The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 88 missiles and 63 Iranian-made Shahed drones, of which 37 and 55 respectively had been shot down. Others, however, hit the country’s largest dam and caused blackouts in several regions, it said.
Several major power facilities were hit in the south-eastern Dnipropetrovsk region, including the country’s largest dam and the Dnipro hydroelectric power plant, one of Europe’s biggest.The country appeared better prepared and able to shield its energy infrastructure in the early months of the second winter of the war, but a delay in vital US aid has significantly weakened Kyiv’s ability to withstand attacks.
Citing sources with knowledge of the matter, the Financial Times reported that US officials were worried that a further rise in the country’s petrol prices could weaken Joe Biden ratings and undermine his campaign to win a second term as president. The Kremlin stepped up its hostile rhetoric on , saying it blamed the west’s intervention for putting it in a “a state of war” over Ukraine.
“Now it’s official. The special military operation is now recognised as a war,” she wrote on Telegram.