Ukraine live briefing: Few crossing Dnieper River into Kherson; ‘reduced tempo’ of war to continue, U.S. intel chief says

Few have taken up Ukrainian officials’ offer, though one person was killed by a gunshot while trying. Ukrainian forces have reportedly crossed the river onto the eastern bank, and Russian forces have battered Kherson with shelling from the east in recent days.

The United States expects the “reduced tempo” of fighting in Ukraine to continue over coming months, National Intelligence Director Avril Haines told a panel on Saturday. Her assessment comes as the Institute for the Study of War, a D.C.-based think tank, said that mud has prevented large vehicles from traversing eastern Ukrainian terrain during much of the past week, though the weather probably will become more conducive to combat in the winter.

Here’s the latest on the war and its ripple effects across the globe.

4. From our correspondents

Moscow and St. Petersburg, the most populous cities in Russia, had the most drastic jumps in rank of any city included on the list, Claire Healy reports. Moscow went from the 72nd position last year to the 37th in 2022. Many cities in Western Europe, on the other hand, became less expensive, as currencies and economies weakened. Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, was not on this year’s list, compiled semiannually by the London-based Economist Intelligence Unit as part of a Worldwide Cost of Living survey.

Usual suspects New York and Singapore tied for first place, a rank driven by high incomes and a strong U.S. dollar. Tel Aviv, which topped the list last year, dropped to third, with Los Angeles and Hong Kong following in fourth.

Nichols reported from Seoul, Timsit from London, Brasch from Atlanta and Parker from Washington. Evan Halper in Washington contributed to this report.