Ukraine Latest: UN Atomic Agency Says No Sign of ‘Dirty Bomb’

(Bloomberg) -- The UN’s nuclear safety agency inspected three facilities in Ukraine at Kyiv’s request after recent Russian allegations of possible “dirty bomb” production at the sites, and said it “found no indications of undeclared nuclear activities and materials.”  

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said grain exports through the Black Sea safe-passage corridor would continue, as foreign ministers of the Group of Seven nations prepared to meet in Germany to discuss Ukraine’s plight, including Russian attacks on water and power supplies. Zelenskiy also said he’s unlikely to participate in the G-20 meeting in Bali, Indonesia, this month if Russian President Vladimir Putin attends.

A senior occupation official said Moscow’s troops will “most likely” pull out of the city of Kherson, which Russia captured early in its invasion, and move to the eastern bank of the Dnipro River. Russia and Ukraine conducted a prisoner swap, with each side handing over 107 POWs.   

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Key Developments

• US, Partners Opt to Set Fixed Crude Price For Russia Oil Cap
• Turkey Unlikely to Sign Off on Swedish NATO Bid Before Year-End
• EU Studies Use of Russian Central Bank Assets to Rebuild Ukraine
• Bulgaria Breaks With Pro-Russia Past, Backs Ukraine Military Aid
• Wheat Futures Extend Losses as Ukraine Grain Ships Move Again
• How Ukrainians Are Protecting Their Centuries-Old Culture From Putin’s Invasion

On the Ground

Russian troops tripled the number of attacks on certain areas of the front line -- up to 80 per day, Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said in a telephone phone call with General Christopher Cavoli, the head of US European Command. The account of the call came from Zaluzhnyi’s Telegram statement. The areas of Bakhmut and Avdiyivka in the Donetsk region remain the most tense on the front line, Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesman for eastern operational command, said on TV. Russia hit the town of Pokrovs’k in the Donetsk region with six missiles, destroying a school and private residencies Thursday afternoon, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of Zelenskiy’s office said on Telegram without describing casualties.

(All times CET)

Russian regular attacks on Ukraine’s energy objects cause significant destructions, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said in his night address. As of Thursday evening, 4.5 million people in Kyiv and 10 other regions were left without electricity, he said. “Russian terror must get - and will definitely receive a powerful global response,” Zelenskyi told. “The very fact that Russia terrors Ukrainian energy sector shows the weakness of the aggressor. They cannot defeat Ukraine on the battlefield, and try to humiliate Ukrainians, strike the spirit and resistance of Ukrainian people. I believe, Russia will not succeed.”

Kyiv Urges China to Press Russia on Infrastructure Attacks (10:04 p.m.)

Kyiv called on China to push Russia to end attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure as some of it is leased by Chinese businesses, Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said on Facebook. 

Russian missiles hit Chinese-leased terminals in Ukraine’s Mykolayiv port last month causing a $26 million loss as thousands of tons of sunflower oils leaked. There are other potential targets that include a Chinese-owned terminal, the spokesman said. 

Russia escalated its shelling of Ukrainian civilian infrastructure since last month as its troops were losing ground on the battlefield.

Sanctioned Superyacht Seized in Spain as Owner Stops Paying Fees (8:32 p.m.)

A Spanish court moved to seize a superyacht valued at $140 million that’s linked to a senior executive at a Russian defense conglomerate, after the owner stopped paying maintenance fees in June.

The court order to seize the 85meter (279-foot) Meridian A -- formerly called Valerie -- was handed down by a Barcelona judge on Wednesday, according to the Spanish maritime authorities.

The vessel, linked to Rostec State Corp.’s chief executive officer, Sergey Chemezov, was immobilized in mid-March by Spanish authorities while it was at a Barcelona shipyard for repairs. The European Union considers the vessel is formally owned by the stepdaughter of Chemezov.

Russia Says New Submarine Tests Bulava Missile (7:02 p.m.)

Russian’s new Borei-A-class submarine successfully fired a Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile from the White Sea to the Kamchatka area, Interfax reported, citing a Defense Ministry statement.

US Embassy Officials Visit Imprisoned Griner (6:02 p.m.)

The US State Department said embassy officials visited imprisoned US basketball star Brittney Griner in a Russian prison. The WNBA star was arrested in Moscow in February for carrying less than a gram of cannabis oil in her luggage and later sentenced to nine years in prison.

Zelenskiy Says Won’t ‘Participate’ in G-20 If Putin Attends (5:30 p.m.)

Ukraine’s president said he’s unlikely to participate in the G-20 meeting in Bali, Indonesia, this month if Russian President Vladimir Putin attends. 

Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he’d received a follow-up invitation to the gathering from Indonesia’s president when the pair spoke by phone on Thursday. Joko Widodo met separately with Zelenskiy and Putin in late June. 

“My position and that of Ukraine is the same -- if the leader of the Russian Federation participates, Ukraine will not participate,” Zelenskiy said in Kyiv. It’s unclear whether Putin will travel from Moscow to the Nov. 15-16 meeting, or attend virtually. 

EU Studies Use of Russian Central Bank Assets to Rebuild Ukraine (4:26 p.m.)

The European Union is studying the feasibility of using billions of euros worth of Russian central bank assets already frozen by member states to help with Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts, according to people familiar with the matter.

Read more: EU Studies Use of Russian Central Bank Assets to Rebuild Ukraine

Zelenskiy Meets With Two US Senators (4 p.m.)

