Russia Launches Heavy Wave of Missile, Drone Attacks; Kyiv Seeks UN Intercession

It was not quiet overnight. Russian forces launched another heavy wave of missile and drone attacks across multiple regions in Ukraine.  As a result, Ukrainian officials at the United Nations asked for intercession from the world body.

Kyiv: Russian forces targeted the capital overnight and into early morning with a combination of ballistic missiles and strike drones. Debris and direct strikes damaged residential areas, particularly in the Dniprovskyi district, killing at least one person and triggering air alerts that lasted for hours.

Dnipropetrovsk Region: A Russian drone struck a railway platform. Local authorities confirmed this was one of the deadliest localized strikes in the region in recent weeks, leaving 14 people dead and several others wounded.

Chernihiv & Northwestern Ukraine (Rivne): A drone strike in central Chernihiv struck a civilian zone, tragically killing two 15-year-old teenagers. A separate attack overnight in the Rivne region also resulted in a civilian fatality.

In total, regional authorities and monitoring groups report that Russian strikes across the country over the last 24 hours have killed at least 6 to 19 civilians and injured dozens more, while damaging critical infrastructure, residential buildings, and transit nodes.

At the same time, intense cross-border aerial warfare continues, with heavy drone barrages reported on both sides.

A daytime strike wave followed by overnight missile and drone barrages left at least 20 people dead and over 80 injured across multiple regions, with a heavy emphasis on transportation hubs, energy grids, and residential areas.

1. Dnipro & Dnipropetrovsk Region. Casualties: 14 Dead, dozens injured.

Destruction: Railway Platform Strike: A direct Russian drone strike hit a crowded railway platform in Dnipro during a high-traffic period, resulting in the single deadliest localized civilian casualty count of the attack wave.

Power Grid Chaos: Substation damage triggered large-scale power outages across Dnipro. Trams and trolleybuses were brought to a complete halt, metro train intervals were expanded, and critical infrastructure had to be emergency-switched to backup generators.

2. Kyiv & Kyiv Oblast

Casualties: 1 Dead, at least 4 injured.

Destruction:

Targeted Strikes: Hit by a combination of ballistic missiles and over 100 attack drones.

Dniprovskyi District: Direct hits damaged apartment blocks, shattered gas station windows, destroyed parked cars, and partially destroyed a commercial shop building.

Darnytskyi District: Ballistic missiles struck warehouse facilities, sparking major fires.

Energy Operations: Equipment failures triggered emergency power outages across the Right Bank of the Dnipro River. Across the broader region, 12 private and multi-story residential buildings were reported damaged.

3. Chernihiv (Northern Ukraine)

Casualties: 2 Dead (two 15-year-old girls), 23 Injured (including 4 children).

Destruction: A loitering drone struck directly into a busy street in the city center during daytime hours, hitting commercial storefronts and nearby residential units.

4. Kremenchuk & Poltava Region

Casualties: 3 Dead.

Destruction: Strikes targeted local transit lines and energy infrastructure. Railway facilities and electrical sub-nodes suffered direct structural hits, causing localized blackouts.

5. Rivne & Western/Central Oblasts (Volyn, Poltava)

Casualties: 1 Dead in Rivne; multiple injured across Volyn.

Destruction: Long-range drones hit energy infrastructure nodes, causing cascading power failures. Over 350,000 residents across central and western sectors experienced power cutoffs due to damage to sub-station grid connections.

Long-range drones hit energy infrastructure nodes, causing cascading power failures. Over 350,000 residents across central and western sectors experienced power cutoffs due to damage to sub-station grid connections.

Summary of the Pattern

Unlike typical nighttime barrages, Russian forces deployed daytime loitering munitions and drones alongside overnight ballistic missiles. Ukrainian officials and international observers noted a clear shift toward targeting civilian gathering points—specifically railway platforms, city streets, and municipal transit—alongside the ongoing systematically planned destruction of the energy grid as cold weather sets in.

Ukraine requested an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Friday, October 30, over Russia’s latest wave of missile and drone attacks that left at least 25 people dead and 110 wounded nationwide.

