The situation as of 12:00 on November 24, 2022
OPERATIONAL SITUATION
Russian troops continue systematic attacks on the energy infrastructure of Ukraine, provoking a humanitarian catastrophe. A large-scale missile strike was carried out on November 23. As a result, the Ukrainian energy system suffered significant damage. Emergency protection was triggered at Rivne, South Ukraine and Khmelnytskyi NPPs, resulting in automatic shutdown of all power units. Key Ukrainian cities including Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv, Dnipro and Odesa were left without heating, water and energy supply. Also, as a result of Russian shelling, electricity supply to some regions of Moldova, including Chisinau, was cut off.
On November 23, the European Parliament adopted a resolution recognizing the Russian Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism. This decision will have legal and political consequences, including the strengthening of sanctions against Russia.
On the frontline, the main fighting continues in the east – near Svatove-Kreminna (Luhansk region), Avdiivka, Bakhmut and Vuhledar (Donetsk region).
Luhansk direction
The head of the Luhansk Military Administration Serhii Haidai reports on the gradual advance of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the direction of Svatove-Kreminna. Russian troops are trying to advance to the south – from Lysychansk towards Siversk (Donetsk region).
Donetsk direction
The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine informs that Donetsk region remains the hottest area of the frontline, where Russian troops continue their assault actions near Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Vuhledar. They are accompanied by intense artillery shelling. At least 7 people were killed and 15 wounded as a result of shelling in Donetsk region on November 21–23.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces respond by striking at Russian positions and rear infrastructure in the temporarily occupied territories. In Makiivka on the night of November 21, a fire was recorded on the territory of an oil depot used by Russian troops.
Zaporizhzhia direction
Shelling continues on the frontline in Zaporizhzhia region.
On November 22, Russian military shelled the town of Orikhiv. They hit a humanitarian aid distribution point, killing 1 person. On the night of November 23, as a result of a missile strike, the maternity ward of the Vilniansk hospital in Zaporizhzhia region was damaged, and 1 infant was killed.
Meanwhile, the mayor of the temporarily occupied Melitopol Ivan Fedorov reported the destruction of a Russian military base near the city.
Kherson direction
After the liberation of the right bank of Kherson region, the Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to put pressure on the positions of the Russian troops. The operation of the Ukrainian military (shelling and the work of the Special Operations Forces) on the Kinburn Spit aimed at ousting the Russian troops from there is underway. In the evening of November 22, explosions were recorded in the temporarily occupied Crimea – in Sevastopol and Yevpatoriia. Representatives of the occupation administration reported a UAV attack and the operation of air defense.
After withdrawing to the left bank of the Dnipro River, Russian troops continue shelling Kherson region. On November 21-23, at least 4 people were killed and 14 others were injured as a result of artillery strikes on the right bank of the region.
Shelling of Ukrainian territory
On November 23, Russian troops launched another large-scale missile attack on the territory of Ukraine. The attack once again targeted critical infrastructure facilities, including energy facilities in the North and West of Ukraine.
Due to the missile attacks a number of large cities (Kyiv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Lviv, Dnipro) were left without electricity and/or water supply. As a result of the strikes, Chernihiv, Odesa, Kirovohrad and Kyiv regions were left blacked out. As a result of Russian shelling, the operation of nuclear power plants on the territory of Ukraine, as well as the majority of thermal power plants and hydroelectric power plants was suspended.
The shelling has negative consequences and poses a direct threat not only to the Ukrainian energy system. On November 23, due to the massive Russian strike, power supply interruptions started in some parts of Moldova. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Moldova summoned the Russian ambassador for explanations on this issue.
The Air Force Command reported that during the missile attack Ukrainian air defense shot down 51 out of 70 Russian cruise missiles and five kamikaze drones. However, other missiles caused substantial damage to Ukraine’s critical infrastructure. Several residential buildings were also hit. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, at least 10 people were killed in the attack.
