Situation in Cherson: civilians as a shield?

Diversionary maneuvers, protective shields, deportation: For Ukrainians, the so-called evacuation of Cherson is just a pretext for the occupiers. In Kyiv, the electricity has to be switched off regularly.

Ever since Russian President Vladimir Putin imposed martial law on the annexed areas of Ukraine, concerns about the humanitarian situation of the population in the four provinces have been growing. In the Cherson area in particular, in the south of Ukraine, the Russian occupiers are trying to bring the residents to more distant, Russian-controlled areas. This step is justified with the protection of the population from an allegedly imminent Ukrainian offensive.

“It’s all propaganda,” says Natalia Humeniuk, spokeswoman for the operational command of the Ukrainian armed forces in the south of the country. “The occupiers are using the civilian population as a diversionary maneuver. They are afraid themselves because they know that they cannot stop our advance and want to take the civilian population to the east bank of the Dnieper to use them as a protective shield.”

“It would be a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions”

Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security Council, described the so-called evacuation of the population as deportation and called for a serious response from the West. “These deportations also happened in Crimea in 2014 and the world watched idly. Now they’re doing it again and justifying it as wanting to save people’s lives. It’s a difficult situation because there’s no doubt that we will retake the entire territory.”

Danilow considers the concern that Russian troops could destroy the hydroelectric power plant further north on the Dnieper – as a diversionary maneuver in the event of a possible withdrawal from Cherson – to be unfounded. “The dam also secures Crimea’s water supply, if they destroy it there will be no more water there for years to come. I don’t think they’re crazy enough to blow up the dam. That would be a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions. I even know I don’t know how the world should or could react to it.”

Power cuts in Kyiv

As a result of the targeted destruction of the Ukrainian energy infrastructure by the Russian armed forces, there were nationwide restrictions on the power supply today. The population was called upon to reduce electricity consumption to a minimum. Three power plants were destroyed by Russian rocket fire yesterday. The electricity capacity of the entire country is severely limited as a result.

In Kyiv, the electricity was switched off in different parts of the city throughout the day, locally and for around four hours each time. The residents of the capital could find out when it was their turn on the website of the energy supply company.

Public power consumption was also restricted, the environmentally friendly electric buses were phased out and some replaced by older diesel vehicles. An elderly lady at a bus stop complained that she didn’t even know if a bus was coming. “I’ll probably have to walk, but it’s not far – just one or two stops.”

Great demand for generators and firewood

Demand for power generators and camping gas stoves has meanwhile increased significantly, according to footage obtained by the AP news agency. In a hardware store on the outskirts of Kyiv, Richard Rilovych was looking for a suitable power generator. “Without electricity, the chest freezers defrost and I also need reliable electricity for water pumps and all sorts of other devices.”

The demand is huge, according to the managing director of the hardware store, Maryna Shelest. “Power generators, charging stations, flashlights and people are buying lots of firewood too.”

According to the Ukrainian government, further temporary power cuts, even beyond today, cannot be ruled out if people do not significantly minimize their power consumption. And with the onset of cold weather, restrictions could become even more frequent, explained the UKRENERGO energy supply company.