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Situation in Ukraine 'feels increasingly like protracted war' with concerns over healthcare settings, energy supplies, UN coordinator says
UN humanitarian coordinator on Ukraine warned that the conflict “feels increasingly like a protracted war,” with all hopes of a swift resolution fading away.
“We have been through phases this year where there was cautious optimism that it might end right now. On the ground, it doesn’t feel at all like it’s ending anytime soon,” he said.
Speaking in Geneva, UN assistant secretary-general Matthias Schmale also warned that “this year has been deadlier than 2024 in terms of civilian casualties,” with a 30% increase year-on-year.
Schmale said he was growing worried about “the increased military pressures and attacks along the frontline,” with more evacuations from conflict areas.
He also said he was concerned about “key public service installations” increasingly affected by Russian attacks, including healthcare settings, which saw over 360 attacks between January and October, and energy production capacities and distribution facilities.
“If the winter is much colder than last year, as is for the moment anticipated, if the energy destruction continues and the rate of recovery does not hold up with a rate of destruction, we are very worried about [it,]” he said, warning it could “turn into a major crisis.”
“If … we have a harsh winter and have people in cities like Zaporizhzhia or Kharkiv or Dnipro near the frontline … in high rise apartment buildings stuck without electricity or safe water for days on end, there is no way that, with the available resources, we would be able to respond to a major crisis within this crisis,” he said.
Morning opening: What's next for Ukraine?
Jakub Krupa
Ukraine has reported another series of attacks from Russia overnight, including a strike on the north-eastern Ukrainian city of Sumy, which injured at least 11 residents, local authorities said.
The Sumy region borders Russia and has been under constant attack from drones and missiles, Reuters reported. The emergency services said on the Telegram messenger service that Russia had struck a residential multistorey building, private houses and infrastructure facilities.
Separately, it emerged that Russia has in recent months attacked Ukraine with a cruise missile whose secret development prompted Donald Trump to abandon a nuclear arms control pact with Moscow in his first term as US president.
Ukrainian officials told Reuters that Russia has fired the ground-launched 9M729 missile at Ukraine 23 times since August, with one missile allegedly flying over 750 miles (1,200km) before hitting its targets in Ukraine.
The reports highlight the troubling lack of progress in Trump’s plan to end the war in Ukraine, with the Financial Times newspaper reporting that a planned Budapest summit between Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin was cancelled because of Moscow’s continuing hardline demands.
In a memo, the Kremlin reportedly requested “territorial concessions, a steep reduction of Ukraine’s armed forces and guarantees it will never join Nato,” the paper said (£).
I will keep an eye on official reactions to the overnight attacks and bring you the latest here. Elsewhere, I will also keep an eye on the latest in the Netherlands, as we still wait for the final results of this week’s parliamentary election.
It’s Friday, 31 October 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
