America suggests Ukraine's president is ready to hold talks with Russia

Moscow: Kherson without electricity and water after the bombing of supply lines

Residential building destroyed as a result of the bombing in Arkhanhelskyi, North Kherson region.

EPA

The Russian authorities in Kherson, located in southern Ukraine, announced that the city was "without electricity and water", yesterday, after a Ukrainian raid hit high voltage lines, and that the strategic Kakhovka Dam in the Kherson region was "damaged" by a Ukrainian strike, noting that the army Ukrainian masses a large number of tanks and armored vehicles on the outskirts of the region.

Meanwhile, the Washington Post said, the United States is privately encouraging Ukraine to hint at openness to negotiation with Russia.

In detail, the designated authorities of Moscow in Kherson wrote in a statement on Telegram, "As a result of an attack organized by the Ukrainian side, three concrete towers carrying high voltage lines on the Pereslav-Kakhovka axis were damaged."

"Currently, there is no electricity or water in the city, and in some neighborhoods of the region," she added.

This is the first reported power and water outage in Kherson, which has been controlled by the Russian military since the start of its offensive in Ukraine.

A representative of the emergency services in Kherson said that "more than 10 towns in the region are currently without electricity," according to what was quoted by Russian news agencies.

According to the Moscow-installed regional administration, electricians were sent to the bombing site to "repair" the infrastructure.

She stressed that "the electricity and water will be restored throughout the Kherson region in the very near future."

Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure in recent weeks, resulting in the destruction of about 40% of it and widespread power and water cuts in many regions, including the capital, Kyiv.

The emergency services in the areas controlled by Moscow in Ukraine also announced that the strategic Kakhovka Dam in the Russian-controlled Kherson region had been "damaged" by a Ukrainian strike, Russian news agencies reported yesterday.

And news agencies quoted the emergency services as saying: “Six HIMARS missiles were fired.

Air defense units shot down five missiles, and one of the locks on the Kakhovka Dam was damaged.”

Ukraine has warned in the past few weeks that Moscow's forces intend to blow up the strategic facility to cause a flood.

RIA Novosti quoted a local official from Moscow that the damage was not "serious".

"Everything is under control," the official in the Moscow-appointed administration in the neighboring city of Novaya, Ruslan Agayev, told the agency.

The main air strikes were repelled. The missile hit the dam, but it did not cause serious damage.”

Russian forces took control of the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam in southern Ukraine at the beginning of the offensive.

The dam secures water for Crimea, which was annexed by Moscow.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russian forces of plotting to blow him up, causing a devastating flood.

For his part, Kirill Strimosov, deputy head of the pro-Russian administration in the Ukrainian region of Kherson, said yesterday that the Ukrainian army is amassing a large number of tanks and armored vehicles on the outskirts of the region.

"A lot of equipment units are being mobilized, with more and more armored vehicles and tanks," Strimosov said, in a video broadcast on his Telegram channel, the TASS news agency reported.

"The evacuation of residents to the left bank of the Dnipro River and other Russian regions continues, and citizens of the city can still leave the right bank freely," he added.

Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported that the United States is privately encouraging Ukraine to hint at openness to negotiation with Russia, after the State Department said Moscow was escalating the war and was not seriously willing to engage in peace talks.

The newspaper quoted unnamed sources as saying that the US officials' request is not aimed at pressuring Ukraine to come to the negotiating table, but rather as a calculated attempt to ensure that Kyiv maintains the support of other countries.

The newspaper added that officials from the United States and Ukraine acknowledged that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's refusal to hold talks with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, has caused concern in parts of Europe, Africa and Latin America, where those regions feel the biggest consequences of the war on food and fuel costs.

The newspaper quoted an unnamed US official as saying, "The fatigue with the consequences of the Ukrainian file is a reality for some of our partners."

The newspaper reported that officials have begun planning a possible complete evacuation of the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, in the event of an electrical supply cut.

And the Bloomberg news agency said that the electricity company said that it is currently restricting electricity supplies to the capital and seven regions in the north and center of the country, due to the damage caused by the Russian bombing of the electricity infrastructure.

In Kyiv, Zelensky said that he discussed with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen yesterday the overall financial aid to Ukraine and the imposition of further sanctions on Iran.

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