Russia and Ukraine again accused each other of bombing the Zaporozhye nuclear plant, while Kyiv confirmed its refusal to negotiate with Moscow until it withdraws from all Ukrainian lands.
RIA Novosti news agency quoted a member of the Russian Military and Civil Administration in Zaporozhye as saying that Ukrainian forces again bombed the city of Energodar and the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine.
On the other hand, the Ukrainian General Intelligence said that the Russian forces renewed their bombardment of the Zaporozhye station and that they were able to determine the location from which the station was targeted, which is the village of Vodian.
Ukrainian intelligence added that the first batch of Russian artillery shelling hit the pumping station and the underground thermal communications workshop.
Another wave of bombing also caused significant damage to the firefighting unit responsible for the safety of the station.
For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that every day of the stay of Russian troops on the territory of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant and in its vicinity increases the radiological danger to Europe.
The Ukrainian president stressed that every Russian soldier who targets the Zaporozhye station must understand that he has become a target of Ukrainian intelligence, the Ukrainian army and its special operations.
In southern Ukraine, the Southern Operations Command of the Ukrainian army said that large explosions were heard in Kherson province, which is controlled by Russian forces, and that the situation on the southern front had returned to tension again compared to the previous two days.
The Ukrainian army had said earlier that it launched an attack on the positions of the Russian forces in Kherson and Bastanka, east of Mykolaiv, and that it had destroyed the Nova Kakhovka Dam bridge, which the Russian army uses to transport its equipment.
In its daily statement, British intelligence suggested that Russia had focused over the past week on redirecting its forces towards southern Ukraine.
British intelligence added that Russian-backed forces continued their operations in the Donbass in an attempt to launch attacks on the northern city of Donetsk.
The statement stressed that the intense fighting focused in particular on the village of Pesky near Donetsk airport.
The statement suggested that the Russian attack was likely to aim at securing the main highway leading to Donetsk in the west.
don't negotiate
Politically, Mikhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, said that his country has no intention of negotiating with Russia. In press statements, Podolyak added that entering into negotiations with Russia means its victory in the war and the loss of Ukraine and Europe, and this is not an available option, as he put it.
The Ukrainian advisor added that Kyiv paid a heavy price and still does, and that what it offered is much more expensive than leading to a mere cease-fire.
In turn, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov refused to discuss any settlement with Russia, and said that this would only take place after it withdrew from all the territories it occupied and recognized since 1991.
Reznikov added that any return to negotiations must also be preceded by the establishment of a mechanism for paying compensation for the destruction caused by the war, paying compensation to the families of the victims, as well as holding accountable those who committed murder, torture and rape against Ukrainian citizens, as he put it.