“From Dnipro and Chernihiv to Kremenchuk and Kyiv, the scale and geography of the strikes show that no part of Ukraine is beyond the reach of Russian terror,” Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry stated, noting that the strikes targeted children, private homes, civilian infrastructure and railway facilities.

Moscow accused of blocking the UN

Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who described the strikes as another gross violation of international law and the UN charter, accused Russia of undermining international peace.

He reiterated that Russia is exploiting its status as a permanent member of the Security Council to prevent the body from carrying out its mandate. As one of the council’s five permanent members, Russia holds veto power over its final resolutions, allowing Moscow to block action on its own war against Ukraine.

In its latest statement, Kyiv has once again called on partners to provide Ukraine with more air-defense capabilities, to increase pressure and impose tougher sanctions on Moscow.

“Russia must understand that its campaign of terror leads only to consequences, not concessions,” Sybiha said, adding that Russia must be held accountable for the “crimes it has committed.”

Seven Russian Tankers Shipping Bloody Diesel to US Identified, Located

The identity and location of seven Russian tankers transporting 288,000 metric tons of diesel to the US were announced by Greenpeace Ukraine on October. 29, reported the Kyiv Independent.

Following President Donald Trump suspending sanctions on Russian oil exports, a live tracker map developed by Greenpeace, an international environmental organization, shows Russian tankers currently moving across the Atlantic Ocean, with one vessel approaching the U.S. East Coast.

“Every shipment of Russian diesel comes at a human cost,” Polina Kolodiazhna, energy campaigner at Greenpeace Ukraine, said in a statement. “Every dollar flowing into Russia risks fueling more attacks, more destruction and more deaths. These shipments also undermine the international sanctions regime and send a dangerous message that business with Russia can continue as usual, even as its war against Ukraine rages on.”

The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America and the Ukrainian National Information Service have launched a campaign to stop ships transporting bloody Russian diesel from reaching US ports.

The Trump administration’s decision to facilitate the importation of Russian diesel into the United States represents a significant reversal of American policy toward Russian energy exports following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. The agreement raises three major issues: the economic benefit to the Kremlin, the potential violation of existing federal law, and the implications for American support for Ukraine.

On October 9, 2026, President Trump announced an agreement with Vladimir Putin under which Russia would resume diesel exports to the United States and international markets. The announcement followed discussions between the two leaders and was presented by the administration as an effort to address elevated American diesel prices.

Greenpeace Ukraine identified the tankers as the Taurus, Pvt Azura, Agioi Fanendes, Talisman, Leruo, Iblea, and Primorye. Three of these vessels, the Talisman, Leruo, and Primorye, are currently sanctioned by multiple countries as part of Russia's "shadow fleet" illegally exporting oil, according to Ukraine’s war sanctions portal. The Talisman has been under US sanctions since January 2025.

The ships are expected to arrive in the US in early November, though it is not known at which ports they will arrive.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Sept. 28 restricting access to data on the country's oil refineries and energy exports amid Ukrainian campaigns against Russia's oil infrastructure. The decree added another layer of secrecy to Russian exports, helping shadow fleet vessels evade sanctions.

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) subsequently issued General License 135, authorizing transactions involving the sale, delivery, unloading and importation of Russian-origin diesel, including into the United States. The license is scheduled to remain in effect through April 7, 2027.

The first shipment of Russian diesel following the October agreement set sail toward the United States on October 23, 2026, according to shipping and tracking data, reported by Reuters.

The tanker loaded approximately 40,000 metric tons of ultra-low-sulfur diesel at Primorsk, Russia’s Baltic port, on October 22.

Shipping data initially indicated that the vessel was headed for New York, with an anticipated arrival of November 7.

The shipment would represent the first identified U.S.-bound Russian diesel cargo under the new arrangement.

The buyer and seller had not been identified.

The diesel agreement needs to be examined in the broader context of US policy toward Russia’s war against Ukraine.

The diesel agreement creates an unfavorable negotiating dynamic. Moscow gains an economic relationship with Washington without having first demonstrated a willingness to end its aggression or accept Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. The arrangement risks allowing economic cooperation to advance while the underlying military aggression and genocide continues.

