ReutersUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia made a “conscious choice” by launching a major overnight attack on his country’s energy infrastructure on Christmas Day.
Ukraine’s air force said it had detected 184 missiles and drones, but many were shot down or missed their targets.
He said the attacks had caused casualties but did not provide any figures.
Moscow confirmed the attack, claiming that its objective had been achieved.
The attack caused power outages across the country, including in the capital Kiev, where some residents took shelter in metro stations.
Russia’s defense has confirmed that its forces have launched a “massive attack” on “key” energy installations in Ukraine.
He added that the strike was successful and all targets were hit.
DTEK, the country’s largest private energy company, said it was the 13th major attack on Ukraine’s energy sector this year.
Reacting to the latest Russian attacks, US President Joe Biden said: “This provocative attack was intended to cut off the Ukrainian people’s access to heat and electricity during the winter and threaten the security of its grid.”
Biden – who will succeed Donald Trump on January 20 – also asked the US Department of Defense to continue supplying Ukraine with weapons.
In September, President Zelensky said that 80 percent of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure had been destroyed by Russian bombs.
Responding to Wednesday’s attacks, Zielinski said the timing was a “conscious choice.”
He termed them “inhumane” and said work was being done to restore power as soon as possible.
“Russian evil will not break Ukraine and distort Christmas,” he added.
This is the second time that Ukraine has celebrated Christmas Day on December 25. It traditionally follows the Julian calendar like Russia, where Christmas falls on January 7.
Still, a large number of Orthodox believers in the country will be celebrating Christmas as before.
ReutersIn the northeastern city of Kharkiv – Ukraine’s second largest – the attack left half a million people without water, electricity or heat in bitterly cold temperatures, the regional chief said.
Ukrainians across the country woke up to air raid alarms, and were told to take shelter after the dawn raids.
Residents of Kiev took shelter in metro stations, one local told Reuters news agency, saying they were angry and scared.
“Of course, I want to stay at home and celebrate, but we had to take shelter because it’s scary to stay at home,” said Sofia Litvinenko.
Oleksandra, another Kiev resident, said that despite the attack, “Christmas was not cancelled”.
He told Reuters he planned to enjoy traditional Ukrainian food and drinks with family and friends after it was safe to leave the shelter.
Ukraine’s state-owned power company, Ukrainergo, has warned Ukrainians that power cuts will continue until at least the end of the day. can
It has imposed usage restrictions while trying to restore the service.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiha called the attacks “Christmas terrorism.”
He said that a Russian missile passed through the airspace of Moldova and Romania “is a reminder that Russia is not only a threat to Ukraine”.
Moldovan President Maia Sandu condemned the attack and confirmed that a missile had been detected in the country’s airspace.
Romania said it did not detect the missile in its airspace.
Elsewhere, Ukrainian shelling killed four people and wounded five others in Russia’s Kursk region, according to the region’s acting governor.