Shelling continues as winter of warfare looms in Ukraine

SHELLING by Russian forces struck several areas in eastern and southern Ukraine overnight as utility crews continued efforts to restore power, water and heating following widespread strikes in recent weeks, officials said yesterday.

With persistent snow blanketing the capital, Kyiv, analysts predict that wintry weather – bringing with it frozen terrain and gruelling fighting conditions – could have an increasing impact on the direction of the conflict that has raged since Russian forces invaded Ukraine more than nine months ago.

But both sides are currently bogged down by heavy rain and muddy battlefield conditions in some areas, experts said. After a blistering barrage of Russian artillery strikes in the past two weeks, infrastructure teams in Ukraine were fanning out in round-the-clock deployments to restore key basic services as many Ukrainians struggle with only a few hours of electricity per day.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a think tank that has been closely monitoring developments in

Ukraine, said heavy rain and mud have had an impact – but wider freezing is expected along the front lines soon. It said the meteorological factors that have been hindering offensives will begin lifting, soon it said. Overnight shelling was reported by regional leaders in the Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk areas to the west.