Dmitry Petrovsky13:09, 17.10.26

Russia is trying to cause a blackout in Ukraine right before winter, the president noted.

Russia has attacked more than 15 important power generation and transmission facilities in Ukraine. The situation is particularly dire in several cities, including Lutsk, Rivne, and Zhytomyr. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced this on his Telegram channel .

“The day before, the Russians dealt one of the most powerful blows to the Ukrainian energy sector: more than 15 important power generation and transmission facilities in various regions of Ukraine were attacked. Restoration work is ongoing,” the president noted.

According to him, the situation is most critical in Lutsk, Rivne, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Shepetivka, Slavuta, and Netishyn. Strikes were also carried out on energy facilities in Kharkiv, Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and other regions.

“The Russians have expanded the scale of their anti-energy operation and are trying to dissipate our reserves and recovery potential as much as possible,” Zelensky said.

He noted that between 7:00 PM yesterday and 7:00 AM today, more than 320 jet and gasoline-powered “shahids,” as well as loitering munitions, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles, were used against the Ukrainian energy sector, cities, and towns.

“And although our soldiers manage to shoot down a significant portion of them, the massive and continuous nature of Russian strikes—specifically, against energy—has, unfortunately, many negative consequences,” the head of state added.

Zelensky also stated that the enemy is trying to cause a blackout in Ukraine right before winter.

“Russia is trying to leave millions of our people without electricity and heat. Pressure must be applied to stop this. The American sanctions blackout, the easing of pressure on the aggressor, and monetary rewards for Putin—all this only encourages him to continue his attacks,” the president noted.

He also announced that new support packages for Ukraine have already been prepared by our European partners.

“It’s important for everyone in America to see what’s really going on. While the Russians dealt such a massive blow to our energy sector, America, unfortunately, decided to completely ignore the Lindsey Graham Act, which should have exerted truly effective pressure on Russia to end this war. This law could—and still can!—have been very helpful. But the law needs to actually work, and every vote in favor of it counts,” the president added.

(c)UNIAN 2026