Ukraine reside: Zelensky unveils ‘Victory Plan’ as Russia launches mass drone assault

The Kremlin has warned Kyiv to “sober up” as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky announces his five-point “Victory Plan” in parliament.

It was too early to comment on the plan but the policies Zelensky is pursuing are futile, Russia said.

Zelensky said in his speech on Wednesday that the conflict could be ended no later than next year if his plan was implemented immediately.

But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Kyiv’s plan was likely to be similar to the US plan – to use Ukraine to fight against Russia.

Ukraine has called for an unconditional invitation to join the NATO military alliance as part of president Volodymyr Zelensky’s five-point ‘Victory Plan’.

Zelensky also requested a strategic non-nuclear deterrent package in Ukraine, and envisaged the replacement of some US forces in Europe by Ukrainian troops.

The plan also called for an agreement on joint defense between Kyiv’s allies and the use of vital Ukrainian resources, Reuters reported.

The Ukrainian military says it repelled Russian attacks near Krasnyi Yar on the past day.

It added that Rusian forces had attempted to break through Ukraine’s defences around Nevske on the Lyman front, it said on Telegram according to Reuters.

The Russian Defence Ministry claimed on Wednesday it captured both Krasnyi Yar and Nevske.

Russian forces have captured two villages in eastern Ukraine, the defence ministry has claimed, as they continue to make slow but steady progress on the eastern front.

Putin’s troops took control of Krasnyi Yar in Donetsk region and Nevske in Luhansk region, the defence ministry said on Wednesday according to Russia’s state-run TASS news agency.

France will deliver its first round of “kamikaze” drones to Ukraine in the “coming weeks”, defence minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Wednesday morning.

“Testing of the first French remotely operated munition – also called kamikaze drones” had been a “success,” Lecornu wrote on X.

“Regaining sovereignty over this key segment for our armies in less than two years. Deliveries to Ukraine and our forces in the coming weeks,” he added.

Russia is increasingly using kamikaze drones, including Iranian Shahed drones, to target Ukrainian cities and infrastructure, and domestically-made Lancets against Ukrainian troops.

“Kamikaze drones are absolutely fundamental” and will be able to “complement Caesar howitzers,” Lecornu added, according to The Kyiv Independent, referring to the artillery systems already supplied to Ukraine by France.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky will unveil his “Victory Plan” to the Ukrainian parliament on Wednesday.

The much-anticipated plan aims to force Moscow to negotiate an end to the war in good faith, and includes an invitation for Ukraine to join the NATO western military alliance.

Zelensky has discussed the plan with his western allies during a number of quickfire trips in recent weeks.

Ukrainian officials have suggested the plan includes a request to the West to ramp up weapons supplies and authorise longer-range strikes in Russia, although the exact details are unknown.

Zelensky’s speech may aim to persuade the Ukrainian public, exhausted and demoralised after two-and-a-half years of grinding war, that the conflict can end soon.

Opposition MP  Iryna Gerashchenko said according to Reuters: “I’d like to believe (the plan) is realistic, because the situation is indeed very, very difficult.”

Large-scale power outages have been reported in the southern city of Kherson, according to the chief of the city’s military administration.

“According to preliminary information, the entire city was cut off. The reasons are being determined,” Roman Mrochko wrote on Telegram on Wednesday morning.

Power outages were also reported in the neighbouring Mykolaiv region

Governor Vitalii Kim said: “Many people have lost electricity. We identified the source. There was no strike. We will fix it in a couple of hours if there are no further surprises.”

The US will not use the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile battery in Ukraine, despite using it in Israel, because the situation is “different”.

Washington authorised the use of THAAD – an advanced surface-to-air interceptor – in Israel to boost its defence capabilities after Iran’s attack.

But Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said the US would not deploy the same system in Romania or Poland to help protect Ukraine’s west, which comes under regular attack from Russian missiles.

“Different capabilities, different wars, different regions. The commitments also to Israel and Ukraine are different,” Singh said according to The Kyiv Independent.

It comes after president Volodymyr Zelensky said NATO countries could help shoot down Russian missiles over Ukraine, but that they were “not yet ready” to do this.

Zelensky said on October 3: “What works in the skies of the Middle East and helps Israel’s defence can work just as well in the skies of our part of Europe – in Ukraine – helping to save lives.”

Ukraine is requesting an invitation to join NATO before Joe Biden leaves the White House, a senior Ukrainian diplomat said.

It would be a fitting way to end the 81-year-old’s presidency, Ukraine argues, and would be a strong “political signal”.

Speaking in an interview at the Ukrainian mission to NATO, the western military alliance’s Kyiv ambassador, Nataliia Galibarenko, said: “We sincerely believe that it can be part of the legacy of [the] current American administration.”

The US presidential election next month could have a significant impact on its approach towards support for Ukraine’s war against Russia, with Donald Trump so far unclear on how he would handle the conflict.

Russia says Ukraine’s possible ascension to NATO is a justification for the brutal war they have waged since Putin’s forces invaded in February 2022.

But Galibarenko says an invitation would provide a “final verdict” for Russia, and that they would no longer be able to “raise the stakes using this topic”.