The diesel agreement sends a troubling message to Ukraine. Ukrainians continue to endure Russian missile and drone attacks against their homes, cities, electrical infrastructure and civilian population. At the same time, the United States is considering the purchase of fuel that generates revenue for the country conducting those attacks.

The timing of this diesel agreement is particularly unconscionable given Russia’s escalating campaign of terror against Ukraine. On October 29, Russian drones struck a crowded railway station in Dnipro, killing at least 14 people, while additional attacks killed civilians in Chernihiv and Kremenchuk and injured dozens more.

Russian forces also struck civilian transportation and infrastructure in other parts of the country. These attacks are not isolated incidents; they are part of Moscow’s continuing campaign to destroy Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, terrorize its population and undermine the country’s ability to function.

The question for American policymakers is whether supposed short-term commercial and energy considerations should override the existing statutory prohibition and the broader objective of denying Moscow resources to sustain its war of aggression against Ukraine

The United States Congress enacted the Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act (Public Law 117-109) on April 8, 2022. The legislation passed the House by an overwhelming 413–9 vote and passed the Senate unanimously. Section 2 of the law expressly prohibits the importation of products originating in Russia classified under Chapter 27 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. This includes diesel and other petroleum products. The legislation also establishes a specific process for terminating the prohibition.

Recent congressional actions to stop the importing of Russian diesel have included an October 29 letter, written by Congressional Ukraine Caucus co-chair Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) and Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), that demanded that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) enforce the federal prohibition and prevent the importation of Russian diesel. They also requested that attempted violations be referred for investigation and prosecution.

As early as October 22, Congressional Ukraine Caucus co-chair Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), along with Reps. Marie Perez (D-WA) and Don Bacon (R-NE), introduced H.R. 10866, the Ronald Reagan Peace Through Strength Act of 2026. It would prohibit the U.S. Department of Treasury from issuing waivers or general licenses for importing Russian energy products and nullify General License 135. The legislation has been referred to the relevant House committees.

On Oct. 9, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that he was temporarily allowing the sale of Russian diesel in the country in an attempt to lower oil costs heightened by the war with Iran. The move spurred international backlash from Ukraine and its allies, as well as lawmakers in the U.S.

U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat, issued a warning on Oct. 28 to a shipping company transporting the Russian diesel to the United States: turn back, or risk violating U.S. sanctions law.

Blumenthal says that diesel shipments are banned under the 2022 Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act, signed into law by former President Joe Biden following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Trump's diesel deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin does not "supersede clear, unambiguous law," Blumenthal argued.

On Oct. 29, New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, told KYW Newsradio that she was considering blocking the Russian tankers from entering the state's ports.

“Donald Trump isn't doing anything to bring down gas prices, diesel prices, or costs," Sherrill said. "Instead, he is lining Vladimir Putin's pockets at the expense of American consumers and our democratic ally Ukraine. Make no mistake: Trump's diesel deal with Putin is corrupt and illegal, and I am evaluating options to stop it from arriving at a port in New Jersey.”

 Engage Congress. Even before Congress returns to Washington after the midterm elections, Senators and Members of Congress can, and should, speak out about the impending import of Russian diesel. The Ukrainian National Information Service (UNIS), the Washington, DC public affairs bureau of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA), urge you to contact your Senators and Representative TODAY and request their action to stop the import of Russian diesel to the United States.

Contact your Senators and Representative and other elected officials: Demand Their Action to Stop Russian Diesel in the United States. 

Russia Kills 14 at Ukrainian RR Station. Peace Talks with Russia? Never!

The White House, the global community, Europe and others are pushing Ukraine, the victim, to the negotiating table with Russia, the murderous aggressor. They’ve been doing this for years, raising everyone’s hopes that perhaps this time the killings will end and peace will be achieved in Ukraine.

I can only say, “Gullible fools!”

After having revealed another round of negotiations with cutthroat Russians, Moscow launched a massive strike against a railroad station in the town of Dnipro that killed 14 civilians.

