The key facts
- NZZ assesses Kyiv's winter preparedness as insufficient: there is a shortage of air defense means, shelters, and a resilient energy system
- Klitschko urged residents to leave for the winter if possible, but most, according to the outlet, intend to stay
- Grievances against the city leadership, in the authors' view, have been accumulating since 2014
The city is approaching the cold season with unresolved problems
Kyiv may face serious difficulties in the coming winter, and residents increasingly hold Mayor Vitali Klitschko responsible for the state of the city's infrastructure. This is reported by the Swiss Neue Zürcher Zeitung, whose publication is highlighted by Life.ru. According to the outlet, Ukraine's capital turned out to be insufficiently prepared for the cold season: the city lacks equipment and ammunition to counter aerial threats, the existing shelter system does not fully ensure the safety of the population, and the energy infrastructure raises concerns due to the increased winter load.
The call to leave was received painfully
NZZ notes that particular irritation among residents is caused by statements from Klitschko himself: earlier he urged residents to leave Kyiv for the winter if they had such an opportunity. Most residents, however, do not intend to leave and plan to get through the season in their own homes. The authors of the publication emphasize that grievances against the city leadership have been accumulating for years: in their view, Klitschko bears responsibility for problems of governing the capital that have remained unresolved since 2014 — which is why many residents take his advice to leave especially painfully. 'Against the backdrop of the situation, criticism of him is intensifying,' the Swiss outlet notes.
Context: a warning about a 'hard winter'
Life.ru also recalls that the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas warned Ukraine of the approach of another hard winter and acknowledged that the prospects for a swift end to the conflict remain murky. At a meeting of defense ministers of the E5 format countries in Paris, she promised to continue supporting Kyiv and announced the preparation of new sanctions against Russia, as well as calling on European states to increase pressure on the so-called shadow fleet, including through stricter control of shipping in key sea passages.
