Zelenskyy Reacts to Russian assault on Christmas Day
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed outrage over Russia’s attack on his country’s power grid on December 25, calling it “inhumane.”
The assaults took place in the Kharkiv, Kursk, and Dnipropetrovsk regions, triggering an air raid alert in Kyiv.
“Today, Putin deliberately chose Christmas for an attack. What could be more inhumane?” he continued.
Over 70 ballistic missiles and other projectiles, along with over 100 drones, were deployed in the attacks with the intention of causing a blackout in Ukraine, according to Zelenskyy.
Despite Ukraine successfully intercepting “more than 50 missiles and a significant number of drones,” several regions are experiencing power outages as engineers work to restore electricity.
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“Russian evil will not break Ukraine and will not spoil Christmas,” Zelenskyy asserted.
Since the spring of this year, Russia has escalated attacks on Ukraine’s energy sector, causing significant damage to nearly half of its power generation capabilities and resulting in prolonged blackouts. These actions are part of Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, which commenced in February 2022.
“The enemy is again massively attacking the energy sector,” shared Ukraine’s energy minister German Halushchenko on Facebook. “The transmission system operator is taking the necessary measures to limit consumption to minimize the negative consequences for the energy system.
“Moldova condemns these acts and stands in full solidarity with Ukraine,” she added.
In Ukraine, mainly Orthodox Christian, Christmas was traditionally observed on January 7, aligned with Russia, until it was officially changed in 2023 to December 25, like in Western countries.
Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed a “massive strike” targeting critical energy facilities supporting Kyiv’s “military-industrial complex.”
“The aim of the strike was achieved. All facilities have been hit,” declared the Defense Ministry in a statement.
Reuters contributed to this report.
