Russia’s second major air attack on Ukraine’s power grid in less than two weeks has amplified fears that the Kremlin is seeking to cripple the country’s power generation capacity ahead of winter.
“Attacks on energy facilities have taken place across Ukraine,” Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said in a Facebook post. He noted that emergency power cuts had been implemented across the country.
Russian President Vladimir Putin maintains that his forces struck 17 Ukrainian targets, including military installations, with 100 drones and 90 missiles.
But the Ukrainian Air Force claims to have shot down 76 cruise missiles and three other types of missiles, as well as 32 drones. She added that she had lost track of 62 Russian drones.
In some regions, Kalibr cruise missiles equipped with cluster munitions have crashed into civilian targets, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who spoke of an “insidious escalation”. Cluster munitions release many small bombs over a wide area, making them dangerous to civilians during and after an attack.
Ukrainian authorities recently warned that Russia is stockpiling cruise missiles and ballistic missiles, likely in preparation for a new pre-winter air campaign against Ukraine’s power grid. They have in the past accused Russia of “weaponizing winter.”
Nearly half of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has been destroyed during the three-year war with Russia, and power outages are frequent. Kyiv’s Western allies have sought to help Ukraine protect its electricity production by providing air defense systems and funds for reconstruction.
SEE ALSO | “I suffer”: 1000 days of war between Ukraine and Russia
“Each of these attacks proves that air defense systems are needed in Ukraine, where they save lives,” Zelensky said on the Telegram messaging app.
In recent years, Russia has targeted Ukraine’s electricity generation in an attempt to deprive civilians of heat and clean water supplies, both essential during the harsh winter months, and to break the morale of the Ukrainians.
The attacks also aim to hamper Ukraine’s defense industry, which now produces missiles, drones and armored vehicles, among other military equipment.
In recent months, the war has turned to the advantage of Russia, whose larger army is using its advantages in manpower and equipment to push back Ukrainian forces in the eastern regions. His offensive, however, was slow and costly.
Explosions were reported in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Rivne, Khmelnytskyi, Lutsk and many other cities in central and western Ukraine.
The head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Andrii Yermak, said in a message on Telegram that Russia had stockpiled missiles to strike Ukrainian infrastructure and wage war against civilians during the cold season. “They were helped by their crazy allies, including North Korea,” he wrote.
Western governments and South Korea say North Korea has stepped up its military support for Russia in recent months.
Several regions affected
The head of the Lviv region in western Ukraine, Maksym Kozytskyi, said the attack left more than half a million homes without electricity.
According to the region’s governor, Oleksandr Koval, more than 280,000 homes in the Rivne region in the northwest of the country were without electricity due to the attack. The supply of running water was also erratic in the affected areas. Some schools in the city of Rivne have implemented online classes.
The bordering Volyn region was also affected, with 215,000 homes without power, according to the region’s head Ivan Rudnytskyi. All critical infrastructure deprived of electricity has been connected to generators.
Energy infrastructure was also targeted in the western Ivano-Frankivsk region, according to local authorities. Air defenses were activated there and emergency power cuts were put in place.
Local authorities have ordered the opening of “invincibility points,” shelters where people can charge their phones and other electrical devices and cool off during power outages.
In Kyiv, where an air raid alert lasted more than nine hours, missile debris fell in a neighborhood. However, no casualties were reported.
