News Mania Desk / Piyal Chatterjee / 13th December 2024
Russia launched its latest huge aerial strike on Ukraine on Friday morning, deploying cruise missiles to target energy facilities throughout the nation, notably along the western border. Dozens of drones were also deployed in the strike.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy alleged on Friday morning that Russia fired 93 missiles and more than 200 drones in the strike. He said Ukrainian forces were able to shoot down 81 of the missiles, including 11 that were successfully targeted by F-16 fighters. Ukraine’s air force stated that the Russian attack comprised hypersonic Kinzhal missiles launched from the air.
According to Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko, energy personnel are doing all possible to “minimise negative consequences for the energy system”.Russia has been deliberately targeting Ukraine’s civilian electricity infrastructure in recent months, attempting to cause havoc in the country ahead of winter, with temperatures expected to fall well below zero in most of Ukraine in the coming days.
Svitlana Onishchuk, head of the western Ivano-Frankivsk region, stated that the area had received “the biggest attack since the beginning of the full-scale war” from cruise missiles and drones. “The targets include key energy infrastructure. There are hits! “Fortunately, there are no victims right now,” she wrote.
Russia has actively targeted Ukraine’s electricity system, causing repeated emergency shutdowns and scheduled power outages as the battered grid tries to keep up with demand. Approximately half of the country’s generating capacity has been destroyed over roughly three years.
Andrian Prokip, a Kyiv-based energy expert at the Kennan Institute in Washington, DC, told the Guardian earlier this week that he expected the attacks to continue for the next six weeks, as both Russia and Ukraine prepare for Donald Trump’s administration. “I believe they want to exert as much pressure on the Ukrainian electrical system as possible prior to Trump’s inauguration. “The Russians want Trump to believe that Ukraine is already destroyed,” said Prokip.
In response to Friday’s bombing, Zelenskyy stated, “This is Putin’s ‘peace plan’: destroy everything.” This is how he wants negotiations: by terrorizing millions of people.” Trump has promised to bring Russia and Ukraine to the table and end the war, but many experts say there is little evidence Russia wants to negotiate, except on terms unacceptable to Ukraine. On November 21, Russia utilized an intermediate-range hypersonic missile, named the Oreshnik by Putin, to strike an industrial plant in the city of Dnipro. Putin has used the nuclear-capable missile to raise the stakes and threaten the West, and he has stated that it may be used again, including against “decision-making centres” in the country.
US authorities warned on Wednesday that another Oreshnik strike on Ukraine may be imminent, while there was no proof the weapon was used in Friday’s attack.
