Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of deliberately creating “chaos” through a new wave of strikes targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and transport networks. The attacks, which have intensified in recent weeks, have caused widespread power outages, train delays, and forced new evacuations of children from frontline villages.
“Russia’s task is to create chaos and apply psychological pressure on the population through strikes on energy facilities and railways,” Zelensky told reporters, including AFP. He added that Ukraine’s Prime Minister and a senior sanctions advisor would travel to the United States early next week to hold talks on air defence, energy security, and the issue of frozen Russian assets.
The latest bombardments echo previous Russian winter campaigns in 2022, 2023, and 2024, when millions of Ukrainians were left without power and heating for extended periods. On Thursday, new strikes damaged energy infrastructure in the southern Black Sea region of Odesa, with port facilities also targeted.
In the eastern Donetsk region, authorities have ordered the evacuation of children from parts of Kramatorsk due to an escalation in Russian drone and missile attacks. Kramatorsk, once home to around 147,000 people, now has a population of about 50,000 and lies just 20 kilometres from the frontline.
Zelensky warned that ongoing strikes have placed Ukraine’s gas infrastructure under “heavy pressure,” raising the risk of increased energy imports during winter. Meanwhile, Ukraine has intensified its own drone strikes on Russian territory, which Zelensky claimed have reduced Russia’s gasoline supply by up to 20 percent.
As temperatures drop, the mayors of frontline towns like Sloviansk have urged residents especially families with children and the elderly to evacuate before the heating season begins. “We see that the enemy is targeting the energy system,” Sloviansk mayor Vadym Lyakh said.
Ukraine also reported recent strikes on energy facilities in Russia’s Belgorod and Volgograd regions, signalling the deepening energy front in the ongoing war.
