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Zelensky on Whirlwind Tour of Europe ahead of US Vote

03 October 2024, Ukraine, Kyiv: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint press conference with New NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who makes his first visit in this capacity to Kyiv, capital of Ukraine Photo: Ukrinform/dpa
03 October 2024, Ukraine, Kyiv: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint press conference with New NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who makes his first visit in this capacity to Kyiv, capital of Ukraine Photo: Ukrinform/dpa
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Zelensky on Whirlwind Tour of Europe ahead of US Vote

03 October 2024, Ukraine, Kyiv: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint press conference with New NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who makes his first visit in this capacity to Kyiv, capital of Ukraine Photo: Ukrinform/dpa
03 October 2024, Ukraine, Kyiv: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during a joint press conference with New NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who makes his first visit in this capacity to Kyiv, capital of Ukraine Photo: Ukrinform/dpa

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to visit Britain, France and Italy on Thursday, part of a whirlwind tour of European leaders aimed at securing aid ahead of pivotal US elections next month.
Kyiv could be facing its toughest winter yet this year, as Russia launches fresh waves of strikes on the country's power grid and advances across the eastern front line, said AFP.
The Ukrainian leader will seek to secure as much financial and military backing as possible during the tour, as the prospect of a Donald Trump victory in November's crunch US vote throws support from Washington in doubt.
Zelensky's travel-packed itinerary will see him meet the leaders of France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy -- all in their respective countries within the space of less than 48 hours.
According to Downing Street, the Ukrainian leader will visit UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London on Thursday, and also meet new NATO chief Mark Rutte there.
In the afternoon he will be in Paris for a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, and is later expected to travel to Rome for talks with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, according to Italian media.
Zelensky has an audience with Pope Francis in the Vatican on Friday morning, and will meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin on the same day, according to a German government spokeswoman.
A key meeting with international allies planned for Saturday was postponed after US President Joe Biden called off a planned European trip to focus on the threat from Hurricane Milton.
Pivotal US vote
Zelensky says his country desperately needs more aid to tip the balance of the war and secure victory on the battlefield as Russia captures dozens of small towns and villages in the east.
He also wants clearance to use long-range weapons supplied by allies, including the United States, to strike military targets deep inside Russia.
Ukraine relies on billions of dollars worth of financial and military aid from Washington to fight Russia's invasion, and the US presidential election in November could prove pivotal.
Republican candidate Donald Trump has promised to end the war "in 24 hours" if he is elected, a prospect Kyiv fears means being forced to make massive compromises to achieve peace.
Vice President and Democratic rival Kamala Harris has said she would not meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin for peace talks if Ukraine was not also represented.
Zelensky has rejected any peace plan that would involve ceding territory to Russia, arguing Moscow must withdraw all its troops from inside Ukraine's borders to achieve lasting peace.

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Hurricane Milton Marches Across Central Florida, Destroying Homes

A motorist drives past broken utility poles downed by strong wind gusts as Hurricane Milton approaches Fort Myers, Florida, US October 9, 2024. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo
A motorist drives past broken utility poles downed by strong wind gusts as Hurricane Milton approaches Fort Myers, Florida, US October 9, 2024. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo
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Hurricane Milton Marches Across Central Florida, Destroying Homes

A motorist drives past broken utility poles downed by strong wind gusts as Hurricane Milton approaches Fort Myers, Florida, US October 9, 2024. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo
A motorist drives past broken utility poles downed by strong wind gusts as Hurricane Milton approaches Fort Myers, Florida, US October 9, 2024. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo

Hurricane Milton marched across central Florida on Thursday after making landfall on the state's west coast hours earlier, whipping up deadly tornadoes, destroying homes and knocking out power to nearly 2 million customers.
The storm made landfall around 8:30 p.m. EDT (0030 GMT) on Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 120 miles per hour (195 kph) near Siesta Key, the US National Hurricane Center said.
By 11 p.m. EDT (0300 GMT), wind speeds had reduced to 105 mph (165 kph), dropping Milton to a Category 2 hurricane, nonetheless still considered extremely dangerous. The eye of the storm was 75 miles (120 km) southwest of Orlando in the center of the state.
A flash flood emergency was in effect for the Tampa Bay area including the cities of Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater, the hurricane center said, with St. Petersburg already receiving 16.6 inches (422 mm) of rain on Wednesday.
The eye of the storm landed in Siesta Key, a barrier island town of some 5,400 off Sarasota about 60 miles (100 km) south of the Tampa Bay metropolitan area, which is home to more than 3 million people.
Governor Ron DeSantis said he hoped Tampa Bay, once seen as the potential bull's eye, could dodge major damage and that the worst of the predicted storm surge could be avoided thanks to the landfall coming before the high tide. Forecasters said seawater could still rise as high as 13 feet (4 meters).
DeSantis reported Milton had also spawned at least 19 tornadoes caused damage in numerous counties, destroying around 125 homes, most of them mobile homes.
"At this point, it's too dangerous to evacuate safely, so you have to shelter in place and just hunker down," DeSantis said upon announcing the landfall.
At least two deaths were reported at a retirement community following a suspected tornado in Fort Pierce on the eastern coast of Florida, NBC News reported, citing St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson. His department did not immediately respond to a request for details.
Pearson estimated 100 homes were destroyed in the county where some 17 tornadoes touched down, NBC said.
More than 1.8 million homes and businesses in Florida were without power, according to PowerOutage.us.
The storm was expected to cross the Florida peninsula overnight and emerge into the Atlantic, still with hurricane force, on Thursday.
Once past Florida, it should weaken over the western Atlantic, possibly dropping below hurricane strength but still posing a storm-surge danger on the state's Atlantic Coast.
In a state already battered by Hurricane Helene two weeks ago, as many as two million people were ordered to evacuate, and millions more live in the projected path of the storm.
Much of the southern US experienced the deadly force of Hurricane Helene as it cut a swath of devastation through Florida and several other states. Both storms are expected to cause billions of dollars in damage.
ZOO ANIMALS PROTECTED
While human evacuees jammed the highways and created gasoline shortages, animals including African elephants, Caribbean flamingos and pygmy hippos were riding out the storm at Tampa's zoo.
Nearly a quarter of Florida's gasoline stations were out of fuel on Wednesday afternoon.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency had moved millions of liters (gallons) of water, millions of meals and other supplies and personnel into the area. None of the additional aid will detract from recovery efforts for Hurricane Helene, the agency's administrator, Deanne Criswell, said earlier on Wednesday.
Trucks have been running 24 hours a day to clear mounds of debris left behind by Helene before Milton potentially turned them into dangerous projectiles, DeSantis said.
About 9,000 National Guard personnel were deployed in Florida, ready to assist recovery efforts, as were 50,000 electricity grid workers in anticipating of widespread power outages, DeSantis said.
Search-and-rescue teams were prepared to head out as soon as the storm passes, working through the night if needed, DeSantis said.
"It's going to mean pretty much all the rescues are going to be done in the dark, in the middle of the night, but that's fine. They're going to do that," DeSantis said.