Hundreds of thousands left without power in Russian occupied southern Ukraine as energy war intensifies

Power outages struck hundreds of thousands in southern Ukraine’s Russian-occupied territories on Sunday, as Moscow intensified its overnight strikes on the country’s energy infrastructure, leaving at least two people dead, according to Ukrainian officials.

In the Zaporizhzhia region under Russian control, more than 200,000 households were reportedly left without electricity. Yevgeny Balitsky, the Kremlin-appointed governor, said on Telegram that nearly 400 settlements lost power due to damage caused by Ukrainian drone attacks on local power networks.

Since the start of the war nearly four years ago, Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukraine’s energy facilities, particularly during the cold winter months, in a tactic Kyiv has described as “weaponizing winter” to sap civilian morale.

On Sunday night, Russian attacks hit energy facilities in the Odesa region, causing a fire that was quickly extinguished, the Ukrainian Emergency Service reported. Additionally, at least six people were injured in the Dnipropetrovsk region due to similar strikes.

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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged the challenges of repairing Ukraine’s energy system but reassured citizens via Telegram that efforts to restore power are ongoing. He confirmed that overnight attacks across Sumy, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Khmelnytskyi, and Odesa resulted in two fatalities.

In total over 1,300 attack drones, 1,050 guided aerial bombs and 29 missiles of various types were used by Russia to strike Ukraine this week, he added.

“If Russia deliberately delays the diplomatic process, the world’s response should be decisive: more help for Ukraine and more pressure on the aggressor,” Zelenskyy said.

He spoke the day after a Ukrainian delegation arrived in the United States for talks on a U.S.-led diplomatic push to end the nearly 4-year-old war.

On Friday, Zelenskyy said that the delegation would try to finalize with U.S. officials documents for a proposed peace settlement that relate to postwar security guarantees and economic recovery.

If American officials approve the proposals, the U.S. and Ukraine could sign the documents next week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Zelenskyy said at a Kyiv news conference with Czech President Petr Pavel. Trump plans to be in Davos, according to organizers.

Russia would still need to be consulted on the proposals.

With inputs from agencies