– A few weeks ago, the Russians attacked power and heating stations in particular. Water, heat and fuel pumps running. It will be so cold in some of these cities that we have to expect an even larger wave of refugees in the future, he tells Dagbladet.
In recent weeks, there have been several attacks on infrastructure in Ukraine. It might look like the country’s power grid is about to be completely wiped out, Carlsen thinks, almost completely destroyed over time.
The attacks will continue as long as the Russians have Iranian missiles and drones. More air defenses could help Ukraine, but there will be no one hundred percent stopping of all attacks. Also, the destruction is so great that there will be energy problems going on in the long run, regardless of whether they manage to stop the bombing, he says.
A long way to go to the end
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote some time ago on his Telegram channel that the current stage of the war is the beginning of the end. Carlsen considers it differently.
– I think, unfortunately, that there is still a long way to go to the end. The conflict started in 2014 and not now in February, so in the worst case you could have a conflict for several years to come.
A cause for greater concern
Nor is it ignoring the fact that the Russians will muster more in the future. However, Carlsen believes there are limits to what the Russians will be able to achieve.
– When it freezes, winter comes and it becomes easier to get off the roads, we should not ignore the new Ukrainian attacks. I doubt the Russians can do much.
The worst winter since the war
Ukrainian state network operator Ukrenergo enlightened On Tuesday, almost all thermal power plants and hydroelectric power plants in the country were damaged after a series of missile attacks.
In front of the German newspaper picture Klitschko refers to this winter as “the worst since World War II,” and says Kyiv has not had such a “terrible winter” since.
– We must prepare for the worst case scenario – massive power outages and even lower temperatures. Then parts of the city must be evacuated, but we don’t want it to go that far, he says.
“severely disabled”
On Telegram, he stated that three people will be killed as a result of today’s attack, and that 11 people will be injured.
– The strongest attack
Over the weekend, several attacks were reported near the nuclear power plant in Zaporozhye, some of them near the reactors.
The Russians blame Ukraine for the attacks, and vice versa. Who is actually behind it – whether it is one of the parties or both, is still not clear.
The director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Mariano Grossi, described this weekend’s attack as one of the most violent in recent months.
– Once again we were lucky that a potentially serious nuclear energy accident did not occur. Next time we may not be so lucky. We must do everything we can to ensure there is no “next time,” Grossi said in a statement on Sunday.
“Coffee trailblazer. Certified pop culture lover. Infuriatingly humble gamer.”
