Ukraine war: Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticises Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko in rare sign of discontent
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has criticised the mayor of Kyiv over the provision of emergency shelters, in a sign of discontent rarely seen between Ukrainian leaders since the start of Russia’s invasion.
The president indicated that Vitali Klitschko, the boxing legend turned politician, had not done enough to help the capital’s residents cope with Moscow’s most devastating strikes of the war.
Putin’s warning for Russian mothers – live war updates
Most regions across Ukraine have been impacted by blackouts this week, and while the six million people currently affected is down from a peak of 12 million a few days ago, Mr Zelenskyy said “the biggest problems” were in Kyiv.
“Unfortunately, local authorities have not performed well in all cities,” he said in his nightly video address.
“In particular, there are a lot of complaints in Kyiv. To put it mildly, more work is needed.”
Mr Zelenskyy said that many of the city’s residents had been without power “for 20 or even 30 hours”, and called for “more support” and “quality work” from the mayor’s office.
Read more:
Striking satellite image shows Ukraine’s power shortage
People walk in a park during a blackout in Kyiv. Pic: AP
Ukraine’s ‘invincibility centres’
In the wake of Russia‘s aerial bombardment on its neighbour’s energy infrastructure, an apparent cynical attempt to inflict maximum damage as winter looms, Ukraine has been setting up “invincibility centres”.
These are emergency shelters where people can access heat, water, internet, and mobile phone service.
More than 4,000 have been set up so far, but – according to Mr Zelenskyy – not enough in Kyiv.
Mr Klitschko, a key face of Ukrainian resistance since Vladimir Putin‘s full-scale invasion began in February, has not responded to his president’s criticism.
Meanwhile, the national power grid operator Ukrenergo said its engineers are “working around the clock” to restore energy supplies, but 30% are still out despite the reconnection of Ukraine’s four nuclear power plants.
Three are in Ukrainian-held territory and one is in Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia. They were all back online late on Friday after attacks forced them to shut for the first time in 40 years.
Read more:
The role of Crimea in war for Ukraine
Lviv has also been hit by power cuts
Putin shows no sign of backing down
The Kremlin has claimed that the attacks on Ukraine’s basic infrastructure are militarily legitimate, just as it’s tried to justify the actions of its forces throughout the war.
In a meeting with the mothers of Russian servicemen on Friday, Mr Putin again defended the invasion.
“Russia is first and foremost about people, their culture, their traditions, their history, which is passed down from generation to generation and absorbed with mother’s milk,” he said.
“The main guarantee of our success is our unity.”
While Mr Putin was having tea, his Ukrainian counterpart went to the town of Vyshhorodm, slightly north of Kyiv, to observe damage to buildings and one of the new emergency centres.
Earlier, the president met with UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who pledged continued British support and condemned Russia’s “brutal attacks”.
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Sunak turns tough talk into action with Kyiv visit
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Putin reveals he calls soldiers in Ukraine
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It comes ahead of Ukraine marking the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor famine, which the country recognises as a genocide against its people by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin.
Historians dispute whether the famine, which killed millions of Ukrainians, was a purposefully orchestrated bid to eradicate an independence movement, or a botched nationalisation policy.
It saw Stalin order police to seize grain, livestock and seed from Ukrainian farms.
Mr Cleverly used his visit to Kyiv to accuse Mr Putin of a similar attempt to starve Ukraine’s people.
World
Trump criticises Putin after potentially ‘historic’ meeting with Zelenskyy before Pope’s funeral
Donald Trump has criticised Vladimir Putin and suggested a shift in his stance towards the Russian president after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy before the Pope’s funeral.
The Ukrainian president said the one-on-one talks could prove to be “historic” after pictures showed him sitting opposite Mr Trump, around two feet apart, in the large marble hall inside St Peter’s Basilica.
The US president said he doubted his Russian counterpart’s willingness to end the war after leaving Rome after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican.
