Moscow says change of government in Kyiv not one of its aims
From CNN's Anna Chernova
A change of the Ukrainian government is not one of the goals of Russia's “special operation,” according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
"Russia is striving to achieve its goals in the special military operation, and these goals can be achieved in different ways,” Peskov told journalists Monday.
CNN asked Peskov about comments made by Russian Senator Konstantin Kosachev, who said that a normalization of relations with Ukraine could only happen if there was “regime change.”
When pressed if a change of power in Ukraine was one of the goals of the special operation, Peskov said: "No."
9:21 a.m. ET, November 21, 2022
US will support Ukraine "for as long as it takes," US Defense Secretary says
From CNN's Colin McCullough
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks during a joint news conference with Indonesia's Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto following their meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, on November 21. (Willy Kurniawan/Reuters)
Washington is committed to supporting Kyiv "for as long as it takes," said US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Monday.
Austin, answering a question on Ukraine from the media during a joint press conference in Jakarta with his Indonesian counterpart, said it is “hard to predict how things will evolve and on what timeline, but we’re in this in support of Ukraine for as long as it takes.”
The focus of the US is to support Ukraine, while Ukraine’s focus is to “make sure they’re doing everything to take back every inch of their sovereign territory,” he added.
Austin also said he believes Ukraine will be prepared to fight during the winter months, and will be in “much better condition than their adversaries” because of the support the US has provided.
Austin is in Indonesia to meet with senior military leaders. In the press conference, Austin said the US is a “proud partner” with Indonesia as the two countries “work together to advance our shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
2:54 a.m. ET, November 21, 2022
Russian shelling hits southern Nikopol district overnight
From CNN's Olga Voitovych
A 78-year-old man was wounded when Russian shelling hit the southern Ukrainian district of Nikopol overnight into Monday, according to a Ukrainian military official.
Nikopol is located in the Dnipropetrovsk region across the river from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. On Sunday, Ukraine and Russia blamed each other for recent shelling that hit the plant's infrastructure.
"Six attacks overnight. Russians again terrorized Nikopol district with 'Grad' and heavy artillery," Valentyn Reznichenko, head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, wrote on Telegram Monday morning.
The wounded elderly man received medical aid and is being treated at home, he added.
Russian shelling damaged private houses, a boat and cars in Nikopol, Reznichenko said.
There was also shelling in the nearby Marhanets and Myrove communities, he added. No casualties have been reported there, but details of the shelling are being clarified, he said.
Reznichenko said the three communities in the Dnipropetrovsk region were hit by almost 60 shells.
2:39 a.m. ET, November 21, 2022
"Normalization" can only happen after change in Ukrainian leadership, senior Russian senator says
From CNN's Fred Pleitgen in Moscow
Konstantin Kosachev attends a council meeting in Moscow on November 18. (Sefa Karacan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
Any normalization of ties between Moscow and Kyiv can "only happen after a change in Ukraine's leadership," a senior Russian senator said in an interview published on Monday.
Sen. Konstantin Kosachev told Russian newspaper Argumenty i Fakty he "does not expect anything good from the current Kyiv regime," state-run news agency TASS reported.
"They are trapped in their own previous actions and ideology. They have no freedom of maneuver," said Kosachev, deputy speaker of the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament. "I believe, any potential normalization could take place only after a change of power in Ukraine. Hopefully, it [the process] will be constitutional next time."
Kosachev warned that residents in Ukrainian regions including Odesa and Dnepropetrovsk "may change their status, if the authorities keep treating them as terrorists or separatists and refuse to engage in dialogue," state media reported.
"So much could change if [Kyiv] stopped speaking the language of power with them," he added.
The Russian state media report did not name Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky by name.
2:22 a.m. ET, November 21, 2022
Germany offers to help Poland defend its airspace following deadly missile incident
From CNN’s Claudia Otto in Berlin and Xiaofei Xu
Germany is ready to provide anti-missile systems to Poland to help Warsaw strengthen its air defense capacity following a deadly missile incident on Polish territory near the Ukrainian border last week, Berlin's defense chief said.
“We have offered to support Poland in securing its airspace — with our Eurofighters and Patriot air defense systems,” German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht told the Düsseldorf-based Rheinische Post and the Bonn-based General-Anzeiger newspapers.
Berlin will also look to extend the deployment of German anti-missile systems in fellow NATO member state Slovakia until the end of 2023, Lambrecht said.
Some context: Last week, the leaders of Poland and NATO said the missile that killed two people in Polish territory was likely fired by Ukrainian forces defending their country against a barrage of Russian strikes, and that the incident appeared to be an accident.
9:22 a.m. ET, November 21, 2022
Russia has used more than 4,700 missiles to strike Ukraine since start of war, President Zelensky says
From CNN’s Mariya Knight
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky delivers his nightly address from his office in Kyiv, Ukraine, on November 20. (President of Ukraine)
Russia has already used more than 4,700 missiles in Ukraine since the beginning of war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday.
“Today is the 270th day of the full-scale war. Russia used more than 4,700 missiles,” he said in an address to members of the International Organization of La Francophonie.
“Hundreds of our cities are simply burned. Thousands of people died. Hundreds of thousands were forcibly deported to Russia. Millions left Ukraine for other countries, fleeing the war.”
