternity wards, the entire city was left without electricity after the nightly attacks, deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office Kyrylo Tymoshenko told Telegram on Saturday. The situation is “difficult but under control”.
According to regional governor Maksym Marchenko, almost all districts and municipalities in the Odessa region are also without power as a result of the drone strikes. Two of the drones were shot down by Ukrainian air defenses, he said.
Ukrainian currency is seized
Meanwhile, the Russian-installed government in the occupied territories of Kherson has, according to its own statements, begun to withdraw the Ukrainian currency hryvnia. The occupation administration announced that it would be exchanged for Russian rubles. From January 1, only the ruble should be in circulation. In a video published by the administration on Telegram, the head of the local branch of the Central Bank of Russia, Andrei Peretonkin, said that this was for the convenience of residents and for the smooth integration of the region into the Russian Federation .
Local banks started picking up the hryvnia this week. Russian forces took control of most of the Kherson region at the start of their invasion on February 24. In September, the area was annexed, which is not recognized internationally. The Russian troops later had to withdraw from the regional capital of the same name, but still control most of the area.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