Follow live updates: 200,000 mourn at Vatican
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said “there was no reason” for the Russian president “to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days”.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
He added: “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!”
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian leaders was their first face-to-face encounter since a very public row in the Oval Office in February.
Mr Zelenskyy said he had a good meeting with Mr Trump in which they talked about the defence of the Ukrainian people, a full and unconditional ceasefire, and a durable and lasting peace that would prevent the war restarting.
Other images released by the Ukrainian president’s office show Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron were present for part of the talks, which were described as “positive” by the French presidency.
Mr Zelenskyy‘s spokesman said the meeting lasted for around 15 minutes and he and Mr Trump had agreed to hold further discussions later on Saturday.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Basilica
But the US president left Rome for Washington on Air Force One soon after the funeral without any other talks having taken place.
The Ukrainian president’s office said there was no second meeting in Rome because of the tight schedule of both leaders, although he had separate discussions with Mr Starmer and Mr Macron.
The French president said in a post on X “Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire” and that a so-called coalition of the willing, led by the UK and France, would continue working to achieve a lasting peace.
There was applause from some of the other world leaders in attendance at the Vatican when Mr Zelenskyy walked out of St Peter’s Basilica after stopping in front of the pontiff’s coffin to pay his respects.
Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president met for the first time since their Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
Sir Tony Brenton, the former British ambassador to Russia, said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and the Ukrainian leader.
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine.
Professor Father Francesco Giordano told Sky News the meeting is being called “Pope Francis’s miracle” by members of the clergy, adding: “There’s so many things that happened today – it was just overwhelming.”
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Mr Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
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Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Mr Trump has claimed a deal to end the war is “very close” and has urged Mr Zelenskyy to “get it done” in a post on his Truth Social platform.
He has previously warned both sides his administration would walk away from its efforts to achieve a peace if the two sides do not agree a deal soon.
Meanwhile, the Polish armed forces said a Russian military helicopter violated its airspace over the Baltic Sea on Friday evening.
“The nature of the incident indicates that Russia is testing the readiness of our air defence systems,” they said in a post on X.
On an extraordinary day, remarkable pictures on the margins that capture what may be a turning point for the world.
In a corner of St Peter’s Basilica before the funeral of Pope Francis, the leaders of America and Ukraine sit facing each other in two solitary chairs.
They look like confessor and sinner except we cannot tell which one is which.
Leaning forward hands together in their laps, Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy stare at each other in one photo.
In another, the Ukrainian president seems to be remonstrating with the US president. This is their first encounter since their infamous bust-up in the Oval Office.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
Other pictures show the moment their French and British counterparts introduced the two men. There is a palpable sense of nervousness in the way the leaders engage.
We do not know what the two presidents said in their brief meeting.
But in the mind of the Ukrainian leader will be the knowledge President Trump has this week said America will reward Russia for its unprovoked brutal invasion of his country, under any peace deal.
Mr Trump has presented Ukraine and Russia with a proposal and ultimatum so one-sided it could have been written in the Kremlin.
Kyiv must surrender the land Russia has taken by force, Crimea forever, the rest at least for now. And it must submit to an act of extortion, a proposed deal that would hand over half its mineral wealth effectively to America.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Afterwards, Zelenskyy said it had been a good meeting that could turn out to be historic “if we reach results together”.
They had talked, he said, about the defence of Ukraine, a full and unconditional ceasefire and a durable and lasting peace that will prevent a war restarting.
The Trump peace proposal includes only unspecified security guarantees for Ukraine from countries that do not include the US. It rules out any membership of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies are watching closely to see if Mr Trump will apply any pressure on Vladimir Putin, let alone punish him for recent bloody attacks on Ukraine.
Or will he simply walk away if the proposal fails, blaming Ukrainian intransigence, however outrageously, before moving onto a rapprochement with Moscow.
If he does, America’s role as guarantor of international security will be seen effectively as over.
This could be the week we see the world order as we have known it since the end of the Second World War buried, as well as a pope.
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