Ukraine Russia news – latest: Putin ‘fears assassination’ after bitter Kherson defeat

Russia will announce a number of initiatives related to gas cooperation with Turkey and grain exports at a gathering of leaders from the Group of 20 (G20) nations in Indonesia next week, the foreign ministry said on Thursday.

“A number of specific initiatives are planned, including increasing gas cooperation with Turkey, (and) organising large shipments of grain and fertilisers,” it said in a statement.

President Vladimir Putin, who will not be attending the summit in person, has proposed the idea of creating what he calls a “gas hub” in Turkey, via which shipments of Russian gas could be sold on to the European market.

The foreign ministry said it hoped the summit would contribute to the establishment of a “multipolar” world, a term Putin often uses to criticise what he argues is Western dominance in global affairs.

Russia‘s presence at the G20 meeting has drawn criticism from Western countries and Ukraine, who called for Putin to be barred from attending the summit.

Russian and Indonesian officials said on Thursday that Putin would not go in person but may join virtually. Instead, Russia‘s delegation in Bali will be fronted by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

A total of 200,000 soldiers and 40,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed in the nine months Russia invaded Ukraine, a top US general has said.

Speaking at The Economic Club of New York, he said: “There has been a tremendous amount of suffering, human suffering.”

It comes as Russia announced this week that it has begun a retreat from Kherson, where civilians were evacuated in masses ealier this month as the streets prepared for battle.

Ukrainian forces have advanced seven km (4.3 miles) in two directions in the south and captured 12 new settlements in the last 24 hours, Ukrainian army chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said on Thursday.

“We can’t yet confirm or deny the information of the so-called withdrawal of Russian occupation troops from Kherson. We continue to conduct the offensive operation in line with our plan,” he wrote in a post on Telegram.

The European Commission on Thursday proposed two action plans to address the “deteriorating security environment” following Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine, to bolster cyber defence and to allow armed forces to move faster and better across borders.

“Cyberspace has no borders,” the European Union’s executive said in a statement. “Recent cyber-attacks on energy networks, transport infrastructure and space assets show the risks that they pose to both civilian and military actors.”

It said this called for more action to protect citizens and armed forces, as well as the EU’s civilian and military missions and operations, against cyber threats.

A separate Action Plan on Military Mobility will help European armed forces to respond better, more rapidly and at sufficient scale to crises erupting at the EU’s external borders and beyond, the Commission said.

The Ukrainian military said it could neither confirm nor deny that Russian forces were indeed pulling out.

Volodymyr Zelensky himself was also cautious, mentioning Kherson just once in his daily overnight television address. Ukrainian forces were strengthening their positions “step by step” in the south, he said. “The enemy will make no gifts to us.”

Kyiv has hoped to trap thousands of Russian troops in the pocket, and appears to be advancing cautiously to protect its own troops, while inflicting as much damage as possible on the Russians as they try to escape across the river.

At the front north of Kherson there was less artillery audible than usual. A heavy fog had settled in overnight, light snow fell and the ground was coated with frost. Ukrainian troops manning checkpoints were buttoned up against the cold.

Vitaliy Kim, governor of Mykolaiv region which includes Snihurivka, stopped short of proclaiming the area liberated pending an official announcement by the military, but said authorities were planning a shipment of aid there.

“I know for sure that this decision was not easy for anyone. Not for those who took it, nor for those of us who understood it would be so but still prayed it wouldn’t happen,” said Margarita Simonyan, head of RT, Russia‘s international propaganda channel.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was shown on TV on Wednesday giving the retreat order in response to advice from his top commander who said it was necessary to save the lives of troops who would be better able to defend the Dnipro’s opposite bank.

Jubilant Ukrainian troops proclaimed the liberation on Thursday of the first village they recaptured since Moscow ordered one of the war’s biggest retreats, but Kyiv remained wary, warning that fleeing Russians could turn Kherson into a “city of death”.

