Ukrainian strikes carried out on the late Saturday nights disrupted power and heating in two major Russian cities near the Ukrainian border, local officials said on Sunday, as Moscow and Kyiv continued to target each other’s energy infrastructure amid stalled diplomatic efforts to end the war, reported AP.In the Voronezh region, a drone strike triggered temporary blackouts and cut heating to several districts, regional governor Alexander Gusev said. He added that multiple drones were “electronically jammed” during the night, and a resulting fire at a utility facility was quickly contained. Local Russian and Ukrainian Telegram channels reported that the strike targeted a thermal power plant in the city, which is home to over one million people.Further south, Belgorod governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said a missile strike late Saturday caused “serious damage” to the city’s power and heating systems, leaving about 20,000 households without electricity. Belgorod, an administrative hub near the border, had a population of around 340,000 as of 2021.Russia’s defence ministry said on Sunday that its air defences destroyed or intercepted 44 Ukrainian drones over the Bryansk and Rostov regions overnight, though it made no mention of incidents in Voronezh or Belgorod, nor did it specify the total number of drones launched.The attacks come as both sides intensify cross-border strikes on energy networks ahead of winter. Ukraine has repeatedly targeted Russian refineries and energy facilities in a bid to curb Moscow’s oil revenues that fund its war effort. Russia, in turn, has launched missile and drone barrages aimed at crippling Ukraine’s power grid – part of what Kyiv officials describe as an attempt to “weaponize winter.”US-led diplomatic initiatives to end the nearly four-year conflict have shown little progress, while the two countries continue to exchange near-daily strikes on each other’s infrastructure.(With input from agencies)
