This Sunday, October 23, 2022 was the 242nd day of the conflict in Ukraine. Here is what to remember from the events that took place during the day in Ukraine, in neighboring countries and in Western chancelleries.
Russian Defense Minister warns of ‘uncontrolled escalation’ in Ukraine
Sergei Shoigu said on Sunday that the situation in Ukraine was deteriorating rapidly and warned of a risk of“uncontrolled escalation”, during a telephone interview with his French counterpart, Sébastien Lecornu.
During this interview, Sergueï Choïgou told Sébastien Lecornu that Moscow feared the use by Ukraine of a “dirty bomb” in the conflict, without, however, providing evidence to back up his assertions.
“If Russia calls and says that Ukraine is preparing something, it means only one thing: Russia has already prepared all this. I believe that now the world must react as harshly as possible, ”said Volodymyr Zelensky on social networks.
Peace is “possible”, according to Emmanuel Macron
Invited to speak in the context of the international conference “The Cry for Peace” organized in Italy this Sunday, October 23, 2022 by the Catholic community of Sant’Egidio, Emmanuel Macron notably returned to the war in Ukraine.
“Peace will be possible when Ukraine decides it”he also explained. “Peace will be built with the enemy of today around a table”.
However, he indicated that “Peace cannot be a ceasefire that would ratify a state of affairs. Let’s not let peace today be somehow captured by the Russian power”.
Russian fighter jet crashes in Siberia
Earlier in the day, Russian authorities announced that a Russian fighter plane had crashed into a house in Siberia, and that its two pilots had died.
On the Telegram messaging app, the governor of the city of Irkutsk reported that the device crashed into a two-story house.
The accident happened during a test flight. This is the second such accident in six days.
Moscow claims to have hit a major Ukrainian gasoline depot
The Russian military claimed to have destroyed a fuel depot for Ukrainian aviation, as well as several ammunition depots and an oil tank with diesel fuel intended for Ukrainian military vehicles.
“A depot that housed more than 100,000 tons of fuel for the Ukrainian Air Force was destroyed near the town of Smela, in the Cherkassk region”in central Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Voluntary power cuts in Kyiv
The national operator Ukrenergo also carried out power cuts in kyiv, to “stabilize” electricity supply, after repeated Russian strikes targeting the country’s infrastructure.
“On October 23, stabilization cuts took place in kyiv to avoid accidents”explained the private Ukrainian electricity supplier DTEK, specifying that these cuts alternately affect the different districts of the capital divided into three groups.