In a relentless escalation of hostilities, Russian forces unleashed a massive barrage against Ukrainian infrastructure early Tuesday, killing four civilians and critically damaging energy facilities. The assault involved 25 missiles and 293 drones, marking another chapter in Moscow’s systematic campaign to cripple Ukraine’s power grid during winter’s peak.
The eastern Kharkiv region bore the brunt of the attack, where rescue workers operated in freezing temperatures to extract survivors from rubble. Andriy Pidnebesny, a manager at a postal facility struck in the offensive, described being thrown by blast waves while attempting to free trapped colleagues. Simultaneously, Ukraine’s largest energy provider DTEK reported its eighth power plant attack since October, with Russian forces having targeted their facilities over 220 times since the invasion began.
President Volodymyr Zelensky reported ‘several hundred thousand’ households near Kyiv lost electricity, urgently appealing for enhanced air defense systems from Western allies. ‘The world can respond to this Russian terror with new assistance packages,’ Zelensky stated on social media, emphasizing that ‘cold will not help Russia win the war.’
In a parallel maritime development, two Greek-owned oil tankers—the Maltese-flagged Matilda and Liberian-flagged Delta Harmony—sustained attacks in the Black Sea. The Matilda, en route to load Kazakh oil at Russia’s Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal near Novorossiysk, maintained seaworthiness despite the assault according to Kazakh energy officials. The incident represents the latest in a series of strikes targeting the crucial CPC terminal, through which Kazakhstan transports 80% of its oil exports.
Ukraine’s military, while not claiming responsibility for the tanker incidents, has consistently targeted Russian energy infrastructure to diminish Moscow’s war-funding capabilities. The strategic strikes have drawn concern from Kazakhstan, whose economic interests are increasingly entangled in the conflict’s ripple effects.