Around 11 am, Russia launched a barrage of jet-powered attack drones toward the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. While air defenses intercepted several, one jet drone struck a crowded passenger platform at the Dnipro railway station.

The drone hit directly next to a stationary commuter train and the scheduled passenger train bound for Zaporizhzhia (Train No. 866). Although an air raid alert had sounded and evacuation procedures had begun, many passengers were still on the platform or boarding when the strike occurred.

The death toll has reached 14 civilians killed, with an equal number injured (including children, such as an 11-year-old boy, and individuals severely wounded requiring amputations).

Ukraine's railway network remains an absolute lifeline connecting the east and west of the country under immense strain, making attacks on railway stations particularly devastating reminders of the daily risks civilians face.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sharply condemned the attack, labeling it “horrific” and describing it as a deliberate act of terror against civilian infrastructure. This repeated Russian killing of innocent, unarmed men, women and children constitutes an act of terrorism under international law.

Zelenskyy emphasized that Russia continues to target civilians unabated, questioning the logic behind recent international debates surrounding the validity of easing of certain economic pressures or sanctions on Russian energy and oligarchs.

Zelenskyy directly called on the international community, the United States, the European Union, and G7 nations to implement stronger, tougher sanctions against Moscow's war machine, emphasizing that financial and political pressure must not be relaxed while these atrocities continue.

International leaders also condemn this latest Russian crime against humanity. France (President Emmanuel Macron): Macron expressed deep outrage over the strike, calling it "intolerable" that Russia continues to reject peace proposals and deliberately chooses escalation against civilians. He contrasted the violence with fragile local ceasefires, arguing that Europe and its allies must push for far more than localized pauses in fighting. Latvia (Foreign Minister Baiba Braze): Braze bluntly condemned the attack as “mass murder,” stating that state-sponsored terror attacks of this nature clearly demonstrate that Moscow has no genuine readiness for peace.

Local Leadership: Dnipropetrovsk regional officials, including regional head Oleksandr Hanzha and Dnipro Mayor Borys Filatov, mobilized emergency services immediately, condemning the targeted daytime strike on a vital civilian hub.

Across Ukraine at least six others were killed in separate Russian attacks, according to local officials.

A strike on the city center of Chernihiv, north of Kyiv, killed two 15-year-old girls and wounded nearly two dozen others, including four children, the head of the city's military administration, Dmytro Bryzhynsky, said.

A drone also slammed into a multi-story residential building in the central city of Kremenchuk, killing three and wounding several – including a six-year-old – the local governor said.

Russia has intensified drone and missile attacks on Ukraine in recent weeks, hitting energy sites around major cities in what Kyiv says is a bid to plunge the country into cold and darkness throughout the winter.

The Kremlin earlier this week vowed not to let up in its overall pace of the war even as the sides prepare to restart stalled talks under US mediation.

Zelenskyy said on Wednesday it would be a “huge success” if the local ceasefire in Oleshky – brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump – allowed for the evacuation of stranded citizens.

Locals trapped there have resorted to hunting and eating pigeons in recent months, former residents in touch with those in the city told AFP.

Russia and Ukraine are to meet next month with US envoys to discuss ways to end Europe’s worst conflict since World War II, with no firm dates set for the talks. Several previous rounds have failed to move the sides closer to a deal. The Kremlin virtually demands that Ukraine falls on its knees returns all Ukrainian lands that Russia claims to be its, Russia demands more territory in eastern Ukraine and sweeping military and political restrictions on Kyiv, admit its guilt in the war and sues for peace as a defeated country.

Fortunately, Ukraine and its allies, except for the Washington, DC, say ceding ground to Moscow would be tantamount to a capitulation and leave Kyiv vulnerable to future Russian attacks. 

Poland and UK sign Warsaw Defense Plan to ‘Deter Russian Threats’ – Wider Accession is Needed

Poland and the United Kingdom have signed the Warsaw Defense Plan, an agreement to enhance their cooperation on security. The aim, said the British Ministry of Defense, is to “deter Russian threats.”

