Ukraine has hit back at Russia’s attempts to disable its energy infrastructure with air strikes that succeeded in disrupting power and heating in two cities across the border.

Kyiv’s drone and missile attacks cut power and heating on Sunday in the Russian cities of Belgorod near the border and Voronezh nearly 300km (186 miles) away.

In Belgorod, local Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said missile strikes caused “serious damage” to power and heating systems supplying the city, affecting some 20,000 households.

Alexander Gusev, regional governor of Voronezh, said several drones were electronically jammed over the city – home to more than one million people – and sparked a fire at a local utility facility that was quickly extinguished.

A Russian Defence Ministry statement made no mention of either the Voronezh or Belgorod areas, reporting 44 Ukrainian drones were destroyed or intercepted by Russian forces during the night.

Local authorities in the Rostov region also reported an hours-long blackout in the city of Taganrog, home to some 240,000 people, blaming it on an emergency shutdown of a power line. Local media reported a nearby transformer substation caught fire.

Meanwhile, Russia launched a barrage of drones and missiles in overnight attacks on Ukraine, targeting substations that supply two nuclear power plants and killing seven people, Ukrainian officials told Reuters news agency.

Russia’s Defence Ministry confirmed on Saturday that it launched “a massive strike with high-precision long-range air, ground and sea-based weapons” on weapons production plants and gas and energy facilities in response to Kyiv’s earlier strikes on Russia.

On Sunday, the northeastern region of Kharkiv was still struggling to recover from Russia’s attacks, which left about 100,000 people without power.

State-owned energy company Tsentrenergo said the attacks were the largest on its facilities since the start of the war in February 2022, and it halted operations at plants in the Kyiv and Kharkiv regions.

Moscow launched 69 drones at energy facilities across Ukraine overnight into Sunday, of which 34 were shot down, according to the Ukrainian air force.

Russia and Ukraine have traded almost daily assaults on each other’s energy infrastructure as United States-led diplomatic efforts to stop the nearly four-year war appear to be leading nowhere fast.

Ukrainian long-range drone strikes on Russian refineries have aimed to deprive Moscow of the oil export revenue it needs to pursue the war.

Meanwhile, Kyiv and its Western allies say Russia is trying to cripple the Ukrainian power grid and deny civilians access to heat, lights, and running water for a fourth consecutive winter in what amounts to a weaponisation of the extreme cold.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti on Sunday that he’s ready to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to discuss the war on Ukraine and mend bilateral ties.

Lavrov repeated that peace can’t be achieved without “taking Russian interests into account” – a phrase Moscow has used to signal it is standing firm in its maximalist demands for Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded Kyiv withdraw troops from the entirety of the four regions Moscow claims as part of Russia: Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine – which make up the Donbas – plus Kherson and Zaporizhia in the south.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said some Russian-occupied territories might be acknowledged as temporarily seized, but has ruled out any official recognition, saying he does not have a mandate to give away territory.

Lavrov’s move comes weeks after efforts to organise a summit between Putin and US President Donald Trump were abruptly cancelled.

[Aljazeera]

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that this year’s Budget covers all sectors of the country, and that the Government does not act based on short-term personal agendas or interests.

The Prime Minister made these remarks in Parliament on November 8, while commenting on the Appropriation Bill presented for the year 2026.

Addressing further, the Prime Minister stated,

If the Members of Parliament, setting aside the divisions, had truly listened to the President’s Budget speech, they would have realized that there were many valuable lessons and insights to be learned from both the speech and the proposals contained within the Budget.

Behind the contents, proposals, and statistics of the Budget lies a deeply meaningful message. I urge everyone to take the time to understand that message properly.

This budget speech as well as the budget itself. demonstrates how results can be achieved and how a nation can progress through a politically disciplined governance and visionary leadership when formulating policies involves proper planning and when formulating laws as well as governing them with discipline take place to achieve defined goals and that is what is truly important right now.

This is the second budget of the current government. Our first Budget was presented in April 2025. When we assumed office, there was uncertainty how long it will take for us to recover from this considering the state of the country and the international platform at that time as well as the shattered ideas of the people. It was that time this Government came into power.

With taking over a collapsed nation, the government presented its first budget in April. The figures presented yesterday cover the period from April to September, as that budget was applicable only for nine months. The full expenditure will only be visible by December.

Within the plan to stabilize the country, the President demonstrated successful governance through financial discipline, something that must be appreciated. Regardless of political differences, we can now move forward collectively, identifying and addressing shortcomings together.

Already, within the six months of implementing the first budget, we have shown more than 50% progress. The government expects this figure to grow even further by December 31. Since many projects only began implementation in September, viewing the progress from that perspective will give us a more accurate picture.

