KYIV, Ukraine, June 20, (AP): Russia resumed its aerial pounding of Ukraine’s power grid and Kyiv’s forces again targeted Russian oil facilities with cross-border drone strikes, seeking to curb each other's ability to fight in a war that is now in its third year, officials said Thursday.
With no major changes reported along the 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, where a recent push by the Kremlin’s forces in eastern and northeastern Ukraine has made only incremental gains, both sides in the war have taken aim at distant infrastructure targets.
In its seventh major attack on Ukrainian power plants since Moscow intensified energy infrastructure attacks three months ago, Russia fired nine missiles and 27 Shahed drones at energy facilities and critical infrastructure in central and eastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian air force said. Air defenses intercepted all the drones and five cruise missiles, it said.
The attack hit power structures in the Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Kyiv and Vinnytsia regions of Ukraine, causing "extensive damage,” according to national power company Ukrenergo. Seven workers were injured, it said.
Ukrenergo announced extended blackouts across the country despite electricity imports and help with emergency supplies from European countries.
Private energy company DTEK said one of its power plants was hit in the overnight attack but did not specify its location. Three company employees were injured and the plant’s equipment was severely damaged, DTEK said on social media.
Among the most damaging recent strikes on Ukraine’s energy supply were an April barrage that damaged Kyiv’s largest thermal power plant and a massive attack on May 8 that targeted power generation and transmission facilities in several regions.
Rolling blackouts have affected Ukrainian households and industry.