About 30% of energy infrastructure in Ukraine has been hit by Russian missiles since Monday, Ukraine’s Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said Tuesday.
The minister told CNN that this was the “first time from the beginning of the war” that Russia has “dramatically targeted” energy infrastructure.
He said one reason is because Ukrainian electricity exports to Europe “helps European countries to save on Russian gas and coal,” adding that Ukraine is trying “to reconnect quickly from the other sources.”
On Monday, the Ukrainian government urged people across the country to “limit” their energy use. Asked whether Ukraine would receive extra energy from Europe, Halushchenko said that was “one of the options on the table.”
The minister said the Ukrainian energy system “is still stable,” but called on partners to provide “air protection systems which really could help us to protect our infrastructure.”
“We send this message to our partners: we need to protect the sky,” he said. “Russians they are not playing on some games on international laws. They don’t care about any kind of international agreements or conventions.”
The Russian Defense Ministry on Tuesday confirmed it is targeting Ukrainian military and energy facilities in attacks.
