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Russia Ukraine’s power grid was attacked overnight on Sunday, part of an ongoing campaign to weaken Ukrainian energy infrastructure ahead of winter, and the US expressed “extreme concern” over potentially providing security to Ukraine. axe cruise missiles ukraine,
Kyiv regional governor Mykola Kalashnik said two employees of DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, were wounded in Russian attacks on a substation. Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said infrastructure in the regions of Donetsk, Odessa and Chernihiv was also targeted.
“Russia continues its aerial terror against our cities and communities, intensifying attacks on our energy infrastructure,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Twitter.
Zelensky called for tougher secondary sanctions on buyers of Russian oil. “Sanctions, tariffs, and joint action against the buyers of Russian oil – those who finance this war – must all remain on the table,” he wrote on X.
He also wrote on Sunday that he had a “very meaningful” phone call with the US President donald trumpIn which he discussed strengthening Ukraine’s “air defense, resiliency and long-range capabilities” as well as “details related to the energy sector.” Their discussion followed earlier talks on Saturday, Zelensky said, during which the leaders agreed on Sunday’s topics.
The phone calls came as Zelensky said Friday he was in discussions with U.S. officials about the possible provision of various long-range precision strike weapons, including Tomahawks and more ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles.
Trump, who is frustrated with Russia in its efforts to end the war, said earlier this week that he had “kind of made a decision” about sending Tomahawks to Ukraine, without elaborating. A senior Ukrainian delegation is scheduled to visit the US this week.
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in comments published on Sunday that “the topic of Tomahawks is of utmost concern.”
“Now this is actually a very dramatic moment in terms of the fact that tensions are rising on all sides,” he told Russian state television reporter Pavel Zarubin.
belarusian president Alexander LukashenkoA close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin also said in comments released Sunday that he doubts the US will provide Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine.
“I think we need to calm down in this regard. Our friend Donald…sometimes he takes a more forceful approach, and then, his strategy is to step back and retreat a little bit. So, we shouldn’t take it literally, as if it’s going to blow up tomorrow,” he told Zarubin, who posted him on his Telegram channel on Sunday.
Ukraine’s energy sector has been a major battleground since Russia launched its all-out offensive more than three years ago.
The latest attacks on Ukraine’s energy grid came as Russian drone and missile attacks in Kiev injured at least 20 people, damaged residential buildings and caused blackouts across the country on Friday, in what Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko described as “one of the largest concentrated attacks” against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
Every year, Russia has tried to paralyze the Ukrainian power grid before the harsh winter season, apparently hoping to depress public morale. Winter temperatures last from late October to March, with January and February being the coldest months.
Ukraine’s air force said on Saturday its air defenses intercepted or jammed 103 of 118 Russian drones launched against Ukraine overnight, while Russia’s Defense Ministry said it had shot down 32 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory.
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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine