The hand of Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska seen caressing the face of her exhausted looking husband as they touched down in Ottawa on Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023. CREDIT: Justin Tang/The Canadian Press via AP

By Abbie Cheeseman and Arthur Scott-Geddes

Sept 22

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has vowed to liberate the eastern city of Bakhmut as well as announcing a secret plan to retake two other cities, he said in conversation with reporters in Washington.

“We will de-occupy Bakhmut,” Zelensky is reported to have said. “I think that we will de-occupy two more cities,” he added. “I will not tell you what cities, sorry. And so we have the plan. Very, very comprehensive plan.”

Over the past week Kyiv has announced the liberation of two settlements, Klishchiivka and Andriivka, en route to the embattled city of Bakhmut which has seen some of the most fierce fighting of the war.

In Zelensky’s second wartime visit to Washington, he also announced Ukraine would start manufacturing weapons together with the US. “Ukraine will be able to produce, in particular, anti-aircraft defence. We are preparing to create a new defence ecosystem together with the United States to produce weapons to further strengthen freedom and protection of life together,” Zelensky said.

The stage of energy terrorism has begun, Kyiv PM says

Russia has restarted a systemic campaign of aerial attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, Kyiv’s Prime Minister Denys Shmygal is reported to have said. 

“We understand that the stage of energy terror in this heating season has already begun,” Shmygal said, in comments carried by the news agency Interfax-Ukraine.

He added: “We are much better prepared and stronger than we were last year.”

Zelensky tells US he will ‘lose the war’ without their support

Volodymyr Zelensky pleaded with US lawmakers to maintain military support for Ukraine on Thursday, as Republicans signalled that they would try to block a new funding package put forward by Joe Biden.