We must remember that we have reached this stage after taking over a fallen nation. The Opposition now acknowledges that the Treasury has managed to maintain savings. The government is maintaining fiscal discipline, and none of this has happened by chance. These are the results of visionary leadership, a lesson we must recognize and appreciate.

We can also take pride in the fact that, unlike previous governments, we did not fill state institutions with people when we assumed power. We made no mass replacements. Though even some of our own party members criticized us for that, we wanted to prove that with proper leadership, clear vision, and structured planning, the existing public service can deliver results. Of course, there is room for improvement with greater efficiency and better performance.

The reason for the significant relief to the public service, and giving away the second installment from January as well as increasing the allowances and other benefits is to increase greater efficiency and productivity. Funds have been allocated for this purpose in the budget.

Our goal is to transform the public service into one that is efficient, democratic, and goal-oriented. Compared to January 2025, we can already see progress in this process. We are confident that by 2026, there will be even greater advancement with more structured and result-driven development. We are not working for short-term or personal political gain, but collectively, as a team, for the long-term development the nation needs. This marks a significant transformation that can only be understood when one remembers the condition of the country we took over.

Shared understanding that this journey toward planned, collective national progress understood by both the government and by public officials and the people has shared to seeing these results. This is a process that cannot be compared simplistically with previous governments. The difference and the ongoing transformation must be properly understood.

We are not acting based on personal agendas, ministerial egos, or political motives. We are implementing a coordinated, team-based plan developed with the nation’s needs in mind. All 159 of us in the government understand our respective responsibilities and are committed to fulfilling them to ensure the success of the overall plan.

I believe that the Opposition has studied our policy framework in depth perhaps more than we have memorizing page numbers and paragraphs. I remind them fondly that this is our five-year plan. We have a long-term vision for the country.

Five years from now, in the next election, we will debate our progress on public platforms.

Today, the Opposition accuses us of threatening democracy and the multiparty system. I would like to ask them where exactly has democracy been endangered? We are operating by fully respecting Parliament’s financial authority. Is enforcing the law an act against democracy? Is applying the law equally to everyone undemocratic?

Now, you have all come together from various parties. When many parties merge into one, that is when the multiparty system is truly at risk. Therefore, if there is a threat to multiparty democracy today, it arises from the Opposition itself from its inability to protect and represent its own parties effectively before the people.

The government has no desire, nor time, to abolish the multiparty system. We came to power not for the Opposition, but for the people to rebuild the nation and fulfill the people’s aspirations. As we pursue that goal, politics itself is changing. The expectations of the people from politics are changing. This is the greatest transformation taking place, a change in the country’s political culture. The people will not return to the old ways. Unless the Opposition understands this new political culture and adapts to it, they will not be able to grasp the true nature of this transformation.

It must also be emphasized that no sector or social group has been neglected or excluded in this budget. The government has carefully identified the key national challenges and the vulnerable social groups that need protection. Within one year, we have presented a clearly structured, logically planned program addressing immediate issues while also setting out long-term strategies for sustainable solutions. Therefore, it is impossible to claim that anything significant has been ignored.

With the country now stabilized, this budget focuses on the next step followed by how to ensure growth, how to manage the surplus funds in the Treasury effectively for the people’s benefit, and how to prevent another economic crisis.

[Prime Minister’s Media Division]

Meghalaya batter Akash Kumar Chooudhary made cricket history on Sunday, becoming only the third player  in First-Class history to hit six sixes in an over (where data is available), and also scored the fastest ever fifty in FC cricket.

Akash achieved the feat during the second day of Meghalaya’s Plate Group game in the Ranji Trophy, against Arunachal Pradesh, in Surat. He smashed six sixes off left-arm spinner Limar Dabi in the 126th over of Meghalaya’s innings, and in the process, joined an elite club that previously included only Ravi Shastri and Garry Sobers  South Africa’s Mike Procter also hit six consecutive sixes, but spread across two overs.

Coming in at No.8, Akash began his innings with a dot and two singles, but smashed the next eight balls for six – no other batter in history had managed more than six in a row – to reach his fifty off just 11 balls. Akash’s half-century came one ball faster than the previous record holder – Leicestershire’s Wayne Knight made 50 off 12 balls in 2012, while Clive Inman struck his fifty off just 13 balls in 1965. While Akash broke the record for fastest half-century in terms of balls faced, he remains second on the list for fastest fifty  by time, he took nine minutes to reach the mark, while Inman took only eight.

Akash, 25, has played 30 first-class matches since making his debut in 2019, scoring 503 runs at an average of 14.37

(Cricinfo)