Latest news from Russia and the war in Ukraine

Dnipropetrovsk in south-eastern Ukraine was attacked by Russian missiles this morning. Regional military administration chief Valentyn Reznichenko said there were “several hits during the morning’s attack on the region.”

“The Russians have targeted energy infrastructure assets in Dnipro and Pavlohrad. Heavy destruction is registered. All services work on site.”

Major cities, including Kyiv, were hit by rocket attacks Monday morning, with critical energy infrastructure coming under renewed attack from Russian forces.

— Holly Ellyatt

A series of rocket attacks hit major Ukrainian cities Monday morning, targeting the capital Kyiv and cities in the northeast and south, according to regional officials.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram that part of the capital had been “cut off” by the strikes, which he said had hit critical infrastructure facilities. “There is no water supply in some areas,” he said.

In his last post, he said engineers were working to restore power after damage was done to a power plant that supplies electricity to around 350,000 apartments in Kyiv. Local authorities have urged city residents to remain in bomb shelters until the air alert ends.

An adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the wave of rocket attacks as “massive”.

Elsewhere, the Mayor of Kharkiv in north-eastern Ukraine Igor Terekhov said said there had been two “arrivals” in the city which hit critical infrastructure facilities in the city this morning.

More strikes were reported in the city of Zaporizhzhzhia in southern Ukraine, with city council secretary Anatolii Kurtiev posting on Telegram that Russian forces had “attacked a critical infrastructure facility,” causing power outages in the city. “Information on the victims and the extent of the damage is being clarified,” he said.

The wave of missile attacks comes after Russia on Saturday accused Ukraine of conducting a drone strike on its Black Sea fleet off the coast of Crimea. Ukraine has not said if it is responsible for the attack.

— Holly Ellyatt

Global wheat prices started to rise after Russia pulled out of the Black Sea Grain Export Agreement last weekend.

The most active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade rose 5.8% to $8.77-1/2 a bushel around midnight London time, after previously peaking at $8.93 a bushel, according to Reuters. Corn and soybean prices also rose.

The increases come after Russia announced on Saturday that it was suspending its involvement in the Black Sea Grains Initiative brokered in July, which enabled exports of essential agricultural products from several Ukrainian ports.

Russia announced on Saturday that it was indefinitely withdrawing from the deal after accusing Ukraine of a “massive” drone attack on the Black Sea Fleet in Crimea’s Sevastopol.

Ukraine has not said if it is responsible for the attack. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia’s withdrawal from the initiative was “fairly predictable” and that the global food crisis was getting worse.

Moscow’s move is “an absolutely transparent intention by Russia to bring back the threat of widespread famine to Africa and Asia,” Zelenskyy said, adding that “access to food has actually deteriorated for more than 7 million consumers.”

The United Nations and Turkey, which helped Ukraine and Russia finalize the grain deal, have agreed with Ukraine on a plan to relocate 16 ships (12 outbound and 4 inbound) operating in the sea corridor used for grain exports stuck.

The Grain Export Control Organization, the Joint Coordinating Body, said in a statement Sunday that “in order to further fulfill the initiative, it has been proposed that the Turkish and United Nations delegations deploy 10 inspection teams tomorrow, aiming to inspect 40 departing ships. This inspection plan was accepted by the Ukrainian delegation. The delegation of the Russian Federation has been informed.”

— Holly Ellyatt

More than 30 buildings were destroyed in the Donetsk region as a result of Russian shelling, Ukraine’s National Police said on Monday.

Police in the Donetsk region said the destruction was the result of 24 attacks on civilians and that “there are dead and wounded”.

Sixteen settlements came under shelling, including the towns of Avdiivka, Bakhmut and Lyman and other villages, destroying 22 residential buildings as well as municipal buildings, farm buildings, garages and cars, police said.

In his late-night address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described how Ukrainian forces repelled a “brutal” Russian attack in the Donetsk region. Bakhmut and Avdiivka have seen fierce fighting in recent weeks.

— Holly Ellyatt

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that Ukrainian forces repelled a “brutal” offensive by Russian troops in the eastern Donetsk region.

The president said a military unit from Chop in western Ukraine repelled the offensive but did not say where the fighting took place. In recent weeks, however, intense fighting has centered around Avdiivka and the strategically important city of Bakhmut.

“Today they stopped the enemy’s brutal attack” Zelenskyy said in his nightly address. “The Russian attack was repelled,” he said. He also alluded to the fact that Russian soldiers had been captured and could be used in future prisoner exchanges.

On Saturday, Russia announced it was suspending its participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, an agreement reached in July to enable agricultural supplies from Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said 218 ships were now “effectively blocked” as a result of the failure of the initiative and Moscow was “taking the world to the brink of a serious food crisis”.

— Holly Ellyatt