Peace plan: Zelensky also spoke about what he called “the Ukrainian peace formula.”
“The Ukrainian peace formula is very clear, and each of its points has been thoroughly worked out,” he said. “Radiation and nuclear safety. Food security. Energy security. Release of all prisoners and deportees. Implementation of the UN Charter and restoration of the territorial integrity of Ukraine and the world order. Withdrawal of Russian troops and cessation of hostilities. Restoring justice. Countering ecocide. Prevention of escalation. Fixing the end of the war.”
Zelensky invited world leaders “to choose the element of the peace formula they can help Ukraine implement."
2:41 a.m. ET, November 21, 2022
"Returning fire is not a war crime," Ukrainian official says of incident in eastern Luhansk
From CNN's Olga Vitovych and Radina Gigova
The edited video purports to show captured Russian soldiers in an act of surrender, with several men lying on the ground on their fronts with their hands over their heads. Telegram/Tvezda
The Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, commented Sunday on an incident in eastern Luhansk, saying Russian servicemen "are those who are fighting and committing treachery" and that "returning fire is not a war crime."
Russia has accused Ukraine of war crimes after video emerged on social media, which Moscow says shows Russian soldiers killed after surrendering to Ukrainian forces.
The precise details of what happened remain unclear.
"From some pieces of video about the incident with the Russian military in Luhansk region it may be concluded that using the staged surrender, the Russians committed a war crime — they opened fire on the military of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," Lubinets said in a Telegram post on Sunday, implying that the Russians from the video may have acted as if they would surrender but did not.
"In this case, persons among the Russian servicemen cannot be considered prisoners of war, but are those who are fighting and committing treachery," he said. "Returning fire is not a war crime. On the contrary, those who want to use the protection of international law to kill must be punished."
What the video appears to show: The edited video purports to show captured Russian soldiers in an act of surrender, with several men lying on the ground on their fronts with their hands over their heads. More soldiers are seen emerging one by one from a building and lying down next to them in the yard.
A voice apparently directing the surrender can be heard shouting: “Come on out, one by one. Which of you is the officer? Has everyone come out? Come out!"
After about 10 men are down on the ground, another soldier emerges from the same building and appears to open fire in the direction of the Ukrainian soldiers conducting the surrender.
A short burst of gunfire is heard before the video clip ends abruptly.
A second clip filmed later from a drone above the same location shows the bodies of what appear to be the same Russian soldiers in the yard, most just a few meters from where they had been lying in the first clip.
CNN has been unable to verify exactly what happened in the first video clip, and it is unclear exactly what happened in the period that elapsed between the first clip and the filming of the drone footage.
The UN investigates: Marta Hurtado, a spokesperson for the United Nations Human Rights Office, said, according to Reuters: "We are aware of the videos and we are looking into them. Allegations of summary executions of people hors de combat should be promptly, fully and effectively investigated, and any perpetrators held to account."
More context: A UN panel of experts said in September that their investigation has found evidence that war crimes have been committed during Russia's war in Ukraine, including cases of rape and torture of children.
7:45 p.m. ET, November 20, 2022
More than $2.7 million allocated for restoration of newly liberated Kherson region, Ukrainian officials say
From CNN’s Mariya Knight
More than $2.7 million has been allocated for the restoration of the newly liberated Kherson region, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal wrote in a Facebook post Sunday.
“The government allocated 100 million hryvnia ($2.7 million) for the priority restoration of the liberated Kherson region,” Shmyhal wrote.
“This is the beginning of the reconstruction of the region. First of all, we are talking about the critical needs of the residents of the region: access to light, water, heat, communication and medicine,” he continued. “People will receive pensions that were accrued to them during the occupation."
Shmyhal also elaborated on the financial support Ukraine has received from its partners.
“Canada issued five-year government bonds that are worth 500 million Canadian dollars (nearly $374 million)," he wrote. “The Ukrainian government made a decision to attract an additional $4.5 billion in grant funds from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association.”
The Prime Minister said these resources will be directed to social security and salaries of state employees.
“Next week, Ukraine will also receive 2.5 billion euros from the European Union,” he added.
“Every Ukrainian can import a generator or charging station from abroad without paying customs duties and VAT,” he said. “About 8,500 generator sets are imported to Ukraine a day.”
3:20 a.m. ET, November 21, 2022
IAEA warns whoever was behind "powerful explosions" at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant is "playing with fire"
From CNN's Radina Gigova and Joshua Berlinger
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Russian-controlled Ukraine, on October 14. (Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters)
Powerful explosions rocked the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine on the weekend, renewing concerns that fighting so close to the facility could cause a nuclear accident.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, said whoever was responsible for the attacks was “playing with fire,” reiterating a warning he made in September.
IAEA experts at the plant said more than a dozen blasts were heard within a short period of time Sunday morning local time, the nuclear watchdog said in a statement. Shelling was observed both near and at the site of the facility. IAEA officials could even see some explosions from their windows, the nuclear watchdog said.
“Whoever is behind this, it must stop immediately,” Grossi added.
Based on information provided by the plant management, the IAEA team said there had been damage to some buildings, systems and equipment at the plant’s site, “but none of them so far critical for nuclear safety and security,” the agency said. There were no reports of casualties.
Kyiv and Moscow blamed each other for the attacks.