In addition to missile attacks, Russian troops continue shelling the border and frontline territories of Ukraine. In Kharkiv region, 2 people were wounded in the evening of November 21 as a result of an MLRS attack on the city of Vovchansk. In the morning of November 23 as a result of shelling of Kupiansk 2 civilians were killed and 2 more were wounded. Artillery shelling of the border areas of Sumy region and the areas around Nikopol and Marhanets in Dnipropetrovsk region is ongoing.
HUMANITARIAN SITUATION
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights updated the data on civilian casualties as a result of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. As of November 21, the confirmed casualties amount to 16,784 people (6,595 killed, 10,189 wounded). According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, as of the morning of November 23, the number of children in Ukraine affected by the full-scale Russian invasion increased to 1,279 (438 children killed, 841 injured). According to the governmental platform Children of War, as of November 23, 11461 children were deported, 326 went missing.
On November 23, another exchange of prisoners was carried out. Ukraine managed to return 36 people (1 civilian and 35 military), among the released are defenders of Azovstal and military taken prisoner during the seizure of Chornobyl NPP by Russia. Another operation to transfer the bodies of servicemen took place on November 22, with Ukraine returning the bodies of 33 fallen soldiers.
Another war crime of the Russian military was the opening of fire on a convoy of civilian cars that tried to evacuate to Zaporizhzhia. Owing to the rescue operation of the State Emergency Service there were no casualties.
New information about the crimes of the Russian occupation forces against illegally detained Ukrainian citizens in the temporarily occupied territories is emerging. It is reported that in the city of Henichesk, Kherson region, a captain of the first rank of the Ukrainian Navy in reserve Oleksii Kyseliov, who is accused of organizing a guerrilla movement, was tortured. The violation of the detainees’ rights was reported by a civilian journalist Iryna Danylovych, who is in the Simferopol detention center in Crimea.
Ukrainian law enforcement officers find new evidence of Russian crimes in the liberated Kherson. Experts have already inspected four premises that were used for illegal detention and torture of people. Later, the Security Service of Ukraine released information about the discovery of a torture chamber arranged in the basement of an office center, where the Russian military kept about 50 people.
As of November 21, Russian military illegally detain 219 people, including 6 underage children, in Zaporizhzhia region. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in Zaporizhzhia region 340 civilians have been released from hostages.
Mariupol mayor’s advisor Petro Andriushchenko stated about another attempt of the occupation administration to carry out hidden mobilization in Mariupol. The ads call men to serve in the so-called “DPR Ministry of Internal Affairs”.
Head of Kharkiv Regional Military Administration Oleh Syniehubov informed about the problems of de-occupied Izium, the infrastructure and housing stock of which is destroyed by 80%. The town remains contaminated with explosive hazards, and restoration work continues.
The report for 2022 on monitoring the use of anti-personnel mines, carried out within the framework of civil initiatives in support of the work of the International Movement to ban this type of weapon, has been published. The document notes that at least 277 people were killed or injured by anti-personnel mines in Ukraine this year. Currently, more than 200 thousand square kilometers in the liberated territories of Ukraine have not been checked and demined – sappers continue to work and find new minefields left by Russian troops. In addition, there is no data on the situation with the mine threat in the temporarily occupied territories.
According to the Ministry of Culture, more than 800 cultural objects were destroyed or damaged as a result of Russian attacks on the territory of Ukraine.
ECONOMIC SITUATION
Head of Ukrenergo Volodymyr Kudrytskyi indicated that as of November 22, there were almost no large thermal and hydroelectric power plants, as well as hub substations that remained intact in the country. According to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, as of November 22, as a result of Russian attacks on the Ukrainian energy infrastructure, the losses of the transmission system operator Ukrenergo exceeded UAH 70 billion.
It is worth noting that after the shelling on November 23, the losses may reach higher levels. In addition, in addition to physical attacks with missiles and drones, the Russian military is trying to destroy or weaken energy infrastructure through cyber attacks.
International partners and financial institutions continue to provide financial assistance to Ukraine. On November 22, the U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced the allocation of $4.5 billion in grant aid to Ukraine to support the Ukrainian state budget. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the allocation of additional €2.5 billion of macro-financial assistance to Ukraine. In turn, the Cabinet of Ministers informed that the Ukrainian state budget had received $60 million of funding from the World Bank.
