Deaths on the Dnipro rail platform
A Russian drone killed 14 people and injured 14 others on a busy railway platform in Dnipro this Thursday. I find the scale of this civilian carnage entirely unacceptable. Regional governor Oleksandr Hanzha reported that another attack hit a student dormitory in Dnipro, which set the building ablaze, and cut power to 350,000 households. Later on Thursday, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said via Telegram that Russian forces launched ballistic missiles at Kyiv, which hit warehouses on the east side of the Dnipro River and triggered a fire. Emergency services headed to the scene on the east side of the Dnipro River to address the fire that broke out in the warehouses. Zelenskyy called the Dnipro train station attack "horrific" and warned of Russian preparations for new ballistic missile strikes. "We need the means to take out all this Russian evil. We are expecting relevant decisions," Zelenskyy said. These strikes in Dnipro and Kyiv occurred while other attacks across Ukraine killed at least 20 people and injured more than 70 people, according to local officials.
European leaders react to the carnage
European leaders responded to the Dnipro strikes with outrage. French President Emmanuel Macron stated that France needs "far more than a localised ceasefire" while referencing the current truce in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky. EU council president Antonio Costa called the Dnipro attacks "cruel and devastating" and demanded greater pressure on Russia after the latest strikes against civilians. "The EU will continue to increase the pressure on Russia and to support Ukraine until a just and lasting peace is achieved," Costa said. He also called on all international partners to do the same. I believe Costa’s call for pressure is the only logical response to such strikes. Zelenskyy renewed his criticism of a deal struck between Trump and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to ease some US sanctions on Russia so that Moscow could release diesel onto global markets. "How many such terrorist strikes has Russia carried out against our people since sanctions were lifted on some Russian oligarchs and the energy sector, instead of de-escalating?" Zelenskyy asked. He insisted that sanctions against Moscow and its war machine must not be eased for as long as this Russian war continues.
The refinery pause and the Oleshky truce
The situation in Oleshky remains fragile as the city has faced months of food, water and medicine shortages under Russian occupation since 2022. While the local truce in Oleshky held for a third day, Russia and Ukraine said on Thursday they were ready to begin an operation to bring aid into the town and allow residents to leave. This follows reports that Ukraine’s military paused its strikes on Russian oil refineries because of pressure from US President Donald Trump. The Wall Street Journal reported that Ukrainian long-range strike units received orders in mid-October to hold the campaign against refineries once all missions already in motion were completed, according to people with knowledge of the operations. This unofficial pause may last until after the US midterm elections and potentially deeper into November. Late on Thursday, Putin said he supported steps to restore relations with European countries and noted that the outbreak of any conflict would leave a situation with no winners. After hosting a summit with African leaders, Putin told reporters: "And if anyone wants it, let them prepare, but right now they have not achieved their goal – to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. And if things go too far, there will be no winners at all." He also commented on his phone call this week with the leaders of Norway and Finland.
