KYIV: In response to Russia's recent attacks that left several cities in darkness and vulnerable populations suffering in sub-zero temperatures without hot or running water, Ukraine on Saturday set out to restore electricity and water supplies Worked.
The barrage of missiles was launched on Friday as President Vladimir Putin held lengthy meetings with the military high command in charge of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, where Moscow has increased the bombardment.
When air raid sirens rang out in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Friday morning, the subway had already shut down so people wearing winter coats could take shelter in underground stations.
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Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced on Saturday that metro service had resumed, water supplies had been restored, and heating had been restored to 75% of the city's residents.
Power was also restored in Kharkiv on Saturday, according to regional governor Oleg Sinegubov, after the strikes left the country's second largest city without power.
The emergency blackout was implemented by Ukraine's national energy company, which announced Saturday that the energy system "continues to recover."
Ukrainenergo warned that the extent of damage in the north, south and center of the country meant that restoring supplies could take longer than in previous attacks.
"The enemy continues to concentrate its efforts to conduct offensive operations in the Bakhmut and Avdeevka directions," Ukraine's military command said in a statement on Saturday, referring to the two cities in the eastern Donetsk region.
According to the statement, Russian troops were attempting to recapture lost territory around Limansky in the southern sector. According to the Kremlin, Putin asked his military leaders in Russia for suggestions on how to carry out Russia's offensive against Ukraine.
The deal was made public Friday by the Kremlin, with Putin chairing a roundtable discussion with top officials including Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
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Since October, Russia has launched airstrikes against what Moscow claims are military-related facilities after a series of humiliating battlefield defeats.
However, France and the European Union have argued that civilians were sentenced to death for war crimes, with the EU's top diplomat labeling the bombings "barbaric".
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the attacks targeted military and energy facilities in Ukraine, while also interfering with "transfers of arms and ammunition of foreign production".
In its daily briefing, the ministry informed that all the set targets have been achieved. Russia launched 74 missiles on Friday, most of them cruise missiles, according to Ukraine's military. Of these, 60 were shot down by air defence.
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the attacks disrupted water and electricity supplies to 14 regions, including Kyiv. Regional officials reported that 37 of the 40 missiles were destroyed by their air defense systems. Friday's airstrikes damaged a residential building in the central town of Kryvyi Rih, where Zelensky was born.
The missiles wounded 13 people and killed a 64-year-old woman and a young couple with a son, according to Governor Valentin Reznichenko on Saturday.
Fresh Russian shelling in Kherson killed a 36-year-old man and wounded a 70-year-old woman, according to Governor Yaroslav Yanushevich on Saturday morning.
He later said that a separate strike had hit a geriatric facility in the village of Stepanivka, close to Kherson, but that no one was hurt.
Since Moscow's forces withdrew in November, Kherson has been the target of ongoing Russian shelling, and earlier this week the city's electricity was cut off.
In response to an explosion at the Kerch bridge, which links the Russian mainland to the Crimean peninsula, which Ukraine annexed in 2014, Moscow claims it has launched attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure.
This week, Ukrainian defense officials reported that their forces had shot down more than a dozen Iranian-made attack drones that were launched over Kyiv, demonstrating the effectiveness of Western-supplied systems.
The nation's military chiefs have also warned that Moscow is preparing for a significant winter offensive, which could include another attempt to seize Kyiv.
Meanwhile, after Moldova suspended the broadcasting licences of six television channels due to allegations of misinformation, Russia on Saturday accused Moldova of "political censorship."
The decision was made, according to Moldova, which is located on Ukraine's southwest border, because of the "lack of correct information" in their coverage of national events and Russia's military operation in Ukraine.
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In retaliation for the EU's decision to impose additional sanctions on Friday, Moscow added new restrictions on the export of drone engines to Russia or nations like Iran seeking to provide Moscow with weapons.
According to Saturday's statement from Russia's foreign ministry, the new set of "illegitimate unilateral restrictive measures" would fail to accomplish its objective.