Russia launches missile, drone attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, leaving millions without power

Ukrainian rescuers work to extinguish a fire at an energy infrastructure facility following a missile attack in Lutsk in Volyn region on Thursday. Pic/AFP

In a "massive" attack, Russia fired nearly 200 missiles and drones on Ukraine's energy infrastructure on Thursday, leaving more than a million households without power, officials in Kyiv have said.

According to news agency AP, this marks Russia's second significant aerial assault on Ukraine's power grid in less than two weeks, raising fears that Kremlin intends to cripple the country's energy production before winter sets in.

"Attacks on energy facilities are happening all over Ukraine," Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko stated in a Facebook post, adding that emergency power outages were implemented across the country.

In some regions, Kalibr cruise missiles armed with cluster munitions struck civilian targets, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated, calling it "an insidious escalation." Cluster munitions scatter numerous small bombs over a wide area, posing risks to civilians both during and after the attack, AP reported.

Ukrainian officials had previously warned that Russia was stockpiling cruise and ballistic missiles, likely in preparation for another pre-winter aerial campaign to target the country's power grid. The Ukrainian government has repeatedly accused Russia of "weaponising winter."

Around half of Ukraine's energy infrastructure has been destroyed during the nearly three years of war with Russia, and rolling electricity blackouts are common.

Russia receiving help from 'crazy allies', including from North Korea: Zelenskyy

Kyiv's Western allies have been working to assist Ukraine in protecting its power generation with air defence systems and funding for rebuilding efforts.

In the past years, Russia has attacked Ukraine's electricity generation, attempting to deprive civilians of vital heating and drinking water supplies during the harsh winter months and to break Ukrainian morale. The attacks also aim to cripple Ukraine's defence industry, which is currently producing missiles, drones, armoured vehicles, and other military assets.

While Russia has seen recent successes in the war, using its larger army to push Ukrainian forces back in the east, its offensive has been slow and costly.

Explosions were reported in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Rivne, Khmelnytskyi, Lutsk, and many other cities across central and western Ukraine, AP reported.

Zelenskyy urged Western countries to accelerate the delivery of promised air defence weaponry, as Ukrainian officials have previously expressed frustration over delays in military aid. "Each such attack proves that air defence systems are needed now in Ukraine, where they save lives, and not at storage bases," Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app.

Andrii Yermak, the head of Ukraine's presidential office, said in a Telegram post that Russia had stockpiled missiles to target Ukrainian infrastructure and wage war against civilians during the cold season. "They were helped by their crazy allies, including from North Korea," he wrote.

Running water supplies in Ukraine hit

Western governments, along with South Korea, have noted that North Korea has intensified its military support for Russia in recent months.

Maksym Kozytskyi, the head of the Lviv region in western Ukraine, said the attack left more than half a million households without power.

More than 2.8 lakh households in the northwestern Rivne region were also left without electricity, regional governor Oleksandr Koval stated. Running water supplies were intermittent in the affected areas, and some schools in Rivne city switched to online classes.

There were also strikes in the neighbouring Volyn region, where 2.15 lakh households had no electricity, regional head Ivan Rudnytskyi reported. All critical infrastructure that lost power was switched to generators.

Energy infrastructure in the western Ivano-Frankivsk region was also targeted, local officials said. Air defences were activated, and emergency power outages were implemented.

Local officials opened "points of invincibility" - shelter-type facilities where people can charge their phones and other electronic devices and receive refreshments during blackouts.

In Kyiv, where the air raid alert lasted more than nine hours, missile debris fell in one neighbourhood, local officials reported. No casualties were reported.

(With AP inputs)