‘Putin deliberately chose Christmas’: Zelensky on Russia’s missile, drone attack | World News

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday slammed Vladimir Putin over Russia’s missile and drone attack on the country’s power grid, saying he deliberately chose Christmas to launch the offensive.

Russia fired over 170 missiles and drones on the war-torn country’s power grid on Christmas Day, killing one person and triggering widespread blackouts. Zelensky called the attack inhumane.

“Putin deliberately chose Christmas to attack. What could be more inhumane? More than 70 missiles, including ballistic missiles, and more than a hundred attack drones. The target is our energy system,” Zelensky said.

He said Ukraine’s air force shot down over 50 missiles but some struck their targets. “Unfortunately, there are some hits. As of now, there are blackouts in several regions,” he said.

Ukraine’s DTEK energy company said the attack severely damaged equipment of thermal power plants.

“Denying light and warmth to millions of peace-loving people as they celebrate Christmas is a depraved and evil act that must be answered,” DTEK CEO Maxim Timchenko said, urging allies to send more air defence.

Engineers were working to repair the system, as regional officials reported power cuts.

“Christmas morning has once again shown that nothing is sacred for the aggressor country,” said Svitlana Onyshchuk, the head of the Ivano-Frankivsk region.

Dnipropetrovsk’s governor Sergiy Lysak said Russia was “trying to destroy the region’s power system.”

Russia also targeted Kharkiv. The city’s governor, Oleg Synegubov, said the authorities had evacuated 46 people from the area of Borivske and Kupiansk.

Moscow’s forces are aiming to recapture the town of Kupiansk, which was occupied in the first year of the war. Ukraine recaptured it in September 2022 as part of a lightning offensive that saw its forces regain large swathes of the Kharkiv region.

With inputs from AFP