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Russian strikes causing 'chaos' in Ukrainian energy and railway infrastructure
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of wanting to sow “chaos” in Ukraine by launching strikes on his country’s energy grid and railway infrastructure, in comments published on Thursday, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports.
Moscow, whose forces invaded Ukraine in 2022, have in recent weeks escalated aerial attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities and rail systems.
Zelenskyy told journalists, including AFP, in embargoed comments made in Kyiv on Wednesday:
Russia’s task is to create chaos and apply psychological pressure on the population through strikes on energy facilities and railways.
The recent attacks mirror similar Russian bombing campaigns in the winters of 2022, 2023 and 2024 when attacks left millions of Ukrainian without energy or heating for long periods.
Zelenskyy said that Russian attacks this year had already put Ukrainian gas infrastructure under “heavy pressure” and that more strikes on gas infrastructure could force his country to ramp up imports.
A Russian overnight drone attack injured five people and damaged port and energy infrastructure in Ukraine’s southern region of Odesa, its governor said on Thursday.
The attack cut power to 30,000 consumers and set containers with vegetable oil and wood pellets on fire in the port, Oleh Kiper said on Telegram.
Ukraine has also recently stepped up its own drone and missile strikes on Russian territory in a campaign that Zelenskyy said was showing “results” and that have also increased fuel prices in Russia.
“We believe that they’ve lost up to 20% of their gasoline supply – directly as a result of our strikes,” Zelenskyy said, adding there was evidence Russia had stepped up imports from China and Belarus.
Ukraine recently struck a power station in the Russian border region of Belgorod, causing power outages.
Fires also broke out at fuel and energy facilities in Russia’s Volgograd region as a result of a drone attack, Governor Andrei Bocharov said on Thursday.
Opening summary
Good morning and welcome back to our live coverage of Europe.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of wanting to sow “chaos” in Ukraine by launching strikes on his country’s energy grid and railway infrastructure, in comments published on Thursday.
Moscow, whose forces invaded Ukraine in 2022, have in recent weeks escalated aerial attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities and rail systems.
Zelenskyy told journalists, including Agence France-Presse (AFP), in embargoed comments made in Kyiv on Wednesday:
Russia’s task is to create chaos and apply psychological pressure on the population through strikes on energy facilities and railways.
The recent attacks mirror similar Russian bombing campaigns in the winters of 2022, 2023 and 2024 when attacks left millions of Ukrainian without energy or heating for long periods.
Zelenskyy said that Russian attacks this year had already put Ukrainian gas infrastructure under “heavy pressure” and that more strikes on gas infrastructure could force his country to ramp up imports.
Ukraine has also recently stepped up its own drone and missile strikes on Russian territory in a campaign that Zelenskyy said was showing “results” and that have also increased fuel prices in Russia.
“We believe that they’ve lost up to 20% of their gasoline supply – directly as a result of our strikes,” Zelenskyy said, adding there was evidence Russia had stepped up imports from China and Belarus.
Ukraine also recently struck a power station in the Russian border region of Belgorod, causing power outages.
In other developments:
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Russian strikes killed three people and wounded two in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region, its military administration said. The attacks came after Russia said on Wednesday that momentum towards reaching a peace deal in Ukraine had largely vanished, after Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump’s presidential summit in Alaska, dimming hopes for a quick end to the three-and-a-half year war.
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A Russian overnight drone attack injured five people and damaged port and energy infrastructure in Ukraine’s southern region of Odesa, its governor said on Thursday. The attack cut power to 30,000 consumers and set containers with vegetable oil and wood pellets on fire in the port, Oleh Kiper said on Telegram. It came as fires broke out at fuel and energy facilities in Russia’s Volgograd region as a result of a drone attack, Governor Andrei Bocharov said on Thursday.
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Ukraine’s ambassador to Nato on Wednesday urged European allies to step up purchases of US weapons for Kyiv, as only Washington can supply key capabilities required to counter Russia’s assaults. “European Nato member states are not able to substitute either by types or by volume or speed of delivery,” ambassador Alyona Getmanchuk told AFP.
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French president Emmanuel Macron was on Thursday racing to find a new prime minister within a two-day deadline after the resignation of outgoing premier Sebastien Lecornu tipped the country deeper into political crisis. The presidency said late on Wednesday Macron will name a new prime minister within the next 48 hours, indicating the appointment will come by Friday evening at the latest.
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A French appeal court is to rule on Thursday in the case of the only man among 50 who claims he is innocent after being convicted of sexually abusing Gisèle Pelicot. The 72-year-old’s former husband has admitted to drugging her with sedatives and inviting dozens of strangers to rape and abuse her over nearly a decade in a case that shocked the world.
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US sanctions on Serbia’s Russian-owned NIS oil company, which runs the country’s sole refinery, came into force Thursday after months of delays. The US sanctioned the Petroleum Industry of Serbia (NIS) in January as part of its crackdown on Russian energy, aiming to curb the sector following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
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Germany’s parliament has rescinded a fast-track citizenship programme, reflecting the rapidly shifting mood on migration in Europe’s labour-hungry economic powerhouse. Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservatives pledged in this year’s election campaign to rescind the legislation, which let people deemed “exceptionally well integrated” gain citizenship in three years instead of five.