A small group of Ukrainian soldiers was shown on state television in the centre of the village of Snihurovka around 55 km (35 miles) north of Kherson city, greeting dozens of residents in a square with a Ukrainian flag fluttering from a pole behind them. Reuters verified the location of the video.

“Today, on Nov. 10, 2023, Snihurivka was liberated by the forces of the 131st Separate Intelligence Battalion. Glory to Ukraine!” a commander declared as the locals applauded, cheered and filmed the soldiers on their phones.

Petro Lupan, 46, distributing bread to residents along another part of the front line north of Kherson, told Reuters he had just learned of the recapture of Snihurivka from a friend he had reached by phone in the village.

“I can’t find words to describe my feelings,” he said.

The advance took place less than a day after Moscow ordered its troops to withdraw from the entire Russian-held pocket on the west bank of the Dnipro River, including Kherson city, the only regional capital Russia had captured in nine months of war.

Vladimir Putin is worried about assassination attempts, political analyst Sergey Markov has said, after the Russian president decided not to travel to Bali for the G20 summit.

Mr Markov said: “The reasons as to why Putin is not going to G20 are serious,’ he said. “There is a big possibility of an assassination attempt on Putin from the special services of the US, Britain and Ukraine.”

He added that another reason for Putin’s absence at the summit is because of “a possibility of humiliating situations”.

“ For example, some disabled social activist knocks Putin down – as if accidentally – and all world media splash a picture with a caption ‘President of Russia is down on all fours’.

“I am certain this kind of situation is being planned by some completely mad Westerners.”

Mr Markov also stated that the recent withdrawl of Russian troops from Kherson is anothe reason why Putin is afraid.

“After defeat in Kherson, Russia’s status as a great state is questionable,” he said. “They will be putting pressure on, and demand soft capitulation.”

A senior adviser to Ukraine‘s president said on Thursday Russia wanted to turn Kherson into a “city of death” after Moscow ordered its troops to withdraw from the southern Ukrainian city.

Political adviser Mykhailo Podolyak accused Russia of mining everything from apartments to sewers and planning to shell Kherson from the other side of the River Dnipro.

“RF (Russia) wants to turn Kherson into a ‘city of death’. The Russian military mines everything they can: apartments, sewers. Artillery on the left bank plans to turn the city into ruins,” Podolyak wrote on Twitter.

“This is what (the) ‘Russian world’ looks like: came, robbed, celebrated, killed ‘witnesses’, left ruins and left.”

Russia did not immediately comment on Podolyak’s remarks.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu on Wednesday announced Russian forces would retreat from the west bank of the Dnipro River, which includes Kherson, the only regional capital Moscow had captured since invading Ukraine in February.

Ukraine‘s military said it was still unable to confirm Russian troops were withdrawing from Kherson.

Brigadier General Oleksiy Gromov told a briefing that the Ukrainian armed forces own actions had left Russian forces no option but to withdraw.

“But at the moment, we can neither confirm nor deny the information about the so-called Russian withdrawal of troops from Kherson. We will continue our offensive operation in accordance with our plan,” he said.

Russia‘s foreign ministry said on Thursday that it had summoned the Latvian ambassador in protest over what it said was the demolition of Soviet-era monuments.

“A strong protest was issued to the head of the Latvian diplomatic mission in connection with the ongoing policy of state vandalism in Latvia to dismantle Soviet memorials,” the foreign ministry said.

Ukrainian troops claimed on Thursday to have recaptured the town of Snihurivka in southern Mykolaiv region from Russian forces, speaking in video footage published on social media and by Ukrainian national television.

The footage could not immediately be verified by Reuters and there was no immediate confirmation of the town’s recapture from Ukraine‘s Defence Ministry, a day after Russia ordered its forces to retreat from the area.

“Today on Nov. 10, Snihurivka was liberated by the forces of the 131st Separate Intelligence Battalion. Glory to Ukraine!” a soldier shouted as civilians clapped and cheered.

Fog hung over the settlement in the background as the soldier stood in a group of heavily armed troops, one of whom was holding up the Ukrainian flag on a military infantry vehicle.