Russian forces carried out their most extensive missile and drone assault on Ukraine since August 2024, causing significant damage to energy infrastructure across the country on Saturday and Sunday. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russia launched 90 Shahed and unidentified strike drones, likely including decoy drones, from Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Krasnodar Krai, as well as Kursk and Oryol oblasts.
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces launched a total of 120 missiles, including one Zirkon 3M22 hypersonic cruise missile, eight Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles, 101 Kh-101 and Kalibr cruise missiles, one Iskander-M ballistic missile, four Kh-22/Kh-31P anti-radiation missiles, and five Kh-59/Kh-69 cruise missiles.
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Ukrainian forces successfully intercepted 42 drones, one Zirkon, seven Kinzhal missiles, 85 Kalibr and Kh-101 missiles, two Kh-22/31P, and five Kh-59/69 missiles. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Ukrainian F-16 pilots shot down around 10 aerial targets during the attack.
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that 41 drones were “lost” within Ukrainian airspace, likely due to effective electronic warfare (EW) measures, and noted that two drones veered into Russian and Russian-occupied airspace. Air defense systems were active across nearly all Ukrainian oblasts throughout the strike.
Widespread Damage to Energy Infrastructure
Ukrainian energy operator Ukrenergo confirmed that the strikes damaged energy facilities in multiple oblasts, with ongoing recovery efforts in Odesa, Volyn, and Rivne. In Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, a Russian missile strike sparked a fire at an infrastructure site, while Rivne and Odesa oblasts also suffered damage to critical energy installations.
DTEK, a private Ukrainian energy company, reported that a thermal power plant (TPP) was severely hit, marking the eighth large-scale attack on DTEK facilities in 2024. Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko stated that the strikes led to power outages in various regions.
READ: Russia Deploys Decoy And Thermobaric Shahed Drones To Overwhelm Ukrainian Air Defenses
Impact on Nuclear Power Plants and Railway Services
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi reported that Russian strikes damaged electrical substations connected to the Khmelnytskyi, Rivne, and Pivdennoukrainsk nuclear power plants (NPPs), forcing a reduction in power output.
While the NPPs themselves remained undamaged, six out of nine reactors at these facilities are now operating at reduced capacity. The Ukrainian state railway company, Ukrzaliznytsia, reported strikes on a railway depot in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, causing disruptions to railway services in the southern, western, and northeastern parts of Ukraine.
In addition to energy and transport facilities, Russian strikes inflicted damage on civilian infrastructure in Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Rivne, and Odesa oblasts, exacerbating the humanitarian impact of the ongoing conflict.
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