CNN
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Russia on Thursday destroyed Ukraine's largest power plant in the Kyiv region with a missile attack, as President Volodomyr Zelenskiy accused Western countries of “turning a blind eye” to the country's need to strengthen its air defenses. did.
The Ukrainian Air Force announced that it had shot down 18 incoming missiles and 39 unmanned aerial vehicles. Russia launched a total of 82 missiles and drones, including six hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, but Ukraine's air defenses were unable to shoot down any of them.
There were no casualties and the attack did not cause power outages in the Ukrainian capital Kiev or other areas served by the Trypilska TPP.
According to the energy company Centrenergo, the Trypilska Thermal Power Plant (TPP), the largest electricity supplier to the Kyiv, Cherkasy and Zhytomyr regions, was completely destroyed. The company lost 100% of its power generation at three power plants, all of which were destroyed or occupied by Russia.
“This is a dark day in Centrenergo's history,” the company said in a statement. “The scale of the destruction is terrible. Money can't estimate it. This is the biggest challenge for us in the history of the company.”
During more than two years of war, Russia has systematically targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure, frequently stripping the country of electricity, heat, water, and other essential services, undermining the country's power grid and, with it, the Ukrainian population. Trying to destroy your spirit. – Winter temperatures below freezing.
Videos on social media showed huge plumes of smoke billowing from the Trypilska factory as the fire continued to burn.
According to a statement from Centrenergo, the attack on the Trypilska plant follows a recent Russian attack that destroyed the company's plant in Zmivska TPP in the Kharkiv region on March 22. In July 2022, Russian forces captured the company's third power plant, Vuhlehirska TPP, located in the Donetsk region. The total design capacity of the three plants was 7,690MW, according to the company's website.
Ukraine's largest power company, DTEK, also announced that Russia launched missile and drone attacks on two of its power plants on Thursday, causing “significant damage.”
The company, which generates 20% of Ukraine's energy, said it had suffered the worst attack in the past three weeks since Russia launched a full-scale invasion in 2022. The company announced that approximately 80% of its power generation facilities were destroyed. by Russian attack.
“All our European neighbors and other partner countries recognize the critical need for Ukraine's air defense system,” President Zelenskiy said Thursday. He said if Russia is allowed to continue attacks on energy infrastructure, “this amounts to a global terrorism license.”
“We need air defense systems and other defense support, not just turning a blind eye or having long discussions,” he said.
Despite the destruction, Andriy Gota, chairman of Centrenergo's supervisory board, said: “We are confident that we can cope with it.”
Ukraine has previously dealt with significant power losses. The biggest loss came shortly after the invasion, when Russian forces seized control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe. The nuclear power plant previously accounted for about 20% of the country's electricity generation. Since then, Ukrainian staff have placed the plant's reactor in “cold shutdown” to prevent a serious radioactive accident.