The plan, which follows on from the two countries signing a strategic defense partnership earlier this year, will include joint development and production of defense technologies and military exercises in the Baltic Sea.

“Poland is one of the UK’s closest allies – from flying together in the Battle of Britain, to breaking the Enigma code, they have been a vital partner for our defense for nearly a century,” said British Defense Secretary Wes Streeting on a visit to Warsaw, according to October 28 edition of Notes from Poland.

“The new Warsaw Defense Plan honors this cooperation and sets out how we will continue to work together today, building a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO,” he added.

His Polish counterpart, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, declared that “the Polish-British alliance has never been as strong as it is now.” Both he and Streeting also emphasized the importance of working together to support Ukraine.

That is a great and timely idea. However, there is a better one that should not be overlooked.

It is not a secret that Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and others are concerned that Russia will not be able to contain its historic aggressive mentality and will set out to reconquer all of the recently independent countries in its “near abroad.” Knowing this, all of them are funneling money into their treasuries to build and maintain armed forces that can at least hold at bay Moscow until the United States and the free world understand that is going on. They are erecting walls and ditches, which will keep Russian cutthroats on their side of the red line.

Since Russia’s latest invasion of Ukraine, many military and political leaders in Europe, the free world and not to mention Eastern Europe have been loudly championing the formation of a military, political bloc of the former captives that would deter Russian threats, invasions and occupation. One of the mainstay themes of this blog, The Torn Curtain 1991, has been the necessity for the former captive nations of Russian subjugation to form a multilateral alliance for their common security, stability and development in the face of Moscow’s enduring aggression.

“The European Union and its member states have stepped up with unprecedented commitment to Ukraine, not just in security assistance, but economic, and humanitarian, refugee assistance, and so much more,” said former President Joe Biden. His admonitions rang loud with the concepts of unity, togetherness and coalition that now need to be given life. The ideological and structural foundations for such an alliance of x-captive nations of Russian subjugation were laid at many conferences in Kyiv, Warsaw and elsewhere.

The last time this type of alliance was called into existence was during the Second World War. The Anti-Bolshevik Bloc of Nations was created as a coordinating center for the liberation of captive nations of the Soviet Russian empire. The ABN attributed its existence and its ideological foundations to an underground conference of representatives of non-Russian peoples that took place on November 21-22, 1943, near Zhytomyr, Ukraine, on the initiative of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, and at which a platform of a joint revolutionary struggle against Russian communism was formulated. The goal of the ABN was the dismemberment of the Soviet Union into national states – in other words, the de-colonization of the USSR. Among the participating nations of varying periods of time have been Ukrainians, Armenians, Bulgarians, Byelorussians, Cossack, Croatians, Czechs, Estonians, Georgians, Hungarians, Latvians, Lithuanians, Slovaks, Turkestanians, Vietnamese and Cubans. Others such as Poles were regarded as kindred spirits.

I had also cited an interview with Pavlo Klimkin, when he was minister of foreign affairs of Ukraine, who advocated the creation of such a far-reaching bloc. Outraged by the Russian invasion of his homeland, Klimkin suggested soon after President Petro Poroshenko’s visit to Canada and the United States the creation of a Coalition of Freedom to defend democracy and Western values in a troubled world.

“It is about security for everyone,” Klimkin had said during an exclusive Fox News interview on the eve of the 71st UN General Assembly in 2016. “If someone in this interchangeable and intertwined world cannot feel secure, how can US citizens here feel secure?”

Klimkin explained that Ukraine is confronting – and still is – a threat any nation can face, adding “we need a network of security.” His so-called Coalition of Freedom would consist of “countries which are committed to freedom, to democratic values, where we are not talking about spheres of influence, but the values and real interests of democratic countries.” Indeed, his theme fits today’s Russian-inspired dangerous global agenda, especially that faced by the former captive nations. The Polish-Lithuanian-Ukrainian Brigade is another example of a united army to stem Russia’s aggression. The idea of a European army was first discussed in the 1950s. It was proposed by France and would have consisted of the “inner six” countries (Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany), in order to strengthen defense against the Soviet threat without directly rearming Germany in the wake of World War II. In 1952 the Treaty establishing the European Defense Community was signed but not ratified by the signatories.

