The day before, Russia attacked Ukraine’s energy infrastructure with missiles and drones; According to President Vladimir Putin, this was retaliation for kyiv’s attacks on Russian territory with long-range American missiles. Ukrainian officials said millions of Ukrainians were left without power, but Putin suggested those attacks could intensify, The New York Times writes.
Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said it was the 11th major attack on the country’s energy infrastructure this year. The overall extent of the damage is still unclear, but explosions were heard in cities across Ukraine and officials reported widespread power outages. According to regional authorities, six people were injured throughout the country. “The energy sector has once again been the target of a massive enemy attack,” Ukrainian Energy Minister G. wrote on social media.erman galuschenko. The operator of the Ukrainian energy system “urgently introduced emergency power cuts,” he added.
In recent weeks, Russia and Ukraine have escalated their tensions and intensified their exchange of blows. Although attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure have long become a common Russian tactic, analysts believe both sides are attempting to improve their negotiating positions ahead of the takeover. donald trump. Trump promised to end the conflict without specifying how exactly he would do so. Speaking at a meeting of the Moscow-led security alliance in Kazakhstan, Putin warned that Russian attacks on Ukraine could intensify, and emphasized that his country is targeting missile strikes in kyiv that could hit “decision-making centers.” ”.
“Currently, the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff of the Russian army are selecting targets for destruction on the territory of Ukraine. “They could be military installations, defense industry companies or decision-making centers in kyiv.” – Putin said.
Russia said on Tuesday that Ukraine attacked its territory twice with Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) supplied by the United States, expending a total of more than a dozen missiles. Last week, the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched these missiles against Russian territory for the first time, after receiving permission from the United States this month. Russia responded with a test launch of the Oreshnik, a medium-range ballistic missile designed to carry nuclear warheads, but in a non-nuclear version.
Putin said Russia will respond harshly to attacks on its territory with Western-made long-range missiles, “including the possible continuation of the Oreshnik test in combat conditions.” The Russian president added that his country has several Oreshnik systems “ready to use.” Later, at a press conference at the end of his visit to Kazakhstan, Putin said that if Ukraine acquired nuclear weapons, Russia would respond “with all the means at its disposal.” Previously, some Western officials suggested that the United States could return to Ukraine nuclear weapons confiscated after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
After Thursday’s strikes, more than a million people were left without power in the western regions of Lviv, Volyn and Rivne, officials said. The city of Zhytomyr, further east, was left without electricity and water. The southern city of Kherson also lost power, as did much of kyiv. Mayor of Lutsk in the Volyn region, west of the country Igor Polachchuk He said there were several strikes in the city and surrounding areas.
Since September, Russia has been attacking Ukrainian cities with drones almost every night. The air campaign is aimed at probing and exhausting enemy air defenses, analysts say, and Russia has recently stepped up its missile attacks. The attacks target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure to plunge its population into the cold and darkness as winter progresses. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that 91 missiles and 97 drones were fired throughout the country overnight. They said 79 missiles were shot down and all drones were shot down or suppressed. A total of 188 attacks targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, the military said.
Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Russia carried out a “complex attack” last night using 90 missiles and 100 drones. He added that 17 targets were hit, including “facilities of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex and the energy infrastructure that ensures its operation.” The cruise and ballistic missiles were launched from planes based in three Russian regions and Crimea, the Russian Aerospace Forces reported. The Black Sea Fleet supported the attack with Kalibr cruise missiles launched from Novorossiysk.
According to the executive director of the Ukrainian Institute of Sustainable Development Stanislav IgnatievaMore than 40% of Ukraine’s generating capacity was destroyed or occupied by the enemy even before Thursday’s attacks. According to analysts, due to the destruction and dismantling of generation capacities, Ukraine will experience energy shortages for some time.
“Unfortunately, we have to admit that in the near future we will have limited generation capacity, at least for three or four years, until we build new ones.” — said this week the director of the independent Energy Industry Research Center. Alexander Kharchenko.
Thursday’s attacks coincided with Trump’s appointment of a retired general. Keith Kelloggformer national security advisor to the vice president Mike Pencehis special representative for Ukraine and Russia. Kellogg is a co-author of the peace proposal presented to Trump last summer, which includes a moratorium on Ukraine’s membership in NATO and the transfer of currently occupied Ukrainian territory to Russia.
