Russian strikes defy energy truce with new Naftohaz attack
Russian forces have once again attacked Naftohaz's gas facilities in Ukraine. This marks the 18th such incident since the beginning of the war and the eighth this year.
Russian forces have attacked Ukraine's gas infrastructure again, which is owned by the state company Naftohaz. As reported by the company, it was the 18th attack on its facilities since the onset of the full-scale war and the eighth this year.
Importantly, there were no casualties. However, the gas production facilities did sustain damage, Naftohaz stated in an official communiqué, as cited by the Polish Press Agency.
The president of Naftohaz, Roman Chumak, announced that specialists have already begun assessing the damage, and the reconstruction of the damaged equipment will commence immediately. - The latest shelling is not only an attack on our infrastructure but also an attempt to undermine the country's energy stability, emphasised Chumak.
The attack occurred despite the agreements made between 23-25 March in Saudi Arabia by delegations from the United States, Ukraine, and Russia. Following these meetings, it was announced that Kyiv and Moscow had agreed to a complete ban on mutual attacks on energy infrastructure. The Kremlin published a list of five categories of objects that the temporary moratorium would cover. The list included, among others, oil refineries, gas pipelines, power plants, and water dams.
Russian attack on Ukraine
On the night from Thursday to Friday, Russia launched a massive drone attack on Ukraine, using 163 drones. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that they managed to shoot down 89 drones, significantly limiting the impact of the attack. The Russian strike affected the Kharkiv, Sumy, Poltava, Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Zaporizhzhia regions.
Russian forces used 147 Shahed drones and other types of decoy drones. The Ukrainian Air Force Command, via Telegram, confirmed the shooting down of 89 drones in the south, north, and centre of the country. Additionally, 51 drones were neutralised through electronic warfare measures.
As a result of the attack on Poltava, civilian infrastructure was damaged. In the Dnipropetrovsk region, the destruction impacted infrastructure and an agricultural enterprise, as reported by Serhiy Lysak, head of the regional military administration. In the Odesa region, Russian shelling caused fires in garages and a utility building. Private residential homes were also damaged.
