Ukraine and Russia: what you need to know now

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Russian artillery fired at Ukrainian towns across the river from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant overnight, local officials said on Sunday, adding to residents’ anguish as reports of shelling around of the plant fueled fears of a radioactive disaster.

STRUGGLE

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* The British Ministry of Defense said it was not yet clear how Russia would achieve a large announced increase in its armed forces, but the increase is unlikely to significantly increase its combat power in Ukraine.

* The Ukrainian mayor of occupied Melitopol told Ukrainian television that the government forcibly shelled the Russian military base in the city around 1 a.m. “According to preliminary information…one of the largest military bases that was… in the city of Melitopol was also damaged and partially demilitarized ”

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* Russian air forces raided workshops at a Motor Sich factory in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region where helicopters were being repaired, Russian news agency RIA reported citing the Defense Ministry. The Defense Ministry also said Russian forces had destroyed fuel storage facilities in Ukraine’s Dnipro region, the Interfax news agency reported.

* Reuters could not verify reports from the battlefield.

ECONOMY

* Six ships loaded with food left the Ukrainian port of Odessa, regional administration spokesman Serhiy Bratchuk said on the Telegram app.

* Millions of tonnes of food from previous harvests in Ukraine still need to be evacuated to make room in silos for the next, the UN coordinator for a key grain export deal said on Saturday.

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* Merchant seamen will be allowed to leave Ukraine if they receive approval from their local military administrative body, Ukraine’s prime minister said on Saturday, a move that could ease the process of shipping grain.

* Germany could nationalize the energy sector abandoned by Russia’s Gazprom in April. The government has set up a holding company to carry out a possible nationalization of Gazprom Germania, Welt am Sonntag reported.

* Dell Technologies, a vital server provider in Russia, said on Saturday it had ceased all Russian operations after it closed its offices in mid-August, the latest Western company to exit.

(Compiled by William Mallard and Frances Kerry)