Ben

Russia is preparing for trilateral talks by launching ballistic missiles at Ukraine’s critical infrastructure. Repair and rescue operations are underway in the affected regions wherever the security situation allows. In total, the Russians used 172 drones and 36 ballistic missiles, with all the missiles aimed at Kyiv and the surrounding region. Energy infrastructure was once again the main target. The capital is facing serious difficulties with its electricity, water, and heat supplies. Residential buildings and the Northern Bridge were damaged. A kindergarten was partially destroyed. In the Kyiv region, a substation connecting the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plants to Kyiv and Ukraine’s central regions was hit. Substations were also damaged in the Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Kharkiv, and Dnipro regions. In addition to Kyiv, twelve other regions came under attack. Nine people were injured, including one child. I thank all our people who defend the country against this terror every day, work to restore what has been damaged, and do everything they can to get Ukraine through the winter. But when Russia is trying to plunge Kyiv – a city of millions – and the entire country into a blackout, Ukraine must not be left alone. We are counting on increased bilateral support from the United States. We are counting on the U.S. Congress to give more attention to Ukraine, because Russia keeps increasing the number of its attacks. It is important that support for Ukraine remains among the priorities of U.S. policy. We are counting on both parties to stand united on matters of security, support for Ukraine, condemnation of Russian aggression, and increased sanctions pressure on Putin. America’s resolve and consistency in supporting Ukraine are crucial in bringing peace closer.

I thank all our partners in the NB8 – the Prime Minister of Estonia @KristenMichalPM, the President of Finland @alexstubb, the President of Lithuania @GitanasNauseda, the Prime Minister of Denmark @Statsmin, the Prime Minister of Iceland @KristrunFrosta, the Prime Minister of Latvia @AndrisKulbergs, the Prime Minister of Norway @jonasgahrstore, and the Prime Minister of Sweden @SwedishPM. It is important that you support Ukraine and that we share the same views on matters of principle. We discussed preparations for the trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi. There have been many preparatory steps in recent days: a meeting in Brussels involving NATO and Europeans, my contacts with the U.S. President’s envoys, and virtually constant communication between our negotiating teams. We believe we need to make the meeting in the Emirates productive, and we have conveyed our proposals for realistic potential outcomes to the American side. We all agree that issues concerning Europe's security must be discussed with the participation of European nations, all of which equally deserve guaranteed security. I am grateful that real diplomacy – bringing Russia's war against Ukraine to an end as soon as possible – is seen as the top priority. I briefed the leaders on our needs ahead of this winter – energy and, of course, air defense. Thank you for your readiness to help. We will continue coordinating and working out our common strong positions in detail. Thank you!