Ukraine’s capital Kyiv banned public celebrations this week to commemorate independence from Russian-dominated Soviet rule and its second metropolis Kharkiv declared a curfew as a result of a heightened risk of Russian assault, native authorities mentioned.

Close to frontlines within the south of the nation, Ukraine mentioned Russia fired rockets into a number of southern Ukrainian cities north and west of Europe’s largest nuclear energy plant, captured by Russian forces shortly after they invaded Ukraine in February.

Artillery and rocket fireplace within the area of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear reactor advanced, on the Russian-occupied south financial institution of the Dnipro River, has stirred fears of a nuclear catastrophe and led to requires the encompassing space to be demilitarised.

Russia launched what it calls a “particular army operation” on 24 February to demilitarise its smaller neighbour and shield Russian-speaking communities. Ukraine and its Western backers accuse Moscow of waging an imperial-style struggle of conquest.

Native authorities in Kyiv have banned giant public occasions, rallies and different gatherings associated to the anniversary within the capital from Monday till Thursday as a result of the opportunity of rocket assaults, in keeping with a doc printed by the Kyiv army administration and signed by its head Mykola Zhyrnov.

Ihor Terekhov, mayor of Kharkiv within the northeast which has come underneath frequent and lethal long-range Russian bombardment, prolonged a daily in a single day curfew to run from 4 p.m. to 7 a.m. efficient from Tuesday to Thursday.

Within the port metropolis of Mykolaiv close to Russian-occupied territory to the south, regional governor Vitaly Kim mentioned authorities had been getting ready a precautionary order for residents to do business from home on Tuesday and Wednesday and urged individuals to not collect in giant teams.

Zelenskyy, in his nightly video deal with on Saturday, mentioned Moscow might strive “one thing notably ugly” within the run-up to Wednesday, which additionally marks half a yr since Russia invaded.

He mentioned he had mentioned “all of the threats” together with his French counterpart and phrase had additionally been despatched to different leaders together with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and UN Secretary-Basic António Guterres.

“All of Ukraine’s companions have been knowledgeable about what the terrorist state can put together for this week,” Zelenskyy mentioned in his nightly video deal with, referring to Russia.

The Monetary Instances, in an article printed on Sunday, quoted Gennady Gatilov, Moscow’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, as saying Erdoğan had tried to facilitate dialogue.

However he dismissed hypothesis about talks between Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying there was no “sensible platform for having this assembly”, the report mentioned.

Nuclear danger

Ukraine and Russia have traded blame for repeated incidents of shelling in and across the premises of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear reactor advanced, on the Russian-occupied south financial institution of the Dnipro River, in latest weeks.

Kyiv has accused Moscow of basing troops and storing army tools on the grounds of the ability station and utilizing it as a protect from which to bombard Ukrainian government-controlled territory to the west and north. Russia denies this and accuses Ukraine of focusing on the plant with shells and drones.

In a single day on Monday, Russian forces fired rockets into Nikopol, simply throughout the Dnipro from the plant on its south financial institution, in addition to the Krivyi Rih and Synelnykovskyi districts additional out to the northwest and northeast respectively, regional Governor Valentyn Reznichenko wrote on Telegram.

Ukraine additionally reported a Russian missile strike on Voznesensk, to the southwest and never removed from the nation’s second-largest atomic energy station.

On Sunday, US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron held a telephone name stressing the significance of guaranteeing the security and safety of Ukraine’s nuclear installations.

Additionally they welcomed latest discussions on enabling a mission by the UN nuclear watchdog company to Zaporizhzhia, whereas reaffirming their “steadfast dedication” to help Ukraine within the face of Russia’s invasion.

The battle, Europe’s greatest since World Struggle Two, has destroyed cities and cities, killed hundreds of individuals, compelled hundreds of thousands to flee overseas and deepened a geopolitical chasm between Russia and the West.

Since Ukraine repelled a Russian try and seize Kyiv early within the struggle, the combating has been concentrated within the east and south the place frontlines have been largely static for weeks.

In its morning replace on Monday, Ukraine’s Basic Workers mentioned Russian forces had made incremental advances into the Blahodnatne space within the course of Mykolaiv.

Russia was additionally attempting to regain momentum in the direction of Pisky, Bakhmut and Kramatorsk, key cities in Donetsk province which, together with neighbouring Luhansk, captured by Moscow’s forces earlier in the summertime, comprise the japanese Donbas area.

Russian artillery and a number of rocket launcher programs hammered the areas of Soledar, Zaytseve and Bilohorivka close to Bakhmut, the Ukrainian army command’s replace mentioned.

Not less than two civilians had been killed, the regional administration mentioned. Russia denies focusing on civilians.

Demise toll of Ukraine army revealed

Practically 9,000 Ukrainian army personnel have been killed within the struggle with Russia, the top of Ukraine’s armed forces mentioned on Monday.

The toll given by Basic Valeriy Zaluzhnyi seemed to be the primary offered by Ukraine’s army high brass since Russia’s invasion on 24 February.

“They actually don’t perceive something that is occurring and positively want safety … as a result of their father has gone to the entrance and presumably is among the many virtually 9,000 heroes who’ve been killed,” he mentioned.

Zaluzhnyi offered no particulars and didn’t say whether or not the determine he cited included all service personnel killed in motion, comparable to border guards. Zelenkskyy advised the convention that about 1 million individuals had been defending Ukraine as a part of Ukraine’s armed forces or different companies.

(Edited by Georgi Gotev)