(WARSAW) – Ukraine and Russia exchanged overnight strikes with fresh casualties and damage reported on both sides, as Britain vowed to maintain its military backing for Kyiv despite Kremlin threats over the use of British made drones in attacks inside Russian territory.
One person was killed and six others were wounded in a Russian drone attack on the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia. Russian strikes also damaged a thermal power plant, forcing it to halt electricity generation. The air attack damaged a number of homes, including a high rise apartment building.
A Ukrainian private energy company reported that one of its thermal plants was significantly damaged by the attack. The company, which operates eight thermal power plants, said that since the start of Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine, its facilities have been hit more than 230 times.
Overnight drone strikes were also reported in Russia, where explosions were heard in the Tula and Nizhny Novgorod regions, as well as in the city of Ufa.
Fedorov Calls for Wartime Elections
Ukraine’s recently ousted Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for wartime elections in a video posted on Tuesday evening, claiming that the country is facing a crisis of governance and corruption. Fedorov’s call is the first such demand by a major Ukrainian political figure since the beginning of Russia’s full scale invasion in 2022.
The law in Ukraine prohibits the holding of elections during wartime. The 35 year old was a longtime ally of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy until his unexpected firing from the Defence Ministry in July, which sparked a series of mass protests. He had been appointed to the post just six months earlier, vowing sweeping reforms. Fedorov’s video address is the biggest internal challenge to Zelenskyy since 2022.
“We must ensure the right to vote for military personnel, for the millions of Ukrainians living abroad, and for people in frontline regions. We must ensure the security of the electoral process, the independence of institutions, and confidence in the results. But difficulty does not mean impossibility,” Fedorov said.
“Ukraine has done what the world considered impossible many times before. We can find a solution here as well because democracy is not a luxury of peacetime. Democracy is part of what we are fighting for today,” he added.
“Elections are not just about a ballot. They are the moment when the government turns to the citizen and says, ‘Here’s what we’ve done. Now it’s up to you to decide whether you trust us going forward.’ It is precisely this principle that distinguishes a democratic state from a system where the government itself decides when society can evaluate it. We must not allow Putin to decide when Ukrainians can elect their own government. Ukrainian democracy must not depend on the Kremlin’s goodwill,” Fedorov said.
Britain Rejects Kremlin Threats
London has vowed to maintain its military backing for Kyiv after the Kremlin threatened “consequences” over the use of British made drones in Ukrainian strikes inside Russia.
British made drones are reportedly behind some of Ukraine’s latest deep strikes into Russia, attacks which are said to have inflicted nearly $50 billion (£39 billion, €45 billion) in losses. Moscow was quick to react.
“London’s actions will inevitably carry consequences for which it will have to answer. The deeper its involvement in the conflict, and the greater its support for Kyiv’s terrorist machinery, the higher the price it will pay,” a Kremlin statement said.
Whether the Kremlin’s warning is simply rhetoric or an attempt to deter Western support for Ukraine, Britain is making clear it has no intention of backing down.
“This is the UK doing what it has long said it would do, which is to support Ukraine 100% against this illegal war led by Vladimir Putin,” a British official said.
With the United Kingdom standing as Ukraine’s third largest donor, London is keeping its support firmly in place.
“We are not fair weather friends. We will be there in Ukraine’s hour of need. And that won’t change,” the official added.
Back in June, Britain announced it would provide Ukraine with 150,000 drones by the end of the year. Ukraine has in recent weeks been using deep strike drones to target military facilities and oil refineries, not only weakening Russia’s military capabilities but also disrupting everyday life for ordinary civilians.
“It’s clear that the Ukrainian deep strikes inside the Russian territory are making a difference and are antagonizing the middle class. Middle class Russians are simply losing money out of it. And as they are losing money, they increasingly will be turning against the war,” an analyst said.
“His entire strategy at the moment is about trying to use threats, trying to use hybrid warfare, trying to use intimidation in order to isolate Ukraine and to scare off European countries,” the analyst added.
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