According to Mr. Zelensky, 4.5 million people were without power as a result of Russian assaults on its energy infrastructure. Russia has attacked Ukrainian power plants with many large-scale missile and drone operations in recent weeks.
The attacks take place as officials predict that Russian forces would leave Kherson, a significant southern city. Russia has intensified its attacks over the last week on the power infrastructure in cities away from the front lines after experiencing a string of devastating defeats on the battlefield.
According to President Zelensky, a third of the nation’s power plants have apparently been demolished in the past month alone. As a result, the Ukrainian government has been compelled to advise the populace to try and utilise energy judiciously.
According to President Zelensky’s nightly speech on Thursday, “Tonight about 4.5 million consumers have been temporarily disconnected from energy consumption.”
As Russian soldiers struggle to gain momentum on the frontlines, he claimed that Russia’s attack of energy infrastructure was a show of “weakness.”
“The very fact that Russia is resorting to energy terrorism shows the weakness of our enemy,” he added.
“They cannot beat Ukraine on the battlefield, so they try to break our people this way.”
The Ukrainian energy infrastructure is being targeted, according to the Russian ministry of defence. The charge from Mr. Zelensky comes as sources claim that Russian troops are relocating from the captured city of Kherson, indicating a significant retreat for Russia.
Kirill Stremousov, a Russian official recently appointed to a position in the Kherson region, told Russian media that Moscow was “likely” to withdraw its soldiers from the region.
Additionally, the majority of Russian commanding officers have already left the city, according to a Western diplomat who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
As part of a larger Russian effort to improve its defensive lines all through southern and eastern Ukraine before the onset of winter, they claimed that Russian troops were strengthening their fighting positions on the other side of the Dnipro River instead of attempting to maintain control of the city.
It is difficult to tell what is actually happening inside the city, but the official claimed that Russian conscripts who had been mobilised had been dispatched there to protect the eventual final departure.
Banks have reportedly been ransacked, and museums have allegedly been pillaged, according to sources. Over the course of several weeks, occupying forces have also begun removing tens of thousands of residents from the region.
Ukrainian forces were “capable,” according to US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, of recapturing the southern metropolis.
However, Ukraine claimed that the battle was still going on and that it was still being careful in case Russia was luring Ukrainian soldiers into a trap.
One of Moscow’s most important victories in the conflict was the conquest of Kherson, a big city, in March.
However, Ukrainian retribution in the region, which has been ongoing for more than a month, forced Russia to reevaluate its military goals.
