“DESPICABLE ESCALATION”
The strikes came as Ukrainians braced for a tough winter, with much of the country’s energy infrastructure already damaged by almost three years of war, and as Russian troops advanced in eastern Ukraine.
Putin suggested he had hopes for Trump’s second term, describing the Republican on Thursday as an “intelligent person”, capable of finding a “solution”, without specifying what he was referring to.
The Russian leader spoke hours after the overnight barrage that left more than half a million in Ukraine’s western Lviv region cut off from electricity.
Another 280,000 in the western Rivne region and 215,000 in the northwestern Volyn region also lost power, officials said.
Ukraine’s emergency services said the Russian overnight strikes inflicted damage in 14 regions across the country, with the nation’s west hard-hit.
Zelenskyy said that Russia had also fired “cluster munitions” during the attack, calling it a “very despicable escalation of Russian terrorist tactics”.
US President Joe Biden on Thursday said the attack showed the “urgency” of backing Kyiv ahead of Trump’s return to office in January.
“This attack is outrageous and serves as yet another reminder of the urgency and importance of supporting the Ukrainian people in their defence against Russian aggression,” Biden said in a statement.
AFP journalists in the capital heard blasts ring out overnight as air defence systems targeted Russian drones and missiles, with locals crowding into the underground metro system for cover.
The energy ministry said it was the eleventh massive Russian attack on Ukraine’s civilian energy infrastructure this year.
A senior United Nations official, Rosemary DiCarlo, this month warned that Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure could make this winter the “harshest since the start of the war”.
