Much of Kyiv could be without heat all winter

Russia’s battering of Kyiv’s energy infrastructure could result in large swaths of the city of 3 million people being unable to heat homes and businesses this winter, its leader warned Thursday.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko, speaking at a security forum, said that if areas of Kyiv have no heat or water for 24 hours at temperatures below freezing, heating systems will need to be drained.

“This means that until spring, it will be very difficult,” Klitschko said. “In a very short period of time, the temperature in the apartments may not differ much from the outside.”

Rolling blackouts are already a way of life in the city. Klitschko urged residents to be prepared for worst-case scenarios, suggesting they could move in with family or friends who have heat if winter in Kyiv becomes unbearable.

Biden: We’re willing to talk peace

On a day when a top Kremlin official cracked open the door to a negotiated end to the war in Ukraine, President Joe Biden said he’d be willing to meet with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.

Neither side expressed optimism that either a gathering of the leaders or peace talks would happen anytime soon, but it was a rare indication of mutual willingness to find a solution to a conflict that began with the Russian invasion Feb. 24.

In a news conference Thursday in Washington where he and French President Emanuel Macron assailed the war, Biden said he’d talk with Putin “if he has decided he’s looking for a way to end the war.”

Earlier Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters that Moscow is open to peace talks.

Russia “always said that we are ready to listen to those who are interested in a negotiated settlement,” he said.