Ukraine’s president met Thursday with two US senators, Democrat Chris Coons of Delaware and Republican Rob Portman of Ohio. Both are members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. 

The meeting comes less than a week before US midterm elections, where Republicans may capture both chambers of Congress, potentially complicating White House efforts to provide assistance to Ukraine at the same level.  

UN Atomic Agency Says No Signs of ‘Dirty Bomb’ in Ukraine (3:32 p.m.)

Agency inspectors have completed in-field verification at three locations in Ukraine at the request of the Ukrainian government, with no indications of undeclared nuclear activities found, the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency said. 

Ukraine requested the inspections after Russian Federation made allegations this month about possible production of “dirty bombs” at facilities in Kyiv, Zhovti Kody and Dnipro. 

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Twitter that the inspections “helped counter Russian falsehoods.”

Finland Says No Plan to Host Nuclear Warheads (3:34 p.m.)

Finland has no plan to host nuclear warheads on its territory when it joins the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and no such offer has been made to the Nordic nation, Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen and Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told reporters in Helsinki. 

The ministers reiterated that while Finland intends to join the alliance with no opt-outs, it has very specific laws when it comes to nuclear substances, and the government isn’t currently proposing any changes.  

Finland’s 1,340 kilometer (830 mile) border with Russia is the longest of any EU member. 

Russia, Ukraine Swap Another 107 Prisoners (2:58 p.m.)

Another 107 Ukrainian prisoners were released from Russian captivity on Thursday in a swap, Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to Ukraine’s president, said on Telegram.

The number includes 74 veterans of the siege of Mariupol, he said. One of the returning servicemen was wounded in an explosion in a POW camp in Olenivka in July. At least 50 Ukrainian prisoners were killed in the incident, which authorities in Kyiv and Moscow blame on each other. 

Russia’s Defense Ministry said 107 of its servicemen were handed over on Thursday, without offering details. Those released would be flown to Moscow for medical treatment and rehabilitation, it said on Telegram. 

Ukrainian Parliament Approves 2023 Budget (2:11 p.m.)

The budget was backed by 295 members of parliament in its second and final reading, lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak said on Telegram. 

Ukraine’s cabinet cut its 2023 economic growth forecast to 3.2% from 4.6%, according to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. Inflation is seen at 28%, and the nation’s budget deficit will exceed 20% of the GDP. Ukraine seeks to attract $38 billion from international partners to help cover budget gap.

Ukrainian Grid Operator Seeks EBRD Financing for Urgent Repairs; Swiss Donation (1:56 p.m.)

Ukrenergo, the Ukrainian grid operator, has asked the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to provide financing for emergency repairs of equipment damaged by Russian air strikes over the past month, the lender said by email.

Ukraine needs to purchase transformers and equipment to restore its high voltage transmission grid, some 40% of which has sustained damage from weeks of Kremlin missile and drone attacks. 

Separately, Switzerland plans to provide 100 million francs ($99 million) in aid “in particular for projects financing the urgent rehabilitation of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure” including the purchase of spare parts. 

Russian Forces ‘Likely’ to Leave Kherson, Occupation Official Says (1:40 p.m.)

Russian troops will “most likely” pull out of the annexed city of Kherson and move to the eastern bank of the Dnipro River, an occupation official said, as Ukrainian forces step up pressure in the area.

“Most likely, our units, our forces will move to the left bank part of the Kherson region and those people who haven’t already should get out of the city of Kherson as fast as possible,” Kirill Stremousov, deputy head of the Russian occupation administration, said in an online interview with state media.

Though he said Russia’s defensive line is holding, Kyiv’s forces have made steady gains there in recent weeks, cutting off bridges across the Dnipro River. The city of Kherson lies on the west, or right, bank, while the rest of the Kherson region is to the east. Kherson was captured by Kremlin troops in the early days of Russia’s invasion. 

Russian Central Bank Denies That Its Systems Were Hacked (1 p.m.) 

Bank of Russia said it had found no evidence that its systems had been hacked, pushing back on a claim made on Telegram by Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister for digital transformation. 

“We checked the archive published by the hackers. All these documents were on the Internet in the public domain,” the central bank’s press service said in a statement. “No information systems of the Bank of Russia were  hacked.” 

Fedorov said earlier that Ukrainian cyberwarfare volunteers hacked into the central bank’s internal networks, and posted a link to what he said were 27,000 files obtained by the so-called IT Army of Ukraine. 

About 120 Ships Still in Queue for Grain Corridor (11:55 a.m.)

While the queue has shrunk, about 120 vessels are still waiting for inspections in order to transit the Ukrainian crop-export corridor, according to an update from the United Nations. Most are waiting to head inbound for loading in Ukraine.

The Black Sea crop-export deal requires ships to be inspected in Istanbul before and after transiting Ukraine ports. A delegation from Russia re-joined the checks on Thursday, the UN said, the day after its government opted to resume participation in the pact.

Ukraine Set for More EU Funds in January (11:40 a.m.)

Ukraine could receive a first payment of a new European Union financial package in January, according to a senior EU official. There is a broad support among member states to move quickly and to accelerate the national procedures to approve the funds as much as possible, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions are private.

The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, is expected to present next week a mechanism to provide around 18 billion euros ($17.5 billion) in liquidity support to Ukraine next year in a more predictable and stable manner. A total of three billion euros promised last May still need to be approved by member states, although they could be released as part of the new package, the official added.

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