Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said the Patriot missiles from Germany would be deployed near the Ukrainian border, securing an accord less than a week after an explosion killed two people in a village near the Ukrainian border.

Powerful blasts meanwhile shook the area around Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant over the weekend, including more than a dozen on Sunday morning, the UN’s atomic agency said. Some buildings and systems have been damaged, but none critically so far.

Key developments

• Poland floats deploying missiles as Germany offers Patriots
• Ukraine nuclear site damaged by powerful explosions, UN says
• Kazakhstan vote sets stage for Putin ally to move past riots
• Europe faces years of LNG insecurity and competition

On the ground

Ukraine’s army is advancing “little by little”, engaging with Russian troops in the eastern Luhansk region, Zelensky said on Sunday night. While the fiercest battles remain in the Donetsk region, fighting there has ebbed because of a deterioration in the weather.

Germany, Poland agree on air defence deal involving Patriot missiles

German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht agreed with Poland’s Blaszczak to deliver Patriot air defence systems and deploy Eurofighter jets to help secure Polish airspace.

“Poland is our friend, ally and stands out as a neighbour of Ukraine,” Lambrecht said in a statement. Details of the agreement will be worked out by specialists. 

Lambrecht, who told the Rheinische Post newspaper earlier about the offer, said in the interview that Germany plans to extend a deployment of Patriot batteries in Slovakia, a Nato member state that also borders Ukraine, throughout 2023 — “and maybe even longer.”

Zelensky equates Russian attacks with weapons of mass destruction 

Russia is targeting key energy infrastructure in Ukraine to “kill” electricity, heating and water supply this winter for millions of people, tantamount to using “weapons of mass destruction”, Zelensky said in a video address to Nato’s annual session in Madrid. 

Ukraine is certain that it’ll be able to restore peace and return territory within its borders along its eastern and southern flanks, preventing “tyranny” from threatening Europe, Zelensky said.

Ukraine plans to raise oil transit fee after Russian strikes

Ukraine plans to raise transit fees for Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline to eastern Europe next year due to Moscow’s attacks on the nation’s power supplies.

Ukrtransnafta JSC, the operator of Ukraine’s oil pipeline network, informed its Russian counterpart Transneft PJSC that “continued destruction of the Ukrainian energy infrastructure has led to a significant shortage of electricity, an increase in its costs, a shortage of fuel, spare parts,” according to a letter from the company seen by Bloomberg.

Stoltenberg eyes more defence spending

Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said he expected allies to agree to stronger commitments to increase defence spending at the annual leaders’ summit in Vilnius next summer.

While allies still need to agree on the next defence spending pledge to succeed the current aim to spend 2% of GDP by 2024, Stoltenberg said “I’m absolutely confident the ambitions will be increased in one way or another.” 

Even if allies decide to keep the 2% figure, it will likely be maintained “more as a floor than as a ceiling” for defence spending, he said, speaking before the Nato Parliamentary Assembly in Madrid.

Russia intensifies shelling of Kherson

Russian troops, which are now concentrated on the left bank of the Dnipro river, to the south of the de-occupied city of Kherson, intensified shelling of the nearby areas, deputy head of the region’s council, Serhii Khlan, said at a briefing.

The situation in Kherson remains difficult, with the city lacking electricity and water due to infrastructure damaged by Russian troops before their withdrawal.

Rocket strike in Poland won’t affect relations, survey says

An errant Ukrainian air defence missile that landed in Poland last week won’t affect Polish-Ukrainian relations, according to a new survey.

About 70% of Poles questioned by United Surveys said the rocket that fell on the Polish village of Przewodow will not impact on the country’s relations with neighbouring Ukraine, and a further 2% said they could even improve, Dziennik Gazeta Prawna reported on Monday. 

According to 20% of those surveyed, the relationship between the two countries, which strengthened since the Russian invasion, could deteriorate or significantly deteriorate after the 15 November explosion that killed two people. Poland has said that the blast was most likely an unfortunate accident and added that the missile was probably part of Ukraine’s air defence. United Surveys polled 1,000 Poles from 18 to 20 November.

Ukraine nuclear site damaged by powerful explosions

Powerful explosions shook the area around Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant over the weekend, causing damage at the site, the United Nations atomic agency said.

Damage was seen at several buildings and equipment, though none so far has been critical to nuclear safety and security, the International Atomic Energy Agency said on its website, citing plant management. DM