However, during the Cold War, Western Europe relied on NATO for defense, precluding the development of European cooperation. Immediately after the “fall of communism,” the defense apparatus was preoccupied by NATO expansion into the former Soviet bloc. The idea of a European army gained popularity after the September 11 attacks and NATO’s involvement in conflicts outside of Europe. In a phenomenon dubbed diversification of European security, NATO has come to be responsible for “hard” threats while the European Union has taken a greater role in "soft" threats, including peacekeeping in the western Balkans. The 2009 Treaty of Lisbon also furthered defense integration within the EU. This has led to support for a European Defense Union, which would be a step higher in collaboration than the current Common Security and Defense Policy.

Today, the threat to global peace, security, independence and sovereignty posed by Moscow still exists.

Faced with Russian aggression and the US shifting its focus away from Europe and threatening Greenland, Andrius Kubilius, a Lithuanian politician who is currently serving as the European Commissioner for Defense and Space in the Second von der Leyen Commission, argued for a “big bang” approach to re-imagining Europe’s common defense.

“Would the United States be militarily stronger if they would have 50 armies on the States level instead of a single federal army,” he said at a recent Swedish security conference. “Fifty state defense policies and defense budgets on the states level, instead of a single federal defense policy and budget?”

“If our answer is 'no,’ [the] USA would not be stronger, then — what are we waiting for?”

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also cited the importance of a separate armed forces under the command of Europe.

Zelenskyy, whose country is the only one to be facing real bloody Russian aggression, the kind foreseen in the NATO principles, on January 20 of this year reiterated his call for the creation of a joint European armed force of at least 3 million personnel.

“Russia plans to have an army of 2 to 2.5 million personnel by 2030. So a European army, while each country keeps its own sovereign forces, must be able to respond. It should be no smaller than 3 million,” Zelenskyy told journalists.

Zelenskyy’s statement comes nearly a year after he first called on European partners to create a new armed force at the Munich Security Conference on February 15, 2025, amid uncertainty over further U.S. support if Russian aggression escalates. Unfortunately, European leaders have taken no steps toward implementing the initiative in nearly a year, according to Zelenskyy.

“Maybe now, with all the new challenges, European leaders will take it more seriously,” the Ukrainian President added.

Zelenskyy said the newly created army would not aim to compete with the US and would not require dissolving NATO. He added that Ukraine could become a cornerstone of such a force due to its combat experience, as well as its military technology and logistics expertise.

“Because we have real wartime experience, we share our technologies with our partners. They give us intelligence — for example, France provides intelligence, and other countries do as well,” Zelenskyy said.

Consequently, rather than a piecemeal approach, quickly form one grand military force for the sole purpose of defending the regional security of Europe as well as the national security interests of all European nations against Russian imperialism. 

UN Concludes that Russia Commits War Crimes in Ukraine

Despite President Donald J. Trump’s brouhaha support for führer Vladimir Putin and his regime, Kremlin authorities have committed war crimes of intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects and the crimes against humanity of other inhumane acts with continuous attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, said an Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine in a new report submitted to the UN General Assembly.

The commission also concluded that Russian authorities have recruited men trafficked from different countries into the Russian armed forces, in violation of international human rights law.

“The Commission has concluded that Russian authorities’ continuing attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure constitute war crimes of intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects, as well as crimes against humanity of other inhumane acts through inflicting great suffering to civilians. Our second conclusion is about Russian recruitment through deception of foreign nationals to fight in the armed conflict in Ukraine. This constitutes trafficking in persons and also violations of human rights,” the report stated.

Last winter, when temperatures dropped to minus 21°C, millions of people in Ukraine faced lengthy outages of heating, electricity, water, and gas, and had to cope with intolerable living conditions, the commission said.

“As the cold season approaches, the attacks have intensified once again, raising serious concerns about the threats to civilians’ lives and health,” said Erik Møse, chair of the Commission.

