Ukraine: “almost half” of the energy system “failed”

A quarter of civilians were plunged into darkness on Thursday evening, and this Friday, half of Ukraine’s power grid was destroyed. Ukrainian officials are warning about the situation with the energy infrastructure after a new series of Russian strikes in recent days.

“Almost half of our energy system is out of order,” Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmygal said at a press conference in Kyiv with European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis. He called for “additional support” from the EU to deal with the situation.

On Thursday evening, in his daily televised address, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that almost 10 million people (nearly a quarter of Ukraine’s pre-war population) were left without electricity.

-10°C next week

Having failed to win on the ground, the Russians seem to have adopted a strategy of sabotaging Ukraine’s energy grid since mid-September. A tactic that has a direct impact on civilians, some of whom find themselves deprived of light and especially heating when winter temperatures begin to be felt. They could fall below -10 next week.

Driven out of Kherson last Friday, Kremlin forces have stepped up their bombardment in recent days. On Thursday, several Ukrainian cities were shelled, including Lvov and the capital Kyiv. French diplomacy on Thursday condemned the Russian strategic strikes as “war crimes.”