The French Development Agency provides Ukraine with a soft loan in the amount of €100 million. The funds will be used to finance the expenditures of the general fund of the state budget.
Norwegian Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum signed an agreement to provide Ukraine with financing in the amount of 2 billion Norwegian kroner ($182 million) for the purchase of natural gas during the next winter. The United Nations Development Program and the European Union are ready to allocate an additional €35 million for the implementation of the program to increase the resilience and recovery of Ukraine.
On November 23, Ukraine and the International Monetary Fund reached a staff level agreement on a monitoring program with the participation of the Fund’s Management Board (PMB). The implementation of this program will pave the way for the full support of Ukraine by the Fund.
The International Monetary Fund has updated its macro forecast for Ukraine for the next year. It expects the Ukrainian economy to grow by 1% in 2023.
On November 23, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi signed the law on the state budget of Ukraine for 2023. The budget forecasts real growth of Ukrainian GDP at 4.6%, inflation of about 30%. Relative to the country’s GDP, the budget deficit will be about 20%.
POLITICAL AND DIPLOMATIC EVENTS
On the night of November 24, the UN Security Council was urgently convened to discuss another massive missile strike by Russia on critical infrastructure facilities in Ukraine. Speaking remotely, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi called on the world to respond decisively to the shelling and provide Ukraine with air defense. In addition, he proposed that the Security Council adopt a resolution condemning any form of energy terror. At the same time, the President of Ukraine called on other states to join the implementation of 10 steps to peace, which Zelenskyi presented earlier at the G20 summit.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock announced that Germany, as the presiding state of the Group of Seven, had initiated a meeting at the level of foreign ministers of this format. The purpose of the event is to discuss ways to support Ukraine in the conditions of constant damage to the energy grid as a result of Russian missile strikes.
Poland proposes to strengthen the air defense of Ukraine at the expense of German Patriot systems, which Germany previously agreed to transfer to the Polish side to protect the Polish border areas. Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki believe that these systems will better fulfill their task of countering Russian attacks if deployed in Ukraine.
The parliamentary structures of NATO and the EU recognized Russia as a terrorist state and called for the establishment of a special tribunal to investigate Russian crimes committed in the framework of aggression against Ukraine. On November 21, the relevant decision was adopted by the NATO Parliamentary Assembly – it was supported by all 30 delegations. On November 23, the European Parliament recognized Russia as a sponsor of terrorism. 494 deputies voted for the resolution, 58 voted against, and 44 abstained. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi welcomed the decision and called for the isolation of Russia at all levels.
The United States has allocated an additional $400 million in security and defense assistance to Ukraine. The new military aid package includes additional ammunition for HIMARS MLRS and NASAMS air defense systems, 150 heavy machine guns to counter drones, 150 High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWV) and other weapons and equipment. The UK is transferring to Ukraine three Sea King helicopters, which will be used for search and rescue operations, and artillery shells. In addition, the Czech Republic, Lithuania and Luxembourg announced additional military assistance to Ukraine.
New Zealand imposed new sanctions on a number of Russian companies in the oil and gas and steel sectors. Restrictions were also imposed on 22 Russian and Belarusian citizens who are representatives of the so-called elite (including members of Putin’s and Lukashenko’s families).
On November 22, the Security Service of Ukraine together with the National Police and the National Guard conducted searches in the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra. In addition, the SSU conducted security measures on the territory of religious sites of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Rivne region. In total, more than 350 church buildings and 850 people were checked. The searches revealed pro-Russian propaganda literature and cash (over UAH 2 million, more than $100 thousand and several thousand Russian rubles). These measures are part of a systematic work to counter subversive activities of Russian special services, which actively use the Moscow-controlled church for this purpose.
The information in the digest is collected from official sources—reports of state authorities of Ukraine, Ukrainian and international news agencies. The accuracy of the data is carefully checked by the project team and corrected in case of fake news.