At the meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine's Defense, agreements were reached on new contributions totaling at least $422 million to the PURL initiative. Also, $715 million was declared for procurement from the Ukrainian industry and additional military assistance from allies.
Ahead of October, Naftogaz accumulated $2. 5 billion for gas purchases, of which $1.5 billion was provided by partners. Europeans also provided Ukraine with a credit guarantee, which is a historic event.
Natalia Boyko, Deputy Head of the Supervisory Board of NJSC Naftogaz, stated that gas consumption in Ukraine is growing daily, urging Ukrainians to review their household habits. She emphasized that the heating season will be difficult, and gas consumption has increased by 20% since the beginning of the week.
Felix Zinchenko, head of DTEK's communications department, emphasized that emergency power outages in a number of regions are a consequence of Russian attacks on energy facilities.
Ihor Koval, secretary of the Odesa City Council, assumed the duties of Odesa City Mayor on October 16, 2025. This happened after Hennadiy Trukhanov's Ukrainian citizenship was terminated.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will urge the EU to use frozen Russian assets to provide Ukraine with a loan of 140 billion euros. This funding is intended to support Ukraine's war efforts.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy appointed Olha Reshetylova (Kobylynska) as Ukraine's first military ombudsperson, relieving her from the position of Presidential Commissioner for the Protection of the Rights of Servicemen and Their Families. She identified the launch of the Military Ombudsperson's Office as a priority, which will ensure civilian control over the observance of the rights of all Defense Forces.
Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Heorhiy Tykhyi, announced that Ukraine has appealed to Swiss law enforcement. They are to investigate the incident involving a Russian-speaking man threatening a Ukrainian-speaking family on a train.
This happened due to a drop in export revenues, sanctions and limited access to capital, as well as an increase in debt servicing costs.
On October 16, 2025, the Ukrainian Defense Forces struck the Saratov Oil Refinery, one of Russia's oldest enterprises. The plant processed 4.8 million tons of oil and supplied the needs of the Russian armed forces.
During the night, Russia attacked Ukraine with 37 missiles and 320 drones; 283 UAVs and 5 Kh-59 missiles were neutralized. Another 18 missiles were lost, with the main strike targeting Poltava and Kharkiv regions.
Russia launched its sixth massive attack on Ukraine's gas infrastructure with missiles and drones overnight since October, resulting in four specialists being wounded and critical facilities being shut down. Naftogaz urges Ukrainians to conserve gas.
Due to enemy night attacks on energy facilities, emergency power outages are in effect in 10 regions of Ukraine and Kyiv, and another region is on schedule. Ukrenergo urges not to turn on several powerful electrical appliances simultaneously due to high consumption.
Russia again attacked Ukraine, launching over 300 attack drones and 37 missiles, including at energy and civilian infrastructure. President Zelenskyy called for increased pressure on Russia, emphasizing the need for long-range weapons and sanctions.
The Main Intelligence Directorate has published information on 139 marine vessels and 142 captains involved in the illegal transportation of sanctioned oil and stolen grain.
Kyiv has switched to emergency power outages, which are in effect outside the schedule. Earlier, such outages were introduced in Dnipropetrovsk, Sumy, Kirovohrad, and Poltava regions.
US President Donald Trump is initiating the creation of a fund to support Ukraine, which will be financed by increased tariffs on imports from China. He has instructed US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to discuss this plan with European allies.
As a result of the enemy's night attack on October 16, the operation of DTEK Naftogaz gas production facilities in the Poltava region was stopped. Air raid alerts were declared throughout Ukraine due to the takeoff of Russian MiG-31K aircraft.
The EU Council discussed the future defense readiness roadmap, which will define goals and objectives until 2030. The document will be adopted on October 16 and presented on October 23, 2025.
On Thursday night, Saratov and Engels were reportedly attacked by drones, leading to numerous explosions and the closure of Gagarin Airport. Power supply problems were also recorded in the Volgograd and Voronezh regions of Russia after the UAV attack.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced that 17 NATO member countries have joined the PURL program, which allows the supply of American weapons to Ukraine. Initially, there were six countries, but after a meeting with Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal, their number increased to 17.
Over the past day, 184 combat engagements took place at the front, almost a third of which were in the Pokrovsk direction. The enemy also intensified its activity in the Oleksandrivka and Kostiantynivka directions, launching missile and air strikes.
US President Donald Trump stated that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured him that India would cease purchasing Russian oil. Previously, the US imposed 50% tariffs on Indian goods due to these purchases.
Russian troops suffered significant losses on October 15, losing 1080 soldiers and 416 UAVs. The total combat losses of the enemy from 24.02.22 to 16.10.25 reached 1,127,300 personnel.
The transfer of Tomahawk missiles by the US will not lead to a significant escalation of the war, but will be a symmetrical response to Russia's use of long-range cruise missiles. This will allow Ukraine to inflict damage on key Russian military facilities.
On the night of October 16, an air raid alert was declared across Ukraine due to the takeoff of a MiG-31K. Explosions were recorded in Kharkiv, Poltava, Kropyvnytskyi, and Izium.
The US Senate is ready to grant President Donald Trump the authority to impose tariffs of up to 500% on China for buying Russian oil. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that this fuels the Russian war machine, as China buys 60% of Russian energy resources.
Ukrainians were urged to save electricity due to shelling of critical infrastructure. Adherence to simple rules will help avoid emergency blackouts and stabilize the energy system.
Head of the President's Office Andriy Yermak and the Ukrainian delegation in Washington discussed with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio the details of the preparation for the meeting of the Presidents of Ukraine and the United States, scheduled for this Friday. The parties discussed the long-term security architecture for Ukraine and all of Europe, as well as steps to end the war.
Norway will provide Ukraine with 2 billion Norwegian kroner (approximately $170 million) to finance a new package of military equipment from the United States under the PURL program. This package, coordinated by NATO, will include drones, artillery, and advanced air defense systems.