The official pointed out that prolonged exposure to cold, deprivation of basic utilities, and the need to constantly devise survival strategies have placed a considerable strain on the physical and mental health of civilians. 

According to the commission’s assessment, the Russian commanders ordering the attacks had the knowledge that the heating facilities they targeted in large civilian agglomerations were indispensable to the civilian population, particularly during the winter. Russian authorities have made official declarations concerning further attacks and referred to a plan to carry them out. The Commission concluded that they committed war crimes of intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects. 

Also, Møse reported on the Commission’s findings concerning Russian authorities’ recruitment through deception of foreign nationals, who ended up serving in the Russian armed forces. 

Continuing its investigations in this field, the Commission found evidence that nationals from 29 countries across continents have been recruited into the Russian armed forces in coordination with agents operating around the world.

The victims, all male, were enlisted in the Russian armed forces through deception and fraud. They were lured to the Russian Federation by agents exploiting their vulnerabilities and enticing them to accept false offers of civilian employment that appeared lucrative, genuine and credible.

The Commission found a high degree of coordination between recruiting agents and Russian authorities. Agents or agencies processed visas for groups of recruits, purchased plane tickets, and travelled with them internationally. Corresponding agents in the Russian Federation met them at airports and brought them to sign the military contracts. 

Upon arrival in Russia, the recruits were forced to sign contracts, in Russian, with the Ministry of Defense. The recruits were handed over to the Russian armed forces and subsequently exploited on the frontline in Ukraine, assigned highly dangerous tasks.

Many have been killed or have gone missing; others have surrendered or were captured by the Ukrainian armed forces, thereby acquiring the status of prisoners of war.  

Calling Putin a “Humanitarian” Offends Human Decency and Encourages More Death and Destruction in Ukraine 

Steve Witkoff’s characterization of Russian fuhrer Vladimir Putin as a “humanitarian” has evoked at least surprise on one side and downright anger on the other side.

Among those who denounced Witkoff for his bloody absurdity is US Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).

Shaheen, the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, rightly compared Russia’s intensifying attacks on Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure to Nazi Germany’s bombing campaign against Britain, warning that Vladimir Putin is seeking to break civilian morale.

Shaheen’s remarks came amid bipartisan outrage in Congress over US envoy Steve Witkoff’s description of Putin as a “humanitarian.”

“Putin’s tactics have changed from using WWI-style tactics on the front lines to attacking major metropolitan areas in the country to undermine morale,” Shaheen said in an article that appeared in the Kyiv Post.

“It’s the same tactic Hitler used in Britain before WWII, and targeting the country’s energy infrastructure.”

Shaheen’s accurate comparison evokes the Blitz, Nazi Germany’s sustained bombing campaign against British cities during World War II, which began in 1940.

Her remarks come as Russia continues launching ballistic missiles and attack drones against Ukrainian residential neighborhoods, transportation networks and power infrastructure ahead of winter.

In an Oct. 19 statement following a meeting with Zelensky, Shaheen reaffirmed bipartisan congressional support for Ukraine and criticized measures she argued could provide Russia with additional war revenue.

“Putin only responds to strength,” she said, calling for greater pressure on Moscow rather than Kyiv.

It is encouraging that days ahead of the mid-term elections and in the face of President Donald J. Trump’s uncalled for praise of Putin and support for his brutal designs against Ukraine there are serious voices that agree with our appellation of Putin as a Nazi fuhrer in the ilk of Hitler is spot on.

To characterize Vladimir Putin a “humanitarian” is unforgivable and fundamentally subverts the universal definition of human rights, international law, and humanitarian principles.

President Donald J. Trump and Steve Witkoff, his designated envoy to the talks between Russia and Ukraine, have smeared excrement on the global concept of humanitarianism, which centers on the protection of human life, dignity, and rights. However, under Putin’s dictatorial leadership, the full-scale invasion of Ukraine has resulted in hundreds of thousands of military and civilian casualties, forced millions into exile, and caused widespread infrastructure destruction. Applied in this context, the term loses its moral grounding and becomes an exercise in bloody absurdity.

