Ukraine updates: Third of power stations 'destroyed'

Much of the damage has been done in the past week, with repeated strikes targeting energy infrastructure and causing blackouts across the country. 

"Since October 10, 30 percent of Ukraine's power stations have been destroyed, causing massive blackouts across the country," Zelenskyy said on Twitter.  

The Ukrainian president added there was "no space left for negotiations with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin's regime." 

A number of regions of Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv, have seen power cuts after more strikes hit energy facilities on Tuesday. 

Energy operator DTEK announced "interruptions" to the electricity and water supply to residents after an attack on a facility on the left bank of the city's river. 

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko has urged residents to save electricity "as much as possible" by not using appliances with high energy consumption. 

Earlier on Tuesday, Russian missile strikes hit Ukrainian infrastructure in Kyiv and other areas, coming just a day after deadly Russian drone strikes hit the Ukrainian capital. On Monday, four people were killed in Kyiv due to a barrage of Russian attacks with so-called "suicide drones."

Meanwhile, the northern city of Zhytomyr was left without electricity and water supply after the Tuesday morning strikes, its mayor said. In Dnipro, an energy facility was hit twice and severely damaged, an official said.

Here are the other main headlines from the war in Ukraine on October 18.

Ukraine receives €2 billion in EU aid

Ukraine's prime minister said the country has received €2 billion ($1.96 billion) in financial help from the European Union.  

The sum is the first tranche of a €5-billion ($4.91-billion) EU package allocated after Russia's invasion. 

"The additional financial resource will help to cover urgent budgetary expenses, in particular for the social and humanitarian spheres," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal wrote on the messaging app Telegram. 

 Ukraine: Russia 'kidnapped' two officials at nuclear plant

Ukraine's state nuclear energy agency has accused Russia of "kidnapping" two of its senior employees at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in the south of Ukraine. 

Energoatom said in a statement on Telegram on Tuesday that the power station's head of information technology, Oleh Kostyukov, and Oleh Oshek, an assistant to the plant's director, had been detained the previous day. 

"At present, nothing is known of their whereabouts or condition," the statement said.

Zelenskyy calls for air defense aid amid drone strikes

President Zelenskyy called on the international community to provide more air defense systems in the midst of renewed Russian airstrikes with so-called "suicide drones."

"The world can and must stop this terror. When we talk about Ukraine's need for air and missile defense, we are talking about real lives that are being taken by terrorists," he said in a statement published late Monday.

"And this is not only Ukrainian interest. The fewer terrorist opportunities Russia has, the sooner this war will end," Zelenskyy added.

His comments came after the latest barrage of Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities. Zelenskyy said Monday's attacks were primarily carried out with Iranian-designed combat drones, also referred to as "kamikaze drones."

Zelenskyy said that since Sunday evening Ukraine had intercepted 37 such drones and several cruise missiles.

Russia military aircraft crashes into apartments near Azov Sea coast

At least 13 people have been killed after a military plane crashed into a residential building in the port town of Yeysk in Russia's southwestern Krasnodar Krai region, Russian media quoted a Health Ministry spokesperson as saying on Tuesday.

Russia's Defense Ministry said the crash of the Su-34 bomber set off a fire covering some 2,000 square meters (21,500 square feet),  the state RIA news agency reported. 

Hours after the accident, Krasnodar Krai Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said emergency services had managed to douse the fire.

Yeysk lies on the Azov Sea coast, close to the country’s border with Ukraine, and is home to some 90,000 people, along with a Russian air base.

Catch up on DW's coverage of Russia's invasion of Ukraine

NATO has launched its annual series of nuclear preparedness drills on the heels of veiled threats from Russian President Vladimir Putin that he might consider a nuclear option after military setbacks in Ukraine.

Suicide drones are said to have been used to attack the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Tehran has denied supplying Moscow with the equipment. What do we know about drone imports?

dvv/rs (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)