Russia Targets Ukraine’s Energy Grid with Missiles, Drones After Zelenskyy Announces Talks With US- wna24

Kyiv: Russia bombarded Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and grid with missiles and drones during the night, officials said on Friday. This comes hours after Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that talks with the US on ending the 3-year war will take place next week.

Halushchenko wrote, “Russia is trying to hurt ordinary Ukrainians by striking energy and gas production facilities, without abandoning its goal of leaving us without light and heat, and causing the greatest harm to ordinary citizens,”

Ukraine came under a “massive missile and drone” attack, Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko wrote on Facebook. At least 10 people, including a child, were injured, authorities confirmed on Friday.

Russia has continuously targeted Ukraine’s power grid throughout the war, severely depleting the country’s electricity generation capacity and disrupting essential heating and water supplies. 

Also Read: Russia Launches ‘Record’ 267 Drones on Ukraine Overnight: Zelenskyy

Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of “weaponizing winter” to undermine civilian morale and create further hardships.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov defended the attacks, said on Friday that the energy infrastructure is a legitimate target in the conflict as it is closely linked to Ukraine’s military industrial complex and weapons production.

Russian air defenses downed 39 Ukrainian drones overnight, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

Ukraine’s largest private gas producer, DTEK, said the overnight bombardment was Russia’s sixth attack in the past two and a half weeks on its facilities.

Russia fired 67 missiles from air, land and sea and launched 194 strike and decoy drones, Ukraine’s air force said. Their primary target was Ukraine’s natural gas extraction facilities, it said.

For the first time, Ukraine deployed French Mirage-2000 warplanes delivered a month ago to help repel the attack, according to the air force. Ukraine also has Western-supplied F-16 fighter jets to shoot down Russian missiles.

Ukrainian defenses downed 34 missiles and 100 drones, the air force said, while up to 10 missiles didn’t reach their targets and 86 drones were lost from radars, presumably jammed by electronic warfare.

Western-supplied air defense systems play a critical role in Ukraine’s defense, but further US aid remains uncertain under President Donald Trump , who aims to end the war and has paused military assistance to Kyiv, using it as leverage to push Zelenskyy into negotiations.

In his nightly address, Zelenskyy said Thursday he would travel to Saudi Arabia on Monday to meet the country’s crown prince, and his team would stay on to hold talks with US officials.

Zelenskyy welcomed a European Union plan to bolster the continent’s defenses. He expressed hope that some of the new spending could be used to strengthen Ukraine’s own defense industry.