(NewsSpace.com) – It’s been more than two years since Russia invaded Ukraine and the conflict between the two is still going strong. Russia has hit its neighbor hard since the war started, hammering away at infrastructure where Ukraine has, for the most part, had its hands tied and been limited to defensive moves. It has received billions of dollars in munitions but cannot use the weapons to attack Russia directly. Meanwhile, President Vladimir Putin’s troops are continuing to hit Ukraine, causing rolling blackouts.
Ukraine Infrastructure Targeted
In early June, The New York Times reported that Ukraine was enduring emergency blackouts. Its skyscrapers were going half a day without power and its neighborhoods were using gas generators to run businesses while enduring blackened streets at night because there was no electricity.
The lack of power was a result of Russia continuing to bombard its substations and power plants with drone and missile attacks, severely damaging the country’s infrastructure and making daily activities even more difficult. As summer approached, Ukrainian authorities ordered rolling blackouts to keep its energy grid under control. Now, several weeks later, citizens are still dealing with the same issues.
Intensified Attacks Necessitate More Blackouts
On Saturday, June 22, Ukraine’s energy ministry released a statement acknowledging there had been eight enemy attacks on its energy system and its situation was still difficult, to say the least. “Due to the generation deficit,” the ministry said, “hourly consumer shutdown schedules will be in effect.” However, it did say there would be “no plans to increase the volume of restrictions on consumers.”
The ministry also reported there was an additional attack on the infrastructure that same day, which disconnected an overhead power line and damaged equipment at energy facilities in the western and southern regions. Shelling at one of the stations injured several workers.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed in a statement this month that Russia has destroyed or damaged more than half of its power-generating capabilities. As a result, he has called on the West to speed up their deliveries of air defense systems. Ukraine currently has four that were provided by the US and Germany. The Netherlands, Germany, the US, and Romania have pledged to send even more.
The air defense systems help Ukraine fight off aerial attacks, specifically missiles that are aimed at civilian or military infrastructure in the country. In the summer, people want to run their air conditioners, but if the power generation issues keep up, they will plunge into the cold, with at least six or seven hours a day of electricity at most in the winter months.
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