Russian attack on Kyiv cuts power to half of city and leaves two dead

Original article by Dan Sabbagh in Kyiv

Two people were killed and 37 were injured by a Russian drone and missile attack on the Ukrainian capital that cut power to the western half of the city, leaving at least 500,000 residents without electricity.

Nearly 600 drones and 36 rockets were fired into the country in an attack that its president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said highlighted Ukraine’s need for western help with air defence, as well as other financial and political support.

“We must work without wasting a single day to ensure that there are enough missiles for our air defence systems, and that everything necessary for our protection and for pressure on Russia is in place,” Zelenskyy said.

A third person was killed in the surrounding Kyiv region, officials said. Two waves of attacks could be heard across the capital, the first starting at about 1am and the second around 7am before an all-clear was given just before 9.30am.

Ukraine’s military said it had struck the Afipsky oil refinery in Krasnodar Krai, one of the largest in southern Russia, causing a fire at the plant. The site supplies diesel and jet fuel to Russian forces fighting in Ukraine.

Russia is engaged in a campaign to break Ukraine’s civil resistance this winter by attacking its energy infrastructure as the war heads towards its fourth year. The attacks come as a series of key Ukrainian political figures have been embroiled in a corruption scandal.

On Friday, Andriy Yermak, Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, was forced to resign after his flat was searched by anti-corruption officials investigating a kickback scheme. Two other ministers have already been fired and the scheme’s alleged architect, an old friend of Zelenskyy, has fled the country.

Zelenskyy said on Friday that he would restructure the office of the president – which Yermak ran as a gatekeeper to the leader – amid speculation as to who might lead it or how it could be reorganised.

An opposition MP called for the president to appoint Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK and the former head of the armed forces. Liudmyla Buimister, a Ukrainian politician, wrote in a social media post that “a man trusted by the military, citizens and international partners is exactly what we need now”.

Zaluzhnyi has been considered a potential political challenger to Zelenskyy, though allies of the ambassador said on Saturday they were unsure he would agree if asked.

Overnight, Yermak told the New York Post: “I’m going to the front and am prepared for any reprisals.” However, it was unclear how he might serve the military. “I am an honest and decent person,” he added in a text message.

Yermak led Ukraine’s negotiating team over the past fortnight as Kyiv responded to a pro-Russia 28-point plan released by the White House. It demanded that Ukraine withdraw from Donetsk province and agree to a general amnesty, and that the west drop sanctions imposed on Russia.

Talks stalled this week during the US Thanksgiving holiday, but are expected to restart shortly. A Ukrainian delegation led by Rustem Umerov, secretary of the country’s national security council, has set out for Washington, Zelenskyy said.

On Saturday a US official told Reuters that Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner would meet Ukrainian officials in Florida on Sunday.

Ukraine has submitted a 19-point counter proposal, which has been shared with Moscow. Next week, Witkoff is due to arrive in the Russian capital, though few expect a breakthrough, since last week the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, described the Ukrainian leadership as illegitimate.

Kyiv’s position is weakened by the corruption scandal, easily the most serious domestic political crisis of Zelenskyy’s presidency, while Russia hopes its continued bombing and a potential financial crisis for Ukraine will wear it down.

Ukraine is hoping EU leaders will agree a €140bn (£122bn) loan secured against Russian central bank assets to shore up its budget from next year, but opposition from Belgium, where most of the money is held, has dimmed hopes of reaching an agreement by the end of the year.