
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has accused the Kremlin of "energy terrorism", since 4.5 million citizens in Ukraine have been left without electricity, as a result of Russian attacks on the country's energy network.
Zelensky has stated that the Russian army is losing on the battlefield, and for this reason the Kremlin has launched attacks on the country's energy infrastructure. In recent weeks, Russia has carried out large-scale missile and drone attacks on energy facilities in Ukraine.
The attacks come as officials say Russian troops are likely to withdraw from the key southern city of Kherson, the BBC reports.
In the last month alone, a third of the country's power plants have reportedly been destroyed, according to President Zelensky. As a result, the Ukrainian government has been forced to encourage the population to try to use energy sparingly.
"Tonight, about 4.5 million consumers were temporarily disconnected from energy consumption," said President Zelensky in his speech yesterday evening.
He said Russia's targeting of energy infrastructure was a sign of "weakness" as Russian forces fail to gain much ground on the front line.