A massive Russian drone and missile strike has hit gas facilities in eastern Ukraine as the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, flew to Washington for a meeting with Donald Trump to discuss the US providing Kyiv with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles.
Russia launched hundreds of drones, dozens of missiles, as well as glide bombs early on Thursday, sparking outages in eight regions in another large-scale bombardment targeting Ukraine’s energy network.
“Russia launched more than 300 attack drones and 37 missiles, a significant number of them ballistic, against Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said on X. “This autumn, the Russians use every single day to strike at our energy infrastructure.”
Zelenskyy said strikes had hit the regions of Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Poltava, Sumy and Vinnytsia.
One of the facilities hit was the Shebelinka gas processing plant in Kharkiv region, where two large columns of black smoke could be seen in the aftermath of the attack and still fiercely burning fires.
Staff at the plant told the Guardian that it had been hit just after 5.30am by drones and missiles, setting off at least two blazes in different parts of the facility.
Since invading Ukraine in 2022, Moscow has attacked Ukrainian power infrastructure each winter, forcing Kyiv to impose emergency blackouts and import energy from abroad.
Commenting on the strikes, the Russian defence ministry claimed it had hit facilities used by the Ukrainian military with Kinzhal missiles “in response” for attacks on Russian infrastructure, an apparent reference to strikes on refineries in Russia.
Sergii Koretskyi, the chief executive of the Ukrainian gas company Naftogaz, said: “There are hits and destruction in several regions at once. The operation of a number of critically important facilities has been halted.”
The Ukrainian energy grid operator announced emergency power outages in eight regions after Thursday’s strikes.
Ukraine’s airforce said the Russian barrage comprised 320 drones and 37 missiles, adding that 283 drones and five missiles were downed.
It said the attacks mainly targeted the Kharkiv region in the north, and the eastern Poltava region, where the country’s largest private energy provider DTEK said a gas production facility was shut down.
Media reports earlier suggested about 60% of Ukrainian gas production had been halted in recent Russian strikes, and attacks on power stations had cut electricity supplies to hundreds of thousands of people in Ukraine.
The latest strikes came as Zelenskyy was expected in Washington for talks with Trump, following two phone calls between the two leaders over the weekend. Their relationship has warmed since February, when they sparred during an infamous televised meeting at the White House.
Trump has since grown more hostile towards Moscow, showing mounting frustration with Vladimir Putin, while expressing sympathy for Ukraine.
Senior Ukrainian officials visiting the Washington this week met representatives of US weapon manufacturers including Raytheon, which produces Tomahawk missiles.
Zelenskyy will also meet arms makers to discuss when deliveries to Kyiv could begin, a source told Agence France-Presse. “But they need a political signal,” the source added.
Russia has warned that sending Tomahawks to Ukraine – which would put Moscow and other large Russian cities within range of missile fire – would rupture its ties with Washington and spark further escalation.
The source declined to disclose how many of the long-range missiles Trump is considering sending to Ukraine, saying only the arsenal would be “enough for Putin to feel it”.
Agence France-Presse contributed to this story