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin specifically over charges involving the unlawful deportation and transfer of children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia. In the language of international jurisprudence, these acts are designated as war crimes, directly contrasting with any notion of humanitarian conduct.

Using the release of an individual detainee (such as American teacher Stephen Hubbard) to bestow a broad moral title whitewashes a documented record of aggression and murder. Analysts note that taking hostages or detaining foreign nationals under questionable charges only to release them for diplomatic leverage is a classic autocratic tactic, not an act of benevolence.

The deployment of such rhetoric by Steve Witkoff—and the overarching posture of the Trump Administration—has drawn heavy condemnation from foreign policy experts, allies, and domestic lawmakers across the political spectrum.

Critics argue that sycophantic praise from a benevolent superpower like the United States, does not tame aggressors; it validates their strategy. By signaling that the US is eager to grant moral absolution and political legitimacy for minor transactional concessions (or simply to keep negotiations moving), the Administration risks convincing Moscow that its long-term territorial gains and revisionist goals will ultimately be accepted.

Effective diplomacy often relies on maintaining clear boundaries and leverage. When US representatives engage in public flattery toward authoritarian, murderous dictators while simultaneously squeezing democratic allies like Ukraine, it degrades Washington’s standing as a reliable guarantor of international order. European allies and Ukrainian officials view this asymmetry as a signal that US commitments are subservient to short-term political deals.

Proponents of the Administration argue that transactional flattery and high-level engagement are pragmatic tools needed to end long-standing conflicts rapidly. However, critics point out that peace built on the appeasement of illegal invasions historically produces instability rather than lasting security. Granting high-value rhetoric without requiring fundamental structural changes in Russian policy weakens deterrence globally—sending a message to other autocratic regimes that power and ruthlessness outweigh international norms.

Describing Vladimir Putin as a humanitarian is not merely a diplomatic and offensive gaffe; it reflects a broader shift toward a transactional foreign policy that threatens to blur basic moral and legal distinctions. By offering unearned legitimacy to an aggressor and murderer, the Administration risks undermining international norms, alienating key global allies, demeaning America’s high moral positions, while emboldening further death and destruction in Ukraine and aggression on the world stage.

Zelenskyy: ‘Ukraine's Frontline Positions Remain Strong’

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, at a recent staff meeting, addressed Russia’s interminable, daily drone attacks on Ukrainian cities that destroy apartment buildings and kill unarmed men, women, and children and wondered where is the United States?

“The United States certainly has the strength and the capabilities to ensure “silence” – real and reliable de-escalation,” Zelenskyy asked rhetorically.

The Ukrainian president clarified his question: “A real and reliable halt to Russia.”

Indeed, Zelenskyy, Ukrainians, and Ukraine are waiting for Washington, DC, to de-escalate the war or, in other words, to stop Moscow’s war against their people and their land.

“There must be real progress toward this,” Zelenskyy pressed all sides.

Meanwhile, in recent days, Trump has infuriated the world by blaming Ukraine for the war, blaming Zelenskyy for not wanting to end the war, and praising the Russian führer for being a humanitarian. Every drone and missile has an innocent Ukrainian child’s name on it.

Zelenskyy informed his staff that after almost five years of war, Ukraine is holding its own against what was once known as the second mightiest army in the world. Though today, certainly, that distinction has changed.

“Russian losses have increased in recent months. In the Dobropillia area alone, the Russians are losing around 200 troops killed every day. They also have many badly wounded,” he said. “Ukraine's frontline positions remain strong, and this year they are the strongest they have been in a long time. Even though the Russians outnumber us by a factor of six to eight in some areas of the front, we are still achieving the results Ukraine needs.”

Speaking about the Ukrainian delegation at the Warsaw Security Forum, Zelenskyy said, “Everyone’s positions are absolutely clear. Ukraine must be supported, and Russia must not be given a chance to break us – our country, our people, and therefore Europe as well. I thank all the leaders and all the nations for their support. Most importantly, there will be decisions, there will be packages that will help us – our defense, our protection.”

Indeed, in the words of the Ukrainian President, “Thank you to everyone standing with us, with Ukraine!”